September Home Sales in Alameda Start Slow

Alameda September home sales are tracking for a big decline in both month-over-month and year-over year sales. With just 11 sales recorded so far this month the Island is pacing at 23 sales for the month, this would be a huge decline over the 55 sale in September 2009.


At the current pace, Alameda is looking at a decline of 48-percent in two of its three most productive sales months. The months of August, September and October was Alameda's best sales period in 2009. During that three month span 186 properties were sold. Given that August 2010 had 20 fewer sales than '09 and September is pacing to have the same reduction the final totals for 2010 could be very dismal.


There are some positives in the recent sales both median and average sale price are up over September 2009 and five of the 11 homes that sold went for above the list price. September 2009 median sales prices was $517,000 and the average was $558,335 compared to $589,301 and $571,500 respectively.


September Sales to date:

Sale Date	Address	City	Zip	Type	Beds	Baths	SQ Feet	List Price	Sale Price	%
01-Sep-10	2610 OTIS DR	Alameda	94501	SFR	3	1	2023	$325,000	$350,000	107.69%
02-Sep-10	1944 OTIS DR	Alameda	94501	SFR	4	2	2029	$649,000	$657,500	101.31%
02-Sep-10	118 PURCELL DR	Alameda	94502	SFR	2	2	1526	$659,000	$655,000	99.39%
03-Sep-10	1325 SAINT CHARLES	Alameda	94501	SFR	3	2	1842	$724,000	$704,000	97.24%
03-Sep-10	2625 JANIS CIRCLE	Alameda	94501	MFR	0	0		$698,000	$660,000	94.56%
07-Sep-10	202 CHINABERRY LN	Alameda	94502	TNHS	4	2	2018	$516,900	$515,000	99.63%
08-Sep-10	447 SANTA CLARA	Alameda	94501	MFR	0	0		$419,000	$435,000	103.82%
09-Sep-10	630 TARRYTON ISLE	Alameda	94501	SFR	4	2	1841	$699,000	$710,000	101.57%
09-Sep-10	2931 WINDSOR DRIVE	Alameda	94501	SFR	2	1	1198	$576,000	$585,000	101.56%
10-Sep-10	2722 BAYVIEW DRIVE	Alameda	94501	SFR	3	2	1716	$629,500	$615,000	97.70%
10-Sep-10	1033 TAYLOR AVE	Alameda	94501	MFR	0	0		$499,000	$400,000	80.16%

Alameda Home Inventory Grows 7-Percent

In just seven days, Alameda Home Inventory grew 7-percent and is closing in on 200 units for the first time since I started tracking the data in 2008. The total number of units is just 13 new properties for sale, but the trend is showing that sales on the Island are not matching the rate of sale.

The more concerning number is the growth of foreclosures. Alameda saw four more foreclosed homes come to the market: 73 Sand Harbor, 1005 Verdemar Dr, 1139 Pacific Ave and 2133 Clinton Ave. There was a net gain of three foreclosed units week-over-week.

The foreclosure pipeline looks to be very full and the trend appears to be rising. According to RealtyTrac, Alameda has 282 homes in the foreclosure process;  215 in the 94501 and 67 in the 94502. Of those the bulk, 144 units, are still in the pre-foreclosure process, 99 are at the auction stage and 39 are banked owned.

If the RealtyTrac numbers are accurate, then the banks are still sitting on inventory. If you add in the additional distressed properties then the Alameda Inventory is roughly 316 units, nearly 10-percent of all the Alameda's housing stock.

The positive is Alameda is in better shape than most of the country. The Island had just one in every 423 housing units received a foreclosure filing in July 2010. That is on the low end of the spectrum. Some parts of the country and the Bay Area are seeing nearly, twice as many filings, 1-244 is the higher ends. The Nation's number one foreclosure market Las Vegas, NV had one filing for every 71 households and the state of Nevada one filing for every 82 households.

The housing market looks like it is going to be very bumpy over the next several months and the distressed properties is good indicator to monitor as we head towards 2011.

Inventory

Date: September 13, 2010	9/13/10	9/6/10	Weekly Change
Total Inventory	198	185	13
94501	148	140	8
94502	50	45	5
Single Family	109	99	10
Condos	60	55	5
Multi-Family	27	29	(2)
Foreclosure	20	17	3
Short Sale	21	22	(1)
Price Reduced	79	72	7
% of Price Reduced	39.90%	38.92%	0.98%
High List	$1,835,000	$1,835,000
Low List	$149,888	$149,888

Check out the new Bulletin Board feature: If you have a local Alameda announcement or something to sell in Alameda. Posting is at the sole discretion of the editor of 94501 Real Estate. Posting will be done nightly, so it may take up to 24 hours to appear on the bulletin board. Please include links if you have a page to direct people to. Email announcements and ads to 94501RealEstate@Gmail.com.

