AGENT MLS HOME FINDER

Walnut Creek, one of the suburban portions of the city of San Fransisco, is an excellent microcosm of the complexities faced by the Bay Area in general. Walnut Creek real estate, by virtue of its status as a part of the historically stable and non-turbulent San Fransisco market, was not totally devastated by the economic downturn or the collapse of the sub prime mortgage market. However, like the rest of the country although to a lesser extent, real estate in Walnut Creek did suffer to some degree according to traditional indicators of health in the housing market. Most of those same indicators do currently indicate hope for a short term and possibly long term recovery, suggesting a possible end to the strong buyers’ market that has been around for several months.

An August 21, 2009 article in the real estate section of the San Fransisco Chronicle found that the elusive “bottom” of the real estate market seems to have established itself. The piece, written by Tracey Taylor, found that “It may only be a soft bottom but it’s nonetheless being (cautiously) heralded as a bottom to the real-estate downturn.” It goes on to quote the President of a real estate statistics service, DataQuick, who said that “Evidence is mounting that in some areas we’ve approached at least a soft bottom for home prices.” An article in the August 21, 2009 online edition of the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal further stated that “Bay Area home sales hit a four-year high in July as prices rose for the fourth straight month, according to a report released Friday.”

An August 21, 2009 article in the Mercury News echoed that sentiment, stating that “The median price of houses sold in Santa Clara County shot up by a record amount in July – rising 11 percent to $540,000 – in a sign that buyers are venturing beyond bargain-priced foreclosed properties and into more expensive neighborhoods.” The Business Editor of the Oakland Tribune, Drew Voros, however, cautioned that bank failures in the past few months indicate additional troubles ahead for houses in the Bay Area and, by association for houses in Walnut Creek.