Menlo Park - Silicon Valley's Favorite Place to Buy this Summer
The Menlo Park real estate market is fast-paced and exciting. In a city where the average home sells in less than a week, it can be difficult to find your perfect house. The Menlo Park area has been the heart of Silicon Valley for decades--which means residents are inundated with the culture and energy that comes from being so close to one of America's most innovative hubs. Menlo Park residences have access to everything from world-class restaurants and schools, to some of the best parks in Northern California. If you're looking for an energetic place to call home, Menlo might just be right for you.
But with energy, culture and proximity comes demand. The Menlo market has been steadily climbing throughout the entire pandemic, with another 3.8% increase in median home value coming over the past 3 months.
The median price per foot for single family homes is usually the telling sign of the temperature of the market, especially over a 3 month period with 78 sales. An increase from $1,487 in Jan-April to $1,658 this Summer indicates the demand for homes in the area is still rising, and competition is showing no signs of slowing down.
With the moving back-to-office date for major Silicon Valley companies like Google, Apple + Facebook potentially bumping back from September to October of this year, it's quite reasonable to deduce that August-October will be a frenzy for the property market (once people come back from vacation, that is). The opportunity to lock down a new home before being required to be back in the office will be a powerful driving force for buyers to pull the trigger this Summer.
July alone saw 57 total sales across Menlo, with an average days on market of only 27 days on market (condominiums included) and a staggering price per foot sold of $1,451 (including smaller/older condominiums in East Menlo).
For comparison, July 2020 saw only 31 sales with an average price per foot sold of $1,400.
With more properties listed in 2021, the increased days on market count by ~10 is understandable, but in no way detrimental to the demand/speed of the market. We see no signs on the horizon of the market slowing, either.
With the moving target of Back-To-Office for major tech companies in the area being somewhere between September + October of this year, its reasonable to expect the next 2-3 months to be a continual feeding frenzy for properties in the Menlo area.
If you have been holding onto a property for the duration of the pandemic waiting for the market to peak, all signs are pointing toward now being that time. Let's schedule a call and I can talk you through what I've been seeing in the market with my recent listing sales.
