GREEN REALTOR NEWS | Vol. 11
Market Update | News | Photo Contest
The lucky winner of the January photo contest was Elena Patra! She correctly identified the photo as the floating Taj Mahal at the Sausalito Yacht Harbor. Originally hailing from Greece, Elena recently moved to Mill Valley after living in the Marina for several years. She loves the beautiful view of Mt. Tam from her newly renovated condo.
As always, our photo contest winner receives a $25 gift card to Marin Green Business Good Earth Natural Foods. Scroll down to see our February photo by artist-in-residence Esther Vermeer.
Market Update
Marin and San Francisco | Single Family Home | Median Sales Price
2022 opened with a lot of questions. Will inventory increase? Will interest rates rise? Will prices drop? Will prices ever stop climbing? The big picture answer is - the shortage of homes that is driving price increases is unlikely to change any time soon, as demand for homes remains high and housing is not being built fast enough to keep up. As of January 26, the Fed indicated that interest rates will rise, perhaps a few times in the next several months. This is expected to slow some of the record price increases of the past two years, but due to low supply and the overall good news on the employment front, especially in our local area, we will still see a seller’s market in 2022. In Marin County, single family homes were up 13% from January 2021 while the condo market reached an all time high with a 24% price increase. In San Francisco, condo prices took a hard hit during the height of the pandemic, but January prices and sales indicate that demand is back as the city is returning to its vibrant self.
Want more information about the local markets in San Francisco and Marin? Email me to sign up for the Attain Real Estate monthly report which goes into all the stats and forecasts in much more detail.
We were thrilled to find the right buyers for this beautiful off-market property in Mill Valley! 340 Marion Avenue closed yesterday for $2,300,000. This three bedroom/two bath 1920's home is filled with old Mill Valley charm. A huge living room with vaulted ceiling and unique copper wet bar looks out onto the enormous private lot. Warm sunlight streams throughout the open main level featuring an eat-in kitchen, dining, two+ bedrooms and a full bath. Large and private master suite on the lower level opens through two sets of french doors to a cozy and private deck. Magical yard features gardens, secret pathways, outdoor firepit and BBQ. Quick walk to downtown Mill Valley or miles of trail access. The cute young family who bought it are so excited to put down roots in their new community.
The Hundredth Birthday Project
The next phase of our project is a scientific approach to improving energy efficiency. I was thrilled to find the inimitable Mickey Souza, owner/founder of Energineers- a full service company that provides home energy audits and will give us a starting energy score, an important part of our green certification process. Mickey came highly recommended from a few different sources, so I was thrilled to watch her in action. In a couple of weeks I’ll have the full report up on my website, but a few takeaways were a surprise. The part of our old house that was built in the 1920s is more air tight and energy efficient than the part that was built in the 1950s, due to different building practices at the time. And our heating ducts passed the air pressure test - a great piece of news that means that we can upgrade our forced air gas furnace to an electric heat pump system without the added cost of replacing all of our existing duct work.
In addition to creating a thermal map of the interior wall surfaces of our house (and a bonus map of my cat), Mickey did a door blower test to check for air leaks coming through gaps in the ceiling, windows, walls and floors. Removing old insulation, sealing air gaps, and replacing it with better rated insulation improves comfort and efficiency and earns you energy rebates. Our house was better sealed than we predicted and while the insulation in our attic could be improved, we have to question if it’s worth it to remove it to do the air sealing, since it would end up in a landfill. Luckily, Mickey’s final report will tell us the most environmentally responsible way to go.
Esther Vermeer is a Mill Valley resident with a background in branding and graphic design. Originally from the Netherlands, she moved with her family to Montreal, Canada for a while, and came to the Bay Area 14 years ago, where she has since established herself in the world of interior design. She loves to journey around California and discover the lush natural beauty the state has to offer. You can reach her at esther@prevalentprojects.com.
Look familiar? If you know where this is, email me at lucinda@lucindaotto.com. The first person with a correct guess wins a $25 gift card to Good Earth Natural Foods!
I hope you enjoyed the Green Realtor News! If you know anyone buying or selling, or if you are curious to hear more about the market, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I’d love to help you or your friends make moves.
As one of my happy clients loves to say - Everyone needs a Lucinda!
