Yahoo Travel says this about the Lincoln Park Golf Course:

Possibly the most beautiful views of any public golf course in the United States. This par 68 course, hard by the Golden Gate, is on the short and hilly side. A bit of Scotland, perhaps with fresh ocean breezes and sometimes challenging greens. There is a short range at which you must shag your own balls. Tee times can be made up to a week in advance, a necessity on weekends. Admission fees are $23 on weekdays and $29 on weekends.

Neighborhood: Richmond District/Sea Cliff

300 34th AvenueSan Francisco, CA 94121-1681

+1 415 221 9911

Open Hours
Dawn to dusk

- Christine Serventi

Find other things to do here.

SFResidence is part of the TRI Coldwell Banker office at 1699 Van Ness in San Francisco which is one of the premier offices in the City and has the market share numbers to prove it. We have some of the top agents selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, our office posts some impressive numbers.

We have seen an upswing of activity as Buyers have been attending open houses and writing offers. San Francisco is still seeing multiple offer situations. It is clear that inventory is low, and we hope to see a change in the months ahead.

Here are the numbers posted this week: 1/30/08:

• 3 new listings (average price $723,000 – low $530,000, high $840,000)
• 6 ratified sales (pending) (average price $1,096,000 – low $499,000, high $1,995,000)
• 2 closed sales (sold) (average price $1,471,000- low $442,000, high $2,500,000 list)

- Christine Serventi

Read what Rick Turley, President of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco/Peninsula says in his latest weekly report:

On Tuesday of this week, the Feds slashed the Federal Funds rate and the Discount rate by three-quarters of a percentage point. This move is a positive sign for homebuyers as well as homeowners with adjustable rate mortgages – the cut puts more downward pressure on mortgage rates. Rates have been moving down for several months now and Tuesday’s cut helps to continue this movement. Lower rates increase the affordability of homes. In addition, this week we had an Economic Stimulus Package that was announced from our nation’s capitol which, in addition to cash payouts to most Americans, included plans for a temporary increase in the conforming loan amount. Conforming loans are currently set at $417,000 and, according to various reports from Washington D.C., the plan would increase the conforming loan limit to somewhere between $615,000 and $725,000 in high cost areas – for a specified amount of time. It is this sort of news, especially in the Bay Area where home price medians far exceed the conforming loan limit in many areas, that should motivate more homebuyers to recognize that now may be the absolute best time to get into the market, and to take action sooner rather than later. I encourage sales associates, homebuyers and home sellers alike to contact their respective congressional representatives and lobby for their support for this component of the economic stimulus package.Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with “weekly market report” in the subject line.

In other good news, it seems that buyers are still out in droves in many parts of Bay Area and are snapping up excellent deals, and writing offers. There are still challenging micro-markets to be found, but even many of those are seeing an upswing in activity – and the high end market continues to thrive in practically every one of our markets. In Livermore, three different homes priced between $1million and $1.6 million had multiple offers on them. In Novato there is a surge in activity for homes prices above $1million, and the entry level market is also very active. In San Francisco, there were 10 offers on a Noe Valley listing, seven offers on a Colma property that was “a physical disaster” but perceived as a value, and a Potrero Hill home sold for $150,000 over asking. In Menlo Park, the right property “brings the buyers of the woodwork.” Inventory is creeping back up in some areas, creeping down in other areas and stagnant in others…

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports.

“COMMEND A FOOL FOR HIS WIT, OR A ROGUE FOR HIS HONESTY, AND HE WILL RECEIVE YOU INTO HIS FAVOUR.” Henry Fielding So honestly – was “rogue trader” Jerome Kerviel really solely responsible for costing French Bank Societe Generale $7.1 Billion Dollars…and for helping to trigger last week’s massive sell-off in global Stock markets? Or is the junior trader being played a fool, becoming the scapegoat to cover up financial mismanagement by the bank itself?

Supposedly – the French Bank had just uncovered massive losing positions caused by Kerviel, and decided to start selling off or “unwinding” these losing positions last Monday. Particularly because our US markets were closed on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Day and unable to help sop up some of the mess, global Stock markets declined significantly on the unwinding – which in turn set up our US Stock market for an ugly sell-off on Tuesday, one of the most dramatic declines since September 11th, 2001.

But even as the market opened on Tuesday, the Federal Reserve attempted to come to the rescue by making a surprising announcement – an emergency cut to the Fed Funds Rate and Discount Rate by .75%, in an effort to prevent a global market meltdown. The surprise announcement and magnitude of the rate cuts led to a week of exceptionally volatile trading in both Stocks and Bonds, causing home loan rates to swing wildly midweek, yet end up surprisingly close to where they had started…

Read the entire report here.

- Foster Weeks

Yahoo Travel says this about the Flower Power Haight-Ashbury Walking Tour:

Take a tour of this historic neighborhood with two insiders. This walking tour of the Haight-Ashbury lasts about two and half hours and is led by a brother-and-sister team who are long-time neighborhood residents. In addition to visiting the traditional neighborhood landmarks, the tour stops at restaurants, bars and shops that remain largely unknown by tourists. The tour concludes with a look at the Victorian architecture of the neighborhood houses. Call ahead for departure locations and times. Cash only.

