Wine Country Real Estate Trends – July 2015
Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Wine Country Group Results for July 2015:
The Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Wine Country Group had 74 closings in July 2015 compared to 71 a year ago and 60 last month. In July, we closed homes with a total value of $47 million compared to $51 million a year ago and $51 million last month. The average selling price of the properties sold by the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Wine Country Group in July was $635,514 compared to $676,442 a year ago and $842,310 last month. The Sonoma office led in July with 18 closings. The Healdsburg office had 15 closings. The Sonoma office also led in dollar volume with $18.5 million in closings while the Healdsburg office had $8.0 million and the St. Helena office had $6.8 million.
The Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Wine Country Group opened 51 new escrows for the month compared to 96 a year ago and 64 last month. The Group had 21 new listings compared to 42 in July 2014 and 18 last month. We currently have 65 pending sales with a value of $43 million dollars. It certainly was a slower month in new sales and listings than it was a year ago. We have 79 active listings with a value of $85 million dollars. Our average listing price is $1,079.000.
Wine Country Real Estate results for July 2015:
Sonoma County: The inventory of single-family homes and condominiums for sale in Sonoma County at the end of July continued to climb from June but was below last year’s levels. It stood at 914 homes compared to 838 last month and 997 a year ago. This is an 8% decrease on a year over year basis. I remember in the early part of the 2000’s, we routinely had 2,000 or more homes in inventory in Sonoma County. New sales (603) in July were 14% ahead of that of last July (531) and were 6% ahead of the pace of last month (571). There is just a 1.5 months supply of inventory in Sonoma County based on the current sales pace. The time it takes to sell a home in Sonoma County (Days on Market) is 58 days compared to 62 a year ago and 53 last month. This 55 to 60 day period to sell a home has stabilized for now. The median price of the 598 homes closed in July in Sonoma County was $519,000. This is an 11% increase over the median price in July 2014 ($466,000). The current median price is 12% below the peak median price for the County ($589,000) recorded in July 2005. I continue to expect that that spread will close in the next several months.
Looking to the south to Marin County for some hints to our market, the pace of sales has stabilized over the past five months and inventory started to decline there in July. Sales were 10% ahead of the pace of a year ago. Days on market there was 39 days in July and there is a 1.3 months supply of inventory. The median price has increased 7% on a year over year basis – so maybe the appreciation rate is leveling out.
Sonoma County Luxury Homes: About one quarter of the inventory in Sonoma County can be characterized as Luxury Homes (listing price in excess of $1,200,000). There has been an 24% increase in the number of Luxury Homes closed (313) from 8/1/14 to 7/31/15 compared to 252 from 8/1/13 to 7/31/14. There were 217 luxury properties in inventory at the end of July compared to 227 last month and 207 a year ago. Days on Market for the 38 Luxury Homes that closed in July was 80 days compared to 98 days a year ago. There is a 5.9 months supply of Luxury Homes based on the current sales pace – this indicates a “balanced” market between buyers and sellers.
Coastal Sonoma: The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale in Coastal Sonoma (Bodega Bay, Jenner and Stewart’s Point) at the end of July (33) was 11% below the inventory a year ago (37) and 22% ahead of the inventory last month (27). There were 7 new homes sold in July that compares to 7 a year ago and 7 last month. There is a 4.7 months supply of inventory based on the current sales pace compared to 5.3 months last year. The Days on Market of the 8 homes that closed in July was 114 days compared to 191 days a year ago and 122 days last month. Homes definitely take longer to sell on the coast.
Healdsburg Trends: The inventory of homes and condominiums available in Healdsburg settled slightly in July after rising for six straight months. Inventory stood at 71 homes at the end of the month. This is 5% below the inventory last July (75) and slightly below the inventory of last month (73). Sales also took a slight dip in July. There were 21 new sales in July compared to 23 last month and 18 in July 2014. The months of available inventory based on the current sales pace is 3.4 months. The Days on Market for the 21 homes closed in July was 63 days compared to 58 days a year ago and 54 days last month.
