TD Thornton Group

Lack of housing inventory is a problem in the Bay Area

TD Thornton Group — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 18:34:14 +0000

The Bay Area is seeing more improvement than other markets nationwide, but its lack of inventory is a problem, according to Rick Turley, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage for the San Francisco Bay Area. Turley recently told Silicon Valley agents they need to educate their clients about the real story behind their local markets.

“We have a dearth of listings everywhere. Inventory is the lowest its been in four to five years in every county,”

Turley told members of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors.Turley said the market is heating up but hampered by very low inventory, which have resulted in numerous multiple offers. Places like San Francisco have a mere three months supply of inventory. A healthy market has at least four to six months supply of inventory…

via San Jose Mercury News.

Five-Year RREEF Forecast Favors Bay Area

TD Thornton Group — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 19:44:26 +0000

Tenant interest in San Francisco’s wildly popular South of Market may be eclipsing the appetite for the city’s traditional central business district, but it will not always remain thus, according to a new five-year forecast from RREEF Real Estate.

SoMa is one of four similar enclaves nationwide that are part of a central urban core but not in the CBD where technology, creative-services and boutique financial-services companies are migrating. In Seattle, it is the Lake Union and Downtown Bellevue submarkets; in Boston, it is the Back Bay and Cambridge submarkets; and in New York, it is the Midtown South area, including the meatpacking district.

“Most of the submarkets … are actually outperforming the CBD, due to current market demand drivers and conditions. Longer term, however, they will be complimentary,” RREEF says……

via TheRegistrySF.com.

Silicon Valley Market Update

TD Thornton Group — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:25:01 +0000

The Silicon Valley real estate market has been heating up for the last 8 weeks since Facebook announced its IPO. The multiple offers started in Palo Alto and have begun to work their way outward. Buyers who got priced out of the market in Palo Alto, looked towards Mountain View as an alternative. Multiple offers are now commonplace in Mountain View as the wave has continued to surge and pushed buyers out of 1st choice locations into 2nd and 3rd choice locations. I see buyers moving south into Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Cupertino and Saratoga. Multiple offers are now emerging in these markets as well.

This listing of ours in Saratoga sold yesterday with 18 offers, 16 over the asking price of $598k. It sold for $640k, all-cash, As-Is, non-contingent, 15 day COE. There were 45 disclosure packages sent out to prospective buyers. One potential buyer attempted to catch a red-eye flight from D.C. to see the place before the offer deadline.

Because inventory is still low in almost every Silicon Valley market, we expect the wave of multiple offers to continue outward to the most popular neighborhoods in San Jose like Willow Glen. It’s difficult to say whether the surge can be sustained long enough for all of Santa Clara County to benefit. Parts of East and South San Jose may not see a significant bump in pricing until the second wave of recovery comes to the area 5 to 8 years from now.

Facebook IPO ups Silicon Valley home prices – CBS News

TD Thornton Group — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 23:01:42 +0000

Khan Academy: The future of education?

TD Thornton Group — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 04:15:12 +0000

With the backing of Gates and Google, Khan Academy and its free online educational videos are moving into the classroom and across the world. Their goal: to revolutionize how we teach and learn. Sanjay Gupta reports.

Crucial Court Decision Approaches For Sunnyvale Town Center

TD Thornton Group — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:07:13 +0000

All eyes turn to receiver Jerry Hunt in the legal brawl to control the Sunnyvale Town Center. On March 15, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Peter Kirwan is expected to rule on what could be a decisive turning point in the long-contested case.

After months of pursuit by San Jose attorneys Ron Rossi and Jill Fox on behalf of Silicon Valley developer Peter Pau, Danville-based Hunt and his Quattro Realty Group have turned over an estimated 100,000 emails and other documents. Another 130,000 emails and documents from RREEF LLC, Pau’s former partner at the Town Center redevelopment, also have been produced.

The receiver now seeks to present to the court his final accounting….

via TheRegistrySF.com.

Trumark to build 134 homes in Milpitas

TD Thornton Group — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:55:51 +0000

The red-hot housing market of Milpitas is about to get an infusion of new stock, as Trumark Homes of Danville has received approval from the Milpitas city council to build 134 residential units.Known as the Contour, it will be built on a 9-acre site bounded by Montague Expressway on the northwest, Trade Zone Boulevard on the south and private property on the east. Construction on the community of 42 single-family detached houses and 92 three-story attached townhomes is expected to begin later….

via Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal.

Huge Swedish Contractor Wants More of Nor-Cal Pie

TD Thornton Group — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:58:03 +0000

Swedish construction giant Skanska AB is stepping up the intensity of its pursuit of Bay Area business.

Already, at the end of last year, the company booked $347 million in new revenue related to its just-signed contract to build the first Santa Clara County BART extension. Skanska USA Inc.’s civil division is one of three partners on the $772 million job to build the 10-mile extension plus two stations, six at-grade crossings and two above-grade crossings…

via TheRegistrySF.com.

Archstone acquires 192-unit Sunnyvale complex

TD Thornton Group — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:28:19 +0000

An Archstone-sponsored partnership has acquired a 192-unit apartment community in Sunnyvale called Parkside Apartment Homes. The complex is expected to be renamed Archstone Sunnyvale.

The acquisition price was $63.2 million. The deal, announced Wednesday, was brokered by. . .

via Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal.

Grubb & Ellis seeks fast bankruptcy sale to BGC

TD Thornton Group — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:57:06 +0000

Commercial real estate firm Grubb & Ellis is seeking a quick sale to BGC Partners Inc. after filing for bankruptcy protections on Monday.

The Santa Ana-based firm said it is up against a March 1 deadline on $30 million in debt, and it doesn’t have enough cash to get through the current quarter. BGC, which bought Newmark Knight Frank in October, has made a $30 million credit bid for Grubb & Ellis, plus $4.8 million in bankruptcy financing.

“We agreed to acquire Grubb & Ellis because . . .

via Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal.