You may have noticed a vacant store front here or there along the streets of downtown Pleasanton. You may be wondering what’s happening behind the paper covered windows or the details behind the “For Lease” sign. For all the answers turn to the Pleasanton Downtown Association(PDA)and executive director Christine Salidivar. Turns out, Salidivar maintains a list of people and businesses interested in moving to downtown Pleasanton. Some folks on that list are waiting for just the right spot to become available. Murphy’s Paw waited for over a year for just the right retail space to become available.

Empty store fronts may look vacant, but that is only while leases are being negotiated and new tenants are moving in. Most recently, the PDA has been trying to attract business to Pleasanton’s side streets. Redcoats and Amelia’s are two examples of this success.

Our vibrant downtown is one of the elements that make Pleasanton such a desirable place to live, work and raise a family. It’s good to know that downtown business space is in high demand. (The Pleasanton Weekly highlighted this topic in an article earlier this year. To read the article, click here.)

On Friday, May 16, 2008 I had the privilege of acting as Master of Ceremonies at a fundraising event attended by over 200 people at the Veteran’s Memorial Building on Main Street in Downtown Pleasanton.  The event was put on by the Pleasanton Military Families (PMF) Support Group.

PMF was organized in 2004 as a support group for active military personnel and their families.  The group provides on-going emotional support, as well as goods and services to address the needs of families impacted by key wage earners being deployed for extended periods away from home.

PMF also facilitates counseling services through local churches and nonprofit organizations to address emotional distress, financial assistance, and services for those returning from deployment.

Every returning comrade receives a special welcome home celebration.  In addition, working with the City, the group implements a public recognition program by hanging yellow streamers on Main Street poles naming residents serving in combat zones.

What a great evening - raising over $10,000 for a worthy cause.  The sailor you see in the photo with me was a gentleman named Danny Soria who proudly served in the NAVY from 1943 to 1946.

The uniform he is wearing in the picture is the original uniform he wore nearly 65 years ago.  Danny enlisted at the age of 16.  He wanted to be a Marine but missed the minimum height requirement by one half inch.

He and his three brothers proudly served in the various Armed Services during World War 2.

Danny was discharged at Camp Parks in Dublin in 1946.  What an honor it was to be up on stage with a true American hero.

Two great homes in two terrific neighborhoods in Pleasanton.

 Click here to tour 3460 Park Place in Pleasanton Meadows.

 Click here to tour 885 Concord Drive in Vintage Hills.

How many homes are on the market in Pleasanton?

The number of homes for sale continues to increase at a steady pace.  As of 05/28/2008, there were 255 single family homes for sale in Pleasanton.  This compares to 202 homes that were available for sale at the end of May 2007. This represents a 26% increase from the same period one year ago. 
 

Are home sales increasing or decreasing?

At the same time sales activity levels are far below this same time last year.  For the 1st quarter of 2008, 91 homes sold in Pleasanton compared to 197 for the 1st quarter of 2007.  This represents a 46% decrease from the same period of one year ago.
 

Are home values increasing or decreasing?

As of 4/30/08, the median home price in Pleasanton was $823,000, a decrease from $895,000 in April 2007. This represents an 8% decrease.
 

What’s Roy’s perspective on the market?

42 homes are reported  pending as of 5/28/08.  This represents a significant increase compared to the average of 30 per month for the 1st quarter of this year although not as strong as the 65 sales reported in April.  The breakdown of the prices are shown below.
 

Under $750, 18 Pendings, 43% of Sales.
      
$750 to $999, 6 Pendings, 14% of Sales.
       
$1M to $1.499M, 11 Pendings, 26% of Sales.   
   
$1.5M to $1.999M, 4 Pendings, 9% of Sales.
         
$2M plus, 3 Pendings, 7% of Sales.   

  
Here is the breakdown by price category of Pleasanton single family homes currently available for sale:
Under $750K, 75 actives, 29% of inventory, 4 months of inventory at current sales pace.

$750K to $999K, 68 actives, 27% of inventory, 11 months of inventory.

$1M to $1.499M, 35 actives, 14% of inventory, 3 months of inventory.

$1.5M to $1.999M, 35 actives, 14% of inventory, 9 months of inventory.

$2M plus, 41 actives, 16% of inventory, 14 months of inventory.

255 total active listings and 6 months of inventory.  

As you can see, certain segments of the market are performing better than others.  Overall 42 total pendings out of 255 available for sale represents about 6 months worth of inventory.  A closer look at this unit of measure called the unsold inventory index shows that under $750,000 and $1M to $1.5M are in very high demand compared to the other price brackets.