Petaluma: The sales of homes in Petaluma jumped 27% to 89 sales compared to 70 last month. This is also 35% higher than the pace of sales in July 2014 (66). There were only 61 new listings added in July so there was a net loss of 10 homes in inventory during the month. The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale (74) at the end of July in Petaluma was 11% below the inventory in July 2014 (83) and it was 12% below the inventory of last month (84). There is just a 0.8 months supply of inventory based on the current sales pace. This is one of the lowest levels of inventory in all of Wine Country. The median price of the 78 homes that closed in July was $549,000. This is 4% below the median last July ($570,000). The Days on Market for the closed sales for the month was 59 – the same as in July of last year. Sales continue at a quick pace in Petaluma.
Rohnert Park: The sales of homes and the number of new listings in Rohnert Park were essential equal last month. There were 55 new sales and there were just 24 homes and condominiums in inventory at the beginning of the month and 30 at the end of the month. There is now just a one half months supply of inventory based on this activity – this is the tightest market in all of Wine Country. If you are thinking of selling a home in Rohnert Park, it’s a good time to do it! The 30 homes in inventory at the end of July was 22% below the 36 homes in inventory at the end of July 2014, and the 55 new sales was 22% ahead of the 45 new sales in July a year ago. The Days on Market for the 60 homes that closed in Rohnert Park in July was 40 days compared to 54 days a year ago. The median price for the homes sold in July ($442,000) was 17.6% ahead of the median price of the homes sold in July 2014 ($376,000). This might discourage buyers moving ahead.
Santa Rosa: The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale in Santa Rosa at the end of July (306) was down slightly from the inventory of a year ago (321) and was slightly ahead of the inventory last month (293). New sales in July (246) were 4% ahead of last month and were 16% ahead of the pace in July 2014 (211). There is only a 1.2 months supply of available homes in Santa Rosa based on the current sales pace. The median price of the 233 homes closed in July in Santa Rosa was $470,000 compared to $432,000 a year ago – a 9% increase. The Days on Market for the homes closed in July in Santa Rosa was 52 days compared to 59 days a year ago.
Sebastopol Trends: The inventory reversed itself in Sebastopol in July and jumped almost 50% compared to June. The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale (64) at the end of July was 16% ahead of last year (55) and was 49% ahead of the inventory last month (43). There were 21 new sales for the month of July compared to 25 last month (-16%) and 38 (-45%) a year ago. With this jump in inventory and softened sales, there is a 3 months supply of inventory based on the current sales pace. The Days on Market of the 28 closed homes in Sebastopol in July was 70 days – the same as a year ago. It compares to 54 days last month.
Sonoma Valley: The number of available homes and condominiums for sale (121) in the Sonoma Valley (Sonoma, Glen Ellen and Kenwood) at the end of July was 10% below the level of last July (135) and was roughly equal to the inventory last month (119). Sales picked up after falling for two months in a row. There were 59 new sales for the month. This is 25% ahead of the pace of sales in July 2014 (47) and 34% ahead of the pace of last month (44). There is a 2.1 months supply of inventory in Sonoma based on the current pace of sales. The Days on Market for the 51 closed sales in Sonoma in July was 69 days compared to 77 a year ago and 46 last month. 45% of the inventory in the Sonoma Valley is priced at $1,000,000 or above. The high-end market was active in the Sonoma Valley in the past month. The inventory of homes priced in excess of $2,500,000 rose to 29 from 21 a year ago. Sales in this price range have remained relatively steady over the past twelve months. There is a 9.7 months supply of inventory of homes priced in excess of $2,500,000 based on the current sales pace and inventory – about the same as last year.
Windsor: The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale (67) in Windsor at the end of July jumped 78% from the inventory of 32 homes last month and was 33% ahead of the inventory at the end of July 2014 (43). New sales in July (33) were 37% ahead of the sales in July 2014 (24) and 10% ahead of the sales last month (30). There is a 1.7 months supply of inventory in Windsor based on the current sales pace. The median price of the 29 sales that closed in July in Windsor was $540,000. This is 9% ahead of the median price of a year ago ($495,000). The Days on Market for the closed homes last month was 51 days compared to 47 a year ago and 43 last month.
