San Francisco Real Estate - Janice Lee

San Francisco is a seller's market. The city has about 1.4 months of inventory, and in July the typical single-family home sold for 25% over its asking price. The interesting part is where that stops being true. Condos closed at a median 100.4% of list, essentially at asking, while single-family homes closed at 125.1%. That 25-point gap is the largest opening buyers have in this market right now. Homes under $1.5 million are the other one, where the median price actually slipped 3.4% year over year. And it isn't about mortgage rates. The 30-year fixed averaged 6.69% the week of August 6, against 6.63% a year earlier. Six basis points. What's driving this is supply: owners holding 3% mortgages from 2020 and 2021 aren't listing, so the houses that would normally come to market never do. I broke down the full numbers by property type and price band, along with what it means if you're buying or selling right now: Read the full analysis: Is San Francisco a Buyer'...

  How interest rates are shaping the San Francisco market in 2026 Author: Janice Lee | Last Updated: August, 2026   Rates decide what your money buys. A buyer approved for a certain payment gets a different house depending on where borrowing costs sit that month, and in a city where the median runs where San Francisco’s does, a point of movement reshapes the whole search.   What higher rates do to buyers The payment goes up even when the price doesn’t. That’s the whole mechanism, and it cascades from there. Purchasing power shrinks, so the search moves down a tier. Bidding wars thin out on mid-range properties while staying fierce at the top. Buyers who wanted a single-family home start looking at condos, because the math works and the compromise is survivable. First-time buyers slow down and ask harder questions, which is a reasonable response to expensive money. The buyers doing well right now are the ones treating this as an opening. Less competition means room to neg...

  What sellers need to know about buyer appraisals in San Francisco Author: Janice Lee | Last Updated: August, 2026   You accepted a strong offer. The buyer is qualified, the terms look good, and then a stranger with a clipboard walks through your house and decides whether the deal survives. That’s the buyer appraisal, and it’s the step most sellers understand least.   What it is The buyer’s lender hires an appraiser to confirm the house is worth what the buyer agreed to pay. Banks don’t lend against optimism. If the appraised value supports the price, the loan moves forward. If it doesn’t, you’re renegotiating. Worth understanding: the appraiser isn’t working for you or the buyer. They’re protecting the lender’s collateral, which means comparable sales carry more weight with them than anything about your house that can’t be measured.   Why this trips up San Francisco sellers Buyers here bid aggressively. Inventory is tight in the neighborhoods people want, prices m...

  How to increase your San Francisco home’s value before selling Author: Janice Lee | Last Updated: August, 2026   Most sellers overspend on the wrong things. They gut a bathroom that didn’t need gutting, skip the paint that would have changed every photo, and end up out forty thousand dollars for a number that barely moves. What follows is where the money tends to go furthest before you list.   Start by knowing what buyers here want right now Before you spend anything, get a read on current demand. Move-in-ready condos and homes are what people are competing for, since buyers in this market have neither the time nor the appetite for a project. Condition matters, energy efficiency matters more than it used to, and location still decides most of it. Your agent should be able to tell you where your property sits against what’s actually selling nearby, which determines whether any of this spending makes sense.   Curb appeal, because the photos come first Buyers form an...

  How buyer representation protects you in San Francisco Author: Janice Lee | Last Updated: July, 2026   Buying here is a contact sport. Listings move in days, you’re often bidding against four other people, and the contracts run long enough that most buyers sign things they haven’t fully read. A buyer’s agent works for you in that environment, which sounds obvious until you consider how many people walk into an open house and start taking advice from the person hired by the seller.   What buyer representation means Your agent represents you, legally, and owes their duty to you rather than the other side. That covers finding and analyzing properties, negotiating the price and the terms, reading the contracts and disclosures with your interests in mind, and steering you through inspections, the appraisal, and closing. In a market where a bad decision costs six figures, having someone whose job is your outcome changes what the process feels like.   Why it matters more...

  What buyers should expect during escrow in San Francisco Author: Janice Lee | Last Updated: July, 2026   Your offer got accepted. Now comes the part nobody prepares you for: 30-odd days of deadlines, inspections, and paperwork where a missed date can cost you the house. Escrow is where the deal either holds together or falls apart, and knowing the sequence ahead of time takes most of the anxiety out of it.   What escrow actually is A neutral third party holds the money and the documents until you and the seller have each done what you promised. You put down good faith money. The seller pulls the listing off the market. Then a list of conditions has to clear: inspections, the appraisal, your loan approval. When all of it checks out, the deal closes and the house is yours. In a market where sellers have options, these windows run tight. Miss a deadline and you can lose your leverage or your deposit.   Opening escrow The clock starts the day your offer is accepted. Y...