Marin September Market Report | August 2017 Data

Following several months of gains, the stock market took a vacation in August and traded sideways. Treasury and mortgage bonds offered an entirely different story when, in spite of long-standing expectations for rising interest rates, the 10-year treasury and mortgage bonds both dropped to levels last seen around the 2016 election.

The divided data offers a microcosm of the current US economy. On one hand, the economy continues to exhibit strength as evidenced by August economic reports on retail sales, manufacturing, and job growth. On the other hand, inflationary pressures as measured by the Fed's favorite inflation gauge (Core PCE) ticked lower again for the fifth straight month. This dynamic is giving rise to new sentiment that the Fed will have no choice but to hold interest rates steady for the remainder of the year.

Marin County’s August single family home market’s figures reflect a decrease of inventory and Number of Homes Sold, which is to be expected given the summer season slowdown. Percentage of Homes in Contract were up 1% from July levels, while Days on Market increased. Average Price Sold was up across all metrics, except maximium sold price, at $7,500,000.




Number of Homes Sold

With 164 sold, Marin single family home sales were down 22% from August, and down 5% compared to the same month last year. This is expected in August with the seasonal summer market slowdown.


Average Price Sold

The Average Sale Price of Marin single family homes increased 2% in August compared to July, at $1,625,806 and $1,601,707, respectively. Compared to the same month last year, the Average Sale Price is 10% higher in 2017.


Home Sales by Area

San Rafael and Novato continue to see the highest Number of Homes Sold in August at 41 and 37, respectively. Mill Valley had a notable 19 sold, as did San Anselmo with 14 and Tibruon with 13. Less active markets include Greenbrae and Ross with 2 each, Belvedere with one sale and no sales in the Beach Cities and West Marin.


In Contract by Area

Larkspur had 70% of Homes in Contract at the end of August, followed by Fairfax (60%), Kenfield (58%), San Rafael (45%) and Novato (45%). Ross, San Anselmo, West Marin and Sausalito had a healthy percentage of Homes in Contract, ranging from 30-33%. In contrast, less active markets were the Beach Cities (10%) and Belvedere, with none.


Sales by Price Point

In August, the highest number of homes both available (109) and sold (80) were between $1-2 million. There were 34 homes sold between $750,000 and $1 million, while 20 homes sold in the $2-3 million price range. A notable 8 homes sold between $3-4 million, while 7 homes sold over $4 million.




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