Top 10 Reasons to Buy a Novato Home . . .

Below are 10 rock-solid reasons to buy a Novato home right now: 1) The widening of Highway 101, now in its final stage, is on target for a Q1 2009 completion. Because of the current construction efforts, traffic going south on HWY 101 can be bad. Traffic delays are expected to be reduced dramatically (by as much as 20 minutes from Novato to San Francisco — and this is 20 minutes off the pre-construction commute time when traffic was less of a problem). I think this factor alone will propel prices upwards once work is done. A 30-35 minute commute to San Francisco is fantastic. 2) Excellent Schools. Marin has many great schools and school districts. Novato is no exception. When its schools are compared to the rest of Marin County, the test scores are very similar. Although Novato’s schools don’t have the "reputation" of some of Marin’s other towns, Novato schools have some very high test scores. In fact, the highest scoring elementary school in all of Marin this year was Rancho Elementary in Novato (higher even than the scores of Bacich Elementary in Kentfield and Ross Elementary in Ross). 3) Shopping and retail stores. Novato has it all–from an expanded Costco and monster Target, to Sephora. It has a charming downtown with dozens of small boutique shops on Grant Street. Trader Joe’s opened this year. Whole Foods is set to open early next year (just a block or two from Trader Joe’s). 4) A relaxed and non-judgmental environment. 5) More "bang for your buck" housing options. There is a good mix of newer housing (ranging in prices from the $600’s to $2 million) and starter homes (there are even homes currently priced under $500K). And there is value in Novato like you won’t find anywhere else in Marin. And many neighborhoods filled with young families, activities, trails, wide streets, etc. — places such as Hamilton Field, Pointe Marin, Rush Creek, San Marin, Partridge Knoll, Loma Verde, the Fruit Loop, and more. 6) Tax base transfers. As more and more Marin homeowners enter retirement age, many are and will continue to downsize from their big and expensive homes into something more modest. Novato is the obvious location to downsize for those wishing to transfer their tax base because prices are relatively low, there is a large hospital in town, there is lots of senior friendly housing within walking distance to shopping, etc., and there is a large College of Marin campus with all sorts of offerings. Novato is also home to the Margaret Todd Senior Center. For more information on Propositions 60 & 90 (which permit homeowners who are 55 and older to transfer their Prop. 13 tax base, call Kyle at (415) 350-9440. 7) Restaurants. Novato is home to an increasing number of fantastic restaurants, including top-notch steakhouses, California cuisine, Italian, Mexican, sushi, Chinese, and family oriented rotisseries. Like chain food? Plenty of that too. Vast expanses of open space. Most neighborhoods are adjacent to open space for hiking, biking, etc. From many homes, you can simply walk out your back yard into open space. 9) A proactive and responsive city government. Plans are currently underway to expand the revitalization efforts of the downtwon area, including Grant Avenue. It is expected that over $20 million may be applied to these efforts, further beautifying Novato’s "Main Street" and attracting additional retailers and consumers to the area. 10) The "secret" is out and people are talking. Increasing numbers of people from Southern and Central Marin are moving to Novato.

Marin County, California, Luxury Homes Report (October 2007 Sales and Inventory Analysis)

Overall, the number of active Marin County luxury homes for sale dipped slightly in September 2007. In the $2 million to $4 million range, the number of active listings is significantly lower. Inventory was reduced by 16 homes–for a total of 129 homes active on the market–and 12 homes sold in this price range last month (down by 6 from August). Tiburon again accounted for the most homes sold in this price range with 4 sales. While we may not know the magnitude of the scope and duration of fallout relating to the sub-prime mortgage financing meltdown experienced in August, these numbers are down, which would be expected as consumer confidence took major a hit. But, historical data indicates that sales generally ease as we enter into the Fall selling season. And we can expect to see the number of homes on the market continue to drop for the remainder of the year as those who were unable to sell their homes over the past year take a break for the holidays, retrench, and look forward to the new year.

