Redfin revealed that the White Oaks neighborhood in the Bay Area was the most competitive neighborhood of the year [1]. Alger Heights in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and East Arlington in Boston, Massachusetts, were close behind.
Just 12% of offers written by Redfin agents faced a bidding war from January to November 2019, which is down 48% in 2018 and 53% in 2017. The Bay Area was home to half of the 20 most competitive neighborhoods of the year.
“While neighborhoods in the Bay Area and Boston are still among the most competitive in the country, robust competition for homes in neighborhoods in Grand Rapids, Minneapolis and Tacoma signals the desirability of more affordable areas,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “An influx of buyers from more expensive neighborhoods contributes to competition in these affordable neighborhoods, especially if they can make higher offers than local residents when they sell their previous homes.”
Boston was home to four of the 20 most competitive neighborhoods, followed by Grand Rapids and Washington D.C., with two neighborhoods each. The Minnesota suburb of Brooklyn Park in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Tacoma near Seattle, Washington, were also on the list.
Redfin states that homes in each of the top 20 neighborhoods received multiple offers. More than 72% of homes sold in the White Oaks neighborhood sold above their list price from January through November 2019, with the typical home finding a buyer in 12 days.
Additionally, the average sale price for homes in the White Oaks neighborhood was $1.83 million, while the metro has an average sales price of just over $1 million.
Of the 10 Bay Area neighborhoods among the most competitive in the nation, half are located in Oakland, California. The median sale price in Oakland is more than double the national average—$720,000 compared to $312,000 for the typical home in November.
“I’ve heard a lot of people say the Bay Area housing market is cooling this year, but I’m seeing the opposite in Oakland,” Oakland Redfin agent Katy Polvorosa said. “I’m writing offers that are seeing aggressive competition. Homes that are move-in ready and priced right typically receive offers within 12 to 14 days. The Oakland market is so hot that sellers are still expecting and receiving offers that waive contingencies.”
The Alger Heights neighborhood of Grand Rapids had an average sale price of $182,000—the lowest in the nation. Grand Rapids’ median sale price in November was $207,500.
The Northwest Landing neighborhoods of DuPont, Washington, had the fewest share of homes sold above the ask price at 50.5%.