Atherton Market Conditions December 2014
- Inventory at its lowest level in 10 years (again)
- No sales went to contract – first time in over 10 years
- Price per square foot increases for fourth consecutive month
- Days on market increase
The Atherton real estate market nearly came to a stop in December, with both inventory and sales falling from what were already very low levels. Inventory was already at a ten year low before December’s drop and sales stalled, with no sales going to contract during the month. Price indicators increased but on a very small sample size of only five closed sales, so it’s difficult to draw any conclusions about prices. There is no doubt, however, that with inventory historically low and demand strong that prices have been moving higher.
The median sales price in December was $8,380,000 versus $4,475,000 in November and $4.1 million a year ago. Two of the five closed sales in December were for more than $10 million. The average price per square foot increased for the fourth straight month. In December, the price per square foot increased 13% ($15) to $1,375, from $1,219 in November. December was 27% or $292 higher than a year ago ($1,083). The average sale price in December was about 101% of the list price, down from 106% in November and 105% a year ago.
Only five sales closed in December, matching the low for the year set in September and February. There were ten closed sales a year ago. The monthly average for 2014 was 8.5 sales.
Inventory posted a new ten year low and brought pending sales right down with it. No sales went to contract in December, the first time that has happened in over a decade. We have had a few months with only one sale but none without any. Five sales went pending in November and eight in December 2013. Inventory fell again in December, from what was already a ten year low of 15 at the end of November to 11 at the end of December. December had less than half the inventory as a December 2013 (24).
The average number of days home were listed during December was 55 days, up from 32 days in November and 51 a year ago.
Analysis by Price Range
No homes were actively listed for $3 million or less at the end of December and none went to contract during the month. It was the third consecutive month with no inventory in this segment and the second with no sales. One year ago, there were two properties on the market and two sales went pending.
In the $3 million to $4,999,999 price range, inventory fell from two at the end of November to one at the end of December, the fewest since there were none in January 2014. No sales went to contract in December, the same as in November and two less than a year ago. 9% of Atherton’s inventory was in this category.
The inventory of $5 million to $9,999,999 homes was cut in half, from an already low of four homes at the end of November to two at the end of December. That was 18% of Atherton’s total homes for sale. Ten homes were on the market in this price range a year ago. No sales went to contract in December versus one in November and four a year earlier.
The $10 million-plus market segment was the only one with a significant level of homes for sale with eight at the end of December, representing 73% of the city’s total. That was one less than at the end of November and two less than a year ago. Pending sales fell from four in November to one in December, which was the same number as in December 2014.