New Open House Section on 94501 Real Estate

Now that Blogger allows you to create multiple pages, 94501 Real Estate has launched an Open Home section. Realtors to have an Open Home posted: Just email your posting to 94501RealEstate@gmail.com before 5 PM on Thursday.

Please include the date(s) and time of the open house along with the list price, address, beds, baths and square footage.If you have a link to the property please include the URL.

The only rules I have is that it must be an Alameda listing.

An additional feature: Bulletin Board

Bulletin Board

If you have a local Alameda announcement or something to sell in Alameda. Posting is at the sole discretion of the editor of 94501 Real Estate. Posting will be done nightly, so it may take up to 24 hours to appear on the bulletin board. Please include links if you have a page to direct people to. Email announcements and ads to 94501RealEstate@Gmail.com.

Looking for a Bargain? See Alameda's Top 15

In this current economic time everyone is looking for a bargain, so I thought I would give you Alameda's top 15 based on the percentage of price reduction.


Looking at the list these homes have had anywhere between one and five reductions. The list contains both condos and single family homes, the interesting part is of the 37 distressed properties on the market only four are on the Top 15 list.


The home with the largest reduction is 1213 Saint Charles that saw the price $289,000 for almost a 21% reduction. This is a great looking home in the Gold Coast, but the seven figure price tag leaves it a tough buy for most.


My favorite is listed for $599,000, a 17% discount is 2837 Madison. It has four bedrooms and two and half baths, bay windows and wainscotting. A very nice home and a more moderate price.


If you are looking for a great starter place the condo at 1170 9th Street at $199,000 may be a good place to look for a deal. It is only one of two units offered at under $200,000. It is a one bedroom place, but if you like water it has a pool and is on the lagoon.


If you are looking for a single family residence there are a few to select from under $500,000. there are 20 single family residence with at least two bedrooms between $299,950 and $499,999. If you need more than two bedrooms the selection gets slim two three bedroom, two four bedroom and one five bedroom homes in this range.


Top 15 Bargains

List Date	Original List	New List Price	%	Number of Reductions	Address
21-Apr-10	$1,389,000	$1,100,000	79.19%	2	1213 SAINT CHARLES ST
12-Jul-10	$725,000	$599,000	82.62%	2	2837 MADISON ST
04-May-10	$300,000	$249,000	83.00%	2	965 SHOREPOINT CT #203
14-Jun-10	$599,900	$499,900	83.33%	2	2149 LINCOLN AVE
20-Jan-10	$239,000	$199,900	83.64%	5	1170 9TH ST #13
22-Jan-10	$285,000	$240,000	84.21%	3	2209 OTIS DR #R
19-Nov-09	$1,385,000	$1,195,000	86.28%	2	1000 GRAND ST
21-Jun-10	$1,390,000	$1,200,000	86.33%	2	1831 SAN JOSE AVENUE
07-Jul-10	$478,900	$418,900	87.47%	2	3201 OTIS DR
11-Jun-10	$965,000	$849,000	87.98%	2	1525 GIBBONS DRIVE
18-May-10	$859,000	$760,000	88.47%	5	64 STEUBEN BAY
07-Jul-10	$789,000	$699,000	88.59%	2	3125 BAYO VISTA AVE
16-Jul-10	$544,000	$484,000	88.97%	1	108 PARFAIT LN
30-Jul-10	$650,000	$579,000	89.08%	1	1529 MOZART STREET
08-Mar-10	$379,950	$339,950	89.47%	3	2101 SHORELINE DR #262

August Home Sales Take Big Chill

After a big run up in sales prior to the end of the Federal Tax Credit, home sales in Alameda dipped in the month of August significantly. The decline in sales is reflective of what is happening across the country where sales haven fallen off as credit has been become more difficult and buyers are wary to buy a home. Alameda sales are down 41-percent in May and 34-percent from June.

Looking back the past two years August had 56 sales in 2009 and 48 in 2008 compared to 35 this year. This is a 27-percent decline year-over-year. The combination of growing inventory and slow sales will continue to put pressure on the Alameda market.

Both the median ($578,000) and average sale ($623,951) price were up in August. The median is the highest since June of last year and the average you have to go back to November 2008.

