Two homes managed to sell in Holiday Lake Estates in January 2007. However, you could not get a more varied result in numbers. One home sold in 16 days, while it took the other a whopping 196 days to finally sell!  While that gives us an average of over 100 days for a home to sell in Holiday Lake Estates, given the small sample and huge variety between those two, I cannot say we should give too much weight to that number. Read on for all the activity in Holiday Lake Estates in January 2007.  One home was listed in Holiday Lake Estates in January 2007.  Two homes actually closed escrow and one more went into escrow. This is actually a very respectable level of activity for our community. For a full list of all the homes currently listed in Holiday Lake Estates, just click this link . At ... 02/08/2007

December saw some welcome changes for the real estate market in Morgan Hill. We saw increases in the number of homes that sold compared to the same time last year. In the long term picture, the market is still not as strong as we have seen in previous years. We have also seen the average price drop compared to the same period last year. This breaks the home price increase trend we have seen since 2002. In general the news is fairly good and gives us a good point from which to move into the new year.  If the numbers remain relatively stable in the next few months, the seasonal boost of summer may mark a recovering market. Take a look at all the numbers for the full story.  Supply and Demand   As we usually do, lets start our look at Morgan Hill real estate for December 2006 with an exam... 02/04/2007

Wednesday, 03 January 2007 Have we turned the corner in Holiday Lake Estates? The numbers for December 2006 are in and the news is generally good. You can also review all the homes currently listed in Holiday Lake Estates here . Inventory is down, sold homes is up.  The total number of listings is now down to a very manageable level and sellers are continuing to see their homes selling close to asking price and at a higher price than similar homes last year. Read more to check out all the latest numbers.  SOLDS Lots of homes sold in Holiday Lake Estates in December of 2006. This was a big boost for a market that has had far too many listings and too few buyers. Lets take a look at what has sold in December:   Single Family Residential   Address City Beds Baths DOM CDOM LOE SqFt $/SqFt ... 01/03/2007

Tuesday, 05 December 2006 In the month of October, Morgan Hill continues the trend of more homes for sale and the same number or fewer buyers out there looking for them. Despite all the numbers showing that the market is flooded with homes, that there are fewer and fewer buyers and that it is taking longer than ever to sell a home, average home prices are still up from this time last year. Lets take a look at all the numbers for October 2006.  Supply and Demand As we usually do, lets start off with an analysis of how many homes are for sale and how many of them are selling.  To put it bluntly, we have a whole lot of homes on the market right now. In fact, we have more homes on the market in the month of October 2006 than we have had an any previous October going back before 1998. Even ... 12/26/2006

  Very little was done this month to reduce our record setting number of homes for sale. In fact,  in the Month of October, Holiday Lake Estates had only one home sell. Overall, we have seen a continuation of the trends observed in past months.  Lots of homes, fewer buyers.   First, lets take a look at what has sold in Holiday Lake Estates:   SOLD IN HOLIDAY LAKE ESTATES - OCTOBER 2006 Address Orig LP List Price Sale Price $/SqFt Sq. Ft. Beds Baths DOM 17044 SHADY LANE DR $969,000 $969,000 $960,000 $460 2,088 4 2.5 33 Orig LD List Date Sale Date COE Date 8/16/2006 8/16/2006 9/18/2006 10/24/2006 Again, we have another month in which only one home has sold. As we have seen in the past, this home was priced below the million dollar mark and has sold more quickly than other higher priced pr... 12/11/2006

    The old Morgan HIll Police building has been transformed. It now houses the El Toro Brewing Company. In a recent article from the Morgan Hill Times ,  it was revealed that this move was 16 years in the making. The article quotes the proud new owner, Geno Acevedo, as saying " ...we decided that the timing, population and sophistication of Morgan Hill was right to expand our microbrewery and execute our own brew pub business." Now THAT is what we want to hear! For too long I think that Morgan Hill has gotten the short end of the stick by outsiders who think they know the kind of folks living in Morgan Hill.  The best part is that this place is right downtown! And there is more than just beer!   Ok.. so maybe the beer is the main reason to visit. But El Toro is going to give you just ... 12/11/2006

Better late than never! I am back with the latest numbers for Holiday Lake Estates. There is no single big story this month in Holiday Lake Estates. Three homes were sold with a net increase to the total inventory in the community. We have an unusually high number of homes available going into what is historically the slowest part of the year. In addition, policy changes in our MLS system are going to change the numbers we see being generated in coming months.  We will also review some interesting numbers regarding homes that are currently on the market, but have not yet entered into a contract for sale. So read on for all the details.     First, lets take a quick look at the homes that are currently listed in Holiday Lake Estates. Our inventory is larger than usual. If you have been ke... 11/22/2006

September was all about inventory. We have a record number of homes currently for sale in Morgan Hill. Match that with the lowest sales for the month of September in more than 9 years and that should give you some insight into our current market. Take a look at the video presentation by clicking the image to the right or read on for all the data and information on the real estate market in Morgan Hill for the month of September, 2006.  Supply and demand is all about the number of homes available for sale and the number of buyers out there that want to buy a home. To start off, lets compare this September to previous Septembers, going back to 1998. The first thing you should notice in this graph is the amazing number of homes that are currently actively for sale. We are currently just s... 11/22/2006

