December Marin County Real Estate Market Update

Here we are into December and our last update called the economic outlook as "guardedly optimistic" and that opinion still holds. There is hope for recovery although no one expects the economy to spiral upwards in the coming year. There are too many unknowns with tenuous Wall Street reacting to every bit of news that comes out of the White House and the Commerce Department.  As far as Marin real estate is concerned we are seeing a warming trend in sales and home prices. We are seeing homes in every price range selling and buyers picking up some incredible buys with cheap money. The fact that rates are at an historical low (5 year ARM's at 4%!) is keeping us busy and with the right guidance in pricing and marketing, sellers are moving on and putting on the buyer's hats and realizing that long term, they made the right decision to move now.

The inventory right now is 35% lower than it was in August with 888 homes on the market. The good news is that  just over 50% of those homes are currently in escrow. That is a huge difference from in August when that number was 28%. So what does that tell us? From a buyer's standpoint there are still incredible opportunities to grab in this fiscal year and if they want to wait until Spring there will be even more. For sellers, we know that buyers that buy over the holidays are serious buyers. They are motivated and make quick decisions so it may not be to your advantage to wait until Spring when there will be 30% more competing homes.  That fact will affect the value of your home and we may see an inching up in interest rates as well. Get the right advice so you don't fall into the "If only" trap come Springtime.

Contact us if you have any other questions about where your specific marin market stands today.