The National Association of Realtors published their support of the Clear Cooperation Policy yesterday, and added a change they called Delayed Marketing Exempt Listings.
As usual, they are trying to make everyone happy, resulting in nobody being happy.
They can’t even use proper punctuation. Isn’t there a hyphen missing?
I don’t fully know what their intention, but it looks like they opened the door to listing agents who want to advertise their listings on their own websites before putting them on the search portals. The #16 above is from the FAQs:
Listing agents are going to do what they feel is in their best interest, and in the best interest of their sellers (probably in that order, unfortunately). Until the DOJ lays down a specific law preventing them, off-market sales will keep happening.
Natalie has had her real estate license for a week, and she’s already figured it out:
I’ve been listening to the podcast Morning Brew Daily as a way to stay up to date on current events without having to read too many doomsday headlines. Happy to say it’s working!
A big topic lately for MBD and many news sources is the recent tariffs. There’s lots of talk about how it’ll affect prices on groceries, alcohol, cars, gas, etc., but how will it affect housing?
As another way to stay more educated, I subscribed to Bill McBride’s substack, a source for many of Jim’s blog posts. In this recent one, he talks about how the recent policies, mainly related to tariffs and immigration, will affect housing:
A few impacts:
Tariffs will lead to higher costs. I spoke to a contractor last week who hasn’t seen any price increases yet, but he said he had received “warning letters” from key suppliers about likely price increases. The uncertainty around tariffs also makes it more difficult to bid projects.
Less immigration will lead to less household formation. This suggests less demand for housing, especially for rentals.
An immigration crackdown would lead to fewer workers in construction. This would push up costs for construction. This would also lead to more rental vacancies.
This suggests higher costs for construction and less demand for housing.
That last part of the final sentence seemed crazy to me since I often hear about how there is a nationwide shortage of homes for sale and rent. So less demand?! That seems like a solution to our problem, right?
But upon thinking about it more, I think there’s just a massive shortage for attractive housing in desirable areas. And living in LA and working in San Diego real estate, I tend to be focused on some of the most desirable areas in the country.
I was just in the rental market looking for an apartment in West LA. My first day touring, I saw seven apartments in two hours and the options were rough. Most places were old, outdated, and/or dark, plus lacked the desirable add-ons: parking, outdoor space, updated appliances, ample storage, etc. (In LA, I would argue parking is a necessity, but to each their own.) Regardless, of those seven apartments, I finished the day thinking I could probably be happy in only two of them, alright in two others, and miserable living in the rest.
I toured these apartments about 3 weeks ago and almost all are still listed for lease. So my question remains, is there an actual shortage for housing? Or is Bill right and demand is starting to decrease?
Maybe there is sufficient housing in our areas but property upkeep and updating is getting too expensive so sellers/landlords can’t afford to make their listings attractive? And if they can afford to, they’re charging exorbitant prices because we’re in desirable areas and people want to live happily here.
I don’t have all the answers, but some food for thought!
And in case you’re wondering, my boyfriend and I signed the lease for one of the two apartments I said I’d be happy in and got the keys on Saturday – moving in this week!
Last year, the index really popped with all the early action in the first quarter.
This year, pricing got off to a slower start and with the additional inventory weighing on the market, there will be more sellers having to settle for less than they thought. But they will still be making huge gains over what they paid!
“Home price growth continued to moderate in January, reflecting a clear two-part story across the past year,” says Nicholas Godec, CFA, CAIA, CIPM, Head of Fixed Income Tradables & Commodities at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “The National Composite Index posted a 4.1% annual gain, with the bulk of appreciation—4.8%—occurring in the first half of the year. Prices declined 0.7% in the second half, as high mortgage rates and affordability constraints weighed on buyer demand and market activity.
