Coldwell Banker has long been a world leader in the sale of luxury homes, thanks to its Previews International luxury market program. Now, the company is taking that prestigious program to even greater heights by elevating its Previews agent certification program, expanding global marketing offerings and cultivating growth in its digital and print content.

Last year alone, Coldwell Banker sold 25,000 homes worth $1 million or more, including some of the world’s most distinguished properties. The new Previews luxury program is designed to increase that performance, especially in the rapidly-expanding global luxury real estate market.

Coldwell Banker revised Previews certification course for agents includes an immersive and exclusive approach to learning how to operate in the luxury real estate market. Led by top agents in the luxury space, the fortified certification course pairs the experience and first-hand knowledge of successful luxury agents with industry-leading resources to help agents meet and exceed the expectations of their most affluent clients. The new program provides learning, networking, marketing resources and mentorship to the newest generation of up-and-coming luxury agents.

A completely redesigned luxury website, ColdwellBankerPreviews.com, makes it easy for agents to collaborate and share marketing materials for listings with their peers around the world. The platform will power the Previews website in multiple languages, underscoring the global appeal of luxury real estate and the strengthening of the Coldwell Banker global network. The all-new platform engages luxury real estate agents in over 75 countries globally.

Building off of past years’ successes, Coldwell Banker recently unveiled its quarterly Homes and Estates magazine. For the first time ever, the magazine, which features top listings from around the world alongside luxury lifestyle content, will be available globally on newsstands and at Barnes and Noble. The magazine will also be distributed to subscribers of Unique Homes and will be available for download on the Previews Inside Out blog.

“Coldwell Banker has been a leader in luxury real estate for more than 80 years,” said Sean Blankenship, chief marketing officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. “That’s not by luck, rather it’s by continually improving our program to ensure it serves the next generation of luxury customers all over the world. Each enhancement we make ensures that agents are prepared to succeed in the luxury real estate market and can effectively collaborate with their peers in our global network.”

Below is a market-by-market report from our local Northern California offices (listed by alpha):

East Bay –Berkeley and its surrounding area continues to see a growth in median prices as well as tighter inventory. For example; in Berkeley as of 11/10/16 there are only 33 houses available for sale whereas there are now 56 houses under contract. These statistics remain constant in the surrounding vicinity as well. El Cerrito currently has 19 houses available for sale and 20 under contract (.95 months’ supply). Albany has 8 homes active and 11 under contract (.73 months). In Oakland there are 304 houses available for sale and 342 under contract (.89 months) and in Richmond 118 homes active and 114 under contract (1.04 months). Take note that economists consistently define an even market between buyer and seller as being the six-month inventory supply. One caveat: the data was prior to the November 8th Presidential election. It will certainly be crucial to see if there is any movement to the numbers when we review again in two weeks. The Danville area market seems to be winding down for the holidays.  Even so, sales are being made, especially to those buyers who have been put off by the competition earlier in the year. Our Oakland-Piedmont manager says sellers are bringing their homes to market hoping to sell and close prior to the holiday season. Buyers are still out at open homes looking to get in before the holidays arrive. There are fewer multiple offers and some buyers are able to get in without competition at all, but that does not mean that they are getting in below list price.

Monterey County – The election results are in and we will see what affect the new administration will have on the Monterey area housing market, our local manager says.  So far Wall Street has responded favorably with record closing numbers. October was a strong month for our office with several significant sales in the luxury category of the market. Listings seem to have slowed somewhat in the last two weeks, which most likely was due to the election. We are looking forward to a strong fourth quarter sale figures with the anticipation of some price adjustments on the properties that seem to be languishing on the market.

North Bay – The Previews market has cooled considerably, according to our Greenbrae manager.  The overall feeling has been that segment of the market has slowed in no small part due to the uncertainty from the Presidential race and election.  The amount of pending sales in the $2 million plus range is quite low while the sales under $1 million are receiving multiple offers and still flying out the door, with 45% in that price range pending. The Southern Marin housing market is very strong below $2 million with 45% of available properties under contract, which is still a seller’s market. Agents continue to see multiple offers under $1 million. The luxury market has slowed down dramatically with only 12.5% of available properties over $2 million under contract and only 6% of properties over $3 million under contract. There are still qualified buyers looking, however they are very discerning and will only offer if the property “checks off all of their boxes.”

