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Sales Soar as Manhattan Condos Kick Co-Op Prices

Wed, 03 Jul 2013 08:25:02 +0000

“They have may have re-financed, and they may have taken out a second mortgage,” said Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel, a real estate appraisal and consultancy. “When they bought the home they may have figured out a way to put a small amount down, smaller than what the co-op actually knew about. It is the same problem here that it is everywhere else.”

Nationwide, more than 40 percent of homeowners with a mortgage are in a negative or near-negative equity position (less than 20 percent equity in the home), according to Zillow. Housing may be local, but this particular credit issue is national.

(Read more: NY’s Luxury Penthouse Shortage Pinches Prices)

Short supply pushed prices higher for Manhattan condominiums, but not for co-ops. Condominiums, which have a median price of $1.25 million, about twice that of co-ops, are being helped by foreign, all-cash buyers. International buyers tend to shy away from tough Manhattan co-op boards.

(Read More: Mortgage Rates Pressure Home Builders)

“Scarcity is an important issue, and when apartments are properly priced they are selling quickly. While there is great demand and small supply, buyers are reluctant to pay a price that is not justifiable,” said Hall. F. Willkie, president of Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales in a release. “Job growth remains strong in the city as does interest from both domestic and international buyers; this bodes well for a healthy market.”

Sales began to pick up dramatically this year, as fears of the fiscal cliff abated and optimism returned to real estate. While limited inventory would appear to make this a seller’s market, agents say savvy buyers are the norm in Manhattan, and that has kept price increases in check. While home prices in the rest of the nation were up just over 12 percent in May from a year ago, according to a new report from CoreLogic, Manhattan prices in general are not rising that fast.

Prices for co-ops, which account for 75 percent of the Manhattan market, were flat in the second quarter of this year, while the median price for a condo was up 14 percent from a year ago, according to the Douglas Elliman report. Larger co-ops saw bigger price gains, but for condos the gains were in studio apartments. Sellers are getting 98 percent of asking price, according to another report from Halstead Property.

(Read More: Pending Home Sales Soar to 6-Year High)

Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100860538

Yes, price cuts do still happen on the San Francisco market

Tue, 25 Jun 2013 20:06:37 +0000

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With all the news of a hot market, over-bidding, and homes being bought before they even hit the MLS, we thought a small dose of humble pie might be in order for San Francisco real estate. For instance, despite being 4 beds, 4 baths with a deck, backyard and lower level rec room, the Octavia Street home above hasn’t sold in over 25 days; not only that, it’s had to drop its price $300K in hopes of finding a buyer.

What will it ultimately sell for?

Condos

Condos have been in demand as well, but that doesn’t mean every single one flies off the market at over-asking price. This Bryant St. unit, a loft-like 1 bed, 2 bath with deeded parking, listed in early June for $649K and is now down to $599K.

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What price do you think it might actually get, readers?

Co-ops

Co-ops too, despite the (limited) allure of exclusivity and general rarity they enjoy, have suffered recent price-cuts. This classic example on Gough St., a 4 bed, 3,5 bath in Pacific Heights, has dropped from $2,850,000 to $2,695,000.

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How much will it finally fetch?

We’re hardly pointing out a major reversal in the market. As this infographic courtesy of Paragon Real Estate Group shows, May sales were heavily weighted toward at-or-above-asking prices.

May sales in SF sold largely at or above asking. Courtesy Paragon R.E., SF

Still, 10% of homes sold at less than asking (though not by much), proof of some (waning) buyer power still in existence.

Anna Marie Erwert writes from both the renter and new buyer perspective, having (finally) achieved both statuses. She focuses on national real estate trends, specializing in the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific Northwest, and writes for SFGate and CurbedSF. Follow Anna on Twitter: @AnnaMarieErwert

Article source: http://blog.sfgate.com/ontheblock/2013/06/25/yes-price-cuts-do-still-happen-on-the-san-francisco-market/

Climb Real Estate Group Launches Innovative New Real Estate Search Website

Sat, 22 Jun 2013 19:54:10 +0000

Climb Real Estate Group has launched a groundbreaking new real estate search website called Climb Explore, focusing on innovative visual display over map-based search.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) June 21, 2013

Climb Real Estate Group, the tech-powered Bay Area real estate residential brokerage, has launched a new alternative to map-based property search with the development of Climb Explore. In partnership with Pitch Interactive, Climb Explore has reinvented real estate search, not in a traditional map-based format, but by looking at search in a more graphic and visual manner. Climb Explore gets up-to-the-minute data directly from the same sources used by real estate agents and publishes homes using data visualization tools. This groundbreaking format is intended to serve a broad audience of buyers and sellers, professionals, and members of the general public interested in San Francisco and Bay Area real estate.

