The Real View

Thinking of buying a well-located $1 million luxury flat in London, Paris or Tokyo? Think again:

1. In London, you’ll get 328 square feet.

2. In Paris, you’ll do better with  522 square feet.

3. In Tokyo, you can really spread out with 594 square feet.

These are averages reported by the most recent issue of Forbes magazine. The weakened dollar against the Sterling, Euro and other currencies has contributed much to a real estate situation where, for example, the U.S. dollar purchases 25 percent less in London than it did just five years ago.

But if the tables are turned, premier areas of the United States are relative bargains for many international real estate buyers. We have a client who recently retired in Belgium, moved to the San Diego suburbs, and puchased a lovely coastal Carlsbad pool home (around 3000 sf) for just under $1 million. This jolly client still chuckles when mentioning that his retirement comes in Euros, which helps to create a very comfortable retirement— given current U.S. exchange rates.

This is a situation that might be repeated throughout premier real estate markets in the United States. Excluding a few areas, real estate prices in this country have softened in the last couple of years. An international real estate buyer might be able to purchase a prime property at a substantial discount not only because of weakened market conditions, but also because of the increased purchasing power of his or her native currency.

Informed sources tell us that CBS newsmagazine 60 Minutes is turning its mic and cameras to real estate--and that online real estate service dispenser Redfin will be one of the interviewees--as will Windermere Real Estate. Both companies operate in the Northwestern part of the country, but with very different business models. 

Redfin is an online start-up operating in Seattle and San Francisco (according to their website), while full service Windermere holds market share in Seattle and has been expanding aggressively into California, Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona., Montana and otherwestern states. The comparison should be interesting.

Apparently the story is still under development and inquiring minds want to know if any Rainers have personal experience with either company or their clients? How about opinions?

Unless you request otherwise, I will forward your comments and links along.

For what it's worth, though, I think a story about Active Rain would be much more interesting!

Gena Riede tagged me last night in the meme game, which was initiated by Mary McKnight some days ago. 

True Confessions:

1. Most of you don't know about my other blog, Luxury Home Digest and that the Real Estate's Top Tomato, Jim Cronin, helped me develop it. It needs more attention. Especially mine.

2. I snuck through college and graduate school without taking a single math course. And graduated.

3. I was expelled my freshman year for being a student radical. Life changes.

4. I never thought I could work with my husband. We do and enjoy it. Life surprises.

5.  I traded my Mercedes 420 for a Camry hybrid last August--and I am a Republican. Most of the time.

Now, whom shall I tag?

I am lost and need your help. This game has turned into a complicated web and I'm not sure who has and has not been tagged. Are there any volunteers? Or someone who has more to share?

If so, raise your hand and I will provide a link to your website or other blog on mine.

P.S. A few years after my college expulsion, I went on to become the Public Information Director for the Dayton, Ohio Police Department.

Life teaches.

Every action creates a reaction, and the San Diego County real estate market is no exception. As home sales have cooled this past year, housing rents have risen 5.8 percent, according to the San Diego County Apartment Association. This hefty annual increase is the average rental income for all types of residential rentals in this area. That brings the average to $1237. per month. One and two-bedroom apartments are predominant in the market and have increased by an even loftier 6.2 percent, to an average of $1229.

We knew it was going to happen sooner or later. Too many former homeowners have moved into rental properties to wait out the market. They join other San Diego home buyers who are waiting for the real estate market to bottom. Combine those people with others who simply choose to be renters and/or have no other alternatives, and rental vacancy rates were bound to be affected. The San Diego region's vacancy rates have already decreased from 3.4 percent last spring, to a current 3.1 percent.

Speaking to the San Diego Union Tribune , Russ Valone with MarketPointe Realty Advisors warns that trying to time the real estate market can be a risky venure. "The problem a lot of those people are going to have is, by the time we all recognize the market has turned, it will probably be too late," he said.

Hmmm....perhaps those former homeowners who parked their equity dollars should consider buying a rental property while real estate prices are still soft.  As I mentioned in an earlier blog  here on Active Rain, real estate activity levels are picking up across the board. Statistics for this recent spike have not yet been reported.

For San Diego Real Estate, visit:

http://www.SanDiegoPreviews.com

We real estate bloggers aren't exactly seeking rock star fame, but most of us would be happy with slightly famous status. We want be bookmarked in real estate, so people in our target markets come to us with their real estate needs. We need to be able to reach the right audience, with the right message, at the right time. Most of us are honorable,referable and respected real estate professionals. But key to success in our business is being remembered. Without that, we run the risk of operating our businesses on hope and chance.

