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The 2011 San Mateo Real Estate Market Report

lenorewilkas — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:34:24 +0000

The city of San Mateo is the largest city in our immediate area and has the most number of homes for sale during any one year. The 2011 San Mateo Real Estate market saw 596 single family homes sold. The average days on the market for these houses to sell was 56. Not bad considering the news reports we hear and read daily tell us about nightmares in other parts of the county. Who do you want to listen to? The news or me, your local eyes and ears on the ground in our area? That should be no brainer, folks!

The median price for a San Mateo house selling in 2011 was $805,138. That’s for the city of San Mateo not the county. The median price for all of California homes sold in December 2011 was $304,770. The 2011 statewide median prices haven’t been published yet, but this is a good number for comparison. San Mateo County is unique to California. It’s unique to the US housing market. It is not what you are hearing about on television, from the radio, on the internet or in print whether that’s a newspaper or magazine.

The average price of a housing being listed in San Mateo was $839,380
The average list price, which is the last price in the MLS when an offer comes in was $819,414
The average sale price was $807,135.
The most expensive sale in 2011 was $3,330,000
The least expensive sale in 2011 was $257,250.
The sales prices were averaging between 96% and 99% of the list price.

Why is this happening here and not other places in California? There are a couple of reasons. San Mateo County has little land for housing but lots of vacant land. It’s built out and sits between San Francisco and Santa Clara Counties. We have a vibrant tech community and businesses are generally doing well. There is a shortage of housing here, and always has been. If you want to live here you pay more to do so.

The condo market in San Mateo is large and prices vary significantly from entry level to luxury for people down sizing. There were 317 condos or townhouses sold in 2011 in San Mateo. Because of the way the Multiple Listing Service combines townhouses with condos, not everything is truly a condo in the 317 count. Many of these may also be townhouses that sit on land that is owned by the homeowner and not part of a condo community.

It took an average of 102 days to sell one of these homes (condos and townhouses). This is considerably longer than other communities in our area and that’s likely due to the shear number in the city as well as the larger number of entry level units. Condos generally take longer to sell in comparison to either townhouses or houses.

The average price was $389,705 and the median price was $340,000
The most expensive condo was $1,378,000 and there were 2 others that sold for over a million dollars
There were 5 that sold between $800,000 and $1 million
The average sold price for the city was $390,263
The sales prices were between 92% and 96% of list price but we did see some sell above asking price

We’re here to tell you more about our local real estate market and tell it like it really is. Are there bargins out there? Well, if you search hard enough, you do see a few. We are seeing short sales but there are few bank owned out there and when the bank owned properties do come on the market the banks are now fixing them up and pricing them at market price. It’s very hard to find a real deal in our area. It’s not something you can do without the help of a seasoned Realtor so give us a call and talk with us about your wants and needs and let us help you.

Above all else, you must be pre-approved before starting your buying process. The banks are making everyone jump through hoops so be prepared and be ready.

Here some of the current houses for sale in San Mateo

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 75. See more city of San Mateo real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$1,198,000 : 623 Maple St, San Mateo

3 beds, 3 full baths

Home size: 2,310 sq ft

Lot size: 5,568 sq ft

Year built: 1949
$1,800,000 : 519 Nevada Av, San Mateo

4 beds, 3 full baths

Home size: 2,730 sq ft

Lot size: 7,200 sq ft

Year built: 1938
$349,000 : 1758 Shoreview Av, San Mateo

2 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 820 sq ft

Lot size: 6,100 sq ft

Year built: 1949
$525,000 : 3502 Martin Dr, San Mateo

2 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 1,000 sq ft

Lot size: 6,790 sq ft

Year built: 1948
$478,000 : 1654 Wolfe Dr, San Mateo

4 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,540 sq ft

Lot size: 5,300 sq ft

Year built: 1956

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Here are some of the current condos or townhouses for sale in San Mateo

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 67. See more city of San Mateo real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$200,000 : 3369 La Selva St, San Mateo

2 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 723 sq ft

Year built: 1963
$738,000 : 10 Crystal Springs Road #2311, San Mateo

2 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,210 sq ft

Year built: 2008
$585,000 : 555 Laurel Av #411, San Mateo

1 bed, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,095 sq ft

Year built: 1980
$227,000 : 155 N El Camino Real #18, San Mateo

1 bed, 1 full bath

Home size: 710 sq ft

Year built: 1949
$139,900 : 240 N Bayshore Bl #210, San Mateo

1 bed, 1 full bath

Home size: 725 sq ft

Year built: 1982

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Hillsborough CA 2011 Market Report

lenorewilkas — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:10:23 +0000

Hillsborough is always considered one of the most expensive communities in California and 2011 was no different than other times or any other years. Hillsborough’s 2011 Market Report shows that there were 134 sales of homes in 2011.

