Last week Foster City had 43 condos and townhouses for sale with an average list price of $575,946.  These listings, had a median size of  2 bedrooms and 3.5 baths according to Altos Research our research company.  Frankly I find that interesting since almost all condos have 2 baths and townhouses have 2.5 baths.  Right now, it’s taking about 2 months for a property to sell.  Only about 1/3 of these listings are seeing price reductions so they are generally being priced to market and that’s good.  These are generally great values and allow buyers to get into Foster City, one of the communities around here that has generally held value over the real estate roller coaster these past two years with great schools, loads of parks and outdoor activities around, plus an easy commute across the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge to the east bay or up or down 101 to San Francisco, South San Francisco, Palo Alto or San Jose.  Foster City sits in the middle of San Mateo County making it an easy commute almost anywhere.

Looking at the price trends for Foster City condos and townhouses above, the chart shows prices have held over the past 18 months so it’s a great time to consider buying here.  The peak of the Condo/townhouse market in Foster city was in March/April of 2007.  The bottom, which most everyone missed, was January through March of 2008.  We’ve held steady every since.

Comparing Altos Research to Zillow’s home values estimates you can see some parallels.

We live in, and know, Foster City’s market. If you’re interested in buying here give us a call or hit the contact button on the sidebar. Let us know what you’re interested in and we’ll help you find it. Take a look at what’s currently for sale in Foster City condos and townhouses today, below.

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©2010 The Wilkas Group. All Rights Reserved.

©2010 The Wilkas Group. All Rights Reserved.

It’s a Spring Real Estate Market and the number of listings in Foster City for condos and townhouseshas gone up to 56.  The average price is $569,064 and that’s been pretty level for the past couple of weeks. Condos and townhouses are selling in a shorter number of days and have always been a good way to enter Foster City’s schools at a reasonable price.  We’re looking at the median condo being 2 bedrooms and 2 baths, about 1350 square feet in size, and about  30 years old.  This median sized condo, at this price, is a bargain in comparison to some of the small houses in nearby communities.  Plus, Foster City’s elementary schools score high in all testing.

The many condo communities in Foster City offer some nice  amenities and differ in layouts.  Some communities look like townhouses, and some are multiple level.  Sand Harbor. Isle Cove and The Islands have many units facing the water.  Most all have pools, tennis courts, parks nearby and other amenities.  There are also true townhouse communities in Foster City.  These homes are more like row houses.  They own the land they’re on, they are larger then the condos, and have yards attached, either in the front or back, or for some, both.  Both kinds of homes are PUD’s (Planned Unit Developments) and have home owners dues.

The pricing trends had been relatively stable over the past couple of years.  The bottom of the condo market was the end of 2007 and start of 2008.  Prices have jumped up and down depending upon the number of condos available to buy at any one time.  Remember, you get a great value when you purchase a condo in Foster City.  Not only do you buy a home that was never converted from an apartment, but was actually constructed to be a condo, but you get a lot of square footage for your dollar.

Altos Research uses the Market Action Index to talk about how the housing market in a community is really doing.  The Market Index for the Foster City Condo Market from last week’s data and it shows that the market is still a Strong Buyer’s one. With many different condos to choose from, a buyer can negotiate for a fair price.  We aren’t now, and haven’t in the past, seen many short sales or bank owned condos either.  Most of these are what we are calling Regular Sales.

What makes Foster City a great place to live is its location.  Sitting right in the middle of the San Francisco Peninsula it is almost the same number of miles to drive north to San Francisco as it is to drive south to San Jose.  The population in Foster City likes to play out doors.  The city boasts more parks per square foot then any other city on the Peninsula.  The Bayside Trail runs along the eastern shore of the city and always has bicyclists, walkers, roller bladers, and the like enjoying the bay views and air.  Tennis courts are sprinkled around town, many with lights for night playing.  The city has a vibrant Parks and Recreations Department that includes lessons in sailboarding, kayaking, sailing and rental the of kayaks, paddle boats, and sail boats.

We love to show people Foster City.  It is the first planned community built in California and affords perfect weather summer, fall, winter and spring.  Would you like more information?  Please let us know and we’re happy to provide it to you.

Here are some Condos and Townhouses currently for sale in Foster City.

©2010 The Wilkas Group. All Rights Reserved.

I started the trending report with Foster City, CA single family houses and now I move over to the Condos and Townhouses.  As a planned community, there are many of these to choose from.  Some of the townhouses are really attached single family homes, and some are really townhouse-style condos.  As Realtors we know the difference and it’s our job to explain that to you if you’re looking for one.  Since Foster City’s single family homes are significantly higher in value than the condos or townhouses you get more for your dollar considering them, if you want to move to Foster City for the schools.

Play around with the data to see the trends over the past 4 years.  They start during the bubble years and move to the lean years.  What you are looking at is the Median Price versus the Median Inventory across all price ranges.  Surprisingly, Foster City had the least deflation in home prices around here.  Good for the home owner, for sure, but maybe not so good for you if you’re a buyer.  If you click on the Max link you’ll see $1million on two occasions.  There are some very high-end condos in Foster City that were selling in the low million dollar range several years ago.

The Wilkas Group lives in Foster City and knows the community well.  If you are considering making a move into or out of Foster City we’d like to assist you with that.  You can reach us by clicking the the “Contact Us” button to the left and we’ll respond by email or phone, your choice.

©2010 The Wilkas Group. All Rights Reserved.

I’m starting with Foster City, CA single family homes to take a look at market trends today.  We’re only looking at the median price versus the median inventory.  Oh though I wish inventory was higher around here, but alas it isn’t so we have what we have for data.  If you want to have fun, click the top left numbers from 1 month through to a total of the data Altos Research has from 2006. Four years of data is a good indicator of how a market has trended, no?

Foster City is a great family community with parks everywhere, a lake in the center of the town, the Park and Recreation buildings feature the only teen center in any of our communities around here.  More on the Vibe is coming.  If you have a family and like outdoor activities this is where you should live.  It’s a planned community featuring prices for almost every budget and fabulous schools.

The Wilkas Group is here to assist you with your real estate needs, whether you live in Foster City or Burlingame, Hillsborough or San Mateo.  We’re easy to reach.  Click on the “Contact Us” button to the left.  We’ll answer you by email or phone, your choice.

©2010 The Wilkas Group. All Rights Reserved.