March 2013 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

Hot Property: Built in 1904, this renovated Victorian on 22nd Street cost its new owners $2,890,000. The property, one of only five single-family homes sold in January, closed escrow in a mere 14 days.     Photo by Corrie M. Anders

A traditional lull and a scarcity of homes teamed up to put the kibosh on Noe Valley real estate sales in January.

Five single-family homes sold during the first month of this year, according to data supplied to the Noe Valley Voice by Zephyr Real Estate. That contrasted with 11 sales the previous month (and four transactions in January a year ago).

What’s really remarkable, though, is that not a single condominium changed hands in January 2013. In December, buyers snapped up nine units, and last January there were five condos sold.

The five detached-home sales that closed escrow in January were initiated in November and December.

Randall Kostick, Zephyr’s general manager, attributed the slowdown to the usual pullback in late fall, when potential buyers or sellers are focused on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Still, Kostick said he was startled that not a single condo sold during January. That was the first time that had happened since Zephyr and the Voice began publishing sales data 13 years ago, he said.

He said condo and house sales may also have been slow because there were too few homes available for purchase. In January, Kostick said, Noe Valley only had enough homes to last 1.3 months if the inventory were not replenished. By contrast, in January 2012, the neighborhood had a 2.2-month supply of homes for sale, and a four-month stockpile the previous January.

According to Kostick, a major reason for the lack of inventory was that Noe Valley and the city at large have been attracting growing numbers of new employees while current homeowners are staying put and not relocating to jobs elsewhere.

“It’s all influx and no outflux,” he said.

Two of the five sales were for dwellings that cost more than $2 million.

Buyers paid $2,890,000 for a renovated four-bedroom, 4.5-bath Victorian-style home located in the 3700 block of 22nd Street between Sanchez and Noe streets. The house featured 3,772 square feet of space, an in-law suite, and two rear decks with panoramic southern views, and sold in 14 days.

It took considerably longer—179 days—for the parties to close escrow on the second most expensive property, a home on a cul-de-sac in the 500 block of Valley Street between Castro and Diamond streets. Buyers paid $2,725,000 for the  two-story, wood-shingled house with four bedrooms, 3.5 baths, a gourmet kitchen, and 3,923 square feet of living space.

 

Noe Valley Home Sales*

	Total Sales	Low Price ($)	High Price ($)	Average Price ($)	Average Days on Market	Sale Price as % of List Price
Single-family homes
Jan. 2013	5	$875,000	$2,890,000	$1,929,300	80	95%
Dec. 2012	11	$837,500	$3,846,153	$1,600,241	46	101%
Jan. 2012	4	$749,000	$2,110,000	$1,133,500	86	99%
Condominiums
Jan. 20-13	0	—	—	—	—	—
Dec. 2012	9	$600,000	$1,555,000	$968,111	48	106%
Jan. 2012	5	$778,000	$925,000	$868,000	71	104%
2- to 4-unit buildings
Jan. 2013	0	—	—	—	—	—
Dec. 2012	6	$790,000	$1,700,000	$1,198,500	35	108%
Jan. 2012	3	$850,000	$1,342,455	$1,130,818	91	99%
5+-unit buildings
Jan. 2013	1	$2,300,000	$2,300,000	$2,300,000	61	105%
Dec. 2012	0	—	—	—	—	—
Jan. 2012	0	—	—	—	—	—

*‑ ‑Sales include all Noe Valley home sales completed during the month. Noe Valley in this survey is defined as the area bordered by Grand View, 22nd, Guerrero, and 30th streets. The Voice thanks Zephyr Real Estate (www.zephyrsf.com) for providing sales data.   NVV 3/2013

 

 

Noe Valley Rents**

Unit	No. in Sample	Range February 2013	Average February 2013	Average January 2013	Average February 2012
Studio	4	$1,495 – $1,900	$1,666 / mo.	$1,658 / mo.	$1,563 / mo.
1-bdrm	9	$1,800 – $3,250	$2,533 / mo.	$2,473 / mo.	$2,516 / mo.
2-bdrm	23	$2,500 – $4,850	$3,841 / mo.	$3,683 / mo.	$3,433 / mo.
3-bdrm	10	$4,000 – $6,900	$5,227 / mo.	$5,347 / mo.	$5,558 / mo.
4+-bdrm	4	$5,500 – $9,000	$7,063 / mo.	$5,733 / mo.	N/A

** ­‑This survey is based on a sample of 50 Noe Valley apartment listings appearing on Craigslist.org from Jan. 31 to Feb. 12, 2013.  NVV 3/2013