The new home search site features all available San Francisco-based properties including 89 different neighborhoods, all property classes including condominiums, TICs (Tenancy-in-Common), co-ops, 2-4 unit buildings, 5+ unit buildings, land, and commercial properties. Additional search criteria such as price, bedroom count, bathroom count, and parking will alter data in real time. Making the site real-time was paramount in the design of Climb Explore; when a user changes a search parameter, the search results instantly appear, providing the fast response time necessary for today’s consumers. Additionally, the level of interactivity of Climb Explore creates a more productive and richer experience.

“Our online visitors will now experience a more vibrant and seamless view of San Francisco real estate,” said Michelle Balog, Managing Sales Director for Climb Real Estate Group. “This valuable new tool represents a unique way for buyers and sellers in San Francisco to search for homes.”

The Climb Real Estate Group team, led by Technology Director Mark Choey, has been developing the new design over the past year, working with their internal staff and marketing to support the multifaceted mission of the company’s founding principle to reinvent residential real estate. Having created SFNewDevelopments.com, one of Climb’s flagship websites years before, Choey had been looking to take on real estate search for quite some time. However, he was looking to do something different. He says, “When looking at the state-of-the-art in real estate search websites, almost all sites start off with a big map of the area you are searching. Starting with a map to search real estate definitely has some benefits, but we also find this sort of user experience can be limiting. We wanted to approach the problem from a different angle.” After researching different opportunities, Choey was very impressed with the development team at Pitch Interactive, who are well known for creating interactive visualizations to illustrate complex data for technology clients. “I also really liked the fact that they had no experience in real estate. From that perspective, they brought in a crucial, unbiased viewpoint.”

“We wanted to take on the project because it was something new and challenging for us compared to the work we typically take on. Our first response when approached for this project was that we don’t do real estate. There are several real estate services that do a great job,” said Wesley Grubb of Pitch Interactive in a statement. “But after understanding Climb and the challenges of getting the best possible properties to clients, we wanted to take this on. Also, we really like the culture at Climb and felt that Climb fits well with our philosophy. Namely, the willingness to try something new and find a unique way to do something exploratory.”

With Climb Explore, consumers are offered a more engaging way to explore property through data visualization, which highlights target properties while giving access to other listings based within the same proximity of the search criteria. Grubb said, “The problem with current systems is that the search is limited and funneled. You get a limited list of properties based on what you search for. You rarely get to see the big picture or how related properties may look when you select multiple criteria.” This did not come easily. Through a complex algorithm, Pitch Interactive sought to provide enough information without overwhelming the user. Grubb said, “The most challenging aspect for us was searching for an explorative way to represent the data without overwhelming the visitor and without showing too few data points. “

The partnership is a result of Climb’s ongoing research and development efforts, many of which are focused on building new mobile and web-based experiences. The launch of the Climb Explore is an example of how Climb Real Estate Group plans to innovate the traditional real estate brokerage model — whether opening new office spaces in mobile Airstreams or developing essential digital properties — in new ways on both emerging and existing platforms.

“Climb Real Estate Group always strives to be on the leading edge of innovation — it is at the core of our company,” said Climb’s Marketing Director Chris Lim in announcing the successful release of Climb Explore. “We are working to engage home buyers everywhere in the Bay Area, now and in the future. Climb Explore encourages us to think about home search in a new way.”

For more information, visit http://explore.climbsf.com

About Climb Real Estate Group:

Climb Real Estate Group is a full-service general real estate brokerage with an emphasis on the purchase, sale, rental and marketing of select residential new developments, commercial and premier resale properties. They specialize in condos, high rises, lofts and homes in South Beach, SOMA, South Beach, Mission Bay, Rincon Hill, Potrero Hill and Central Waterfront. Our focus is on urban-style properties, specializing in new construction, historic loft conversions, live/work spaces, Victorian flats, modern condominiums, and stylish single-family homes. They also have exclusive access to off-market listings, foreclosures and developer specials.

