The Real View

We have a great couple looking for a San Diego condo near the beach. They were hoping to locate second-home with a price under $250,000–and were more concerned about a coastal location than the size of the unit.

We looked at condos in Oceanside, in Pacific Beach and Ocean Beach. What we didn’t expect to find was a lovely one-bedroom condo in Encinitas–at the gated community of Pacific Pines. It offers granite surfaces, brick fireplace, dishwasher, refrigerator, stove/microwave and washer/dryer. It is small at 650 square feet, but the price was remarkable at $195,000.

The gated community of Pacific Pines offers a pool, spa, tennis courts, club house, BBQ areas, picnic tables, sandy volleyball court, racquetball court, nearby hiking trails, and a location exquisitely close to the San Elijo Lagoon and Cardiff by the Sea.

We quickly wrote a full price offer on this Encinitas condo and submitted it this morning. It’s another one of San Diego County’s real estate foreclosures, so we are prepared for the inevitable bank and bureaucratic delays.

Below is the quick video I made for the clients prior to their drive down to Encinitas:

I awoke this morning feeling grouchy, of all things, about the IDX system on my San Diego real estate site. I am tired of being charged exorbitant "set-up" and monthly fees for every improvement they offer.

They is not an exotic custom programmer, but a large company that provides IDX search solutions for a large number of agents here on Active Rain.

You see, I had called this IDX provider a week or so ago wanting to know how I could create a specialized property search. With my former IDX provider, I could create a search link for about anything I wanted. All homes under $200,000 in San Diego County? Easy. All $2 million and up estates in Rancho Santa Fe? Simple--and free.

"Sure, we can do it," said the rep. "It will be $200 for the set-up and $20 per month."

"What???" I screeched.

"Well, we can reduce the set-up down to $100, but it will still be $20 per month."

After grumbling that with my prior provider, this was a simple task I could do myself--and that I had already paid them an additional $XXX set up fee for the foreclosure search link (and $XX per month)--and please just have someone from management give me a call....

And no one did.

And I just remembered that before opening my eyes this morning. Which got me to thinking a perfect IDX solution would look something like this--at least for starters:

1.  Easy MLS search that can be as detailed as the client wants.  Agent can set the bar for viewer registration.

2.  A robust back end, where agents can manage their client database, registrations, emails, visits, saved searches and the like.  Maybe some SEO features as well?

3.  An easy-to-manage MLS alert system that allows us to manage client search criteria from the back-end, without having to login as the client with password.  When clients call and ask to remove a city or area from their search, please let it be a simple task.

4. If we are going to pay a subscription fee of $XX per month (and set-up fees as well), please don't try to charge us separately for every improvement you make to your proprietary system. We expect a continually improved product, because that gives us a good reason to stay with you and become raving fans (instead of those who bitch and blog;-).

5. Have someone on tech support duty during weekends. That is when many of us find time to work on our sites.  (And why is it always easier to reach someone in sales than in support?)

6.  Database compatibility. No one yet has developed the whizbang technology to make database migration from one vendor to another a seamless one. This is not about creating a csv file and transferring basic information like name, address, telephone and email. How about migrating complex entries like property preferences, correspondence and notes?  Whoever provides this technology first will win the hearts and credit cards of agents from everywhere.

What features would you add to this wishlist?

This morning, I thought I would drop by the Grand Opening of Apple's new store at the Carlsbad Forum before heading out to show properties.

As I pulled into that large parking lot, I couldn't believe my eyes.  There was a line four-deep that stretched from one end of the Forum to (and around) the other.  There were young and old and every age in between.

Black-coated security guards maintained crowd control, and Jimbo's Market from around the corner offered crisp organic apples to those waiting in line.  Everyone seemed in good spirits, and I heard cheering in  the distance coming from within the store, which had not yet opened. Orange-shirted Apple employees were lined up ready to greet excited customers, one group at a time.

When asked, one of the security guards volunteered that the queue had started before 4 a.m.--and I was astounded.

Why?

Because most people I know use PC's--if only because Windows-compatibility is require for our San Diego MLS and some other real estate programs--and I thought most everyone already had an i-Pod:-)

The long lines were a definite surprise, but then I recall hearing some background buzz on CNBC this past week about Apple overtaking Google.

Thoughts? 

For San Diego homebuyers, Richard Smith offers some great suggestions!

If this is the worst real estate market (for sellers) in recent history, then surely it creates some of the best buying opportunities in a lifetime as well. 

We are seeing smart money aggressively buying in our San Diego real estate market, and hear reports of the same elsewhere.

The properties are being bought as primary homes, as fix-and-flippers --or are being held as longer term rentals.

We receive inquiries about these homes almost daily; but more recently, we are being consulted about strategies for buying real estate at bargain prices. These buyers may or may not have to sell their existing home to buy another--and may also be open to exchange possibilities.

