Bay Area Housing Market Appears To Be Cooling Off
SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) -- Could it be the break Bay area homebuyers have been waiting for? New numbers show home sales are actually slowing.
Santa Clara County Realtors Association President Trisha Motter said, "We're not seeing the bidding frenzies or paying as much over list price as we were before."
It's a sign that the Bay Area's once red-hot housing market has cooled.
For instance, a house in South San Jose has been up for sale for three months and counting, something that would have been unimaginable a year ago.
Motter said, "The market has slowed down. Houses are staying on the market longer -- 29 days now for single-family, resale homes. So, it's taking longer now to get that right buyer through that door."
She says housing prices are nearly flat -- up only a modest 1.8 percent in August compared to the same time last year -- while overall sales are down.
All of that adds up, she says, to a subtle shift from a seller's to a buyer's market.
"Buyers are willing to wait a little bit for that right property to come along. And they don't want to get caught in a bidding war which is fantastic for those looking to take advantage of the marketplace right now," Motter said.
Motter is in process of selling a nearly identical home just across the street from the home that has been sitting on the market for months. She says the combination of the right price and a tasteful staging helped her snag a buyer in just two weeks.
"Before you could put your home on the market with no preparation and it would move quickly. Now, buyers are taking it a little bit slower. They have options," Motter said.
In Santa Clara County, homes sat on the market 29 days, on average, in August. Last year, it was just 23 days.
