We’ve been talking about the state of the market the past few months ~ low inventory, great homes selling quickly with multiple offers, and tons of buyers. The common theme has been LOW INVENTORY. There simply are not enough good homes for sale for the number of people ready to buy homes.

Empire Realty has a large pool of buyers we are working with that are seeking their dream homes. Below is just a partial list of those we are working with.

If you know of someone who has a home that meets one of their needs, please let us know at info@empirera.com so we can facilitate matching these buyers with that home. As always, do not hesitate to call if you have any questions about the market, your home, are getting ready to do upgrades or renovations, and more.

Lafayette/Alamo
$2M – $3.5M
Easy access to freeway, 4 bedrooms, 3+ bathrooms, bonus room and office, min. 4000 sq.ft., 2 story, pool, will do some cosmetic work

Lafayette
Up to $950,000
3 bedrooms plus office or 4 bedrooms, min. 1700 sq. ft., loves Burton Valley and the Trails neighborhood, close to downtown

Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill/Clayton/Concord/Lafayette
Up to $760,000
4+ bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, min. 2800 sq.ft., pool would be great

Walnut Creek thru Pleasanton
Up to $700,000
Single level townhouse, 2+ bedrooms, built within twelve years

Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill
Up to $600,000
Single family home or end-unit townhome, built 50s/60s with charm, updated, open floor plan, small yard ok, prefers not to be near DVC or a high school

Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill
Up to $550,000
Single family home, 3+ bedrooms, 2+ bathrooms, min.1600 sq.ft., open floor plan or with the potential to create one, will consider a fixer upper, easy freeway access, walk to amenities

Concord
Up to $525,000
4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, yard, single story, min. 1800 sq. ft.

Pleasant Hill/Martinez
Up to $350,000
3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, single family residence

Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill/Concord
Will consider Dublin/Castro Valley
Up to $300,000
Within 1 mile of BART, 2+ bedrooms, 1+ bathroom, will consider single family, duet, duplex, townhome or condo if top floor, will consider fixer uppers

Concord
Up to $295,000
3+ bedrooms, 2+ bathrooms, detached home

Walnut Creek/Pleasant Hill/Pittsburg
Up to $235,000
Near BART

680/24 Corridor
Up to $235,000
2+ bedrooms, 1+ bathroom condo

Walnut Creek
Price Flexible
Near downtown, newer Condo (Mercer/Alma type) with open and urban feeling

Danville/Alamo ~ Westside
$2M – $3M
Min. ¾ acre, min. 4,000 sq.ft., one-story preferred, traditional preferred

Diablo
Will consider Alamo/Danville
$2M – $2.5M
Custom and/or prestigious feel

Danville/Alamo ~ Westside
Up to high $1Ms
Walking distance to town or Alamo Springs
Approx. 3500 sq.ft., updated, detached structure/room with its own entrance, 4+ bedrooms

Danville/Alamo/Blackhawk/San Ramon
$1M – $1.650M
4+ bedrooms, min. 3000 sq.ft., pool preferred, not a fixer, min. 9,000 sq.ft. lot

Danville/Alamo ~ Westside
Up to $1.5M
4 bedrooms with a good-sized yard

Alamo ~ Eastside
Up to $1,400,000
Will consider Magee Ranch, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, love a bonus room or casita, min. 3000 sq.ft.

Danville/Alamo/Blackhawk/San Ramon
Up to $1.25M
5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, pool, prefer newer or remodeled

Danville ~ Westside
$800,000 – $1M
Single story, near downtown

Danville (Westside)/Alamo/Lafayette/Walnut Creek (Saranap Area)
$800,000 – $1M
3+ bedrooms, min. 1800 sq.ft.

Danville ~ Greenbrook or similar
Up to $890,000
4+ bedrooms, min. 2400 sq.ft., single story or two stories with 1 bed/1 bath downstairs, pool preferred

Danville/Alamo/Lafayette
Up to $850,000
4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, prefers remodeled

Blackhawk
$650,000 – $750,000
3+ bedrooms

Danville/Alamo
Up to $739,000
3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, single story, approx. 2000 sq.ft.

Danville/San Ramon
$525,000 – $675,000
Single family home, 3+ bedrooms, quiet street, not a fixer

San Ramon/Pleasanton
$470,000 – $600,000
Away from freeway and fault line, 3+ bedrooms, some fixing ok

Danville ~ Greenbrook/Baldwin Area
Lease rental up to $3,500/month
4+ bedrooms, 2+ bathrooms, good condition, nicely updated preferred, pool would be nice, but not required

Brentwood ~ Deer Ridge/Shadow Lakes area
Up to $400,000
4+ bedrooms, min. 2500 sq.ft., pool, views

We are excited to welcome Diana Smith as our Walnut Creek Branch Manager.

Diana has previously been affiliated with Prudential California Realty as a sales associate in Orinda, and most recently, the Sales Manager for their Walnut Creek Tice Valley location. She has a solid background of success in sales as a realtor, and in sales management – training, coaching, mentoring, and team building.

Prior to real estate, Diana worked as a Business Unit Executive at IBM, managing a 150-person team in the US, Canada and Latin America. She also served as Special Assistant to President Reagan for Public Liaison, and Executive Assistant to the Director for Minority Business Development Agency.

Diana’s educational background includes the University of California, Berkeley, where she studied Romance Languages and attended Graduate School before turning to the George Washington University Graduate School of Public Administration. Whew! She’s been busy!

Diana’s warmth, talent, intellect, and aspirations are infectious and we are thrilled she chose Empire for the next phase of her career.

Diana can be reached at dsmith@empirera.com!

We say… it’s looking good!  While the leaves may be a little wet, they are turning over.

Last month was filled with positive results for our real estate communities – Empire Realty has been busier than ever working with a multitude of qualified buyers and we are hearing about multiple offer situations from every market. The demand for new listings is certainly HIGH!

Comparing data from February 2012 to 2011, one word comes to mind – WOW!

Alamo is off the charts! We saw a 350% increases in the number of single family homes that went pending and a 430% increases in the number of properties that sold. Even the average sales price went up 13%!

Danville had some big jumps as well with pending sales increasing 130% for townhomes and 52% for single family residences.

Lamorinda had positive results too with 60+ properties going pending – a 40% increase!

Demand is HIGH in Walnut Creek due to a low inventory of homes on the market right now.  With listings selling faster than this time last year and with the average days on the market down over 40%, Walnut Creek sellers have a greater advantage!

Curious about your city, your home or this news?  Please don’t hesitate to contact us. An Empire Realty agent is always available to preview your home and provide a comparative market analysis for you.