We had five offers to purchase this 1979 custom home, but because it is hard to look at, buyers expect a BIG discount. Here I review a simple plan to bring it into this era. The comp that just closed this week for $2,895,000 is a three-story house – have you ever seen a decent 3-story? Me neither – they are usually two great floors with a converted attic or basement, so the effective square footage would be about the same as this house. But we’re way off the busy street and right on the 4th hole at La Costa! Only $1,995,000.
Being realistic is a great place to start. Virtually every realtor promises to find you a ‘dream home’, and it’s easy to believe that there must be a perfect home out there, no matter the price range.
The perfect homes start at $10 million though. If you are in that range, I will find you a dream home!
Everyone else will have to kiss a few frogs to help narrow the search to homes that are suitable.
Here are a few quick ideas to help qualify the homes you see:
You will be considering older homes that could use some work. Only consider buying the homes that have at least HALF of the necessary remodeling already completed. Unless it has a spectacular location or other premium feature, then make sure the seller has given you a quality head start on the remodeling.
Expect to spend $25,000 to $50,000 on any house you buy. It changes the mindset from searching for the perfect home to a realistic hunt for where you will spend the money to add your personal touches to someone else’s home.
If this purchase might be your forever home, then insist on at least 2,000sf.
Compromise is part of the package. But limit your compromises to one or two only. If you find yourself seeing more than two things you don’t like, then this home ain’t for you. Importantly, this isn’t the last home for sale – there will be othesr!
The preferred features to consider in your search: location, private, sunny backyard, interior with natural light, larger functional kitchen, one-story, view or visual openness, 3-car garage, bedroom suite downstairs, possible forever home.
It’s a practice that I strongly disagree with – I think you should just hire me đ – but some people insist. It provides an irresistible opportunity for agents to talk smack about other agents.
This is what a competing agent said to a seller about me:
“Jim is tough to work with because he likes to create bidding wars.”
It made the seller want to work with me even more!
But it demonstrates how the general realtor population is stuck on there only being one way to handle multiple offers. I’ve been employing my slow-motion auction since 2009 when selling the bank-owned properties and receiving double-digit offers on every property.
What’s different with me?
A. I give every buyer a chance to buy the home.
B. I keep giving them a chance to bid until they reach their limit and voluntarily bow out of the competition.
Participating agents tell me regularly that they thought it was a fair and transparent process, and they appreciate the chance to stay in the game to the end.
How do ALL other agents handle bidding wars? They stop the bidding – usually prematurely – and then they turn off their phone and sequester the sellers in a back room and tell them to select one of the offers. Invariably, the sellers will ask for advice, and then the listing agent will point out their favorite.
Listing agents love to play God and select the winner (usually an offer written by their favorite agent).
Comparing this version to my process, which one is in the seller’s best interest?
Why don’t agents adopt my slow-motion auction? Because they don’t know how. They don’t want to risk it. And they LOVE to play God and be the decider.
I let the market decide.
Not only is it in the seller’s best interest, but my transparency is also in the buyer’s best interest because they get to control the outcome, not me.
In the beginning, I explain my process to sellers. Nobody has ever said, “Hey, I’m not interested in giving everyone a chance to bid up the price”, but I’m fine if they would – it is the seller’s choice, not mine.
Hey competing agents – instead of bashing me, why don’t you give it a try!
Don’t miss an opportunity to try amazing local restaurants during this year’s San Diego Restaurant Week!
Through February 2nd, 100+ restaurants are offering special menus starting at $30. Whether you are looking to rake up a deal, create a customized dining plan, or just enjoy some new restaurants, SDRW has something for everyone!
Here are some of my favorites:
Seasons Restaurant, Carlsbad
This is next to the Park Hyatt in Aviara and has some incredible food in a beautiful indoor-outdoor space! They’re offering special lunch and dinner menus for the week so you can go twice to try different options if you really wanted to!
Benihana, Carlsbad
I spent most of my birthdays as a kid at this Benihana so the nostalgia plays a factor in my love for this place, but what’s not to love?! Dinner and a show!
The Grill at Torrey Pines, La Jolla
Another gorgeous setting, The Grill offers some of the best views of the iconic Torrey Pines Golf Course while serving delicious food! The L.A. Open will be here February 13-16 with many of the big-name golfers vying for the $20 million purse.
George’s at the Cove, La Jolla
More amazing views! I had my high school graduation dinner at George’s with my family and it was such a special afternoon with yummy food. They’ve set a lunch and dinner menu for the week so your group can try a variety of dishes.