Hillsborough only has single family homes. There are no condos. No townhouses. Only large stately homes on large lots.

The least expensive home sold for $1,195,000. There was only one at that price, probably a bank owned in need of work, and who ever bought it got a steal of a price. The land value is probably more than that.

12 homes sold between $1,700,000 and $1,800,000.
9 homes sold between $1,600,000 and $1,700,000.
8 homes sold between $1,400,000 and $1,500,000.
14 sold between $1,800,000 and $2,000,000.
87 sales were above $2,000,000.

The average list price for 2011 Hillsborough California homes was $2,775,773 and the average sales price was $2,627,551. 91% of the listings sold at the original price. 93% sold at a reduced price and the average time on the market from listing to close of escrow was 73 days.

Does this tell you that our market is in distress? It sure doesn’t say that to me. Homes are selling under 90 days. Many places around the US would kill for statistics like this. If you want to live in Hillsborough California and enjoy the benefits of this community, you pay for it. Top schools. Top weather. Top location. Privacy. Close to everything. Can we show you some of these homes? Call us now and begin enjoying the Good Life in 2012!

Here’s what’s on the market in Hillsborough today.

Showing properties 1 - 15 of 39. See more city of Hillsborough real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$2,380,000 : 1125 Bromfield Rd, Hillsborough

3 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 2,822 sq ft

Lot size: 19,200 sq ft

Year built: 1949
$5,495,000 : 145 Fallen Leaf Dr, Hillsborough

5 beds, 5 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 6,500 sq ft

Lot size: 36,630 sq ft

Year built: 1976
$15,750,000 : 925 Seabury Rd, Hillsborough

6 beds, 9 full, 2 part baths

Home size: 14,250 sq ft

Lot size: 1.27 ac

Year built: 2007
$5,580,000 : 820 Chiltern Rd, Hillsborough

7 beds, 6 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 7,870 sq ft

Lot size: 1.13 ac

Year built: 1981
$4,900,000 : 15 Tiptoe Ln, Hillsborough

7 beds, 7 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 9,550 sq ft

Lot size: 22,950 sq ft

Year built: 1968
$1,398,000 : 1035 Tournament Dr, Hillsborough

5 beds, 5 full, 2 part baths

Home size: 4,850 sq ft

Lot size: 26,350 sq ft

Year built: 2001
$4,280,000 : 115 Glengarry Wy, Hillsborough

5 beds, 5 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 4,992 sq ft

Lot size: 22,284 sq ft

Year built: 2002
$3,700,000 : 80 Tobin Clark Dr, Hillsborough

4 beds, 3 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 3,896 sq ft

Lot size: 24,500 sq ft

Year built: 1978
$2,299,000 : 2370 Skyfarm Dr, Hillsborough

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,930 sq ft

Lot size: 22,638 sq ft

Year built: 1974
$6,195,000 : 1255 La Canada Rd, Hillsborough

5 beds, 6 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 8,615 sq ft

Lot size: 33,236 sq ft

Year built: 1930
$29,000,000 : 40 Verbalee Ln, Hillsborough

12 beds, 12 full, 3 part baths

Home size: 35,000 sq ft

Lot size: 5.91 ac

Year built: 1932
$4,495,000 : 355 Sierra Dr, Hillsborough

5 beds, 4 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 6,212 sq ft

Lot size: 27,834 sq ft

Year built: 1988
$29,000,000 : 40 Verbalee Ln, Hillsborough

12 beds, 12 full, 3 part baths

Home size: 35,000 sq ft

Lot size: 5 sq ft

Year built: 1932
$4,899,000 : 632 Fairway Ci, Hillsborough

4 beds, 6 full baths

Home size: 3,680 sq ft

Lot size: 17,323 sq ft

Year built: 2010
$2,979,000 : 65 Verbalee Ln, Hillsborough

6 beds, 4 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 4,500 sq ft

Lot size: 33,540 sq ft

Year built: 1977

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Burlingame CA’s 2011 Market Report

lenorewilkas — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 12:26:59 +0000

We just had a discussion with an old friend asking how bad the local real estate market was in 2011 and she was absolutely blown away when we said Burlingame’s 2011 market was vibrant. She doesn’t live in San Mateo County but in another area of California that has seen great decreases in housing value so she was really amazed to hear us tell her that. Yes, Burlingame rebounded in 2011.