Placer County – Open houses were slower over the past week or so, our Auburn manager reports.  New construction companies have a push to sell outstanding inventory before the end of the year and are offering some substantial incentives to the buyers and some to the agents.  We are still seeing multiple offers on at least 50% of the offers written and some of the homes are only available to view at an open house and then offers reviewed that Monday or Tuesday following the open house.  We are also seeing more listing agents telling the selling agents that if there is an appraisal contingency in the offer, it may be rejected.  This week we have had appraisals come in $5,000-$50,000 below the offered priced and on the one that came in $50,000 below, there are 2 other offers at the full list price.  Many extra features such as built-in pools are only given a credit of $5,000-$10,000 regardless of the features.  In the Previews luxury market segment, inventory is up to two years for $1.5 million plus homes.

Sacramento County – Our Elk Grove manager says there appears to be many buyers on the fence not sensing an urgent need to act now as they await the response to the election, talk of increased interest rates and a forecasted small correction in prices. Time will tell.  There is a large gap between average list price of homes for sale and average sales price. Multiple offers have declined but there are still some in the 300k and below price point. This is still a bifurcated market, our Sacramento Metro office manager says, with the under $450,000 price range still getting many multiple offers. In the Previews luxury market, inventory is increasing and there is less urgency on the part of buyers with some price resistance.

San Francisco – Our Lakeside manager reports new listings are almost non-existent.  Are sellers spooked by the uncertainty of the election, he wonders?  Now that we have the election results behind us we can truly assess the impact of the uncertainty.  As for now, there are plenty of buyers but new sellers are staying behind the curtain. Our Lombard office manager says sales have been brisk city-wide these last two weeks. Entry homes and fixers remain the hottest. About one third of SFH’s sold at or under asking. But now two thirds of condos sold at or under, a new high in that category, with a higher percentage having had at least one price reduction.  There was a $5m and $7m sale in the last 2 weeks, but the high-end remains slow unless the property is almost flawless. Our Market Street office manager notes that the market seems to be in a state of flux as we approach the holiday season.    Some properties are selling with multiple offers (as many as eight during this period), and others are going unnoticed or are selling for less than their list price.    Some buyers have expressed anxiety over the election, and are putting their home buying plans on hold until things are more settled.

San Francisco Peninsula – The Burlingame area market rebounded from a slow September. Palo Alto is seasonally quiet with low inventory and demand. Our Redwood City manager notes that this is a very unpredictable market. One Redwood City home in a desirable “family” neighborhood that was extremely dated and in need of complete “redo” listed at $979,000 and had 13 offers. Seems that almost anything in a desirable area listed under $1,000,000 will bring multiple offers. There still is a lack of sufficient inventory.

Santa Cruz County – The average price in Santa Cruz County for single family residences is still in the $890,000 range, which indicates a strong appreciation of approximately 12% of increased property value for single family residences in Santa Cruz County year to date. Supply has dwindled down to the low 300 range for single family residences but the number of pending and active contingent property listings has continued to stay quite high on a weekly basis. Coldwell Banker in Santa Cruz County has just closed two sales in the $3-5 million price ranges, which were both properties that had been accruing days on market for several months. There is some indication of strong demand for high end property, however, the high end market has slowed down significantly since its peak earlier this year. 