Cafe Coyote, Old Town
My parents, boyfriend, and I stopped here on our way home from a Padres game last year and the authentic Mexican food was to die for! Their chips and salsa alone make it worth the trip to Old Town.
For a full list of participating restaurants, visit the website here.
I use the non-seasonally adjusted index because our market doesn’t have much seasonality and because I think you can handle the truth. But for those who prefer the fluffed-up version, then know that the seasonally-adjusted SD index for November was +0.4%, month-over-month.
Will we end our losing streak next month?
Maybe – the market “picked up” after the election so pricing might reflect a slight gain in the December reading.
P.S. There are minuscule revisions every month – these are the most-recent calcs:
The psycho-babble:
âAnnual house price gains continued to moderate in November, with sales prices in all nine Census divisions exhibiting slower pace of growth than a year earlier,â said Dr. Anju Vajja, Deputy Director for FHFAâs Division of Research and Statistics. âThe slowdown in price growth is likely due to higher mortgage rates contributing to cooling demand.â
âWith the exception of pockets of above-trend performance, national home prices are trending below historical averages,â says Brian D. Luke, CFA, Head of Commodities, Real & Digital Assets. âMarkets in New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago are well above norms, with New York leading the way. Unsurprisingly, the Northeast was the fastest growing region, averaging a 6.1% annual gain. However, markets out west and in once red-hot Florida are trending well below average growth. Tampaâs decline is the first annual drop for any market in over a year. Returns for the Tampa market and entire Southern region rank in the bottom quartile of historical annual gains, with data going back to 1988.
âDespite below-trend growth, our National Index hit its 18th consecutive all-time high on a seasonally adjusted basis,â Luke continued. âAgain, with the exception of Tampa, all markets rose monthly with seasonal adjustment. With New York leading the nation for the seventh consecutive month and U.S. banks reporting strong Q4 earnings, this could set the Big Apple up as we close out the year.â
We didn’t hit that number until mid-March last year, and in 2023 we didn’t reach that many until mid-May!
The number of pendings did rebound but they are still under where they were in the last two years.
As more and more active (unsold) listings pile up, will sellers get nervous and adjust on price?
It doesn’t look like it. In fact, they look more confident than ever, judging by the last three months. The median asking price has risen +29% since the beginning of November!!
The out-migration from California must be slowing – because I doubt the in-migration has been increasing! It’s almost back to pre-covid levels, which means we can say it’s normalizing?
My guess at the reason? When Californians try to make sense of moving out of state, they find that home prices elsewhere have risen so much that it doesn’t make as much sense as it used to.
Thanks to Lance for the data!
This month, the U.S. Census Bureau published their net domestic migration figures for 2024. Keep in mind that this metric (net domestic migration) is NOT total population change. It doesnât include births/deaths nor international migration.
Instead, net domestic migration is calculated as the difference between the number of Americans moving into a given state (in-migration) and the number of people leaving that state (out-migration) over a specific period.
These 5 states saw the biggest net domestic migration INCREASE between July 2023 and July 2024:
Texas â>Â +85,267
North Carolina â>Â +82,288
South Carolina â>Â +68,043
Florida â>Â +64,017
Tennessee â>Â +48,476
These 5 states saw the biggest net domestic migration DECREASE between July 2023 and July 2024:
I thought that this would be the week that the surge of new listings would start to appear, but not yet. There have only been 167 new listings this month between La Jolla and Carlsbad, which is about the same pace as last January.
The monthly closed sales are about the same too. There were 102 NSDCC sales last January, and so far there have been 87 closings this month so we should exceed the 2024 count.
Ok – so we’re doing the same or a little better than last year.
The concern?
There have only been 81 new pendings this month.
It means the future closings are going to be light.
It looks like we’ll be lucky to reach 100 sales next month. There are only 109 total pendings today, and probably 20 of those will close this month! Last February, there were 140 closings.
Let’s examine our listing on Nantucket for guidance.
I thought we could get 5-10 offers, and might get bid up 5% to 10% over list. The house looked spectacular and seemed superior to the comp RIGHT NEXT DOOR that was pending with the same list price. The neighbor had a pool, but inside looked very standard.
But we received fewer than five offers and it only got bid up a little.
What happened?
I had 200+ people attend the open houses, so it seemed like everything was going right. But there must have been at least 6-8 people who told me that they were going to make an offer, but then disappeared.
