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E. Romie Lane South Salinas location under construction duplex consisting of 3Br-2.5 Bth dbl car garage each unit $829,000

2095 Penasquitas Dr., Aptos

Condominium 3Br-2.5 Bths 2 car attached garage ,move in condition walk to the beach and Seascape Village shopping. $749,000

1039 Freedom Blvd.

Commercial Office For Sale. Seller Is Motivated.

$450,000 37 Webb Road, Watsonville COMING SOON

Bank owned property call for details.

171 Zinfadel Court, Los Banos

Two Story Home, consisting of 4 bdrs,and 2.5 bts. Living room, family room,fireplace. Large lot. 2 Car Garage. Offered at $359,500

JOHN ESPINOZA 840-2506

BRE #00477281

EVERARDO QUINTERO 831-332-5545

BRE #00478150

RAY QUINTERO 707-4659

BRE #00789143

SALVADOR “SAL” ROCHA 724-6030

BRE #00913260

1051 Freedom Blvd., Watsonville

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FLOATING ALONG A mallard cruises the waters of the Duck Pond in Santa Cruz at San Lorenzo Park.

A digital solution for real estate professionals to attract prospects, sell homes and build listings

GARDEN COLORS A ripening plant of Chile Piquin in a local garden lights up the garden with its display of colors

FIRE IN THE SKY The sun glows orange in the smoky sky above New Brighton State Beach.

SENDING A MESSAGE “I forgot to wear my mask” reads a sign attached to the skeleton’s spine as a bicyclist rolls through South Green Valley Road in Watsonville.

Ed Show

DAILY ROUTINE A Gulf Fritillary butterfly makes the morning rounds on a flowering Lantana in Santa Cruz.

Mike Fort

Tarmo Hannula

Tom Brezsny’s REAL ESTATE OF MIND

Provoking thought since 1990

Continuing the conversation…trying to make sense of the incredible run real estate has been on since it re-emerged from Shelter in Place and found itself in a decidedly different postCovid environment, one profoundly transformed by the pandemic experience. This summer, prices have risen higher and faster than at any other time in my 30+ year career. Is this a bubble? Will

it continue? What will happen for the

rest of 2020? When in doubt, the best place to look for answers is the most basic principle underlying all markets - the relationship between supply and demand. Supply Side: There are currently 160 active single family residences (SFR) in Santa Cruz. This is a 10% drop from last week. The active inventory has also fallen every consecutive week since June 1st. Last year at this time, we had over 400 active SFRs on the market. The normal seasonal pattern has always been: the closer to Christmas, the fewer new listings there are (people distracted by holidays, etc.) The surge in prices has more homeowners thinking about the possibility of selling. But thinking about it and doing it are two very different things. The biggest question remains: “where will I go if I sell?” and there are still plenty of hurdles to figuring that out. Not to mention that it’s almost impossible to make a successful contingent offer in a low inventory market. Demand Side: Currently there are multiple offers on most listings, which means there’s a big pool of buyers out there who want to write offers. Larger scale economic factors are lined up to support demand as well. NASDAQ is in record territory. Tech jobs have largely avoided the downturn of the Covid recession. Interest rates are at phenomenally low levels. What could happen to significantly decrease the number of buyers out there and alter the existing relationship between supply and demand? More buyers will certainly suffer market fatigue after losing out in one too many multiple offer battles. Some will decide to sit out the 4th quarter and reset their searches for early next year. And, as prices go up, more buyers will be priced out of the more expensive areas. But as long as Santa Cruz prices remain well below those in neighboring Silicon Valley, more buyers will be inclined to head towards the coast (especially now that the commute has become less important). There you have it. There’s nothing on the horizon that suggests the supply is going to increase between now and the end of the year. And there aren’t any substantial factors that indicate buyer demand is going to diminish.

Next week: What buyers and sellers should do in the coming months.

Tom Brezsny Realtor® DRE#01063297 831-818-1431 getreal@serenogroup.com