In my last market update I forecasted some slow down in the 3rd quarter and it’s just what we’ve seen so far. We’re only 2/3 of the way through the 3rd quarter, so some of this could change, but it’s clear there has been a dip. Part of my thought process was this is normal. The market always slows down around this time. School is out so people are spending more time with their families and may be traveling on vacation. It also tends to be a nice halfway point through the year, so people tend to take it easy, which may mean taking a break in their home search.  The other part of it is that prices have been increasing for the last 5 years, and we may be ready for some correction in the market.  I think what we’re seeing now is a combination of both.

Now that school is back in, people are done with their vacations, and more grounded overall, I think will see a little bit of a pick up from July and August. We always get this pick up of pace in September and October. I’ve noticed it in properties I have recently listed and sold, and have heard a similar trend from my colleagues.

Here are the numbers from each quarter in 2015 and 2016 for Redwood City:

Looking ahead to the rest of the year: I think we’ll see more buyers coming into the market between now and early November. The market will die down again around mid November, and pick back up again around mid January.  I think we’ll see sellers follow a similar pattern.  Now through early November will probably be a great time to sell as will February and March next year.  It will be interesting to see where the market goes from there.  Stay tuned and I’ll continue to share my insight moving forward.

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Cliff Whearley has been a resident of Redwood City for 23 years. He is a Realtor at Dwell Realtors, Inc. and has been practicing real estate since 2007. If you have any real estate questions, he would love to help!