Burlingame Real Estate - April 2012

Sales Activity Strong Through April

Robust sales activity has increased competition between buyers, and we are now seeing more homes with multiple offers, and more offers above asking prices. Read more below for the full landscape.

After a modest start to the year in Burlingame sales activity has been strong in the past two months, with 21 homes sold in March 2012 and 24 homes sold in April 2012. Through the first four months of the year, there have been 61 homes sold, up from 46 homes sold in 2011.

Last month we commented that without an influx of new listings, sales activity would not be able to sustain the high level seen in March 2012. The reason is that the level of inventory was extremely low, with under 30 homes for sale. Well, April 2012 did see a lot of new listings, 38 to be exact. Although inventory still remains very tight, it did increase a bit from March 2012 levels. At the end of April 2012 there were 45 homes for sale left on the market, down slightly from the April 2011 level of 51 homes, and down sharply from the April 2010 level of 68 homes.

Overall, the market is still inventory constrained. It can remain constrained even if inventory rises through the summer. The summer months are the most active for real estate transactions. Listings, sales and inventory are typically the highest during this time period, as many buyers and sellers are looking to move without disrupting their children's school schedules.

Signs of Upward Price Pressure

When real estate prices are rising (or falling), one of the initial signs can sometimes be seen in the average sales price to list price ratio. This ratio is not perfect as it does not properly account for homes that are pulled off the market and then re-listed at a lower price. However, when the ratio increases, it is a strong indicator that sellers are receiving better offers relative to their asking prices than sellers had been.

In Burlingame, the average sales price to list price ratio languished under 100 from 2008 to 2011. During this time period, sellers were often accepting offers at or below their asking price. 2012 has been a different story with the ratio averaging over 100. The average home sold in Burlingame in the first four months of 2012 went for more than its list price. This is a clear sign of upward price pressure!

The traditional measures of selling values, median prices and average prices, appear to have hit a bottom in early 2011, with some minimal signs of price increase since then. However, these measures are often not reliable indicators for short-term price movements when looking at small areas like Burlingame. The reason is that they are significantly impacted by the size and location of homes that are being sold. In a small area, random fluctuations take longer to cancel themselves out.

The average price per square foot is showing signs of continued increase. The 12 months moving average was $610 in April 2012, up from $591 in July 2011. In seven of the last nine months, the average price per square foot has been above $610.  In the nine months prior to that, it was above $600 only once.

Here are some interesting tidbits on a slightly longer term view of prices in Burlingame compared to the rest of the Bay Area. Selling values in 2012 are at about the same level as late 2004 in Burlingame. For the entire Bay Area, homes sold in 2012 are selling for about 30% less than they did in late 2004. Real estate is local!

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Burlingame?

If you're interested in learning more about the Burlingame real estate market, considering selling your home in Burlingame, or thinking about moving to Burlingame, please drop me a line and I'd love to connect with you.

 

By The Numbers - Burlingame Real Estate for April 2012

This article is copyrighted by Raziel Ungar and may not be reproduced or copied without express written permission.

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