Marin Real Estate Pulse

Looking across California it is obvious that communities with a huge amount of new home construction over the past several years are suffering substantial price drops.  Much of the new construction was first time buyers with little money for a down payment.

Marin County has very little new construction and as a result a fairly fixed supply of single family homes.  This, I believe, is a significant part of the reason Marin real estate prices have not taken a beating like much of the state.  The other major factors that make Marin “special” are quality of life issues; weather, open-space, culture, etc.

Although the number of home sales is down overall in Marin, that is not the case for the very expensive homes indicated in my prior articles or for single family residences under $500,000 as indicated below:

Year                                     2007                       2006

Number of sales                  17                           13

Median Price                        $465,000              $499,000

Median Square Feet           1,003                     810

As you can see, Marin starter homes are more affordable than they have been in several years. 

Information from BARIES Marin MLS as of January 8, 2008