Atherton Market Conditions February 2016
- Sales remain low
- Inventory ticks up
- 75% of inventory is over $5 million
February continued the holding pattern for real estate in Atherton. Uncertainty with the economy and elections has made high-end buyers more cautious. More than 75% of actively listed homes here were priced over $5 million. We did have a few homes priced under $3 million available at the end of February for the first time since November. There are signs that the market is starting to pick up some, as pending sales moved higher in February. Homes that are not moving are generally not priced appropriately or in a more difficult location. Selling is not as easy as it was several months ago.
Only two sales closed in February, the same as in January. That was the first time closed sales have been that low in consecutive months since January-February 2009. Pending sales did move upwards in February, from two in January to four. That was the most pending sales here since October and was tow more than a year ago. Inventory also rose in February, for the first time in three months. 29 homes were available for sale at the end of February, four more than at the end of January and nine more than a year ago.
Making sense of pricing trends with only two closed sales is difficult, at best. The median price of the two sales that closed in February was $4.3 million, about the same as the two in January. The price per square foot was nearly $500 lower in February, at $1,346. That was still about $200 higher than in February 2015. The two homes sold for 102% of the average list price. One of the homes sold for over $5 million and for 91% of the list price, while the other, priced around $3.5 million, sold for 105% of the list price.
One of February’s sales (over $5 million) was on the market only three days, while the other was listed for 105 days.
Analysis by Price Range
Three properties priced under $3 million were actively listed at the end of February. That was the first time we have had inventory in this segment since November. Those three homes represented 10% of Atherton’s total inventory. No sales went to contract during February.
In the $3 million to $4,999,999 price range, four properties were on the market at the end of February, unchanged from January. Two sales went pending in February, also unchanged from January. 50% of pending sales and 14% of inventory were in this price range. As at the end of January, February ended with a two month supply of homes available for sale.
Seven homes priced from $5 million to $9,999,999 were on the market at the end of February, one more than at the end of January. Only one sale went to contract during February but that was one more than during January. This segment accounted for 24% of inventory and 25% of pending sales.
52% of Atherton’s inventory at the end of February was priced at or above $10 million. Inventory stood at 15 units in this segment, unchanged from January. One sale (25% of the total) went to contract in February, compared to none in January.