There were 221 closed sales of single family homes in 2011 with an average of 51 days on the market. For those of you who don’t know what that means, it is the time it takes from the listing to the close of the escrow and recording of the new owner with the county.

The average price was $1,257,035 and the median price was $1,196,000.
The largest number of homes sold was in the $1,200,000 to $1,300,000 price range, with 25 sold.
Then 19 were sold between $1,100,000 to $1,200,000
There were 18 sold between $1,400,000-$1,500,000 and 18 sold over $2,000,000. The top end of the market was selling very well in 2011.
The sale prices were averaging between 96% at the list price and 98% of sold price.

The condo market is Burlingame isn’t a huge one compared to the other communities around us but there were 31 closed sales of condos in 2011 with an average of 77 days on the market.

The average price was $616,461 and the median price was $535,000.
The majority of these sales was between $475,000 and $600,000 with 12 sold.
Luxury condos do sit in Burlingame and there were 3 sold above $950,000.
The sale price was averaging between 94% at the list price and 97% of sold price

So, what does it mean when there are two sales prices listed? The list price is the original price that a listing comes to market, and homes were selling between 94-96% at that price, which isn’t shabby. If there was a price reduction, the second number is the percentage of homes selling at that price. 97-98% of all of the properties with price reductions sold at the reduced price. This means demand is strong in Burlingame for real estate and prices are holding.

The old saying is if you want to live here you’ll pay the price, is holding true. Burlingame has great schools, weather and location. Let us know how we can help you find your dream home by calling us now.

Here are some current Burlingame houses for sale.

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 34. See more city of Burlingame real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$1,749,500 : 2827 Hillside Dr, Burlingame

3 beds, 4 full baths

Home size: 2,990 sq ft

Lot size: 12,096 sq ft

Year built: 1936
$879,000 : 209 Channing Rd, Burlingame

2 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 1,620 sq ft

Lot size: 5,750 sq ft

Year built: 1928
$1,295,000 : 1138 Douglas Av, Burlingame

3 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,500 sq ft

Lot size: 5,544 sq ft

Year built: 1914
$2,550,000 : 3066 Hillside Dr, Burlingame

4 beds, 4 full baths

Home size: 4,200 sq ft

Lot size: 10,640 sq ft

Year built: 2008
$1,595,000 : 2673 Martinez Dr, Burlingame

4 beds, 3 full baths

Home size: 2,100 sq ft

Lot size: 11,650 sq ft

Year built: 1958

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Here are some current Burlingame condos for sale.

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 9. See more city of Burlingame real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$599,000 : 30 Lorton Av #205, Burlingame

2 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,258 sq ft

Year built: 1986
$499,000 : 1532 Floribunda Av #3, Burlingame

2 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,190 sq ft

Year built: 1993
$578,000 : 1110 Bayswater Av #105, Burlingame

2 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,245 sq ft

Year built: 1983
$439,000 : 1515 Floribunda Av #304, Burlingame

1 bed, 1 full bath

Home size: 935 sq ft

Year built: 1977
$249,000 : 777 Morrell Av #103, Burlingame

1 bed, 1 full bath

Home size: 880 sq ft

Lot size: 880 sq ft

Year built: 1982

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Here’s Where to Get More Data When Buying a Home: Foster City CA

lenorewilkas — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 05:23:52 +0000

Realtors are prohibited by federal law from steering buyers to locations or homes, and included in what we can not say is what the demographic of a community is all about. Sure we can give nuances and use buzz words that are benign but give an idea to some, but we really can never tell you that one place is better for you than another for blah blah blah reasons.

Finally, a website has come along that aggregates demographic data including census data, and research data to provide a picture of a community. Take Foster City for instance. I ran a report on this city and some of the information being provided includes General Lifestyles, Neighborhoods, Schools, and Crime. The website is PicketReport.com and as someone who has always loved data, this site is cool. The picture on the left is a heat map of the demographics in our immediate area.

According to the PicketReport, Foster City is made up of Flourishing Families (affluent middle-aged families and couples earning prosperous incomes and living very comfortable active lifestyles). Foster City has a high walk-score, high school scores, and almost no crime. Now, this is a lot of the data I can legally give about Foster City and do, but it also drills down further about the demographics, which is the stuff I can’t legally give.

If you’re a data wonk, and want to know more about the communities around Foster City such as San Mateo, Hillsborough and Burlingame, this will give you the info all in one place. You will love this site if you are in marketing. It’s not 100 percent accurate but it does give you an idea of what our communities are all about in one place. The ask you to sign in but if you register I don’t see any value to you as the end user. You can get your snap shot of the zip code you’re interested in without registering.