“Among the 20 metro areas tracked by the Composite 20, New York City led annual gains with a 7.7% rise, followed closely by Chicago (7.5%) and Boston (6.5%). Tampa was the only market to post a year over-year decline, falling 1.5%. However, the second half of the year told a different story: San Francisco posted the largest six-month decline at 3.4%, followed by Tampa at 3.2%. Only four of the 20 cities managed to eke out price increases during this period—New York, Chicago, Phoenix, and Boston—highlighting broad-based cooling.
“Rising mortgage rates throughout the year elevated monthly payment burdens, which, combined with already high home prices, pushed affordability to multi-decade lows in many regions. This likely contributed to subdued activity in the back half of the year, with both buyers and sellers exercising caution. Inventory constraints also remain a challenge, particularly in legacy metro areas, where limited new construction continues to restrict supply.
“The strength in markets like New York and Chicago may reflect more normalized valuations relative to frothier regions, along with continued urban recovery trends post-pandemic. On the other hand, Sunbelt markets that experienced sharp run-ups earlier in the cycle—like Tampa and Phoenix—have seen the most pronounced slowdowns.
This was in the confidential remarks of a listing priced at $870,000, and the agent is still has it in the active bin. Hopefully for his sake, it’s in escrow by now!
Alternative title for this blog post: How Many Flippers Are Out There?
Statistics are a funny thing and the quirks that happen regularly are interesting.
In our categories of active listings (below), THREE of the four has the exact same number of actives this week as they had last week!
I wouldn’t consider the market as stagnant. It’s more of an equilibrium where the number of new listings are replacing the new pendings at a similar pace. It probably means we are at or near peak Spring Selling Season! It would be hard to imagine that it could get any hotter which would cause the active-listings count to recede?
But look at the last two years in the graph above. It’s right around this time of year that the growth of active listings did mellow out the most, before climbing again in late-April/May.
The classic old-Spanish-style has been the preferred SoCal look for decades, and here’s a terrific example! Red barrel-tile roof, archways inside and out, grand foyer, and sparkling pool all on the 1.05-acre gated lot full of citrus and avocados! Five bedrooms means room for everyone (with a bedroom and full bath downstairs), remodeled bathrooms, newer HVAC, hardwoods, walk-in pantry, walk-in primary closet, and beautiful sunset views! Do you want to get out of the rat race but still be close to town? Morro Hills in southern Fallbrook is for you – and this old-Spanish charmer is cool! Trees on site: Navel and valencia oranges, tangerine, lime, lemon, peach, kumquat, plum, plus three apple trees!
If you want to stay closer to San Diego and don’t mind living in the desert, then check out the homes that Davidson Communities is building in Cotino, a master-planned community in Rancho Mirage!
Bill doesn’t have pricing on his homes yet but the community is selling in the high-$1 millions to low-$2 millions.
San Jose, CA, emerged as the fastest-moving market in the U.S. in February. A typical home there waited for a buyer for just 22 days, even though the median home list price in the wealthy Silicon Valley hot spot stood at an eye-watering $1.3 million.
No. 2 on our list of the swiftest real estate markets in the nation is yet another high-priced Silicon Valley tech hub. The largest city in California’s Bay Area, San Francisco saw its for-sale homes linger on the market last month for a median of 30 days, or less than half of the national figure.
A typical home in San Francisco during that time had a median list price of $899,944, down 9% compared with February 2024.
“Large coastal markets continue to see homes sell quickly as high-earning home shoppers flock to these business hubs,” says Hannah Jones, senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com.
Looking across the country to the East Coast, the historic city of Boston had the third-fastest market pace in the U.S., with just 33 median days on the market for a typical home, despite the relatively high price tag of $839,450.
“The East Coast markets have not seen inventory recover to pre-pandemic levels, which keeps market pace snappy,” says Jones.
Some 430 miles southwest of the famous New England college town, the nation’s capital of Washington, DC, saw the fourth-fastest home selling times in February, with a typical property staying on the market for a mere 34 days.
It remains to be seen whether the large-scale purge of the federal government, led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, would have a chilling effect on the DC real estate market in the coming months.