Silicon Valley – It’s pretty quiet out there in the Cupertino area unless you’re near the Apple Spaceship, our local manager says. Opportunities abound! Although the Los Altos area market has experienced a slight slowdown of homes coming on the market over the recent weeks, those listings that are coming on and priced to induced offers, are being absorbed quickly.  The SFR market is still strong overall.  As for the condo market, our Los Altos manager said it is red hot. Inventory is extremely low – with only a half a months of inventory on the market in Mountain View and a month’s worth of inventory in Los Altos. The luxury market (homes priced over $3.5M) is steady but, flat – with days on market and inventory going higher.  The number of sales in this market segment are down.  And at first glance, inventory would appear to be abundant however, with so few homes actually on the make this number is more of a “false” negative. Our Los Gatos manager says properties continue to sell at a brisk pace due to a shortage of inventory. There’s also been an uptick in activity in the over $5 million market. Our San Jose Almaden manager saw an uptick in the number of sales over the past 2 weeks as well as a shrinking of inventory as we head into the holidays.  All of the median sales prices were flat from the previous month even though we are still seeing multiple offers. Almaden had 28 sales, which was actually down 30% compared to last month but up 33% from October of 2015. The median sales price was $1,352,000.  Blossom Valley had a total of 104 sales, up 8.3% over last month and up a whopping 42% from October of last year.  The median sales price was $755,000.  Cambrian had a total of 77 sales, down 13.5% from last month and flat from the previous year.  The median sales price was $949,000.  Santa Teresa had a total of 20 units sold, down 26% and down 37% from last month and year respectively.  The median sales price was $760,000. Our San Jose Main office manager continues to see decreasing inventory throughout Santa Clara County – down from 20 to over 50% from peak summer inventory.  Buyers are cautious however anxious, and when a home comes on the market priced just 3-5% below market, they are quick to react.  Aggressive sellers are seeing their properties sit on the market while the smart sellers are getting the attention and even multiple offers, which were common earlier in the year.  Prices are stabilizing with the staged, move in ready homes getting the premium price while the property that needs work and does not show well is being neglected.  With the holiday season approaching some will delay their house move until next spring.  Like always during this time of year, there will be less activity with only the serious buyers and sellers still willing to make a move. The Willow Glen market is steady. There has been active listing inventory of the mid 70’s for the past two weeks, and sales have been steady with 20 new sales for the week. Agents have reported improved traffic at open house the past two weeks. Active inventory in Saratoga is 51 properties compared to same time last year of 53 properties.  Avg. sales price in Saratoga is $2.798 million compared to same time last year of $2.234 million. The high-end market in Saratoga continues to move forward.  In the last month, there have been 3 properties that have sold between $6.0-$5.3 million, 15 properties between $3.0-$4.0 million, and 11 properties between $2.0-$3.0 million.

South County – It seems that the South County housing market is certainly favoring buyers.  There are more and more homes being offered for sale, which gives buyers more choices.  At the beginning of this year most buyers were faced with limited inventory, and then if they wanted to purchase, were required to offer significantly over asking price in order to secure a property.  Now, however, agents are reporting that offers are often coming in at less than asking.  In some cases, sellers are being forced to reduce prices or make other concessions in order to generate enthusiasm and interest in their respective homes.

Tahoe & Truckee – The 2016 real estate market in North Lake Tahoe and Truckee has been a remarkable year for both sellers and buyers, according to our local manager.  There continues to be considerable activity in the market as many buyers and savvy investors are actively looking for homes. For sellers there is demand for properties in the market with inventory down.  For buyers, even though inventory is down from last year, there are quality properties to choose from throughout the north Lake Tahoe and Truckee areas.  With current home prices and favorable mortgage interest rates, real estate investors are taking advantage of this market and acquiring homes in many of the Lake Tahoe and Truckee resort communities. Luxury sales for properties priced above $1,000,000 are up a whopping 60% from 2015 luxury sales.  For 2016, there have been 254 luxury properties sold as compared to 159 sold last year for the same period.  The median sales price for luxury properties in 2016 thus far is $1,647,500, which is up almost 2% from the median sales price of $1,622,500 in 2015.  The average sale price of luxury homes in 2016 stands at $2,380,052 as compared to $2,312,685 in 2015 and is up almost 3%.

Market Watch is a bi-weekly column by Coldwell Banker San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento-Tahoe president Mike James exploring the local Northern California housing markets. Click here to view past issues.

One of the big headwinds of the housing market nationwide has been the lack of first-time home buyers – millennials in particular. But the market got a bit of good news on that front last month as a surge in first-time buyers resulted in existing-home sales nationally rebounding strongly in September, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

Total existing-home sales – single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – rose 3.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.47 million in September from 5.30 million in August. After last month’s gain, home sales are at their highest pace since June and are 0.6 percent above a year ago.