As noted above, Tiburon led the pack in sales last month with 4. Mill Valley, a monthly contender for this distinction, with its temperate weather, good schools, and easy commute to San Francisco via the Golden Gate Bridge, experienced just 2 sales last month. Kentfield and San Rafael also had 2 sales. Delightful and desirable Belvedere had just 1 sale. Overall, the luxury home market in Marin County was sluggish: the average days on market was 103 days (down by 7 days from the previous month), the average sales price about $3.062 million (roughly $818/per sq. ft.), and these homes averaged about 3,200 square feet. Price, curb-appeal/landscaping, and tasteful staging are of utmost importance.

The inventory level in Marin County’s ultra-luxury market (homes priced in the $4 million and up range) remained static with 39 active homes on the market–same as last month. Tiburon, as usual, boasts the largest number of such homes with 15. It is followed by Belvedere with 10, Ross with 5, and Kentfield with 4. Six of these homes sold last month (there 5 such sales in August) and Tiburon accounted for 3 of them. Another 4 of these ultra-luxury homes are currently in escrow (1 in Belvedere, 1 in Kentfield, 1 in San Rafael, and 1 in Sausalito). Homes in this category averaged about 138 days on the market (down by 60 days), sold for about $5.25 million, and had well over 5,000 sq. ft. of living space. Currently, Marin’s most expensive home is a unique gated Tiburon estate sitting on eight acres with stunning views and resplendent gardens–asking price: $38.5 million.

Marin Cities & Towns	$2 Million ? $4 Million		$4 Million & Up
	Active	Pending	Active	Pending
Sausalito	6	1	0	1
Belvedere	9	2	10	1
Tiburon	23	4	15	3
Mill Valley	26	3	2	0
Larkspur	8	2	0	0
Corte Madera	2	0	0	0
Kentfield	11	0	4	1
Greenbrae	2	0	0	0
Ross	4	1	5	0
San Anselmo	10	1	0	0
San Rafael	9	2	2	1
Novato	6	0	1	0

Above is a graph identifying the numbers of active listings and homes in contract in the Marin County, California luxury and ultra-luxury home market segments. Note that all homes in contract are included in the category ?Pending? even though some are technically ?Contingent? properties. Also, the information is limited to Marin County’s Highway 101 corridor towns and cities that consistently maintain a monthly inventory of luxury and ultra-luxury homes (e.g., towns without a consistent luxury market and beach homes are not included here). Call Kyle Frazier, CRS, Broker Associate, Frank Howard Allen Realtors of Marin, at 415/350-9440 with any questions about a particular neighborhood or your situation. You can also e-mail Kyle at [email protected].

San Rafael Real Estate Market Update (October 2007 Home Sales Report)

The San Rafael housing market continues to show some signs of strength, as it has the past several months. Inventory is up slightly to 153 homes currently active on the market–up by 11 from last month. San Rafael’s bread and butter homes (those priced between $750,000 and $900,000) continue to sell if priced correctly. As always, homes that are nicely maintained, updated, and/or located in the most desirable neighborhoods continue to sell, although we are seeing buyers exercise great discretion when placing offers and negotiating terms. Indeed, whereas buyers used to settle for homes that had 5 or 6 of their top 10 wants or needs, buyers are now waiting for homes that fulfill 8 or 9 of their top 10 wants or needs.

Of the 25 homes that sold during the past month (San Rafael had 27 home sales in September 2007), they averaged about 61 days on market, for an average price of about $987,000 (about $517 per square foot). Eleven of the homes that sold in September 2007 were priced under $800,000 and another 9 homes were under $1 million. The strongest micro-climate markets during the past month included The Dominican, Glenwood, Terra Linda, Marinwood, and Lucas Valley. In the luxury home segment, a Queen Anne style home in Forbes sold for over $3 million. 

For a brief outline of the importance of the percentage of homes in “Pending” status, click HERE. Feel free to contact Kyle Frazier, CRS, Frank Howard Allen Realtors with any questions: (415) 350-9440.

