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Homebuyers purchased a dozen houses and condominiums in Noe Valley in February--the same number they bought a year ago.

Five single-family homes and seven condos sold during the month, according to figures compiled for the Voice by Zephyr Real Estate. In February of last year, half a dozen residential properties sold in each category.

"The actual volume of sales doesn't look exceptionally high or exceptionally low," said Randall Kostick, Zephyr's general sales manager.

In fact, the numbers are what you'd expect in a market emerging from two years of recession. The data showed, however, that there was keen competition for the homes that did sell during the month.

"What was striking about the numbers was that suddenly we're seeing sales at over asking prices or at asking prices, as opposed to prior months when we've seen reductions in list price," he said.

On average, buyers paid 3 percent over the initial asking price to purchase a detached home in February. Sellers received only 98 percent of the asking price in January and 99 percent in February a year ago.

Condo sellers got their full asking price in February 2010--in contrast to 98 percent in January and 95 percent in February of last year.

Still, sales prices overall were lower. The average $1,238,900 sales price for a detached home was 17.1 percent below last year's $1,494,833. The typical condo in February cost $716,000, or 14.3 percent under the $835,250 buyers paid one year earlier. (Note: The small sample size may reduce the significance of these comparisons.)

A five-bedroom, 4.5-bath house in the 100 block of Hoffman Avenue between Alvarado and 23rd streets was the most expensive single-family home in February. Buyers paid $1.5 million--$40,000 over the asking price--for the 2,650,000-square-foot house with two-car parking. It closed escrow in 16 days.

The costliest condo was located in the 700 block of Clipper Street, a block or so below Grand View. Though the seller sought $899,000, buyers paid $848,000 for the two-bedroom, 2.5-bath unit with one-car parking. The condo was on the market for 95 days.

Noe Valley Home Sales*

	Total Sales	Low Price ($)	High Price ($)	Average Price ($)	Average Days on Market	Sale Price as % of List Price
Single-family homes
Feb. 2010	5	$875,000	$1,500,000	$1,238,900	44	103%
Jan. 2010	3	$757,000	$1,200,000	$962,333	126	98%
Feb. 2009	6	$770,000	$2,579,000	$1,494,833	50	99%
Condominiums
Feb. 2010	7	$580,000	$848,000	$716,000	64	100%
Jan. 2010	3	$757,000	$1,200,000	$962,333	126	98%
Feb. 2009	6	$599,000	$1,575,000	$835,250	104	95%
2 to 4 unit buildings
Feb. 2010	0	-	-	-	-	-
Jan. 2010	0	-	-	-	-	-
Feb. 2009	1	$1,500,000	$1,500,000	$1,500,000	1	100%
5+ unit buildings
Feb. 2010	0	-	-	-	-	-
Jan. 2010	0	-	-	-	-	-
Feb. 2009	0	-	-	-	-	-

* Sales include all Noe Valley home sales completed during the month. Noe Valley in this survey is defined as the area bordered by Grand View, 22nd, Guerrero, and 30th Streets. The Voice thanks Zephyr Real Estate (www.zephyrsf.com) for supplying the sales data. NVV 4/10

A Snapshot of Noe Valley Rents**

Type of Unit	Number in Sample	Range of Rents, Feb. 2010	Average Rent, Feb. 2010	Average Rent, Jan. 2010	Average Rent, Feb. 2009
Studio	7	$1,235 - $1,950	$1,376/ mo.	$1,301/ mo.	$1,347/ mo.
1 bedroom	25	$1,325 - $3,350	$1,898/ mo.	$1,868/ mo.	$1,895/ mo.
2 bedrooms	36	$1,795 - $4,200	$2,698/ mo.	$2,663/ mo.	$2,789/ mo.
3 bedrooms	17	$2,495 - $6,200	$3,712/ mo.	$4,302/ mo.	$3,917/ mo.
4+ bedrooms	5	$2,500 - $7,500	$5,660/ mo.	$5,218/ mo.	$5,628/ mo.

** Survey based on a sample of 90 Noe Valley listings appearing on Craigslist.org from Feb. 26 to March 17, 2010. NVV 4/10