Glimmers of Activity
While the median sales prices in 2023 have started to creep back up, they haven’t quite reached last spring’s peak in the Bay Area. San Francisco was hit harder by the pandemic, experiencing slower price growth during the pandemic boom. And the city has seen more pronounced price drops since the mid-2022 market shift.
The glimmer is that buyer enthusiasm is on an upswing. Many buyers have adjusted to the higher interest rates, and are moving forward with their home purchases. Even with this increased activity, sales activity is still down when compared to last spring. Mainly this is due to homeowners’ low interest rate mortgages which makes them pause on the decision to sell their properties only to purchase at a higher interest rate. This decrease in listing inventory has put upward pressure on select properties where we have seen the return of multiple offers.
Uncertainties persist, with inflation, fluctuating interest rates, stock market volatility, banking crises, layoffs in the tech sector, and the recent federal debt-limit negotiations in early May. However, the 2023 housing market has mostly shown resilience and a tendency to move in a positive direction, so far.