While the gains alone weren’t huge, what was interesting is that first-time buyers were primarily responsible for the increase. In fact, 34 percent of the purchases were by new buyers, the largest percentage in more than four years, according to NAR. All major regions saw an increase in closings last month, and distressed sales fell to a new low of 4 percent of the market.

The lack of inventory of homes on the market continues to be a challenge, according to Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist.

“The home search over the past several months for a lot of prospective buyers, and especially for first-time buyers, took longer than usual because of the competition for the minimal amount of homes for sale,” Yun said in a news announcement.

“Most families and move-up buyers look to close before the new school year starts. Their diminishing presence from the market towards the end of summer created more opportunities for aspiring first-time homeowners to buy last month,” he added.

The median existing-home sale price nationwide for all housing types in September was $234,200, up 5.6 percent from September 2015 – the 55th consecutive month of year-over-year gains.

Total housing inventory at the end of September rose 1.5 percent to 2.04 million existing homes for sale, but is still 6.8 percent lower than a year ago and has now fallen year-over-year for 16 straight months.

“Inventory has been extremely tight all year and is unlikely to improve now that the seasonal decline in listings is about to kick in,” added Yun. “Unfortunately, there won’t be much relief from new home construction, which continues to be grossly inadequate in relation to demand.”

Below is a market-by-market report from our local Northern California offices (listed by alpha):

East Bay – With a little over two months left in 2016 the market in Berkeley and its surrounding neighborhoods continues to maintain its strength. There are 47 single-family homes listed for sale on the MLS and 53 under contract. This translates to an inventory supply .89 months. In comparison there are only eight condos or duets available for sale versus six under, an inventory supply of 1.33 months. There are only six houses for sale in Albany with eight under contract (.75 months) and 21 houses for sale in El Cerrito with 16 under contract (1.31 months).  With economists noting a six-month supply as being an even marker between buyer and seller – these figures are indicative of a strong sellers’ market which is translating into a greater and greater median sale price of homes in the area.  From 9/1/15 to 10/27/15 some 81 houses sold in Berkeley with a median sale price of $985,000. Conversely, the same time period this year shows us 70 houses sold with a median sale price of $1,115,500, a 12% increase. Real estate in the East Bay is maintaining both its growth and desirability. October has been surprisingly active in the San Ramon Valley, according to our Danville manager.  Even with the upper end slowing down, one of our Blackhawk listings priced over $2 million went under contract. Our Oakland/Piedmont manager says open houses are still being well attended. There are fewer offer dates and most now are “offers as they come.” The last week or two there appears to be a lot of new buyers coming in to the market and listings have started to slow down with the main reason that the holidays are coming up. Agents and sellers are preparing properties for the new year already. There are still houses going considerably over asking but the number is far fewer than in the past months.

North Bay – The Previews® luxury market has slowed considerably with 54 properties available over $4 million and only 4 pending in Marin County, reports our Greenbrae manager.  The properties still receiving good offers and sometimes multiple are in the under $1 million range.  The lack of inventory in that range continues as we move closer to the holidays.  Agents are seeing more price reductions and negotiating over inspection repairs than we have all year.  The feeling is people are holding off listing their homes due to the upcoming election. Our Novato manager reports sales are steady but listing activity has slowed. Inventory is still challenging and limited. Agents saw less than a dozen new homes com on Novato tour this week. In the luxury market, one million-dollar home in Novato received six offers. According to our Santa Rosa Bicentennial office manager, there has been an uptick in activity in the last few weeks. Multiple offers on properly priced homes are on the rise again. September’s inventory was at 2.2 month’s supply, which was a 9% rise from the August levels, but still 16% below last year at this time. Total property sales are running 5.5% behind last year, but if inventory continues to rise the market may be able to close that gap. Open home reports vary anywhere from 20 to 60 visitors in a three hour period so buyers are still very active. The inventory of properties over $1,500,000 sits at 8.5 month’s supply. There has been a downward trend for the year as properties are being bought faster than they are replaced. Our Santa Rosa Mission office manager sees unique market conditions with still limited inventory, a declining number of offers and buyer price fatigue. Our Sebastopol manager says listings are down 30% from this time last year but sales are up 20%, which means inventory is slim to none. Properties are noticeably priced more aggressively than last month. Sellers are more realistic on pricing strategy. Most-asked question agents get from clients: Will the election affect the housing market? The Southern Marin market is steady with about 40% of the total inventory under contract for all of Marin and 30% under contract in Southern Marin, where the average listing is much higher. Agents are seeing fewer multiple offers and overbids. The luxury market has slowed down as expected, however sales are still occurring. Some 12% of the inventory over $3 million is under contract and almost 20% of the inventory over $2 million is under contract.

