Real Estate Market - Oakland Condos

August’s condo market in Oakland was something of a numerical mixed bag.  Of course “we all know” (those three little words that signify something coming up that many of us think we know) that the real estate market has cooled significantly from 2004-2005.  And some of the condo numbers support this quite neatly.  The expired to sold ratio, for example, has risen from 3.6% last August to 48.2% this August.  What’s interesting however is that unit volume has remained steady, meaning more units are being offered.  Fifty-six units were sold both this August and last August, with two expiring last August to this August’s twenty-seven.

This August, the median sale price for a Condo in Oakland was $399,000, a 2% increase over last year’s median of $390,950.   At the same time, however, the average sale price dropped 5.5%, from $416,252 last year to $394,669 this year.  Curiously enough, sellers are offering their units at almost exactly the same price this year ($394,732) as they were last year ($394,637), but last year they were getting 5.5% more than list, while this year pretty much they’re getting list price.

The average condo that sold took 37 days to sell in August, as opposed to 24 days last year.

Oakland Condo Inventory Tops Seven Months

Traditional wisdom is that when the market adjusts downward, the first segment of the market to feel the price drops is the condo market. Today I thought it would be illuminating to look at condo sales for July of 2006 in Oakland, to see how much the sales are off. Sure enough, the median sale price is down slighty (2.04%), from last July’s median of $393,000 to this July’s value of $385,000. On a sold price per square foot basis, however, prices are down only by a very slight margin, of .21%.

Meantime, inventory is quite high at 7.6 months, and many of the units that are for sale are expiring. Last July, five units expired versus 52 sold, for an expired to sold ratio of 9.6%. This year the numbers are 22 expireds to 37 solds, putting the ratio at 59.5%.

The average condo that sold through the MLS in July of 2006 listed for $415,837 and sold for $418,795. The median sale price was $385,00.

Oakland’s Real Estate Bubble That Wasn’t

OK, I’m as willing as the next guy to admit when the market’s not going well. In fact, I write about it not going well a lot over in the Sacramento area, but I still manage to get some grief about not painting a dark enough picture.

You can’t please a pessimist. I guess that almost falls out by definition.

But look — pessimist, optimist, or whatever, find the bubble in the following chart of real estate prices in Oakland. Can’t do it, can you?

I know, I know, it hasn’t burst yet, right? Yeah, whatever. Maybe the market here’s just doing great!  That straight trendline is what Excel drew, by the way.  Someone call Bill Gates and tell him we’re supposed to be failing here…

Oakland Real Estate Market, July 2006

July’s numbers in Oakland have slowed significantly from last year, but there still appears to be strong demand for those homes that buyers consider attractively priced.  Even though unit volume sold in July was down 29% from last year (based on 347 units sold through the MLS in July of 2005 versus 247 in July of 2006), the average home that sold in Okland in July still fetched 2% more than the asking price.  (Last year, homes fetched 7% more than asking, on average).

The average home that sold in Oakland in July sold for $436 per square foot, up about 1% from last year.  The average home listed for $620,729, and the average selling price was $631,257, a 2.6% gain from last year.   The median sale price of $533,000, similarly, was up 2.5% from last year.

Expired listings have about trippled from last year’s figure of 40 total expireds in July to 125 this July, bringing the expired to sold ratio up from 11.5% last year to 50.6% this year.  Inventory currently stands at 1246 units, or 5 months worth.

Oakland Real Estate Market, June, 2006

Oakland’s real estate market in June showed some slowing from the same time last year, but the numbers overall were still fairly strong.  Homes in Oakland are still selling for more than list price, however the intensity of the bidding war has slowed.  Last June homes sold for 8% avoe list on average, while this year the figure is 3% above list.

The average home that sold in Oakland in June listed for $620,322, and sold for $641,296.  The median sales price was $550,000.

In terms of appreciation, the average sale price is up 6.38% from last year, with average sold price per square foot quite close to that figure at 6.47%.  The median price increased 7.11% from last year.

Average days on market for homes that sold is actually down from last year — from 26 days last year to 23 days this year.  However, unit volume is down 22%, from 414 units to 322.  The expired to sold ratio is up to 29.5% compared to last year’s figure of 8.9%.

