Atherton Sales Prices Stay Strong Despite Drop In Sales Volume

Sales prices in Atherton of luxury real estate stayed strong in the 3rd quarter of 2010 compared to the 3rd quarter of 2009.  Despite the economy and general gloom and doom news, it was surprising to see the prices jump for the Atherton real estate market.  Prices increased while the number of sales took a big dive, dropping almost 40%.  Since the inventory levels also took a huge increase, this means that the inventory is there, but buyers are being very selective.

Realtors and home sellers are hoping for an end of the year surge in sales.  The best case scenario for a buyer is in place due to the high amount of inventory on hand.  Atherton real estate was just named by the Wall Street Journal as the second priciest area in the country, coming in only behind an area of New York.  So, in essence, real estate in Atherton is the most expensive on the west coast.

Atherton                            Q3 2009         Q3 2010               Change

# of Sales                                  26                        16                       -38%

Avg Price (000)                   $ 3,424              $ 3,972                  16%

Avg DOM                                  94                         64                      -32%

Months of Inv.                     3.2                         13.3                    316%