Many people ask me, "Is this a bubble...when will it burst?" So I thought, let's track appreciation versus depreciation in the Oakland and Berkeley real estate market. I tracked sales posted on the local multiple listing service (MLS) back to 1998 and it turns out that we only had 2 years of depreciation, 2008 and 2009. Funny, I remember that the Federal government gave an $8,000 first-time-buyer tax incentive in 2009/2010 that really boosted sales; and we have not looked back.
We cannot predict how future markets will pan out appreciation-wise, but it is good to know that going back 18 years there has been only 2 years of depreciation. This is good data to use in your decision on if or when you should buy.
