Just when you think the market might be slipping into a holiday malaise…and a new listing might go undetected……this Encinitas home hit the MLS on Thursday for $539,000 (map)
http://tours.previewfirst.com/virtual_tours/4920/mls/photos
It’s a standard 3 br/2 ba, 1,421 sf one-story house being sold by the original owner – and it looks a lot like it did in 1976. About all the listing agent could come up with for listing remarks was this: “Recessed lights. Central Air. Window sill moldings. Security system. Spacious grassy back yard. Gas line for BBQ.”
There is a great comp four doors down on the same side of the street; the 1,633 sf model just closed for $493,500 ten days ago. But those sellers were relative newcomers; they had only been there 24 years – and the house looked remarkably similar:
http://www.sdlookup.com/MLS-110047844-908_Birchview_Dr_Encinitas_CA_92024
My buyers and I see the new listing on Friday afternoon, and it’s obvious that the rain is coming – but that doesn’t stop the lookers; two other parties come by while we are there. The razor-thin inventory in this price range causes us to think it could be competitive, so we offer full price with 20% down, close in 30 days or however long the seller needs.
An inch-and-a-half of rain later, there are five offers, and we lose out.
It’s going to be an exciting 2012!
Maybe this is people fed up with REOs and Short Sales?
That is an incredibly clean, uncluttered and well maintained home. I can see why they got multiple offers on it.
The most objectionable thing about it was the three rooms with wallpaper but I could live with everything else in the home as-is. Meaning that I wouldn’t need to fix a bunch of stuff before moving in but there are certainly updates that need to be done at some point.
I think your buyers are better off having missed this one @ 539k.
I’m not broken-hearted over the loss but I think it is an example of those on the sidelines getting more impatient. It might just be the low-end Encinitas market, but we’ve seen virtually every detached listing in the low-$500,000s and there is literally nothing worthy to buy.
These are the types of market ingredients that in the past caused prices to go up – attractive financing and very low supply for an extended period. You could make a case that this house just sold for 5-10% over the comp from 10 days ago, and enough of those would give the sideliners even more of that unsettled feeling.
Besides, Yunnie’s on the prowl:
Gradual improvement in the housing market is expected next year, with existing-home sales edging up 4% to 5% and new home sales getting an even bigger boost off this year’s record lows, the chief economist of the nation’s largest real estate group said Friday.
“Tight mortgage credit conditions have been holding back homebuyers all year, and consumer confidence has been shaky recently,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, said. “Nonetheless, there is a sizeable pent-up demand based on population growth, employment levels and a doubling-up phenomenon that can’t continue indefinitely.”
More:
With falling inventory, the median home price should rise in 2012, he said. “Home prices have yet to show a definitive stabilization pattern in most areas. Still, given an over-correction in prices, there likely will be moderate appreciation in 2012,” Yun said.
Richard Peach, senior vice president at the Federal Reserve Board of New York, said the economy continues to disappoint. “Among the significant structural impediments are the legacy of the housing boom and bust, and fiscal contrition at the state and local level.”
He promoted moving foreclosures by giving incentives to military servicemembers.
“My idea is to allocate certificates to 2.5 million service members who served in Afghanistan and Iraq that could be used as a down payment on a foreclosed home in the Fannie or Freddie portfolio,” he said. This would help to absorb the inventory and stabilize the housing market.
Two considerations:
1. During tough economic times, people with cash tend to tighten their belts and are less apt to spend it. I believe this applies more to residential RE buyers.
2. During periods of inflation and currency debasement savvy investors want to spend money quickly before that money loses even more buying power. I believe this applies more to investment RE buyers (commercial, apartment buildings, etc..)
Will there be a balance struck between the two, or will all RE hit the skids for the next several years? Something to ponder.
Front line reporting is what the consumer needs in this market to make an informed decision; they don’t need sound bites in the mainstream media from the Ivory Tower.
According to the map, this place is close to El Camino, but I bet it is still very quiet in the backyard.
It looks like a nice house, but I would be concerned about the slope behind the house due to run off from rain. Is more than the backyard wet?