Shop ‘til your thumbs drop!

According to an annual survey from the National Retail Federation, 200.4 million people did some shopping from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday. That’s nearly 4 million more than last year and 18 million more than expected. Most of the increase was among online shoppers, who totaled 134.2 million. But Small Business Saturday drew a majority of retail activity ($59M) to brick-and-mortar stores. Get more numbers from the NRF report.

A Tale of Two Markets

October was a month of polar opposites for home and condo sales in San Mateo County. While home sales bumped up 1% from one year ago, sales prices increased 8%, and homes are spending less time on the market.

Meanwhile, condo sales dropped 14% from 2022, prices fell 8% YOY, and properties are sitting on the market for two weeks longer than last year at this time.

Buyers in Brief

Last week, we shared a snapshot of sellers on the market in 2023 from the California Association of Realtors. Now it’s time to take a look at buyers braving the waters.

Contrary to what you might guess, it’s the Millennial Generation in the driver's seat on the buyer bandwagon, with nearly half the buyers coming from that age bracket. All told, it’s also an experienced cohort. Buyers have a median age of 45, nearly two in three are married, and 64% are repeat buyers.

See the infographic below for more numbers.

Look Who's Selling

This recent snapshot shows that Baby Boomers are driving home sales in 2023, as they approach their golden years and look to downsize or seek a change of scenery. More than half of sellers are married, nearly half of them plan to buy a new home after they sell, and fully two-thirds are white.

Learn more in this infographic from the California Association of Realtors.