Oakland Market Update - May 2006

May’s residential sales numbers in Oakland show a fairly significant slowing on all fronts from last year. Sales volume by units was down some 24.7%, based on 368 units sold in May of 2005 versus 277 units sold in May of 2006. With expireds being up from 28 to 83 at the same time, the ratio of expireds to solds changed from a remarkably low 7.6% last May to 30% this May.

Still, not all was doom and gloom in Oakland in May. Days on market for those homes that did sell were up only slightly, from 21 days last May to 25 this May. And homes are still selling for an average of about 3% over list price, suggesting that there’s still fairly intense competition for the bargains.

Overall, the average home sold in Oakland in May for $623,608 (up only 4.6% from last year). The median sale price of $515,000 was a .4% drop from last year’s median sale price of $517,000.

Oakland Market Update - April 2006

April’s sales figures for Oakland California residential real estate were down somewhat from last year’s numbers, but still have many indications of a strong market.

283 residential units sold in April, down 30.7% from the figure of 370 residential units a year ago. Appreciation was 10.5% from year to year on a median price basis, but on a sold price per square foot basis the appreciation was a more modest 3.7%. Days on market are up, but not alarmingly so. Last April the average sold home spent 22 days on the market, while this year the average was 26 days.

Moreover, homes are still selling above listing price. Last year’s average sale price was 8.6% over the asking price, while this year the average home sold for 3.1%.

Inventory is currently at 3.6 months.

Oakland Real Estate Market

Oakland’s real estate sales in March of 2006 were slowed slightly from last year, but the slowing is less than in other California markets.

The average home sold in Oakland in March for $613,962, or 102.8% of the average list price of $597,270. The median sale price was $530,000. Prices have appreciated 12.6% on average, though on a cost per square foot basis the growth was a more modest 8.6%.

267 residential units sold through the MLS in March, down 21% from last March’s unit volume of 338. Days on market are up only slightly as well, from an average of 23 days last March to an average of 27 this March. There are just over 3 months of inventory at present.

Expireds as a total of expireds and solds are up, from 8% last March to 27% this March. This is a dramatic looking increase, but still well within the “sellers’ market” range.

Oakland Real Estate Market Update

Oakland’s real estate market roared along in October. Unit volume was off slightly, pushing inventory up, a development that’s hard to understand in terms of the other numbers.

The average single family home in Oakland sold for $625,838 in October, a 20.6% increase over last October’s average sale price $518,752. Cost per square foot increased an even more dramatic 23.7%, from an average of $367 last October to this October’s average of $454.

Last October the average sale price ended up 5.2% higher than list price, and this year that number went even higher, with the average home selling for an incredible 7.9% over the asking price. Moreover, days on market have decreased from last year’s 22 to 20 this year.

The only fly in this otherwise tasty Oakland residential oatmeal is unit volume, which is down compared to last month and last year. 251 units sold in October, as against 369 last year and 340 in September. Because October’s unit volume was off, the inventory figure that relies on this number is also up from September’s 2.3 months worth to this month’s figure of 3.2 months.

Oakland Real Estate Average Prices

The table below shows the average prices for a single family residential home in Oakland California for October, 2005. This is based on MLS data for single family residential homes of all types (including detached, condos, etc.) for October, broken down by zip code. We’ve also included the appreciation in the average price since the same time last year.

Oakland Real Estate Market, September 2005

Oakland real estate sales in September were quite strong. If there’s a real estate bubble bursting somewhere, we can’t prove it by our Oakland market numbers. 329 residential units were sold in Oakland in September, and although the total unit volume is somewhat less than last September’s 397 units, homes are selling slightly more quickly than at the same time last year. Average days on market this September is 23 days, as against last September’s 26 days.

The average price of a home sold in Oakland in September, 2005 was $574,932, up 14.3% from last September’s average price. The median price this September was $515,000.

There were 768 residential units in inventory as of 10/14/2005. Based on September’s sales, this represents 2.3 months worth of inventory, significantly less than the 3-4 months that we commonly find in other areas.