Steven Yoder, author of Slightly Famous, deserves credit for this inspiration. Though he speaks to a larger marketing audience, his advice hits a home run in real estate--especially if we re-apply his website advice to blogging. Some of his concepts and possible applications:

1. Creating your slightly famous status is not just about what you (we all) do, but rather about how you do it differently from anybody else. You need to set yourself apart. Canned and copied messages do little to raise you above the crowd. Be courageous and find your own voice.

2. Give your readers something they can't get offline (or online, for that matter). How about a specialized infection? Yoder suggests infecting the vacuum in your target marketplace with your ideas so completely that competitors will first have to eliminate your virus before they can unleash one of their own. (I couldn't help but think of Active Rain's viral blog). Then, continue to create remarkable and noteworthy online experiences to further spread your virus. Yoder advises, though, to always begin by infecting your core audience first. That is your focus. They will spread the virus.

3. Keep yourself immersed in the world and concerns of your target audience, to the point of developing a sixth sense about that marketplace. If you deal with first time home buyers , it is imperative you understand their concerns, fears, hopes and dreams--and address those states of mind. The same would apply to the trophy home buyer, the second home shopper, or the borrower with a broken ARM.

We operate in a crowded marketplace, in a blogosphere that is doubling every five months. Your competition is just a click away. How can you stand out? I love the solution: Just be slightly famous. Write, blog and drag a long tail behind you. Focus your message, write to engage the reader, and give them something they would have a hard time finding anywhere else.

I am inclined to favor real estate secrets, tips and gossip. In fact, I am debating just what (and how much) I should reveal in my next post....

Stay tuned.

In this post, I'm going to step out on a limb...and over a canyon. Perhaps it is a "dead cat bounce" as stock market reporters used to say in 2000-2001 about declining and spiking stocks. Maybe it is something else, but something is astir in our real estate market. 

Perhaps San Diego crashed first, and perhaps we really do perch on the bloody edge of the economic envelope. But the numbers and recent buyer calls cannot be ignored. In September, 2006 there were 271 listings in North County's zip 92009. Today that number has dropped to 192. There are 69 listings that are in pending status.

We are receiving triple the number of calls and showing appointments that we did just a few weeks ago.  Sales are popping all over the place.

What's different from a year ago?

Prices and buyer confidence.

San Diego home sellers have adjusted their expectations and are showing new respect to buyers. Buyers, in turn, are feeling more confident that the market has perhaps bottomed. Interest rates are dropping and creating renewed hope in the market.

Real estate prices in North County San Diego have rolled back to more reasonable levels, and buyers are responding. Once again, this proves that it is neither the agent nor the seller who determines the selling price of a home; instead, it is THE MARKET.

http://www.sandiegopreviews.com 

We shake our heads in wonder with the news that legendary toy store FAO Schwarz has moved into the custom homebuilding business. With prices starting at $10,000, we scratched our heads and wondered what responses might come from the likes of Toll Brothers, Hovnanian and Centex. What fun might this ultimate toy store have up its sleeve?

 A little more research reveals that FAO has cleverly moved into the "mini-me" end of the homebuilding business and may have trumped Neiman Marcus for the coolest gift of the season. As an exclusive service to their customers, FAO Schwarz will now build an "exquisitely detailed scale model of your own home, beach house, or ski chalet." The process and results appear to be pretty amazing.

 During the first step of the homebuilding process, the toy emporium sends its design team to your home to record and measure the details of the home to be duplicated. Once back in the design studio, skilled artisans will recreate each part of your home in 1:12 scale. If the client wishes, they will even replicate the wallpaper, paint colors, lighting and upholstery finishes. If the original wallpaper or fabric swatches are available, those will be used. If not, the material will be recreated.

 Appointments will start in January, 2007. For additional information about these miniaturized homes, call one of FAO Schwarz' Personal Shoppers at 212-644-9400, x4173.

I am wondering what business or challenges this might create for Craig Schiller and other Home Stagers of note? This rests somewhere between McMini's and Barbie Manses. On the other hand, building of this sort might make San Diego real estate more affordable....

http://www.sandiegopreviews.com

Another headache?  It was bound to happen--just as it did for the real estate brokerage business, as it did for mortgage lending, as it did for numerous other paper-generating businesses.

Auxiliary real estate businesses can now compete for business at https://www.lowerfees.com/  Their targets? Escrow fees, termite reports, and possibly attorney and appraisal fees. The business model is a bidding one and they also hope to generate income from advertising. 

It appears their beta site just went public this  morning. They were  mentioned on CNBC, where  one of the founders (cannot recall name), said  the time had come to expose all fees generated in closing real estate transactions.

There is some blogging buzz--mostly among appraisers--about this real estate start-up. It also appears this morning's publicity on CNBC caused their site to crash. Haven't been able to get in!

I am also wondering about their timing in entering this current real estate market.

More to follow--for sure!!!

http://www.sandiegopreviews.com