The latest data analyzed by Realtor.com economists and compiled in the weekly housing trends report revealed a rapid surge in for-sale inventory in DC, which has the nation’s highest share of federal workers, at 11%.
San Diego rounds out the list of the nation’s top five fastest-moving markets, according to Realtor.com data. A for-sale home in the beachside metro with a population of 1.38 million people, located on the border with Mexico, sat on the market for a median of 34 days last month.
The median list price in San Diego was $949,995, down 4.7% year over year.
“The West Coast markets are better supplied [than the East Coast] but continue to be highly competitive as still-strong demand keeps these markets moving at a brisk pace,” according to Jones.
Based on the Best Time To Sell report from Realtor.com, homeowners in San Jose, San Francisco, Washington, DC, and San Diego should be getting ready to list their properties by March 23 if they want to get a bigger payout, while taking advantage of higher-than-normal demand, less competition, and fewer price reductions.
Donna and Jim provided exceptional support and professionalism throughout the entire process. We couldn't have been happier with their efforts. They made our house shine, and thanks to their expertise, it sold above the listing price in the very first weekend! Truly a fantastic experience from start to finish.
jesus a sahagun
2024-11-10
Verified
This year has been difficult on our family, mainly due to having to sell our home. Thankfully we knew God had a plan for us and working with the Klinge team was a key part of it. It was an obvious decision to work with them again after such an amazing experience when purchasing the same home we needed to sell. The challenge was, how will we do this in so little time with so much going on? Jim and Donna held our hand every step of the way. Whenever an unexpected issue arose they found and provided a solution. Never once did we feel pressured to make a decision and the Klinges were always reassuring after providing the information that the decision was ours to make. Despite the curve balls, they never panicked and exemplified the “can do” attitude, making us feel optimistic and taken care of. Their expertise and professionalism was superb. But of all the reasons to work with the Klinges, the most impactful and valuable is their compassion and genuine care for their clients. We pray that we can one day purchase our forever home and you better believe that Jim and Donna will be representing us - as long as they will have us of course. Thank you again Klinge team! Your execution, experience, and care are unmatched.
SabihaPasha
2024-07-22
Verified
Jim and Donna were fantastic! Jim understanding my needs, recommending potential places, pointing out the pros and cons of each property was invaluable. Then when the offer was accepted Donna’s organized guidance through the inspections, paperwork etc made the whole process seem effortless.
So grateful that I had them on my side!
dodyfrancis
2024-07-10
Verified
I appreciate Jim & Donna's great teamwork, sound advice, and guidance that eased the stress of selling our Carlsbad home. Their professional input and assistance throughout the process was very helpful. Highly recommended!
sbisachsen
2024-07-10
Verified
The Good
The Klinge Realty Group operates like a finely tuned machine, with a very personal touch. We contacted them on a Sunday and they were talking to us about our family and our needs on our living room couch the following day. They carefully listened to us and worked with us to identify the best and quickest path to listing within 2 weeks to take advantage of the low inventory conditions in our South Carlsbad neighborhood. They knew our tract specifically and had many previous sales there over the years - they came prepared with a thorough analysis of comparative sales and recommended a pricing strategy that they felt confident would yield offers the first weekend on the market.
The Great
Over the next two weeks Donna coordinated a range of vendors who she knew from experience could get the preparation to list work we needed done on time and with high quality. Our light tune-up involved excellent experiences with their stagers, landscapers, contractors, electricians, and plumbers. Throughout this period Donna's daily communication was clear, concise, and responsive. Any time we had questions Donna picked up the phone or texted immediately - but almost always, she answered our questions before we even knew we had them.
The Outstanding
We had a tricky situation with a shared fence that could have delayed our escrow. Donna used superb mediation skills to negotiate the terms of replacement and was personally on site with the fence contractor to make sure everything went smoothly. The fence looks great and escrow closed on time.
