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What Actually Makes a Berkeley Listing Stand Out in 2026
The playbook for selling a home has changed fast, and here in the East Bay, I'm seeing it play out in real time. Buyers have more options, more leverage, and they're using it. Active housing inventory rose more than 16% year-over-year in 2025, one of the largest...
Selling a Tenant-Occupied Home in Berkeley: What Landlords Need to Know Before Listing
If you own a rental property and are thinking about selling a tenant-occupied home in Berkeley, you're navigating one of the most complex landlord-tenant legal environments in the country. Berkeley's robust renter protections don't disappear the moment you decide to...
Closing Costs to Buy a Home in Berkeley: What to Expect and How to Plan
Buyers in Berkeley should budget 2% to 3% of the purchase price for closing costs — typically $20,000 to $60,000 depending on purchase price, plus a Berkeley-specific transfer tax that can add $9,000 to $31,000 or more. When my clients start running the numbers on a...
February 2026 Real Estate Market Update
After a few months away from this newsletter, I'm back and there's a lot to cover. The year started with a national housing market hangover from December's strong finish, a fresh round of economic data, and a Federal Reserve that remains in wait-and-see mode. Here in...
Berkeley ADU Sales: What Homeowners and Buyers Need to Know
For years, accessory dwelling units—ADUs—have been one of the few ways Berkeley homeowners could expand their homes without dramatically altering the character of a neighborhood. Backyard cottages, garage conversions, and lower-level units have allowed families to...
The True Cost of Homeownership: What You Pay Beyond the Mortgage
True cost of homeownership
2026 US Housing Market Forecast: Will the Market Find Its Footing?
Will 2026 be the year buyers stop waiting? Forecasters are split, predicting anywhere from 1.7% to 14% growth in home sales. That 12-point gap reveals the central question facing the housing market: how much will slightly lower mortgage rates and slowly eroding...
Berkeley’s 2026 BESO Requirements Guide
Big news for anyone buying or selling a home in Berkeley. Starting January 1, 2026, the Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO) is getting a major upgrade with new resilience requirements that go beyond the current assessment-only process. As someone who's been...