It’s a free service and you can get the information by zip code just keep in mind it isn’t totally perfect. Then again, almost nothing is perfect, is it?

Here’s what’s for sale in Foster City today.

Showing properties 1 - 7 of 7. See more city of Foster City real estate.
(all data current as of 2/11/2012)

$1,179,000 : 269 Avocet Ct, Foster City

5 beds, 3 full baths

Home size: 2,690 sq ft

Lot size: 6,630 sq ft

Year built: 1969
$869,000 : 632 Matsonia Dr, Foster City

4 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,760 sq ft

Lot size: 5,320 sq ft

Year built: 1964
$999,990 : 850 Gull Av, Foster City

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,160 sq ft

Lot size: 5,320 sq ft

Year built: 1966
$1,529,000 : 1001 Monterey Av, Foster City

3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,170 sq ft

Lot size: 8,540 sq ft

Year built: 1978
$975,000 : 54 Port Royal Av, Foster City

3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 1,890 sq ft

Lot size: 6,798 sq ft

Year built: 1985
$1,189,000 : 760 Coronado Ln, Foster City

3 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 2,110 sq ft

Lot size: 4,857 sq ft

Year built: 1977
$849,000 : 921 Swan St, Foster City

5 beds, 3 full baths

Home size: 2,540 sq ft

Lot size: 5,700 sq ft

Year built: 1966

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Why Has the US Post Office Disenfranchised Foster City?

lenorewilkas — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 07:06:24 +0000

According the the 2010 Census there are 30,567 residents living in Foster City. Foster City doesn’t even have it’s own zip code, making it the largest city in San Mateo County without its own zip code. Why then does the US Post Office no longer wish to deliver mail through the post office in Foster City when there are that many residents there? Why did someone arbitrarily decide that a city of this size doesn’t matter and in order to save money this city would be reduced to a town the size of, say Hillsborough, with only 9200 people and no post office?

If you live in Foster City you know your City doesn’t show up as Foster City in many web sites when you go to order products online. You input 94404 and up pops San Mateo. We don’t live in San Mateo, we live in Foster City. Sure we’re 1/3 the size of our sister city but we are own municipality and when other cities within this county, with smaller populations, have their own Zip Code and Post Office, we’re being treated like third-class citizens.

Do you realize that you now must must go to San Mateo to do any postal business with the exception of mailing out packages? All mail is now going out of the Delaware Street post office in San Mateo for Foster City mail, making more work for the workers there so they don’t have time in the day to deliver our mail as regularly as it used to be delivered. The local Foster City delivery people have been “repurposed”. Expect to stand in long lines at the San Mateo post office if you hold your mail when you travel. Plan on hours and hours of delay.

If you’re finding that your mail deliveries have been coming at different hours of the day, or on some days, not coming at all, this is the reason. Sure the US Postal Service is having financial difficulties and they need to streamline processes but is this the way to do it? How many other cities in San Mateo County no longer have post offices providing full services? How many other cities of the same size as Foster City do not have their own Zip Code?

If you live in Foster City and want things to change you need to contact Jackie Speier’s office and tell her how you feel about this. Contact her by email or phone: (650) 342-0300. It’s also time for the City Counsel of Foster City to demand some changes. Are you as mad as I am? If you are, let’s do something about this!

There’s Going To Be Music in The Air in December 2011: San Mateo County

lenorewilkas — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 06:04:46 +0000

Just in time to help get you into the holiday spirit are many choral concerts. Start your holiday listening the first weekend on December on Saturday the 3rd and Sunday the 4th with your choice of two great groups. If you can’t make those concerts then you have several other weekends to choose from, and all offer great programs to get you into the holiday spirit.

Saturday afternoon at 3 PM listen to the Foster City Community Chorus sings a program called “We Are Lights” at Transfiguration Episcopal Church in San Mateo, and repeats it again Sunday afternoon same time and same place. Ticket information here and they are $20.

Also on the same weekend Peninsula Cantare performs their holiday program in Palo Alto at the First Baptist Church at 7:30 PM and the following afternoon, 3 PM at Trinity Presbyterian Church in San Carlos. This is the final concert for Music Director Janice Gunderson, who is retiring and features Mozart Requiem and selections of the Handel messiah and solosits Susanna Jimenez, Soprano; Donia Gariaeff, Alto; Brian Thorset, Tenor; and Michael Morris, Bass. Tickets available at the door and are $20 for general admission and $15 for students/seniors.

Masterworks Chorale of San Mateo performs their program, “Carols Around”, the following weekend, December 11 and 12. The Saturday program is at 8 PM and the Sunday program is at 4 PM, both are at Grace Lutheran Church in Palo Alto. Buy tickets here and are $20 advance purchase, $25 at the door, and $10 for students.