Mill Valley Real Estate (October 2007 Home Sales Report)

The inventory of single family homes in Mill Valley rose slightly to 77 units from last month’s 69. Same as last month, just 14 homes are currently on the market under $1 million! As always, the commute to San Francisco from Mill Valley via the Golden Gate Bridge (a short 5-10 minutes), along with the excellent Mill Valley schools, pleasant weather and laid back ambiance is very attractive to just about everyone. Accordingly, prices and sales are ever-strong. Indeed, Mill Valley is THE place people thinking of moving out of San Francisco generally start with when they decide to buy a home in Marin County.

Mill Valley homes priced between $1 million and $1.5 million (Mill Valley’s bread and butter homes) continue selling so long as they are nicely maintained, updated, and/or located in the most desirable neighborhoods–8 of these homes sold in September 2007 (down by 2 from August’s sales numbers). As with much of the rest of Marin, homes priced aggressively are getting multiple offers—note: the winning bid (which is not always the highest bid) is likely to be a couple of percent above asking price, depending on the home ad price. Mill Valley luxury home sales slowed last month with just 2 homes selling in the $2 million – $4 million price range.  None of Mill Valley’s ultra-luxury homes (in the $4 million and up range) sold in September. 

Mill Valley homes that sold during the past month (there were 19 home sales, compared with 32 in September 2007) averaged 54 days on market and sold for an average price of about $1.4 million ($739 per square foot). The hottest market segment was the $1 million to $1.5 million price range with 8 sales (the inventory of homes in this price range is just under 3 months).

 

Homes in Tam Valley, Strawberry, Sycamore Park, Blithedale and Cascade Canyons continue to be in low supply and high demand. If you would like me to run the exact numbers on your neighborhood, just give me a call at (415) 350-9440.

Marin County Real Estate October 2007 Update (Homes For Sale & Price Ranges)

As we enter the Fall selling season, the number of homes for sale (inventory) in Marin County, California continues to march onwards and upwards. There are 788 active listings (up by 49 over last month). This month we begin to see more and more homes come off the market as sellers bunker down and reassess their situations over the holidays.

Meanwhile, savvy buyers will continue picking-off the properties that remain on the market. While the air has chilled with the onset of Fall, buyers have warmed to the market and sales have increased–lots of these buyers are coming in with large down payments and short contingencies to bolster their negotiating leverage with sellers anxious to make a deal. Novato continues to be a buyers’ dream with prices down and sellers more than willing to do what it takes to sell.  

The graph below breaks down the current number of homes for sale in Marin County, California, as of October 1, 2007, along with the price ranges for each town/city. Also included is a note indicating whether inventory is up or down over the past month:

Marin Single Family Homes For Sale

 

Some observations: living in Belvedere can be expensive–you’ll need a good $2.5 million to buy at the entry level. Alternately, Belvedere also offers one of Marin’s finest ultra-luxury homes at $18 million, replete with an infinity pool and views overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. The highest priced home in Marin, however, is an ultra-luxury Tiburon estate on about 8.5 acres, with 12 Bedrooms, 10 full baths and 3 half baths (it also boasts some very nice views). In fact, Tiburon currently has 5 homes in the $10 million and up range.

The average asking price for homes in Kentfield is just under $3 million (about $900 sq./ft.), with an average days on market of 106 days. Note that Kentfield currently has 4 homes priced under $1 million. Meanwhile, Greenbrae’s desirable location, schools (which shares Bacich Elementary and Kent Middle School with Kentfield), and views continues to propel home prices upwards–the cheapest home in Greenbrae is now well over $1 million ($1.195 million). And Mill Valley, despite over 80 homes on the market, has just 13 homes priced under $1 million.

On the other hand, Novato has 25 homes priced under $600,000 and another 39 priced under $700,000–that’s 64 homes under $700,000 in Novato! Novato’s 239 active listings is most in Marin County (and up 4 from last month).

If you desire a list of Marin County’s best deals or more specific analysis of your neighborhood, please give me a call at (415) 350-9440

Marin County Lease-Option Agreements (Rent-to-Own)

Marin County, when it comes to real estate prices and trends, is said to “march to its own drummer.” This is because Marin County home prices are remarkably resilient even when other real estate markets are suffering. Nonetheless, there are neighborhoods where prices are down and/or sales are slow. Owners of homes and condos in such areas are becoming more and more receptive and lease-options (a.k.a. “rent to own”)–a viable alternative to the traditional purchase agreement transactions most people and Realtors are familiar with.

