The Voice of East Bay Living

We are living in a world of global affluence. The fastest growing wealth economy in the world is Vietnam, where there are 300% more millionaire households than in the US. The four top cities in the world that have the majority of wealth are New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Wealth and the international trade boom have increased by 500% in the last five years. Top 10% in the world hold 85% of the world's wealth. The world has never seen this kind of explosion of wealth since the mid-1700s.  There is a 6.6% increase in luxury spending and CASH is king all across the globe and 400% more people in the world are paying all cash for real estate. We have a worldwide singular class of affluent people who have the desire and the means to purchase a home anywhere in the world. 

Did you realize that 35% of all offers are all-cash in this market? There is a lot of transfer of wealth going on in these all-cash offers. Buyers are reacting in the heat of the moment. The buyer is the driver in this decision – the buyer says ,"I want this house and I want it now." Some buyers are deciding to get financing after the close of escrow. This process is called delayed financing. The buyer has six months after the close of escrow of his new home to close escrow with the refinance (Go visit your favorite lender for more details) This week's market odometer is on cruise control. Last month there were 5 to 10 offers while this week many houses are getting 3 to 5 offers. Buyers are still putting their very best offer on the table and sales prices are still way above the list price.   The strategy for the Spring and Summer market has been to list below market value to attract multiple offers. For this coming Fall, the statistics are showing us many...