Finally, Viva la Musica! performs Sunday December 11 at 4 PM and the following Sunday, December 18 at 4 PM. The musical selections are Gloria’s by John Rutter and Randol Alan Bass accompanied by brass and percussion ensemble and organ. Tickets available here are $25 preferred, $22 general, $20 seniors and $15 students/groups.

All of these choral groups are non-profit organizations and the sales of tickets helps to keep them singing. If you love to sing, check them out and see which one might be a good fit for you. They’re always looking for new voices to make music with.

Better Homes and Gardens-JF Finnegan Realtors Enters Burlingame, CA

lenorewilkas — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 03:48:13 +0000

Everyone knows the Better Homes and Gardens name from reading the magazine and watching the cable TV channel. We are excited to announce that we, too, are now part of the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate ® family as our broker, John Finnegan, joins their real estate family. We’ve made a dramatic change without moving, changing contact information or meeting new colleagues. The entire Prudential family we used to belong to is now Better Homes and Gardens-JF Finnegan Realtors and we’re still in downtown Burlingame.

What does this mean for you? For me? For us? Well, lots of new toys for us to play with and therefore to present to you our readers and clients. If you’re a client we will roll out some new things for you in the near future. I expect to have some great tips to share with you about home buying and selling, decorating and landscaping.

We are very excited about this new adventure for us, and therefore for you,too. Keep coming back to see what we have to offer you, dear reader.

It’s Easy to Save Important Papers Before it’s too Late: Burlingame, CA

lenorewilkas — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 00:22:14 +0000

Earlier this month San Bruno California became a household name because of the horrific PG&E gas explosion in the Crestmoor area of the city. We know there were 8 confirmed dead and many dealing with severe burns that are life altering. The people who lost their homes, and were fortunate also to escape with their lives, have lost everything. When this type of disaster happens it makes one stop and think about what you might do in the same situation. Besides having a safety plan for your family, you might consider duplicating your most precious documents and storing them virtually, in the cloud. Just in case you’re not familiar with “the cloud”, it’s a way to store documents online and often for free.

Pictures are often stored online today, so many of us have some of them there, but likely not all. If you have lots of pictures that are printed, it becomes a challenge about what to do. You can scan them, and then upload them to Google Docs, Apple’s Me, or Drop Box or any one of the other free clouds available to us today. Obviously if you have hundreds and hundreds of them, it means you decide which are the most precious. Take some time and go through them and then scan them, upload them, and keep them safe and accessible by you and others you might choose to have access.

The same thing goes for important papers you have. It’s very easy to turn printed documents into PDF files and then upload them to the cloud. It’s as easy as dragging them into a file on your desktop, and voila, they’re stored. If you don’t have access to a scanner through your workplace, take your documents to your local UPS-Kinko Store where they can do it for a slight charge.

This is the kind of thing you should do while this disaster is still fresh in our minds and hitting the local news channels. PG&E has pipelines all over the bay area and one may be near your home. Don’t let this disaster happen again and you be the family who loses everything including birth certificates, copies of your passports, marriage and death certificates, etc. While you’re at it, make a photo journal of your home and its contents and store them in the cloud, too. It’s better to be safe than sorry. After all, the Boy Scout’s motto, Be Prepared, certainly has meaning in times of disaster.

Spring Forward Saturday Night: Burlingame, CA

lenorewilkas — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:51:28 +0000

It’s Daylight Saving Time!

Oh, yes. It’s that time of year again, although, much earlier in the year then it used to be or that we feel it quite belongs. But Congress changed things a few years back and now Daylight Savings Time begins the first weekend of March. That’s this Saturday night! Tomorrow night. So before you head off to bed, don’t forget to change all of your clocks. In our house that’s a lot of clocks since appliances have clocks today, and walls have clocks, and radios have clocks, you get the jest. Move the hands forward so you don’t have a surprise in the morning wondering what time it really is. Spring Forward, remember that rhyme?

And yes, don’t forget the one clock that is often forgotten and it’s your watch. Don’t forget to change your watch.

Hey Foster City, It’s Raining. Put on Your Headlights!

lenorewilkas — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:14:10 +0000

Back in 2005, the California State Legislature pass a bill making it manditory to put your headlight on when it is raining during daylight hours. If you’re out and about this week, make it a point to do this. Your life, my life and anyone else’s life is at stake.

It’s really easy to do, too. So why isn’t it being done and why hasn’t this been publicized more? Beats me, but I am telling you this. So do it!

Just in case you think this is another urban ledgend, here’s the law.