Was it the three-day weekend? I had 200+ people attend.
Was it too early in the season? I had 200+ people attend.
Was it the price? I had 200+ people attend.
No matter how many homes the potential buyers have seen, they had to recognize that this home was highly upgraded, which is hard to find around Carmel Valley where the vast majority of homes for sale are older tract houses – but not old enough to be thoroughly renovated yet. It’s probably the worst time ever for CV shopping because every home not in Pacific Highlands Ranch looks dated now.
We have lookers. They appear to be very cautious and content to wait-and-see.
Will they be buyers? If they are waiting for better pricing, they will be in for a LONG wait. Sellers aren’t going to budge when they have a comp or two to back their case on price.
Buyer-agents are fading away, and this is where we will see the impact. Without having good help, potential buyers will be overly cautious and stay comfortably on the fence. Fewer sales ahead!
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We sold a home with Jim and Donna and from beginning to end they were consummate professionals. Their initial walk through the property resulted in a list of items to be repaired or updated. They supplied a list of vendors and job quotes to do the repairs and updates. We originally wanted to sell âas isâ and just get it over with. They gave us a selling price for âas isâ and options for doing a few updates/repairs to doing it all with the selling price for each option. We agreed to do all they suggested and we sold for the exact price they predicted. For every dollar spent we got back more than $2 back in the selling price. And they got that price in a rising interest rate environment! Donna and Jim are extremely detailed and guide you through ever aspect of the sale. There were no surprises thanks to their guidance. We couldnât be more pleased with their representation.
Thank you Donna and Jim,
Jerry and Mary
Heather Quejada
March 27, 2025
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We have known Jim & Donna Klinge for over a dozen years, having met them in Carlsbad where our children went to the same school. As long time North County residents, it was a no- brainer for us to have the Klinges be our eyes and ears for San Diego real estate in general and North County in particular. As my military career caused our family to move all over the country and overseas to Asia, Europe and the Pacific, we trusted Jim and Donna to help keep our house in Carlsbad rented with reliable and respectful tenants for over 10 years.
Naturally, when the time came to sell our beloved Carlsbad home to pursue a rural lifestyle in retirement out of California, we could think of no better team to represent us than Jim and Donna. They immediately went to work to update our house built in 2004 to current-day standards and trends â in 2 short months they transformed it into a literal modern-day masterpiece. We trusted their judgement implicitly and followed 100% of their recommended changes. When our house finally came on the market, there was a blizzard of serious interest, we had multiple offers by the third day and it sold in just 5 days after a frenzied bidding war for 20% above our asking price! The investment we made in upgrades recommended by Jim and Donna yielded a 4-fold return, in the process setting a new high water mark for a house sold in our community.
In our view, there are no better real estate professionals in all of San Diego than Jim and Donna Klinge. Buying or selling, you must run and beg Jim and Donna Klinge to represent you! Our family will never forget Jim, Donna, and their whole team at Compass â we are forever grateful to them.
Lou F
March 27, 2025
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WeI had the pleasure of working with Klinge Realty Group to sell our home in Carmel Valley, and I cannot recommend them highly enough!
Jim and Donna demonstrated exceptional professionalism, offering expert guidance on market conditions and pricing strategy, which resulted in a quick and successful sale.
Communication was prompt and we were well-informed throughout the entire process.
For anyone looking for a dedicated and knowledgeable real estate team, look no further!
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William Sams
March 25, 2025
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Donna and Jim Klinge of Klinge Realty Group have our highest possible recommendation. From Donna and Jimâs first visit to our house through closing their advice and counsel was candid and honest in all dealings. They kept us fully informed throughout the process. The house sold less than three days after listing with a two-week closing. My wife and I have sold several houses during our lives. This was by far the best experience. Klinge Reality is a premium service realtor. You canât make a better choice for someone to sell your home fast and for top dollar.
Emily Hernandez
December 29, 2024
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Donna and Jim provided exceptional support and professionalism throughout the entire process. We couldn't have been happier with their efforts. They made our house shine, and thanks to their expertise, it sold above the listing price in the very first weekend! Truly a fantastic experience from start to finish.
Jesus Adrian Sahagun
November 11, 2024
Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google.
