SF Chronicle: How Remote Work Changed Our Housing Market in San Francisco (April 2023)
Sound Off
Appearing in the San Francisco Chronicle Real Estate Section
From time to time, the editors of the Real Estate section at the San Francisco Chronicle will ask leading area real estate agents their opinion and thoughts about various topics related to the Bay Area’s housing market. This is right up our alley given our track record, experience helping buyers and sellers in various parts of the Bay Area and given the fact that Kevin used to be a reporter and lawyer, so you know there‘s an opinion just waiting to get out.
This Week‘s Question:
How will remote work impact demand and pricing of Bay Area housing?
Answer:
The shift towards remote work has greatly influenced buyer preferences and led to changes in the housing market in San Francisco. Previously, those who were able to purchase a home in the city may have prioritized commuting to work. Home may have been just a place to sleep. As a result, denser, newer, mid- and high-rise condo buildings located close to downtown/South Beach/Dogpatch were in demand.
Rarely going into the office now means buyers want larger homes in walkable areas near parks, coffee shops, and other amenities instead of amenity-buildings or proximity to downtown, mass transit or freeways. For many, this means choosing a Victorian- or Edwardian-era condominium in the central parts of the city.
Sales data confirms this trend. While there’s been a 15% decline in the total number of condos sold in the first quarter in 2023 compared to 2020, pre-1979 condos actually experienced a slight uptick in median sale price of $9,000 to $1.4 million. Post-1979 condos, however, saw a decrease of approximately $140,000 in median sale price to $1.03 million, while also taking twice as long to sell in 2023 compared to 2020, which also means there’s opportunity out there for more people to buy than before.
This appeared in the Sunday, April 16, 2023 edition of the San Francisco Chronicle and on SFGate.
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How local elections in San Francisco and elsewhere will impact housing decisions that have consequences for everyone and the market with Kevin Ho and Jonathan McNarry, top producing buyer and seller agents with San Francisco’s Vanguard Properties, the leading locally owned LGBTQ real estate brokerage for San Francisco and the Bay Area.
1264 Church Street, San Francisco, a sunny, top-floor, 2-bed, 1-bath, 1-car parking garage space with ±1,284 sqft (per LiDar) as listed by Kevin Ho and Jonathan McNarry of Vanguard Properties. SF MLS 423910006. www.1264-church.com At the heart of this stand-out property is the newly renovated chef’s kitchen (designed for cooking classes and entertaining), the new bathroom, new, in-unit laundry, new stainless appliances, dual pane windows, wood floors and designer lighting. Combined with its 1935 Spanish-revival heritage in a sought-after Noe Valley location, 1264 Church is exceptional.
