Bay Area Exodus Continues as Nearly One in Four San Francisco-Based Redfin Searches Are for Homes Outside the Bay Area
Sacramento was the Most Popular Destination; Seattle’s Popularity
Among Bay Area Searchers Fell; Interest in Emerging Tech Cities Grew
SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nearly one in four people in the San Francisco Bay Area who searched for
homes on Redfin searched outside the Bay Area in the first quarter of
this year, according to a new
report from Redfin (www.redfin.com),
the next-generation real estate brokerage. That number hasn’t fluctuated
much from a year earlier, but is up from one in seven in 2011.
What has changed in the past year are the destinations of those looking
to leave the Bay Area. Most notably, Seattle became a less popular
destination, making up just 2.8 percent of searches originating from the
Bay Area, down from 5.1 percent last year. Meanwhile, the portion of
searches for homes in other cities including Washington, D.C., Austin,
Denver and Boston grew 49 percent year over year to 6.6 percent of all
Bay Area-based searches.
Sacramento was the most popular destination for people searching in the
Bay Area, making up nearly 7 percent of searches. Five percent of
searches were for homes in Southern California, and 2.1 percent were for
homes in Portland, Oregon.
This outward migration is almost certainly due to the growing cost of
housing in the Bay Area. As of May this year, the median home sale price
in the San Francisco metro area was $1.2 million. The neighboring
metros, San Jose and Oakland, are also among the most expensive housing
markets in the country at $930,000 and $650,000 as of last month.
While soaring home prices are driving people out of the Bay Area, growth
in tech employment opportunities is luring them to other parts of the
country. In many of these new tech hubs the rapid influx of tech workers
is creating increased demand for homes, which in turn is driving up
prices, making it increasingly difficult for local, middle-class people
and families to find homes they can afford, especially in desirable
neighborhoods.
“With their high incomes and large down payments, tech workers pack a
big punch,” said Redfin chief economist Nela Richardson. “Even small
numbers of workers moving from the Bay Area can have dramatic effects on
high-demand neighborhoods in the urban core near jobs and city
amenities. Locals often can’t compete and end up moving farther away
from urban tech hubs where they can afford to live.”
The full report, complete with data, charts and insights, can be found
at the following link: https://www.redfin.com/blog/2016/06/people-are-still-fleeing-the-bay-area-but-the-places-theyre-moving-to-have-changed.html.
Connect with Redfin
Download
the Redfin mobile app
About Redfin
Redfin (www.redfin.com)
is the next-generation real estate brokerage, combining its own
full-service agents with modern technology to redefine real estate in
the customer’s favor. Founded by software engineers, Redfin has the
country’s #1 brokerage website and offers a host of online tools to
consumers, including the most accurate home-value estimate online, the Redfin
Estimate. Homebuyers and sellers enjoy a full-service,
technology-powered experience from Redfin real estate agents, while
saving thousands in commission. Redfin serves more than 83 major metro
areas across the U.S. The company has closed more than $31 billion in
home sales, and saved customers more than $335 million in fees, and
counting.
For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent,
visit www.redfin.com.
To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin
Data Center.
To be added to Redfin’s press release distribution list, subscribe
here.
Contacts
Redfin Journalist Services:
Amy Musser, 206-589-2861
press@redfin.com