Napa County: The inventory of homes and condominiums available for sale in Napa County in July fell after rising for five months in a row. The inventory (368) is 16% below the inventory in July 2014 (437) and 5% below the inventory last month (389). New sales rose for the seventh month in a row. They totaled 165 homes and were 57% ahead of the pace last year (105) and 11% ahead of the pace of last month (149). There is a 2.2 months supply of inventory based on the current sales pace. The Days on Market for the 164 homes closed in July was 72 days which is the same as a year ago and compares to 69 days last month. The median price of homes closed in July in Napa County ($630,000) was 13% ahead of the median price of a year ago ($557,000). The current median price is just 7% below the peak median price for the County ($675,000) recorded in July 2006.
Napa County Luxury Homes: If one takes the highest quartile (25%) of available inventory as the “Luxury Market”, the Luxury Market begins at $2,400,000 in Napa County at this time. There has been a healthy increase in the number of Luxury Homes closed (62) from 8/1/14 to 7/31/15 compared to 48 from 8/1/13 to 7/31/14. There were 92 luxury homes in inventory at the end of July 2015 compared to 84 at the end of July 2014. There is a 11.5 months supply of available Luxury Homes based on the current sales pace compared to 12 months supply last year.
Napa: There were 204 available homes and condominiums in inventory at the end of July in the City of Napa. This is 16% below the inventory a year ago (243) and it is 9% below the supply last month (224). New sales (116) were 81% ahead of the pace of July 2014 (64) and they were 17% ahead of the pace of last month (99). There is a 1.8 months supply of inventory based on the current sales pace compared to a 2.3 months supply at the end of June. The Days on Market for the 113 homes closed in July in the City of Napa was 59 days compared to 60 days in July 2014 and 66 days last month. The median price of the homes that closed in Napa in July was $627,000. This is 16% ahead of the median price in July 2014 ($539,000). The median price in July is just 3.5% below the peak median price in the City of Napa ($650,000) recorded in August 2006. The market for sales was hot in the City of Napa in July.
Up Valley Napa County: The inventory of homes and condominiums for sale (114) in the Up Valley Napa County market (Angwin, Calistoga, Deer Park, Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena and Yountville) fell slightly after rising for five months in a row. The July inventory was 23% below the level of 148 in July 2014 and it was 6% below the level last month (121). There were 19 new sales for the month. This is 32% below the 28 sales a year ago and 21% below the 24 sales last month. There is a 6 months supply of inventory compared to 5.3 months a year ago. The Days on Market for the 26 closings last month was 133 days compared to 139 days in July a year ago and 72 days for the County as a whole.
Closings: The following agents enjoyed closings for the period from July 1, 2015 to July 31, 2015:
In our Healdsburg office: Debbie Adler and Mike Downes had three closings each; Diane Harris, Elissa Morrash and Gina Cleaver had two closings each and Debbie Hendershot and Tom Lawrence, Linda Farwell, Rose Macy and Ken Scharer each had a closing.
In our Napa office: Freddie Diaz had two closings and Milanda Capp and Kacy Kinder each enjoyed a closing.
In our Petaluma office: Paul and Joann Claeyssens had three closings each; Michael Arieta had two closings and Scott Murphy and John Stevens had a closing.
In our Santa Rosa office: Mark Payne enjoyed two closings and Sarah Carlson, Gina Michelle and Gina Romeo each had a closing.
In our Sebastopol office: Jeffrey Seligson enjoyed two closings and Parmeeta Ghoman, Bette Meritt, Liz Uribe and Martha Saly each had a closing.
In our Sonoma office: Eric Undercoffler enjoyed his first closing as a real estate agent – wishing him many more! Sheila Deignan enjoyed four closings; Erin George and Tiffany Knef and Michael Crain of Michael Crain Properties had three closings each; Leo Merle had two closings and Mara Kahn, Diane Krause, Dan Gallagher and Diane Litchfield each had a closing.
And, in our St. Helena office: Linda Alioto enjoyed a Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Wine Country Group leading six closings with Liz Manfree close behind with five closings.
Congratulations to all