Neighborhood: Haight-Ashbury

Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco, CA 94117

+1 415 863 1621

Open Hours 9:30a Tu & Sa
http://www.hippygourmet.com/

- Christine Serventi

Find other things to do here.

SFResidence is part of the TRI Coldwell Banker office at 1699 Van Ness in San Francisco which is one of the premier offices in the City and has the market share numbers to prove it. We have some of the top agents selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, our office posts some impressive numbers.

The Federal Reserve cut should have a positive impact on the public perception about today’s real estate market and may provide an immediate incentive for buyers. With that in mind, we may see a spike in activity in the weeks ahead. Realtors in our office announced a number of new listings coming on the market this week that are not reflected below.

Here are the numbers posted this week: 1/22/08:

• 5 new listings (average price $879,200 – low $579,000, high $1,349,000)
• 3 ratified sales (pending) (average price $897,967 – low $499,900, high $1,395,000)
• 2 closed sales (sold) (average price $2,500,000- low $1,500,000, high $3,500,000 list price, sale price confidential)

- Christine Serventi

Read what Rick Turley, President of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco/Peninsula says in his latest weekly report:

The pent up demand is palpable. While economic and housing market headlines remain negative, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage listings in much of the San Francisco Bay Area are experiencing a surge of activity, and optimism is high. More than 350 homes were held open last week and saw attending groups ranging in size from a steady eight to 10 for listings in the North Bay to as many as 300 in a Potrero Hill, San Francisco open. Homes in Half Moon Bay, Central Contra Costa County and down the Peninsula are also seeing a spike in activity. More detail on Month’s Supply of Inventory next week, but at a quick glance this week I noticed that single family homes and condos in San Francisco have their lowest level of active available properties since late May, 2007.

Fresh inventory continues to be an issue for many parts of the Peninsula – Woodside/Portola Valley notes that demand for $10 million-plus listings is particularly high, but in short supply. This lends credence to the continued strength of the high end and luxury market. In San Francisco and on the Peninsula, we don’t compete with the glut of new homes on the market in other parts of the Bay Area that are further away from our urban core. Looking back at 2007, it’s interesting to report that while overall units were down about 10%, the high end markets kept our sales volume virtually intact in San Francisco and the Peninsula – and in many areas the decrease in units is more attributable to a shortage of inventory than from a lack of buyers. Unfortunately, media reports decline to mention that. They also fail to mention that median prices in many areas of San Francisco, Marin and parts of the Peninsula have actually increased over the previous year; again a testament to the strength of our high end market. 2008 may reflect a similar trend and it is up to the real estate community to be proactive in letting high end home sellers know that, in many areas they are likely to see throngs of eager buyers who have been waiting for those homes to come on the market…

Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with “weekly market report” in the subject line.

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports.

“WHO ARE YOU? WHO, WHO, WHO, WHO?” When Pete Townshend and The Who penned this song back in 1978, they probably never imagined that it would come to mind during a Fed Chairman’s testimony to the House Budget Committee. But sure enough – one of the Representatives questioning Fed Chair Ben Bernanke actually mistook him for Treasury Secretary Paulson…and apologized by telling Bernanke that she got him “confused with the other one.” Great reminder to keep an eye on what our elected officials are telling us during this particularly important year, as they might just have their facts a bit confused.
The financial markets also appear to be a bit confused of late, with some mixed data on the health and future of the economy causing continued volatility in both Stocks and Bonds. While there was plenty of mid-week action, home loan rates ended just slightly higher for the week overall.

The Stock market has gotten hammered lower since the beginning of the year, and last week was no exception. But when Stocks move lower, money can flow over into Bonds, helping home loan rates improve. What caused last week’s action was a combination of terrible earnings reports from Citigroup and Merrill Lynch; higher inflation numbers indicated in the Consumer Price Index; lower than anticipated Retail Sales; a weak report from the Philadelphia Fed showing a sharp contraction in manufacturing activity; and a Housing Starts and Building Permits report showing the worst levels of starts and permits in about 16 years.

Read the entire report here.

- Foster Weeks

The Cherry Blossom Festival takes place in Japantown during two weekends in April. It showcases traditional Japanese arts with continuous demonstrations of, among others, tea ceremonies, martial arts, taiko drumming, and traditional dancing on an outdoor stage in the Japan Center. There are also parades, Asian food kiosks, and live music. Fewer street merchants attend than at most street fairs, but the merchandise offered, such as Kanji calligraphy scrolls, are of good quality and some are unique to this festival. Event is free; some vendors may accept credit cards.

+1 415 563 2313
Open Hours 10a-6p Sa-Su  

SFResidence is part of the TRI Coldwell Banker office at 1699 Van Ness in San Francisco which is one of the premier offices in the City and has the market share numbers to prove it. We have some of the top agents selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, our office posts some impressive numbers.

January is a month that tends to be slower, and the numbers posted this week may be an indication that the consumers have been waiting to see what is happening now that the new year is here. Agents in our office have announced a number of new listings coming on the market soon, and we expect to see the numbers posted rise.

Here are the numbers posted this week: 1/16/08:

• 6 new listings (average price $944,667 – low $475,000, high $2,075,000)
• 2 ratified sales (pending) (average price $722,500 – low $550,000, high $895,000)
• 6 closed sales (sold) (average price $2,033,627 – low $740,262, high $3,560,000)

- Christine Serventi