Over the past ten years we saw very few lease-options because prices were on the rise, so sellers were reluctant to enter into such an arrangement for fear of losing out on substantial appreciation. In addition, lease-options are not considered a “high percentage” move for sellers because often the buyers were simply unable to obtain financing, had no money for a deposit or closing costs, and often had sub-par credit scores (referred to as “The Renter’s Trifecta”). Of course, there is an ever-present population of buyers seeking out lease-options.

And anecdotal evidence suggests that there are many people in Marin who sold over the past 2 years (at the height of the market) who are now renting, waiting to pounce on the right property. Many of these folks are more than willing to enter into a lease-option arrangement as it gives them a purchase price established by today’s market, along with other substantial benefits discussed below. These are not cash-strapped buyers with poor credit facing The Renter?s Trifecta, but rather they are strong buyers with cash, savvy, and a very real desire to buy (and take part in the tax benefits of home ownership).

Lease-options have 3 basic parts: a lease, an option, and a purchase offer. There are substantial benefits to buyers, including: 1) they lock in a price (and if prices go up, they benefit from the equity); 2) relatively low up-front cash requirement; 3) some portion of rent is credited toward purchase price; 4) they can live in the home (and experience its benefits and drawbacks) before exercising their option; and 5) it allows buyers to inspect a property before ever committing to a lease, let alone committing to the option.

While lease-options are not always a good fit for sellers, they are often a perfect fit. Sellers benefit because: 1) there are always buyers looking for lease-options; 2) it is a sensible method of getting out of the landlording business; 3) lease-option buyers tend to take better care of the home or condo as they may exercise their option one day; 4) lease-options permit many sellers to cover expenses relating to home ownership when the market is slow; and 5) option money is non-refundable and not taxable until the buyer exercises (or not) the option (there are also benefits relating to depreciation and deferred gain via 1031 exchange). Of course, the above does not constitute legal or tax advice and you are encouraged to consult with the appropriate professional regarding legal and tax implications under your unique circumstances.

If you are curious how a lease-option may work in your circumstances, call Kyle Frazier, CRS (Broker Associate, Frank Howard Allen Realtors — Marin) at (415) 350-9440. Let Kyle’s lease-option (rent-to-own) and marketing experience work for you.

Novato Real Estate Market Update (October 2007 Home Sales Report)

In Novato, more than any other town in Marin County, California, homes MUST BE PRICED FOR TODAY’S MARKET. They must also be nicely maintained, updated, and/or located in a desirable neighborhood if they are to going to sell. Listing agents often say that location, price, condition, and marketing are the four most important pieces of the puzzle (not necessarily in that order), when it comes to selling homes. They also say that the price can overcome all other issues a home may have. Indeed, you can sell a leaky shack next to a nuclear plant if the price is right. The point is–sellers must price their homes correctly if they are to sell.

In any event, by all accounts, showings are on the rise in Novato. There are lots sales with big down payments and short escrows. For others, it seems they are waiting to see what happens with prices (although they may learn a hard lesson in mortgage math as interest rates rise in the coming months). Indeed, with the percentage of homes in escrow nearing all-time lows in Novato, this is possibly one of the best markets buyers are going to see for a long time. 

Homes in Novato that sold in September 2007 (there were 14 home sales–down by 15 from August 2007) averaged about 71 days on market, for an average sales price of $820,000 (roughly $416 per sq./ft.). Homes in Hamilton Field, Pointe Marin, Presidents, Rush Creek, Indian Valley, San Marin, and Partridge Knoll continue to get robust numbers of showings, as do the new luxury homes at Stonetree.

For a brief explanation of the importance of the statistic addressing the percentage of “Pending” listings, click HERE. If you would like me to run the exact numbers on your neighborhood, just give me a call at (415) 350-9440. It is my pleasure to be of service.