The latest numbers are in: Single-family homes were the overall winner during the holidays in San Francisco.
The median condo price was $1.1M last month, down from $1.2M in December 2019. There were 672 active listings last month compared to 1209 in November. This signals that properties either went into contract with an end-of-the-year urgency, or agents temporarily withdrew listings. Interestingly, the condo days on market (DOM) didn’t dramatically fluctuate; the DOM last month was 44, up from December 2019’s 39.
A total of 307 condos sold in December, and overbidding was not the norm. In fact, condos sold citywide for an average of one percent below the list price. Only four condos sold for 20% or more above the list price—three in Noe Valley and one in the Mission. It appears that sellers and listing agents are, for the most part, deciding on list prices that are closer to the targeted sale price.
Cash buyers weren’t exactly out in the condo market in droves in December. Only 24 units changed hands for all cash, including six in South Beach (all under asking).
The single-family home market was a different story. The median price actually increased year-over-year, moving from $1,450,000 in December 2019 to $1,583,500. (The high in 2020 hit in June, when the median price was $1.8M.) Houses were on the market for a median of 13 days—a bit shorter than the 15 DOM median in December 2019.
Only 266 houses closed last month, but overbidding activity was a little different from that of condos. Twelve percent of the homes sold closed for 20% or more over the list price. (The Outer Parkside and Central Sunset were overbidding hot spots, as well as lower priced homes in the southeast end of town.) Houses sold for an average of 2.34% over the list price citywide.
Homes in the $2.5M+ luxury market generally saw under-asking sales, with only three closing for 20%+. Buyers in this price range are more firmly in the driver’s seat at this point in time.
Similar to the condo market, cash buyers were at a minimum in December. Only nine percent of buyers paid cash for single-family homes, which included 11 sales in the 2M+ range.