This year has been difficult on our family, mainly due to having to sell our home. Thankfully we knew God had a plan for us and working with the Klinge team was a key part of it. It was an obvious decision to work with them again after such an amazing experience when purchasing the same home we needed to sell. The challenge was, how will we do this in so little time with so much going on? Jim and Donna held our hand every step of the way. Whenever an unexpected issue arose they found and provided a solution. Never once did we feel pressured to make a decision and the Klinges were always reassuring after providing the information that the decision was ours to make. Despite the curve balls, they never panicked and exemplified the âcan doâ attitude, making us feel optimistic and taken care of. Their expertise and professionalism was superb. But of all the reasons to work with the Klinges, the most impactful and valuable is their compassion and genuine care for their clients. We pray that we can one day purchase our forever home and you better believe that Jim and Donna will be representing us - as long as they will have us of course. Thank you again Klinge team! Your execution, experience, and care are unmatched.
SABIHA PASHA
July 23, 2024
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Jim and Donna were fantastic! Jim understanding my needs, recommending potential places, pointing out the pros and cons of each property was invaluable. Then when the offer was accepted Donnaâs organized guidance through the inspections, paperwork etc made the whole process seem effortless.
So grateful that I had them on my side!
Anu Koberg
July 13, 2024
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We first found Jim through his blog at bubbleinfo.com, which really showcased his knowledge of SoCal real estate. Since then we've done three transactions with Jim and Donna, and they are an incredible full service agency, with Jim's deep market insight and Donna's deft contract and project management. We trust them implicitly in their analysis and strategy, which is based on years of experience. They're always available and on top of things, and we strongly recommend them to anyone.
Bjorn Isachsen
July 10, 2024
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The Good
The Klinge Realty Group operates like a finely tuned machine, with a very personal touch. We contacted them on a Sunday and they were talking to us about our family and our needs on our living room couch the following day. They carefully listened to us and worked with us to identify the best and quickest path to listing within 2 weeks to take advantage of the low inventory conditions in our South Carlsbad neighborhood. They knew our tract specifically and had many previous sales there over the years - they came prepared with a thorough analysis of comparative sales and recommended a pricing strategy that they felt confident would yield offers the first weekend on the market.
The Great
Over the next two weeks Donna coordinated a range of vendors who she knew from experience could get the preparation to list work we needed done on time and with high quality. Our light tune-up involved excellent experiences with their stagers, landscapers, contractors, electricians, and plumbers. Throughout this period Donna's daily communication was clear, concise, and responsive. Any time we had questions Donna picked up the phone or texted immediately - but almost always, she answered our questions before we even knew we had them.
The Outstanding
We had a tricky situation with a shared fence that could have delayed our escrow. Donna used superb mediation skills to negotiate the terms of replacement and was personally on site with the fence contractor to make sure everything went smoothly. The fence looks great and escrow closed on time.
The Truly Exceptional
Our house came on the market on a Wednesday and between then and Monday morning Jim was personally at all three open houses. He was in constant communication explaining potential buyer reaction and strength. As he predicted offers began to come in on Saturday and each one was incrementally higher than the last. At the end we had 5 offers, 4 of which were over list, and the final accepted offer was $100,000 over list. In addition to being over list it included rent back terms that met our needs.
The Recommendation
For all of these reasons we would strongly recommend The Klinge Team to anyone wanting to sell in North County Coastal San Diego. I had been reading Jim's bubbleinfo.com blog for 15 years and knew when the time came to sell that he would be our first call. Jim Klinge is not your standard realtor. He is keenly aware of market conditions and sales strategies. And, works his tail off - though not as hard as Donna . At this point he's gone from realtor to friend and I plan to have him over to grill and chill at our new place to talk real estate, but also just about life and raising kids in San Diego. He's more interested in relationships than his sales numbers - and that's why his sales numbers are so high. We have already recommended the Klinge's to some close friends and another successful sale is on deck right around the corner...
Chris Shea
June 21, 2024
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We recently had the pleasure of working with Jim and Donna from Klinge Realty Group to sell our house, and we couldn't be more satisfied with the experience. From the initial meeting, they listened attentively to our needs and provided invaluable guidance on specific improvements to get our home market ready.
Their responsiveness throughout the entire process was truly impressive. Anytime we had questions or concerns, they were quick to address them, ensuring we felt comfortable and informed every step of the way. What stood out the most was their team and extensive network of tradespeople, which made addressing any necessary repairs or updates seamless and stress-free.
Thanks to their expertise and dedication, our house sold quickly and at a great price. We highly recommend Jim and Donna to anyone looking to buy or sell a home. They are a fantastic team who truly care about their clients and deliver exceptional results.