Listed below are 7 strategies we use to help our  home buyers (and others) get some of the best bargains on the market.

1. Study Market Time: Homes in general may take longer to sell these days because of pricing, percecived seller value and a more cautious pool of buyers. But that doesn’t mean sellers are any less motivated to move on with their lives. At one time, we thought little of homes sitting on the market for 90 days or more. These days, we seek buying opportunities if a home has been on the market over 60 days-- and are seeing some heavy price discounting from our buyers if days on market goes over 90 days.
2. Check Tax Records and other Sources: Is there more debt on the home than what it is worth? Has a Notice of Default been filed that would indicate a looming foreclosure? If so, and if this is a home of interest for our buyer, we submit an offer contingent upon the successful negotiation of a short sale (where the lender sells the property for less than what is owed). In this case, either we or professional negotiators deal with the lender(s) to reach the best possible price for our buyer.
3. Did Owners Pay Cash or Have They Owned Their Home for Longer than 10 Years? These sellers may be in a position to sell at a discount or may be motivated to do so due to life transitions or other investment opportunities. They may also be open to owner-financing for all or part of the home mortgage. Become knowledgeable about installment sales and other creative financing strategies.
   
4. Are You Open to Remodeling? Homes sold in as-is condition are more likely than others to sell at a substantial discount. Owners, especially when the home has been on the market for some time, are often overwhelmed with the thought of remodeling and updating–and fearful that their decor choices will not suit potential buyers. In many markets, older or outdated homes are sometimes sold at land value.
5. Foreclosure Sales: The f-word (foreclosure) is occurring even in the luxury home market. Highly leveraged homes purchased in the last few years are more frequently ending up on the courthouse steps. Foreclosure purchases, which require cash and carry no disclosures or guarantees, offer both great potential for profit–and big dangers for the uninformed. Bidding should be non-emotional and it is best to have a professional bidding for you–but only after thorough-as-possible research has been done regarding the home’s condition, its history and resale potential. Cracked slabs, structural defects and boundary line encroachments are unwelcome surprises.
6. Home Exchanges: This is a rather novel strategy for those trying to sell their luxury home in a bloody market. Life transitions encourage luxury homeowners to make moves. Empty-nesters may wish to relocate from their large estate to something equally posh but far less demanding in upkeep. Others may have expanding families that crave acreage, pools, tennis courts or equestrian facilities. In the Southern California market, Owner-Broker Bob Dyson and Villa Sotheby’s International Realty have set up a property exchange platform that allows homeowners to directly exchange properties and ownership. It is a tactic that helps to support neighborhood values and removes many of the pressures involved in having a home on the market for an extended period of time.
7. If the property you want is listed, have your agent check the other real estate agent’s listing history. If that agent tends to have listings on the market for a long time, you may wish to lower your offer. On the other hand, if the agent prices properties aggressively and has short “days on market,” you may consider coming in near to, at, or over list price. You will likely find those listings already priced at or below market to attract multiple offers.

A combination of patience, perseverance and the ability to move quickly will serve all astute buyers of real estate these days, but the greatest potential of all may lie with properties whose replacement value could far exceed the purchase price--or those with exquisite locations.

 San Diego real estate offers ripe opportunities for discovery and  information indigestion digestion.

We have seen San Diego real estate prices plummet in its suburban communities of Chula Vista, National City, Escondido, San Marcos, eastern Oceanside, Fallbrook and others.

 After all, these communities (and other like them throughout the country) are full of newer subdivisions--many of which were financed with EZ loans and fictional incomes.

Established San Diego neighborhoods with lower turnover have been largely been immune from steep price declines or so I thought--until recently.

We recently had a showing of a vintage and lovely 1927 home on a large corner lot in Point Loma that was offered as a bank foreclosure--and at a price that fell below its 2002 sales price.

The details?

The last owner purchased the property a couple of years at $910,000 with 100 percent financing. Neighbors say he tried unsuccessfully to sell it for over $1 million a year or so ago. The sale prior to that occurred in 2002, when this San Diego home was sold for $749,000.

Today this vintage Spanish home with gleaming hardwood floors and manicured landscaping is priced at just $725,000.

Point Loma neighbors and this Realtor are a bit stunned--and still trying to adjust to this new pricing realty.

I have no doubt that this wonderful single level 3-bedroom home with almost 1600 square feet of living space will sell quickly (if it hasn't already), but it will certainly cripple neighborhood comparables for awhile.

But perhaps this abrupt grappling with San Diego real estate realities is what is needed to bring somedegree of normalcy back to our real estate market.

Is 2002 an approximate benchmark for San Diego real estate pricing?

It is a sobering thought.