A Silver Lining: California Real Estate
If calamities have a silver lining, it lies within the strengthening of our ability to tolerate uncertainty and build resiliency. California is uniquely suited to foster the flexing of these critical muscles. Our real estate market is a shining example. Despite the pandemic, COVID-19 Shelter-In-Place (SIP), searing heat waves, relentless wildfires and unhealthy air quality, our real estate market continues to thrive based on the robust number of recent transactions. Along with the rest of the economy, the real estate industry took a hit as a result of the initial SIP order, but since June, the real estate market is again on a tear, with the most recent quarter outshining the same quarter in 2019 and 2018.
Resiliency has always been built into the golden state’s inherent nature to rebuild and renew. In the past, drought, earthquakes and other challenges haven’t stopped the lure of California to those arriving from across the country or other nations. From its very origins, it has always been a magnet for those seeking adventure and opportunity. In fact, it is this reputation for innovation that rings true more than ever before.
Home to many of the world’s largest tech companies, California’s employment base and opportunities for entrepreneurship, innovation and growth in the spirit of that ingenuity remain a driving force for those who want to live here. Coupled with historically low interest rates, home sales continue to climb. Factor in the pent-up demand and a tightening housing supply, and you can easily see why California’s real estate marketplace remains an extremely robust market.
Data from MLSListings Inc., which manages residential transactions for all the area’s Realtors® clearly demonstrates the inherent resiliency of the California real estate market. In fact, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Counties have all hit all-time high median price points this year on single-family homes. Santa Cruz County reached the milestone of the $1 million mark for median sales of single-family homes this year.
Our region’s residents and those looking to join our communities continue to find value in our real estate. “Outside of San Francisco, the Bay Area real estate market has been blistering despite COVID-19, with tight housing inventory, quick deals, cash transactions and high-end properties selling for a premium,” remarked Karl Lee, Chair of the MLSListings Board of Directors.
For most, California remains a highly desirable place to live. The year-round temperate weather enables more opportunity to social distance, while much of the country prepares for a long, cold and dark winter.
The state’s natural geography provides more access to space for work and play, and, with the anxiety around traveling during a pandemic, our region’s nearby vacation areas become desirable places for a second home.
California is the world’s fifth-largest economy, and along with its well-known research institutions and universities, its entrepreneurial community harnesses the robust intellectual strength of our area’s human capital to bring new innovations to light.
If you are looking to buy or sell a home in this part of the golden state, your Realtor® armed with the latest MLSListings data can be your North Star to help you identify and achieve your real estate goals in the near future. California will always be a great place to call home.