Placer County – There are a few more homes on the market in the Auburn area and sales are about the same, according to our Auburn manager.  Agents are still having issues with appraisals either taking longer or coming in under purchase price per contract.  They’re also watching the timeframes more closely and giving “Notices to Perform” due to the number of multiple and back-up offers.  As an office, some of the Auburn agents are now door knocking and this seems to be paying off with leads.  Also the open houses are busy and many of those coming into the open houses are from the Bay Area.  Agents are also seeing a nice number of leads coming in from the Customer Engagement Team.  Little change in the luxury segment of the market, except the Previews® homes in this area are selling at considerably less than original list price. Our Roseville-Granite Bay manager says the month of October has seen a decline in new listings, while sales have remained steady.  Pricing has also remained constant.  The average sales price has been relatively even compared to last month and October of last year.  There is no indication that the decline in new listings is trending in that direction as it is too early to tell.  There are plenty of market forces to point to: election, slowing into the holiday stretch, economic concerns, possibility of rising rates etc., but overall none of those potential influences has been a positive or negative driver in the market over the past two months.  There is some push back on price from the buyers and resistance to lowering prices from the sellers, which points to a potential market shift on the horizon.

Sacramento County – Our Sacramento Fair Oaks manager reports there still is a lack of inventory in the $400,000 and below price points with many multiple offers. $750,000 and above continues to be soft. The Sacramento Metro manager agrees, noting that the primary market has continued to be busy.

San Francisco – Change is in the air and it may be the uncertainty created by the general election environment, our Lakeside manager says. The market is proceeding but with caution. Our Lombard manager notes the number of condo and home sales doubled last week, bringing the month’s supply back to normal ­- a much higher inventory than a year ago. Again, homes continue selling over asking while at least half of condos are trading at or under asking. Broker and open traffic remain robust, but the number of eventual offers are significantly reduced YOY. Proper pricing is more critical than ever.

San Francisco Peninsula – Some buyers in the Half Moon Bay area express the uncertainty about the state of economy, housing market, and the interest rate depending on the election result, our local manager notes.  Some are hesitant to make the decision to purchase at this time and are willing to wait until election is over. There is still a high demand for the oceanfront/ocean view Previews® luxury properties on the coast.  One of the oceanfront properties listed on the coast for $6.875 million sold in 18 days.  Other ocean view previews properties are selling with multiple offers once the original list price is reduced. Inventory is extremely low in Palo Alto and neighboring towns. Buyers are indicating more interest after the election. Our Redwood City office had a single-family, 5 bedroom, 3 bath home in San Carlos that came on the market at $2,050,000. It received 11 offers (10 written and one oral) and sold for approximately $650,000 over list. Most of our properties are still getting multiple offers but usually only two or three. Open house attendance seems to have slowed down but agents are finding that if the property remains on the market for a couple of weeks there are “serious” buyers that are attending the open houses.

Santa Cruz County – The supply of homes on the market in the Santa Cruz area has steadily decreased for about a month now. Our local manager is seeing a supply level around 350 active single-family residences in the county. Demand is fairly strong with well-priced properties in sought after communities still receiving multiple offers. Pricing requires careful consideration in the mid-level price ranges for a property to receive an offer or offers within 8-14 days. The supply of condos and townhomes has actually increased slightly for a month, bringing opportunity for entry level buyers. Luxury home sales in Santa Cruz have softened a little bit in the last 30 days or so. Supply is in a relatively average range for this time of year but demand has adjusted from its peak earlier this year. Buyers have become more discretionary and it has become critical that Previews® luxury properties are priced appropriately to create the perception of a property being a good value. Our offices are about to close several transactions including one beach house over $5 million as well as a handful of other Previews®  transactions at this time.

