Carlsbad Bargain

Written by Jim the Realtor

August 5, 2009

For the folks who want to get in at the ground floor in Carlsbad, the street named Sierra Morena has been the place to look. 

This house was purchased by the previous owner for $565,000 in December, 2004, and there were a handful of others that went for as much as $585,000 at the peak.  They are cheaper because those on the other side of the street back to power lines, and have some evidence of cracked slabs.

This already went pending, listed for $327,750, but there will be others!

22 Comments

  1. Kwaping

    Nice price drop! Wow.

  2. Travertin Man

    An enterprising soul might try to qualify one of the homes under the power lines for the green energy initiatives with an energy harvesting scheme. Hey, if you can light a fluorescent bulb walking around the back yard, there’s ‘lost’ power there for the taking!

  3. David

    Jim, Nice video. You should trademark the “Anti-suicide bars”. Good to see prices moving in the right direction – love gravity!

  4. Rooster Cogburn

    Originally built as cheap affordable housing those are inferior to many condos in the area.The big bad wolf could blow those shanties over.

  5. 3clicks from da beach

    If that goes for 350K in that part of Carlsbad, then there should be a 30/50 percent premium in 92024 for better location, schools and neighbors. There were a few similar size homes that moved not to long ago near me at that range.

  6. propertysearch

    I agree with Chuck that looks like a great value for the money! That is a nice size yard with 4 bedrooms in Carlsbad. I’m sure some great landscape designer could find a way to improve the curb appeal.

    Since we rent next to power lines I have vowed to never live this close again. That is the only drawback for me.

  7. Jose

    Jim, just wondering if you can tell us what is the most expensive house you’ve sold?

  8. tj and the bear

    Given the age & space, it’s actually kind of cute.

  9. mybleachhouse

    Shocked…a normal house at a normal price. Seemed like landing a man on the sun was going to happen before this. The bank must put some kind of effort to make it look ok….hell even the windows were clean.

  10. Locomotive Breath

    That’s actually a nice entry level house – beats starting with a condo.

    When you’re young and broke, you have to start somewhere and that house would be a great place to start.

  11. 3clicks from da beach

    That is only a 70K down payment. I know there a many couples who spend that much in five years in car payments alone just to keep up with the Joneses.

  12. Jim the Realtor

    Jose,

    I closed a house in RSF for $2.9 million in 2007 in an intense pressure-packed bidding war where we ended up only $15,000 over list.

    On the other end, I just sent in today an offer which, if successful, will be my all-time lowest sale, at $65,000 for a non-owner condo.

  13. Jim the Realtor

    The house in the vid wasn’t bad at all, and nicest on the street. Those familar with those can tell you that there are many that are such dogs that they bark at traffic.

    Wasn’t that yard huge, for what it was? It might get close to $400,000.

  14. François Caron

    I agree with many here. Aside from the front looking like a garage with a house built on top of it, it is a very decent place from my perspective. A family of five can definitely live comfortably in that place as long as they’re not too greedy on the space.

    As for the power lines, they’re far away on the other side of the street! That wouldn’t bother me a bit.

    Does the street appear more family friendly than those horrible deserted gated communities? I swear I can film a horror movie in one of those places!

  15. murf2222

    “Those familar with those can tell you that there are many that are such dogs that they bark at traffic.”

    HA HA HA……..That is one of the funniest lines I’ve heard in a long time!

    Murf2222

  16. Jason

    I actually made on offer on this house! I offered $345K and haven’t heard anything back. Jim, you should do a post on the listing agent. The Battiata group is super shady. This is a foreclosure and we didn’t hear yes or no and offered more than asking. Try contacting those guys and see how successful you are. It’s like a black hole. I heard their short sales are even more shady with you never knowing if you are in first place or not. They dont give status updates and once the bank approves an offer, they send out for more offers instead of giving it to the person who submitted the offer that went to the bank. Word to all those homebuyers out there, if you see the Battiata sign, just walk by. I’m just a regular first-time buyer and know from experience it’s a pain the butt.

  17. Aztec

    Over/under on when Shadash comes in with “knifecatcher!”? 😉

  18. AK

    The suicide bars are a nice touch … it’s not unknown for some unfortunate kid to bounce out of an upper-story window and through the screen while jumping on the bed.

    I can think of one or two fatal cases that were reported when I worked at a mid-sized urban newspaper back in the ’90s.

  19. Geotpf

    $65k for a condo is a good deal, assuming you can rent it out for $650 a month or more, for a GRM of 100 or less.

  20. afikoman

    I have had similar experiences with Battiata even though a friend of his was short selling through him and I was buying!
    That was the end of the friendship and I lost a good deal. The house later sold for much less.

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Jim Klinge
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