The Truly Exceptional
Our house came on the market on a Wednesday and between then and Monday morning Jim was personally at all three open houses. He was in constant communication explaining potential buyer reaction and strength. As he predicted offers began to come in on Saturday and each one was incrementally higher than the last. At the end we had 5 offers, 4 of which were over list, and the final accepted offer was $100,000 over list. In addition to being over list it included rent back terms that met our needs.
The Recommendation
For all of these reasons we would strongly recommend The Klinge Team to anyone wanting to sell in North County Coastal San Diego. I had been reading Jim's blog for 15 years and knew when the time came to sell that he would be our first call. Jim Klinge is not your standard realtor. He is keenly aware of market conditions and sales strategies. And, works his tail off - though not as hard as Donna . At this point he's gone from realtor to friend and I plan to have him over to grill and chill at our new place to talk real estate, but also just about life and raising kids in San Diego. He's more interested in relationships than his sales numbers - and that's why his sales numbers are so high. We have already recommended the Klinge's to some close friends and another successful sale is on deck right around the corner...
user19164788
2024-06-21
Verified
We recently had the pleasure of working with Jim and Donna from Klinge Realty Group to sell our house, and we couldn't be more satisfied with the experience. From the initial meeting, they listened attentively to our needs and provided invaluable guidance on specific improvements to get our home market ready.
Their responsiveness throughout the entire process was truly impressive. Anytime we had questions or concerns, they were quick to address them, ensuring we felt comfortable and informed every step of the way. What stood out the most was their team and extensive network of tradespeople, which made addressing any necessary repairs or updates seamless and stress-free.
Thanks to their expertise and dedication, our house sold quickly and at a great price. We highly recommend Jim and Donna to anyone looking to buy or sell a home. They are a fantastic team who truly care about their clients and deliver exceptional results.
cali4neal
2024-05-07
Verified
We had a wonderful experience buying our home with Donna and Jim! In particular I was very impressed with their efficiency and support through the purchase process. As we were doing the walk through, Donna started contacting roofers, plumbers, aircon, electricians, etc for all the areas we needed potential repairs - by the time we were done with the walk through appointments were already set up to get estimates for all the major services. When we had to change an appointment, or couldn't make one, Donna was there to arrange things to fit our schedule. Even after we closed on our home, Donna helped set up the repairs we needed before move in day. They truly went above and beyond to deliver exceptional service. I'll be calling them for our next home!
zuser20160809095816651
2024-03-16
Verified
The sale of our home exceeded our expectations - Jim and Donna Klinge are the best!
We’ve followed Jim’s Bubbleinfo blog since the 2006 housing bubble. After he helped us buy in 2017 we stayed in touch and Team Klinge were the obvious choice when it came time to move. They guided us through the preparation of the house, including a kitchen refresh - Donna and Lisa skillfully managed the various contractors for us after we had moved out of state. Donna’s excellent attention to detail and regular communication made the whole process run smoothly from a distance.
Jim’s market knowledge, expert negotiating skills and candid opinions, together with Donna’s responsive communications and problem solving, set them in a league of their own.
Highly recommended!
bourmakin
2024-02-09
Verified
Jim and Donna have exceeded my expectations with sale of my house. It was best experience with house sale. Professional, responsive, superior negotiating skills. I would recommend them with 5 star (I would give them even more than max) rating. Sale of my house was closed for really good price in 10 days. Jim and Donna perfectly handled house preparation for sale. Thanks a lot!!!
user1916779
2023-11-17
Verified
Jim and Donna have exceeded my expectations and made my most recent move back to California go so much more smoothly than I expected. Jim’s Bubbleinfo blog was full of useful information about the current market conditions. His experience helped us make a successful offer for the home we wanted in a desirable neighborhood. After the purchase Donna organized the work we needed done in the house without us having to make an additional trip. We were pretty worried when we started searching for real estate that not being in the area was going to makes things really difficult but Jim and Donna made the process so much easier. I enthusiastically recommend them.
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