Silicon Valley – Our Cupertino manager says the local market is definitely slowing down, which is to be expected for this time of year. Only the most desirable properties are getting lots of multiple offers. There are definitely some excellent buyer opportunities for those limited down payment buyers who might not have had a chance previously. In Los Altos, our local manager sees continued signs of seasonal adjustments with low inventory.  This lack of inventory has had a direct impact on those homes which had been “lingering” on the market. Agents have seen an increase in price reductions on homes resulting in a higher than average DOMs. The luxury market (homes priced over $3.5M) is steady but flat – with days on market and inventory going higher – and frenzy bidding or multiple offers being the exception as opposed to the rule. Inventory in the Los Gatos area continues to be anemic as buyers compete to find homes to purchase. There have been some recent strong sales in the Previews® luxury market. Our San Jose Almaden manager says he’s still seeing multiple offers on most deals but with contingencies.  There was only one deal that had 0 contingencies.  Some were even sale of property contingencies.  The market is slowing down as far as listings coming to the market (holiday season).  The Almaden market had an average sales price of $1,400,000, up 7% from last month and 9% from last year in October.  Blossom Valley had an average sales price of $723,000, up 2.5% from last month and 7.5% from October 2015.  Cambrian’s average sales price was $949,000, down 4% from last month and flat for the previous year in October.  Santa Teresa has an average sales price of $726,000, down 3% from both last month and October 2015. Our San Jose Main office manager says overall inventory in the county continues to decline as the “Holiday Season” quickly approaches and sellers wait to list until 2017 or take their homes off the market.  Despite less inventory, prices are remaining stable as fewer buyers are making offers and fewer bidding wars are seen.  Interest rates remain low and buyers still out number sellers, however they are cautious and tend to wait a few days before making an offer.  Smart sellers who are pricing their homes at or even 3-5% below market value are getting all the traffic, however need to be a little more “buyer friendly.”  Contingent offers are more accepted today as sellers have fewer offers to sort through and can’t be as demanding as they were 6-8 months ago.  Willow Glen active listing inventory has continued to contract the past few weeks, our local manager notes. Inventory has dipped into the low 70’s from a mid-80’s count just a few weeks ago. Open house traffic has picked up a bit. Agents are reporting buyers are out there, but just being more selective. With inventory expected to decrease as we move closer into the holiday season it might be competitive again for buyers looking to pull the trigger. This past week our office posted more buyer side transactions than in the previous weeks. Active listings in Saratoga are up by 6 properties from last year at this time, 62 active today vs. 56 active a year ago. The Previews® luxury market in Saratoga is staying steady. Our office had four new construction properties on the market priced from $2.65-$3.55 million. Three are in contract and the fourth is about to be in contract. All have gone over the list price, with two being all cash offers.  All of them have been on the market for less than 14 days.

South County – The South County real estate market is well on its way to becoming balanced and somewhat normal.  Gone are the frustrating days (for buyers) of very low inventory and very high demand.  Qualified buyers now have many more options in almost every price range, reports our local manager.  This “balancing” of the market is also requiring sellers to list their homes at more realistic prices so that they can even garner a reasonable offer.  At least in South County, multiple (over asking) offers are a rarity—and most sales are coming in at or below asking price.

Tahoe & Truckee – The first two weeks of October was another encouraging two-week period of sales in the Tahoe/Truckee area with 74 properties sold, which is the third highest two-week period this year. Of the 74 properties sold this period, 15 were sold at a price above $1 million with one sale above $11 million. Luxury sales are up 67% year over year.

Market Watch is a bi-weekly column by Coldwell Banker San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento-Tahoe president Mike James exploring the local Northern California housing markets. Click here to view past issues.