The days grow shorter and shorter … last Friday 32,000 of us were at AT&T Park for a marvelous presentation by the SF Opera of Aida … and as the leaves turn, the Giants, back home, are now two games ahead in first place after winning 4-2 last night … That’s the good news. Soon the big end of season series and then PLAYOFFS.

A comparison: As a comparison of this week, look at same week, last month … while there were very nearly the same number of new listings (78 this past week vs 75 in August) the number of price reductions increased by 10% … from 106 then to 116 now. More good news, this for sellers and buyers (we needn’t be oppositional) … the week’s sales were up by 50% … 35 then vs 50 this past week. So we have slightly more inventory, 10% more reductions and 50% more closed sales. Interesting, eh?

Best news: 122 Alder, San Anselmo is now in escrow. Interesting how many people ‘felt’ they lost out. Truth … they didn’t get up and take a swing. That’s called a strike out for them, a victory for the buyer. (Buyers are still being encouraged to back up the offer but the buyer with the contract is the lucky one.) Want to see 122 Alder? Let me know.

Price reduction of note … Caroline Nelson’s 31 Bayview, San Rafael, a relist (was with another agent last year priced at $1,795,000) has been reduced over $100,000 and is now $1,015,000 …. a great buy at $558 per square foot … a three bedroom, single-level family home on an acre with GREAT view. … want to see, let me know!

Fixers and compounds … A search of Marin MLS showed that there are 21 homes listed as ‘fixers’ and 15 as ‘compounds.’ Of the compounds two are in San Rafael, four in Ross, one in Tiburon, three Novato (great buys) … 20 Rose, an eleven bedroom property in Bolinas was featured here in the past ($4,495,000) and Brooke MacKenzie of the MacKenzie Group is offering 2 Windward in Belvedere, reduced $500,000 (now just under $4M) .. this property features a four bedroom main home, a two bedroom in-law on a lagoon frontage, corner lot. Yummy!

Another blog responder wanted to talk about ‘the domino effect’ of supply and demand. “The supply of homes to sell is increasing while the demand is decreasing … a bad sign for values, right?” Yes, and the banks know of this imbalance … which is good news for buyers (I just presented an offer on a bank-owned Mill Valley fixer home for an internet buyer … over 2000 square feet of home priced under $500,000.)

On the supply side there is the soon-to-be-repossessed ‘shadow inventory’ which, as it comes on the market, drives prices down.

On the demand side, think of the consumer confidence index … dropping, unemployment at 10% with an additional ‘past unemployment’ rate and those state workers now underemployed (short hours) and all those of us ‘suffering’ reduced pay … the signs are great for buyers … now is a good time to buy IF you work at it. It is also a good time to sell … sooner, please, rather than later …. unless you foresee something improving the market … which I’d love to have you share with me!

Life is good … it is a marvelous adventure … so, email me, go to my website www.tomverkozen.com or call (415) 637-7974 and let’s have a chat and you get into advantaged liquidity. There are some intelligent, grateful sellers (along with some very squeezed sellers) and there are some stunning buys out there! Shop. Shop. Shop. 

Posted by:  Tom Verkozen