Fall is tied with Spring for my favorite time of year. The weather is generally cooler in the late months - we can pull out those cashmere sweaters and drink pumpkin-spice lattes - and while the sun goes down sooner, there's a general festive vibe as we feel the holidays approach.

The real estate market begins its annual "cool down", and we already begin thinking about creating business in the coming year. Which is why it's too easy to equate a softer (slowing?) market with adownward trendduring these last months. As forecasted, there was a nice upsurge in new inventory after Labor Day. Homebuyers have had more to choose from, and not every listing is getting multiple bids. In fact, Natalie and I have seen more price reductions across the board than at any time in recent memory.

If there is a shift in the market, it's difficult to know how long it will last or how extensive it will be. The job market is still quite strong in the Bay Area, and as much as it has been in the news that folks are leaving the Bay Area in droves, year after year since 2011 the SF population has continued to climb (We're at over 880,000 residents, at present). It also does seem that for the "best" properties, the ones that check off all the boxes for many buyers, we're still seeing new price levels reached. Natalie and I are closing a condo listing we have for 25% over its list price (5 offers) in a couple of weeks.

In the ebb and flow of life, bodyweight, tastes and the real estate market, count on us to keep you abreast of at least the latter. Call us anytime.

Till next month,

Natalie & Derek

by Patrick Carlisle, Market Analyst for Compass Bay Area

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DID YOU KNOW? According to the Brookings Institution, incomes are expected to shrink by 36% by 2100 due to climate change. Climate change could fuel food and healthcare price increases. The real estate and moving industry is expected to see more opportunity as people seek to relocate to more climate-safe cities. Renewable energy resources like solar and wind are expected to grow over time. Real estate building codes will be adapted to rising water levels: expect to see lots of stilts and elevated entries in flood zones.

DID YOU KNOW?Jeff Bezos revealed some of his daily routine 'laws'.

They include:


***Get 8 hours of sleep.


***Go to bed early, get up early, read the newspaper, drink a cup of coffee and eat breakfast.


***Do "high IQ” meetings before lunch


***Try to finish making tough decisions by5 p.m


***Make 3 good decisions per day.

DID YOU KNOW?In 2017 real estate tech start-ups raised $3.4 billion in funding - a fivefold increase from 2013 - tackling a wide range of areas including appraisals, building management, financing, co-working, co-living, building amenities and empty retail space. Softbank invested in Compass this month, and also Opendoor which buys homes built in 1960 or later, worth $175,000 - $500,000 and not in need of major renovations or repairs. Operating mostly in the South, it bought $316 million of homes in August, up from around $100 million in January. After some light fixes, it sells the homes in an average of 90 days via a team of in-house agents. Opendoor plans to open in 2 cities per month and expects to be in 22 cities in the USA by the end of the year. Its success will be largely dependent on markets: We imagine in a declining market this business model could suffer.

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