San Francisco Real Estate Market Update: October 2018

SF Unicorn IPOs

  • Five San Francisco-based tech “unicorns” are planning on going public in 2019
  • Uber, AirBNB, Stripe, Pinterest, and Lyft
  • Once they have their IPOs, their employees will likely take their cash windfalls and purchase homes in and around San Francisco, driving sales prices even higher

The Beige Book

  • More strong economic news came from the Federal Reserve Bank’s September Beige
    Book economic report which shows continuing strong job and wage growth in the San
    Francisco region
  • It notes that the real estate market activity has continued to expand, in spite of higher
    interest rates, and the low inventory coupled with strong demand pushed prices and
    rents higher

Measure of CEO Confidence

  • The Conference Board’s Measure of CEO Confidence, which had slipped in the second
    quarter, declined again in the third quarter
  • This report is a window into planned capital spending, expansion and hiring, all of
    which can have a significant impact on jobs and hence home-purchasing demand
  • Yet it may not reflect the more bullish, expansionary tech sector dominating San
    Francisco’s economy