The numbers are strong for real estate in Palo Alto with this month’s sales figures.  Watch the video to see all key sales numbers for the month of January 2012 compared to January 2011.

Desirable Palo Alto started off the New Year with many home sales exceeding asking price by crazy amounts. The year began with a total of 21 sales in the first 3 weeks of the month compared to 17 total closings in January 2011 and, on top of that, many of the homes were sold significantly higher than the listing price.

Palo Alto luxury real estate is on fire right now and some of the homes were high double digits over asking and most had multiple offers.  I don’t believe this is a case of real estate agents under pricing the home with the hopes of multiple offers as all the homes have been priced very fairly for the size, location and condition.  I think it’s a case of buyers with pent up energy looking for homes and just not enough inventory out there.  Going back to my days of basic economics, high demand and low supply means… overbidding.

This is a good sign for sellers of Palo Alto homes, especially for the homeowners who have been sitting on the fence and waiting to get out from under water as now is definitely the time to sell.

There are more, but just a couple of examples of recent Palo Alto homes for sale with high ratios of sales versus asking price are:

185 Walter Hays listed at $1,398,000 and sold for $1,655,000 in 7 days (18.4 % over asking price)

769 Rosewood Drive listed at $1,050,000 and sold for $1,515,000 in 4 days (44.3% over)

971 Maddux Drive listed at $1,195,000 and sold for $1,361,000 in a week (14.1 % over)

I work on a lot of off market sales too and information throughout our offices are further verifying the asking price to sale price ratios listed above.  Off market, or off  MLS, are probably 20-30% of sales happening in Palo Alto, Atherton and Menlo Park, so make sure your agent is well connected to get you in the game, or call me.

Palo Alto real estate is having a happy 2012!

Yes, I know it’s only been just over two weeks into the new year, but sales in Palo Alto have been very strong compared to the past couple of years.  The entire month of January 2011 had a total of 17 closed sales,  January 2010 had 23 closed sales and January of 2009 had only 12 closed sales for the entire month.  Well, so far in the first two weeks of January 2012, there has already been 19 closed sales as of  January 16th.  Obviously, it’s no guarantee that the rest of the month or year will stay on the same surge, but it’s definitely a good sign for real estate and the economy.

There is also a general buzz around our offices at the activity that is happening and the amount of buyers that are out there aggressively looking to buy or in the process of buying.  This hasn’t happened in several years so we are all working harder than ever to make sure our buyers don’t miss out on any opportunities, as they are going quickly! My guess is that this will cause prices to rise due to the number of buyers compared to the number of homes available for sale.  A good sign for sellers as I would suggest getting your home on the market within the next two months to take advantage of the situation.

If you are interested in listing your home for sale or finding a home, please give me a call.  The above numbers don’t include the very active “off market” transactions that are happening at a higher than normal rate as well.  We have a nice supply of those too!

The average sales price of a home in Menlo Park fell 7.8% for the month of October 2011 compared to October 2010.  The total number of sales for both periods were similar, which is good news, but the home prices were a little lower than expected.  The surprise number is that the average price per square foot rose, so that means people are paying less, but also for smaller homes.

All other numbers for the month look healthy for both buyers and sellers.  Luxury real estate in Menlo Park, Palo Alto and Atherton is still in demand compared to the rest of the country and nothing to complain about.  See the attached short video for all the key statistics.

A beautiful estate in Atherton has just lowered the asking price of their 7,000 square foot, 6 bedroom, 5 1/2 bath on over one acre property to $6.6 million. That’s a price reduction of $400k! The home also has a pool, large grassy yard, sand volleyball court and located next door to where Joe Montana lived several years ago.  Atherton real estate has fewer properties on the market this year compared to last year, but homes are still moving and Atherton was just named as the second most expensive zip code in the nation as was reported today in the Realtor.com article. The full list is an interesting read.

Atherton luxury real estate sales figures for the month of September, 2011 compared to September 2010.  As you can see, the numbers are staying steady as listing prices are way up, but sales prices continue to remain down a bit from last year.

A short video that shows the important real estate statistics for Menlo Park sales figures for the month of September, 2011 compared to September 2010. This is a good indicator on how the real estate market for Menlo Park is doing and helps buyers and sellers determine timing for buying or listing a home for sale.

I thought it would be fun to add a short form version of my longer tours and for now I’m calling them my 2 minute tour videos.  Here is one of my luxury listing in Atherton.  Atherton real estate is selling well this month and this home is getting many buyers looking with several return visits.  I look forward to your thoughts on this shorter form.

Yes, it is true.  A high end luxury estate in Atherton is priced to sell and has recently lowered the asking price.  The estate has three buildings on it – main home, guest house and office/artists studio for a total of over 6,200 square feet of living space.  This home is great for extended families, has a beautiful pool with slide, parking for 8 cars, and a large lot with fruit trees and sitting areas.  The main home is centered around the open floor plan of the combined kitchen and family room areas where your family will congregate around meals or entertaining.  Bedrooms are all generous in size and have their own bathrooms for that “suite” feeling and privacy.

The home has been reduced by almost $400,000 to sell quickly and the new asking price is $3,495,000.  Lindenwood Estate homes are in demand and this luxury estate is priced to sell.  Great Menlo Park schools and close proximity to public transportation and freeways.

Call me for a private showing or if you need any more information.

Area: Dollar Volume: Number of Sales
Central Menlo: $122,821,516: 62
County / Alameda Area: $67,163,500: 44
Allied Arts / Downtown: $50,725,625: 34
Willows / O’Conner Area: $47,499,890: 43
Menlo Oaks Area: $41,449,100: 21
Sharon Heights / Stanford: $35,012,600: 18
Middlefield to El Camino: $33,717,910: 28
County Area / Fair Oaks Ave: $24,399,875: 36
Flood Park Area: $24,246,275: 29
East of U.S. 101: $18,110,811: 61
Felton Gables: $9,250,000: 4
Alpine Road Area: $6,006,000: 6