Marin County Real Estate Market Report – January 2016

The inventory of homes for sale in Marin County is at the lowest level in the last ten years. January offered only half of the average number of units for sale compared to January 2015, and 15% of the inventory of 2007, the height of the market. The end of the Super Bowl marks the start of what should be an upward trend in listing inventory. It is a seller’s market and homes priced within a reasonable range of their final sale price are moving quickly with multiple offers.

Our company website now offers buyers a way to access our listings “Not on MLS.” To get the first update of listings on the market, we encourage you to find the off market properties under the Property Search menu at the top of our website.

There was a decrease of the number of homes sales in January of 45% from December, which was unexpected. Typically, December is one of the slower months as homes are removed from the market during the holidays. The decrease is largely due to the extremely low inventory.

The $1-$2 million price range remains the leading price range in active homes on the market in Marin County. The under $1 million and $2-$3 million ranges follow closely behind with 32 and 31 active homes.

Fairfax leads Marin County for the month of January with the highest percentage of homes in contract at 100%. Larkspur and Novato follow closely behind at 71% and 60%. The month was the lowest for the Beach Cities and Kentfield, with 0% of homes in contract; although, the higher end market in Kentfield plays a large role in this percentage.

The Marin County market experienced an increase in average list prices from December to January mostly due to low inventory in the lower price ranges. The average sale price has been decreasing since November, as sellers who need to sell generally stay on the market through the year end and are willing to accept lower prices, particularly when their property has not sold during the peak of the season in the spring, early summer and October.

The inventory in January is nearly half the previous year. Low inventory has been a problem in achieving a balanced market for the last few years. The sales, however, were roughly the same as this month last year. Inventory is expected to increase over the next few months as we move in the listing season, which typically starts at the end of February and into March and April.