Comments on: In The Hunt

By: Geotpf

Geotpf — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:22:30 +0000

So, the cost to build a home is between $35/sq ft and more than $200/sq ft, according to the comments here. That certainly clears that up…not.

By: Aztec

Aztec — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:50:47 +0000

Says Chuck “A friend of mine is building a house in Newport. It’s a luxury property with a full basement and 6K sq ft with all the accoutrements. Build cost is somewhere near 150/sq ft including architectural drawings, studies, and financing, but not including land.”

Let us know how this turns out! The only way you can get to that cost is if it’s 2 stories over that basement, the basement is counted in that sq ft, and “luxury” means cheap vinyl windows, cottage cheese stucco, asphalt shingles, and carpet everywhere. I’ve seen TWO in Newport project their costs to be sub-$200/ft. They went way, way, way, WAY over that.

By: JK

JK — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:18:57 +0000

Doughboy,

Your HOA story gives me nightmares about busybody neighbors who need jobs / hobbies.

By: KK

KK — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:35:50 +0000

Loan mod that will buy the homedebtor another 9 months on the back of the taxpayer.

By: Jim the Realtor

Jim the Realtor — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:21:39 +0000

10-4 on the foreclosure, their short sale must be proceeding instead.

I don’t trust any of the banks to cancel or postpone trustee sales just because they have a short sale pending, in most cases the foreclosure department doesn’t know what the short-sale department is working on.

But if they cancel, they have to start the foreclosure process from the beginning, so they must be confident of a resolution being at hand.

By: brian

brian — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:11:12 +0000

Interesting, the TS was canceled, not postponed.

That probably means something was resolved… no?

There are two other NODs, but the likelihood of foreclosure just went way down.

Oh well.

By: Jim the Realtor

Jim the Realtor — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:10:33 +0000

I agree with W.C., as long as the Fannie/Freddie/FHA loan limits are at $697,500, there will be natural flooring around $800,000-$900,000.

It comes down to how much value can you get for $800,000 in your selected area? For many in Carmel Valley they’d be happy with a newer 2,500sf house with smaller yard, in Carlsbad it’ll get you at least 3,300sf, and in Vista you’ll get as big of house as you need on at least a half-acre.

In 2005 I represented the sellers of a 3,000sf house on an acre at the top of the hill in Vista that closed for $1,065,000.

The same house just sold again last month for $520,000.

In 2001 it had sold for $612,000.

Some great values in Vista these days.

By: Local Boy

Local Boy — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:24:10 +0000

I’ll tell my insurance agent to lower my replacement value to $140K-

By: clearfund

clearfund — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:22:37 +0000

A high level exec at a top 3 public builder quoted me $60/sf hard cost for their homes…and that was their luxury product (riverside trac price was $35/sf)!!! Absolutely amazing.

Thus trac replacement value is very low!!!! well below the $200/sf concept including land.

custom is a different story

By: W.C. Varones

W.C. Varones — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:26:45 +0000

Chuck,

San Diego FHA loan limit is $697,000. Add to that the 3.5% down payment and you get a price of about $725,000 that people can buy with near-zero down.

Any liveable SFR under $725,000 in the coastal areas disappears immediately.

My preference would be to buy something at $725,000 with near-zero down so I retain the option to walk away if Zimbabwe Ben doesn’t succeed in creating hyperinflation.

But I’ve got a lot of confidence in Zimbabwe Ben’s ability to create hyperinflation, so I’d also buy with a real 20% down payment of my own money up to about $800,000 if I could find anything nice.