San Francisco Rental Growth Softens Significantly
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- What started with some whispering among real estate agents is now the buzz of the San Francisco rental market.
Laura Gray with Paragon Real Estate said, "I wouldn't call it a crash, I'd call it a significant softening."
Charley Goss with the San Francisco Apartment Association said, "I agree, the rental market appears to be softening. We've seen it soften over the past three or four months."
Yes, the peak of the insanity appears to be behind us.
"Certainly on the higher end, rents seem to be dropping a little bit," Goss said.
If you want to see a spot where the rental market has measurably cooled, head to Fremont and Harrison streets in San Francisco's trendy, bustling, tech-infused South of Market neighborhood.
Let's start with 399 Fremont, where 'living is amplified' and right across the street is 340 Fremont, and two blocks down Harrison is Jasper, and at Fremont and Folsom there is Solaire. One thing all of these buildings have in common - they're all rolling out the incentives to fill rooms.
"Yeah, the higher end of the market has definitely suffered the most, just like it did in the 2008, 2009, 2010 economic crash. There's less people looking to throw $10,000 at a two-bedroom," Gray said.
But before you ditch your three roommates and go looking for a one bedroom - we should talk about the other end of the rental market.
Gray said, "Yeah, the lower end of the market - studios - they're holding stronger than the upper end, more luxury properties."
Goss said, "If you're an average earner, and you're looking for an apartment right now I'd say you probably have some more flexibility and some more options, but you're probably not getting much more relief in your pocketbook."
And as for what prices might look like a few months down the road:
"It's very hard to say. It depends on the economy, the upcoming election," Gray said.
Now, all it takes is a quick glance at Craigslist to see that things are still incredibly expensive here - but like an afternoon fog drifting in over the city, things are - in fact - cooling down.
"The frenzy is over, definitely," Gray said.
