San Francisco Sales Activity In December: Down Again (-24.4% YOY)
According to DataQuick, sales volume for existing homes in San Francisco fell 24.4% on a year-over-year basis last month (445 sales in December ’07 versus a revised 589 sales in December ’06) and fell 7.1% compared to the month prior (479 recorded sales in November ‘07). And as we’ve noted over the past two months, the data once again suggests that October’s uptick in reported sales activity was at least partially driven by a delay in September closings rather than a significant rebound in buyer activity.
The median sales price in December was $731,000, down 1.9% compared to a revised December ’06 ($745,000) and down 10.3% compared to the month prior. That being said, we continue to believe that mix is playing a significant role in supporting the median.
For the greater Bay Area, sales volume in November was down 39.5% on a year-over-year basis and fell 1.2% from the month prior (5,065 recorded sales in December ‘07 versus a revised 8,372 in December ’06 and 5,127 this past November). The recorded median sales price fell 4.9% on a revised year-over-year basis and was down 6.6% compared to the month prior.
Last month was the slowest December is DataQuick’s statistics, which go back to 1988. Sales have decreased on a year-over-year basis for 35 consecutive months. Until last month, the slowest December was in 1990, when 5,458 homes sold. The strongest December, in 2003, saw 12,349 sales. The average for the month is 8,903.
At the extremes, Sonoma recorded a 48.5% year-over-year reduction in sales volume and a 21.9% drop in median sales price, while Napa was the best performing Bay Area county with no change (0.0%) in it’s Median Sales Price (but a 43.3% drop in sales volume).
∙ Bay Area home sales drag along bottom, median price back to 2005 [DataQuick]
∙ San Francisco Sales Activity In November: Back Down (-15.7% YOY) [SocketSite]