About Pitch Interactive:

Wesley Grubbs is an artist, data visualizer and provocateur based in Berkeley, CA. In 2007 he founded Pitch Interactive, a studio whose focus is weaving code with design with statistics to find versatile solutions to communicate complex data for clients including Google, Wired, GE, Esquire, Scientific American, Popular Science and the

McKnight Foundation.

Built upon his experiences living abroad, degrees held in International Economics and Information Systems and his innate interest in the brain and cognition, Wes’ work focuses on revealing patterns about human behavior and how our actions impact our surroundings.

Pitch Interactive’s work spans illustrations, physical installations, console game user interfaces, software applications, websites and textiles. Their work has been showcased at the MoMA’s TalkToMe exhibit in in New York, the McKnight Foundation’s 30 year anniversary exhibit, the Foosaner Art Museum’s “The Art of Networks” exhibit, The Max Planck Science Express Train, the Data Flow books and many other internationally acclaimed publications.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebclimbexplore/climbsf/prweb10860647.htm

Article source: http://www.watchlistnews.com/2013/06/22/climb-real-estate-group-launches-innovative-new-real-estate-search-website/

Manhattan Property Sales Spike on Fears of Tax Hikes

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 01:07:52 +0000

The price gains, however, were largely on the luxury end. In looking at the median prices, where half sell for higher and half sell for lower, prices for co-ops were up just 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Condominium prices actually fell just under one percent. (Read More: Extravagant Home Features of the One Percent.)

The median price in the luxury market, however, was $4,440,150, up 7 percent from a year ago, according to Douglas Elliman. The luxury market represents the upper 10 percent of all co-op and condo sales.

“The year-end jump in sales was a function of proactive tax management by property owners. Although it wasn’t clear what form the tax hikes related to housing would take, it was assumed that 2013 would be higher than 2012,” noted Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel, which provides the Elliman report data. (Read More: Million Dollar Winter Wonderland Homes.)

Prices in Manhattan are still about 6 to 7 percent off their pre-recession highs, but low supply will likely narrow that gap in 2013. Strong demand from foreign, all-cash buyers is also boosting prices, especially in the condo market. Gains, however, may slip in the current quarter, as so much demand was pulled forward.

Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100351956

Zephyr Real Estate Is San Francisco’s No. 1 Real Estate Brand in 2011

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 20:47:58 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Feb 28, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) –
Zephyr has once again achieved the top spot in real estate branding
in San Francisco. Nearly one out of nine real estate transactions
last year involved a Zephyr agent, representing either the buyer or
the seller. This equates to over 11 percent of the single-family
homes, condominiums, co-ops, lofts, tenancies-in-common, and
two-to-four unit buildings sold in San Francisco, 38 percent ahead of
the nearest challenger.

Zephyr holds the No. 1 brand position for total dollar volume sold in
San Francisco as well, amassing over 10 percent of the market, based
on statistics from the San Francisco Association of Realtors Multiple
Listing Service. The success of the company is directly attributed to
the success of the agents, and Zephyr’s agents are among the most
productive in the City.

“Signs of an improving economy are beginning to appear, and we are
excited about the outlook and our brand position for the coming
year,” commented Randall Kostick, Chief Operating Officer of Zephyr
Real Estate. “Zephyr’s elite team keeps our brand in this coveted
position.”

About Zephyr Real Estate
Founded in 1978, Zephyr Real Estate is San
Francisco’s largest independent real estate firm with over $1 billion
in gross annual sales and a current roster of more than 200 full-time
agents. In 2010, Zephyr launched its new website, which has earned
three web design awards, including the prestigious WebAward for
Outstanding Website from the Web Marketing Association. Zephyr Real
Estate is a member of the international relocation network, Leading
Real Estate Companies of the World; the luxury real estate network,
Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate; and the local luxury marketing
association, the Luxury Marketing Council of San Francisco. Zephyr
has six strategically located offices in San Francisco, a business
center in Marin County, and serves a large customer base throughout
the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information, visit

www.zephyrsf.com .


        Contact:
        Melody Brown
        Zephyr Real Estate
        San Francisco, CA
        415.729.3555
        Email Contact

SOURCE: Zephyr Real Estate


http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/emailprcntct?id=410E6426C5003F79

Article source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/zephyr-real-estate-is-san-franciscos-no-1-real-estate-brand-in-2011-2012-02-28