Marin Market: May The Force Be With You, If You’re a Buyer

The kids and I were talking about the Star Wars movies recently and how the first episode starts with “Episode IV”…. Interesting concept, to thrust you into the middle of a series of stories, though most people will say, “I remember the first one as being…”, and so on.

If you think about it, jumping into the middle of our real estate market can be pretty similar. If you’re moving in from out of state, you may feel like you’re dropped into the middle of a lightsaber battle, with only a general idea of what’s going on or where you are. After all, you haven’t seen the previous episodes, so you can only guess which direction things are going to go, hoping you chose the right team and location for your battle.

Face it, Marin has one of the more unusual real estate markets in the country, right up there the Peninsula and Pacific Heights, but also with Manhattan and Malibu. These are what they call “Star Markets”, where there’s no more available land and an increasing demand for people who want to live there. The reality is fairly obvious that prices of the fixed asset are going to climb, albeit slowly due to the higher property values than other areas. If you’re moving from a much lower priced area, coming to Marin to buy isn’t that far off from the aforementioned battle, where you often can’t see your opponent (think multiple offers).

Buyers, all I can say is, trust your instincts. If a place looks good to you, it likely looks good (if not great) to somebody else. I know it would sell for much less back home, but while our prices are hardly “affordable”, the trade off with the quality of life is unbelievable. Many people spend just a few evenings in their backyard, on their deck or on their porch and think, “It was all worth it”. I’m not sure they are referring to the lightsaber battle scenario, but I think you get the drift.

More to follow, let me know of any questions. Thanks and enjoy May wherever you are!

TS

Text or call 415.377.5222 or ted@gomarin.com

Filed under: Marin Real Estate Blog by Ted Strodder