So far, the only solution offered by city hall for Morgan Hills dire financial situation has been "community conversations" that involve about 400 participants. So while the city fiddles, the big red financial numbers continue to stack up. As reported by the Morgan Hill Times, "The city's budget deficit is close to $1.5 million this year and could be as much as $2.4 million by 2010." So when the tough decisions need to be made about the fiscal policies of Morgan Hill, what does city hall do? Ask for feedback from the public... over.... and over.... and over... and over again. As if seeking out whatever breeze of public opinion might be blowing that particular week might give the impression that city government was doing something. The administration seems more interested in repeatedly ... 10/09/2006

I love Morgan Hill. My entire family cannot wait to return once our sabbatical is over. When I moved to Morgan Hill, we could have choosen anywhere. In fact, Morgan Hill was not even on our list of communities to consider. It was a friend who suggested we take a look. Once we did, we were sold. Morgan Hill was the place for us. While proximity to things work related was important, even more crucial for us was choosing a place where we wanted to raise our children. A place with good schools and a community that felt more family friendly. Now we all want Morgan Hill to prosper. But what prices are we willing to pay? In a recent article, I spent some time discussing how Morgan Hill would benefit from having some big anchor retail stores in town. But would attracting those big retailers co... 10/09/2006

The Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce held the 17th annual 'Taste of Morgan Hill' celebration on Sept 23rd and 24th. It was a great time for residents and visitors alike to say good-bye to the summer season. The celebration was focused on family and fun, a perfect example of what so much of us love about calling Morgan Hill home. In addition to to food, visitors were able to enjoy a showing of classic cars and quilts.   While I was not able to attend the event myself, the word I am getting is that it was a good time for everyone. Unlike years in the past, downtown businesses really pulled together to make the event a success. One way they did this was to open areas behind downtown to additional parking, making it easier for visitors to find a place to ditch the family wagon while they are... 09/27/2006

In the most recent fiscal year, according to the Morgan Hill Times , the city of Morgan Hill collected $6.1 Million in sales taxes. Restraunt and gas stations accounted for 23% of that amount. This lead the Times article to suggest that maybe the city motto should be changed to 'Eat here, get gas'. The article goes on to discuss declines in retail sales since 2001. It also discusses retaining the sales tax "leakage" - or retail purchases that residents of Morgan Hill make outside of Morgan Hill. The article itself is a great read and worth your time, but it brings up bigger issues worth discussing here. The fundamental problem here is growth philosophies and an inability of Morgan Hill planners to attract retailers that would keep those retail purchases inside Morgan Hill.   One effort... 09/27/2006

Eminent Domain   Those two little words should throw fear into any property owners heart. In theory, eminent domain was originally conceived as a means by which government could get control of properties for the expressed purpose of making community related improvements. Things like road improvements, city facilities, etc. were considered appropriate uses of this power. Make no mistake, eminent domain is one of the most potentially abused powers of government. In the recent past we have seen government seize private property not for a new school, freeway access or to widen a traffic bound road, but so that the property could then be sold to another private party! Why? Because some community governments that simply increasing the tax contribution of a property is reason enough to exerci... 09/21/2006

The Morgan Hill Times is reporting that the city has made a deal with 247 Workspace that will have them putting down roots right here in town. On the upside, they will be occupying the 42,000 square foot facility on Madrone Parkway, which has stood empty and unused till now. The city is banking on this move bringing jobs and money to the local economy. They are also holding out hope that this move will serve as an example to other businesses who might consider making Morgan Hill their new home. Any quick search on the internet will generate some good information on 247 Workspace. They have been recognized as one of the best places to work and are known for embracing a very family friendly work environment. Something I think fits in well with what Morgan Hill is all about. This move also... 09/21/2006

Santa Clara County real estate is continuing to show growth in the average price per home. However, as with many other areas, the county at large is seeing the trend toward a more buyer oriented market. If you prefer to review the real estate market analysis by video presentation, please click the "Click Here for Video Presentation" button to the left. For the written article on our real estate market, read on.  As I have done with previous real estate market analysis articles, I will be starting this months look with teh supply and deman for the county. The key points to take away from the current supply and demad situation is that the inventory is growing, while the number of sold homes is staying stable or declining. When boiled down to its most basic concept, that means more houses... 09/21/2006

View a video presentation of this article here.  Depending on whether you are a buyer or a seller, this has been the best or the worst month in nearly 10 years.  In the month of August, one(1) home sold. That is it. That means that in the entire month of July, only 1 home went into escrow. We usually see a whole lot more action in the month of August for closed sales. However, one of the most telling numbers last month was the number of new listings. Ten homes were put up for sale in August. That is the highest number of homes put up for sale in the month of August going back as far as records are kept. What is most important about this fact is that it is the first time in 4 years that the number of new listings in this month has outnumbered the sold homes. We are now adding homes to th... 09/20/2006

   August was a record setting month for real estate in Morgan Hill.  We are seeing a record number of homes in inventory, record numbers of new listings, but relatively flat sales. All this adds up to a large number of homes on the market, without a large increase in the number of buyers to look at them. Take a look at the video presentation for all the latest info.  It is hard to imagine how much our real estate market in Morgan Hill has changed in just a year. Today we are seeing a record breaking inventory of Morgan Hill real estate. Les take a look at some of the numbers regarding this turn in the supply and demand of homes in Morgan Hill.   The table to the left (click for a larger version), will give you a good historical pespective on what we have seen in the month of August go... 09/20/2006