Key Takeaways From Pacific Union’s Real Estate and Economic Forecast to 2020

Yesterday, Pacific Union held its fourth annual Real Estate and Economic Forecast in partnership with John Burns Real Estate Consulting to project Bay Area activity through 2020. Below are some key, high-level takeaways from the live event. Most U.S. housing markets remain at low-to-normal risk levels, both in the short term and the medium term. Mortgage rates are projected to grow by about 80 basis...

Home Prices Return to Prerecession Levels in Two-Thirds of U.S. Metro Areas

Thirty-one of the 50 largest U.S. housing markets saw prices climb back to prerecession levels last year. Between 2006 and 2016, the median sales price rose by 31.5 percent in the San Jose metro area and 9.6 percent in San Francisco. Lending standards are tighter than they have been in almost 20 years, and Americans have significantly better credit scores than they did a decade...

Are We in the Midst of a Housing Bubble? Freddie Mac Offers Some Reassuring Words.

Memories of the mid-2000s housing-market bubble — and the collapse that followed — have Bay Area homebuyers, investors, and real estate professionals wondering whether the current run-up in prices is evidence of another dangerous bubble in the making. But new research from Freddie Mac says those fears are overblown. In fact, in one major indicator of a housing bubble — measuring the median house price...

Real Estate Roundup: Bay Area Tech Hubs Are Among the Nation’s Best for Income Growth

Here’s a look at recent news of interest to homebuyers, home sellers, and the home-curious. THREE BAY AREA CITIES RANK IN THE TOP 10 FOR INCOME GROWTH More good news for Bay Area workers and potential homeowners: incomes in three local cities rose by double-digit percentage points last year. That’s according to an analysis by SmartAsset, which ranked the top 25 U.S. job markets for...

Pacific Union and Empire Realty Associates Are Now the No. 1 Luxury Brokerage in Contra Costa County

Executive Summary: Pacific Union and Empire Realty Associates now rank as the second-largest residential real estate brokerage in Contra Costa County, with combined market share of 11 percent and sales volume of more than $1.11 billion in 2017. Pacific Union acquired Empire Realty Associates in October. Pacific Union and ERA grew sales volume by 38 percent for the last 12 months year over year, while...

Pacific Union's October 2017 Real Estate Update

The median sales price rose year over year in October in all Bay Area regions in which Pacific Union operates, the result of continued buyer demand amid tight supply conditions. Prices reached one-year highs for single-family homes and condominiums in San Francisco, as well as for properties in Sonoma County. Click on the image accompanying each of our regions below for an expanded look at...

First-Time and Bay Area Homebuyers Have Much to Lose From Proposed Tax Changes

Executive Summary: Proposed tax changes that impact individual ownership of real estate include: Eliminating deductions for state and local income taxes Lowering the cap on mortgage interest deductions on newly issued loans totaling no more than $500,000, down from the current $1 million Ending deductions on second homes or vacation homes A new cap of $10,000 on property tax deductions Limits to the capital-gains exemption...

Silicon Valley Posts Nation’s Largest Annual Home Price Gain

Home prices rose in 92 percent of U.S. metro areas in the third quarter, averaging 5.3 percent on an annual basis. San Jose and San Francisco were among the 19 metropolitan areas to see double-digit percent home price gains, a respective 16.5 percent and 10.2 percent. Job growth in expensive regions of the country like the Bay Area may began to slow without an increase...

Real Estate Roundup: East Bay City Named One of the Nation’s Most Livable

Here’s a look at recent news of interest to homebuyers, home sellers, and the home-curious. FREMONT RANKED AS AMERICA’S SECOND MOST LIVABLE CITY Fremont was recently named the least stressed-out place in America, and now another study calls the Alameda County city one of the country’s most livable. That’s according to an analysis by SmartAsset, which ranks the nation’s 25 most livable cities based on...