Kensington short sale...SOLD after 653 days on the market!

A Kensington model on Houlton Circle that had been on the market since April of 2008 has finally sold for $345,000.

The original agent placed it on the market at $549,000, eventually reducing it to $410,000. After 269 days on the market, the owner switched agents. The new agent priced it at $400,000, had it on the market for over a year, and eventually sold it for $345,000. A selling price over $200,000 less than the original asking price...think someone made a pricing error here?

I see this too often, where wrong pricing, whomever is at fault (agent, owner, or both) ends up costing the seller tens of thousands..and in this case hundreds of thousands of dollars...as well as a great deal of time and stress.

Buckingham under contract....

The extended Buckingham with a pool that went on the market a month ago at $365,000 has gone under contract.

The current owners purchased the home for $387,500 in 2003.

This is the basic Buckingham floorplan...I believe the original owners had the builder make the covered patio a part of the home.

Another Windsor sale...

A Windsor on Shaina Court was reported as sold on 12/17 at a sale price of $415,000. This was not a short sale. The home was placed on the market in July at $495,000 and was priced at $465,000 at the time of contract.

The sellers purchased the home new in May of  2002 for $381,300. Annualized, that is about a 1.25% appreciation rate

Windsor closed sale...

A Windsor on Houlton Circle was reported as sold on 12/18 at a cash sale price of $369,000.

The seller purchased this home in November of '07 for $500,000 and it appears to have been a corporate relocation sale. That is a 26% loss in 24 months...

Closed sale on a Biltmore in Grande Estates

A Biltmore on Houlton Circle sold on 12/11/09 at a final sales price of $335,000.

If you have read this blog, you will recall seeing this listing mentioned numerous times, as this home had 11 price reductions during its 193 days on the market. The original asking price was $414,900 back on June 4th. In the end, this home sold for about a 20% discount to original asking price.

Grande Estates side, Buckingham on the market

A Buckingham model with a modified floorplan was just placed on the market with an asking price of $365,000. The property is not being marketed as a short sale. The sellers purchased the home in June of 2003 for $387,500

Grande Estates, under contract

A Biltmore that has been on the market for 153 days has just gone under contract. The home was originally marketed at $414,900 but was priced at $359,900 at the time of contract. This home was NOT marketed as a short sale.

The home previously sold for $380,000 in February of 2004.

Grande Estates sale...

A Buckingham on Houlton just closed...the selling price was reported to be $316,500. The home was on the market  for only 42 days and was listed at $387,692. This was NOT a short sale, but the sellers paid $395,000 for the home in May of 2004.


As I've been saying...homes that are NOT short sales, in good condition, where the seller is in tune with the market prices, are selling very quickly! And this should keep up as the inventory remains low, the 1st time homebuyer tax credit appears to be headed for an extension, and the number of short sales does not seem to be taking a breather.

Kensington sale

A Kensington with a 2 story guest house (instead of the 3rd garage), that had been on the market for 634 days was reported sold. The property was listed at $525,000 at the time of contract and was sold for $455,000.

Back in October of 2007 the home was listed for $674,900. The sellers were the originall owners and purchased the property in March of 2002 for $328,000.

Windsor, Grande Estates

A Windsor that was purchased by the current owners in November 2007  for $500,000 was just put on the market with an asking price of $405,000. The home is not being marketed as a short sale.

Back in early 2006, this home was listed by the previous owners at an initial price of over $700,000.

Kensington short sale...sold

A Kensington (courtyard) model that had been on the market at one point for $699,990 just sold for $317,000 as a short sale.

It appears that the original owners, who purchased the home in November of 2002 for $339,4000, were the sellers.

Under contract...NOT A SHORT SALE OR FORECLOSURE!

A Biltmore with a pool in Grande Estates has gone under contract in 17 days. The asking price at the time of contract was $325,000.

This quick contract at $131/sq ft (as opposed to the average $100+/sq ft for distressed sales) confirms our current hypothesis that non-distressed sales are commanding a nice premium at the present time....that finding, combined with the fact that the inventory for non-distressed homes is very low makes it a very good time to place a home on the market that is not marketed as "distressed".

Bank owned sale...Grande Estates

A Versailles on Wilbur Way that was bank-owned just sold for $320,000. This home went back to the bank in September of 2008 and was listed by the bank agent for 262 days before the sale.

The previous owner (prior to the bank), paid $455,000 in July of 2004.

Priced reduction...Grande Estates

A Biltmore model, 1 story, 4/3/2, lake, pool, has just reduced their asking price again. The home is now priced at $383,500. This home has been on the market for 112 days and was originally priced at $414,900.

It has had a sequence of reductions as follows: $405,000... $399,000... $398,900...  $398,700... $398,500... $388,500... $383,500.

The current owners purchased the home in January of 2004 for $380,000.

Grande Estates...under contract again

A Versailles on Eugene Ct. has gone under contract again. The home was priced at $362k at the time of contract.

The current owners paid $478,000 in July of 2004.

The home has been on and off the market since February of 2007, at which time the asking price was $599,000.

Kensington...back on the market.

A Kensington that last sold for $613,000 in September of 2006 just came back on the market.

This home was placed on the market by the current owner in April of 2006 at an asking price of $549,000. As of today, the asking price is $400,000. This home has been on the market for 520 days. The home is a short sale and has gone under contract (and fallen through) three times since January of this year.

Back on the market..Versailles

A Versailles model on Eugene Court has just come back on the market.

This home, marketed as a short sale, has been on and off the market since February of 2007. Originally priced at $599,000, the home came back on the market today at a "bank-approved" price of $362,000.

The current owner purchased the home in July of 2004 for $478,000

Journeys End-Grande Estates...price reduction

A Biltmore model, 4/3/2, lake, pool, on Houlton just reduced their asking price to $398,500.

This home was most recently priced at $398,700, prior to that- $398,900, prior to that-$399,000, prior to that- $405,000 and was originally price at $414,900.

This home has been on the market for 77 days.

Journeys End-Grande Estates...price reduction

A Kensington model, pool, lake, on Houlton Cir., with a 2 level guest house, just reduced their asking price from $450,000 to $399,000. This home has been on the market for 137 days.

Journeys End...off the market...again!

A Kensington model (courtyard) that has been on and off the market with its curent owner since 12/2007 is off the market again. There is a bit of a story here...the home was foreclosed on by the lender in December of 2006. It's current owner bought it from the bank in September of 2007...the home was rehabbed and placed back on the market in December of 2007 with an asking price of $609,900.

Since then, the home has been listed by 4 different agents, most recently in July/2009 for $479,900...but today, 8/18, the home was placed "temporarily" off the market.

We'll keep you updated!