San Francisco city home prices rose 4 percent in April from a year earlier to a median $1.3 million. Sales fell more than 18 percent, the fourth-straight month of declines.
In good news for buyers, the supply of homes for sale jumped more than 50 percent, the biggest advance in more than five years, and more sellers entered the market. The number of new for-sale signs was 7.7 percent higher last month than in April 2015.
The supply of homes for sale in the city has been increasing at a rapid clip all year, but the growing inventory hasn’t been enough to seriously hamper price growth or meet buyer demand. In April, there was less than a two-month supply of properties on the market, well below the six months that signals a balance between buyers and sellers.
That’s one reason nearly 70 percent of homebuyers paid more than sellers were asking in April.
“While this dramatic increase in inventory isn’t halting price growth, we have noticed that the type of property matters,” Redfin agent Mark Colwell said. “The backlog of buyers for single-family homes means that demand isn’t likely to slow down anytime soon, even with the number of homes on the market increasing as much as it has. However, we’re starting to notice that condo prices are beginning to flatten.”
Condo prices were up just 2.6 percent while inventory jumped 73.3 percent last month from April 2015.