The positive for sales were May and June, the sales number were very good compared to the last two year. Both months exceed the prior two years sales for the same time period. Most of this was due to buyers taking advantage of the tax credit.

Alameda Home Sales Graph from January 2009 to August 2010:

Sale Date	Address	zip	Sale Price
03-Aug-10	234 SHEFFIELD RD	94502	$855,000
03-Aug-10	1801 VERSAILLES AVENUE	94501	$850,000
04-Aug-10	2101 SHORELINE DR #461	94501	$365,000
06-Aug-10	983 PARK ST	94501	$409,500
10-Aug-10	119 CENTRAL AVENUE	94501	$465,000
10-Aug-10	1200 SAN ANTONIO AVE	94501	$1,635,000
11-Aug-10	608 FORTRESS ISLE	94501	$790,000
11-Aug-10	1825 NASON ST	94501	$390,000
12-Aug-10	2615 WASHINGTON ST	94501	$525,000
12-Aug-10	3402 REDHOOK LN	94502	$425,000
12-Aug-10	1712 THIRD STREET #305	94501	$265,000
12-Aug-10	2935 SOUTHWOOD DR	94501	$1,200,000
13-Aug-10	1516 FIFTH STREET	94501	$678,000
13-Aug-10	2015 LINCOLN AVE	94501	$530,000
13-Aug-10	1713 EAGLE AVE	94501	$500,000
13-Aug-10	1001 SHORELINE DR #108	94501	$419,300
17-Aug-10	410 MARSHALL WAY	94501	$470,000
17-Aug-10	1001 SHORELINE DR #406	94501	$412,000
18-Aug-10	965 SHOREPOINT CT #222	94501	$298,000
20-Aug-10	356 ANDERSON RD	94502	$960,000
20-Aug-10	2778 SHANER DR	94502	$607,500
20-Aug-10	534 QUEENS ROAD	94501	$578,000
20-Aug-10	950 SHOREPOINT CT #216	94501	$185,000
23-Aug-10	2845 ENCINAL AVE	94501	$638,000
23-Aug-10	837 PACIFIC AVE	94501	$455,000
27-Aug-10	1 STONE HBR	94502	$780,000
27-Aug-10	1305 HANSEN AVE	94501	$776,000
27-Aug-10	2157 SAN ANTONIO AVE	94501	$745,000
27-Aug-10	1555 SANTA CLARA AVE	94501	$565,000
30-Aug-10	1809 KOFMAN PARKWAY	94502	$838,000
30-Aug-10	1312 SAN ANTONIO AVE	94501	$650,000
31-Aug-10	236 RATTO RD.	94502	$879,000
31-Aug-10	632 ARLINGTON ISLE	94501	$705,000
31-Aug-10	22 BRITT COURT	94502	$620,000
31-Aug-10	3523 OLEANDER AVE	94502	$375,000
	Median		$578,000
	Average		$623,951

For More Detail
August 2010 Sales

Alameda Inventory: 31-Percent Growth Over Last Year

Alameda home inventory has been steadily growing since the beginning of the year, when the Island was well below a 100 units of housing for sale. Over the past eight months inventory seem to be stuck in the 130 range, but began to grow again and with the end of the Federal tax credit, and the traditional selling season.

Since both of those milestones have passed it is good to reflect back and see how the market has changed.

Enter the Fall of 2009, there was a downward trend in inventory after peaking in July and bottoming at 131 units during the first week of September. The lack of inventory continued well into 2010 and lag for most of the year.

Inventory is now at 185 units, this is a growth of of 31-percent from September 2009. The largest growth came in the condominium market that more than doubled. The condo market has struggled over the past two years as evident with 11 condos listed at $250,000 or below. Three of those units are in the Park Webster complex at the foot of Webster Street. The Woodstock Coop (townhouse) also has two listed under the $250,000.

The distressed market has also grown over the past year. The most concerning is the growth of Short Sales. Short Sales is the seller's attempt to sell the home for less than they owe on the property. The number of short sales double from the prior year. The properties range from $149,888 to $720,000.

Date: Septemer 6, 2010 Sep-10 Sep-09 Change Total Inventory 185 131 54 94501 140 104 36 94502 45 27 18 Single Family 99 86 13 Condos 55 26 29 Multi-Family 29 17 12 Foreclosure 17 12 5 Short Sale 21 10 11 Price Reduced 72 47 25 % of Price Reduced 38.92% 35.88% 3.04% High List  $1,835,000  $1,899,000 Low List  $149,888  $204,900

Note: The inventory includes to parcels of land for sale.