August 2024

August 2024 Newsletter
Welcome to the Summer, I know many of you are planning on vacations this summer to places you return to each year or to new adventures. My summer vacation will occur in late September to early October with a visit to Italy to go back to some of the cities I’ve been to before, Rome, Florence, and Verona to see friends and the change will be a bike trip in Puglia, the southeastern tip of the heel of Italy, meeting some friends there, and two in particular that I’ve known since my teenage years.
Real Estate Update

Mortgage Market Summary
Buyers are committing to properties with the current interest rates because the possibility of a reduction in the future to refinance will be there but the window for that happening is not yet clear.
Jerome Powell, the Fed Chair, is sticking to the current strategy until he sees inflation reduced towards 2% on a consistent basis.
“The Committee has stated that we do not expect it will be appropriate to reduce the target range for the federal funds rate until we have gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent,” Mr. Powell said.
He added that data earlier this year failed to provide such confidence, but that recent inflation readings “have shown some modest further progress, and more good data would strengthen our confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent.”
PRIMARY MORTGAGE MARKET SURVEY®
Summary page with all rate types – U.S. averages

U.S. 30 yr U.S. 15 yr U.S. 5/1 ARM U.S. 30 yr FRM/
30 yr fees & 15 yr fees & 5/1 fees & 5/1 ARM 5/1 ARM
Week FRM points FRM points ARM points margin spread

FreddieMAC

PRIMARY MORTGAGE MARKET SURVEY^®
Summary page with all rate types – U.S. averages

	U.S.	30 yr	U.S.	15 yr	U.S.	5/1 ARM	U.S.	30 yr FRM/
	30 yr	fees &	15 yr	fees &	5/1	fees &	5/1 ARM	5/1 ARM
Week	FRM	points	FRM	points	ARM	points	margin	spread

5/30/2024 7. 03 6.36
6/6/2024 6.99 6.29
6/13/2024 6.95 6.17
6/20/2024 6.87 6.13
6/27/2024 6.86 6.16
7/3/2024 6.95 6.25
Although Freddie Mac attempts to provide reliable, useful information in this document Freddie Mac does not guarantee that the information is accurate, current or suitable for any particular purpose. Estimates contained in this document are those of Freddie Mac currently and are subject to change without notice.

Our Current Situation Re: Marin County Sold Listings and Sales Price Average
Marin County is still a very hot seller’s market with the average price edging up to $2.4 MM, while the number of sold listings is lagging and well below where it was three years ago. Less inventory and a good economy means higher prices for homes.

We Are Very Local
Same as last newsletter. The employment picture remains good for San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA and the environs with solid jobs and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the unemployment rate still stands at about 4% which by any measure and excellent statistic. There have been tech layoffs, but the employment picture still looks reasonably good, employment numbers have gotten a little worse and the stock markets have made a temporary dive but we should be fine getting past the election.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

The Next Few Months

I’m not sure why condos are not selling so well these days other than buyers are waiting for rates to go down and most are also confronted by high HOA fees which give the buyer the services of a building but no real tax benefits. But in life you usually get what you pay for and having high HOA dues reflects the service you receive. Now is a fantastic time to buy a condo, sellers are waiting for offers and the prices are better now than they have been in a long while.

What I Hope For

Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, avoided sending a clear signal about when the central bank would begin to cut interest rates even as he welcomed a recent cool-down in inflation.
“Today I’m not going to be sending any signals one way or the other on any particular meeting,” Mr. Powell said while speaking at the Economic Club of Washington on Monday. – NY Times, July 15, 2024
Inflation has receded and prices are stabilizing but the Fed wants to wait until September to see if the reduction in the inflation rate maintains or keeps going down. They are keeping an eagle eye on the employment rate to see if there is a spike in unemployment which could indicate a possible slow-down in the economy. All’s well though at the moment. Now might be a good time for people to move to a larger home and there are ways to buy first then sell second through some creative financing that is available to my clients. Call me if you have any interest in doing a move up. I work with first time homebuyers and can help lead you through all the changes in the way we are going to be doing business starting in August, 2024.

On A Personal Note

Thanks for reading my newsletter, I hope it is informative and useful as I try to bring information to my readers with their interests at heart. My daughter Camryn is just finishing her freshman year at The University of Oregon and will be spending the summer home working as a junior paralegal. She hopes to become a lawyer some day.

And as always, please don’t hesitate to contact me with any question have about real estate or anything else that’s on your mind.

All the best,

Gary F. Saydah
415-505-1999 | gary.saydah@cbrealty.com | www.garysaydah.com
Cal DRE #01488727 | 1560 Van Ness Avenue 2nd Flr., San Francisco, CA 94109