California Horse 'n Home

2010 SALES STATISTICS
January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2010

     It's been a long time since I put together sales statistics for the area I make my home - Lake Mathews, Gavilan Hills, Gavilan Springs and nearby local communities. You may remember that I specialize in ranch, equestrian and estate properties. The only factor that has changed is I now represent Land of The Hawk Realty - and what a fantastic team they are.
     This family owned and run group offered me the opportunity to be part of their team and I jumped at it. They represent everything I believe in - honesty, integrity, fairness and the belief that serving the customers interest is paramount. I'm proud to be part of their team and whole hearted believe they/we are the best. No other broker/agency knows this market area better than Land of The Hawk Realty.
    I consider myself a horse person. Over the past 13 years or so my husband and I have owned or bred well over 20 horses - mostly Arabians - my true passion. We've bought them, rescued them, sold them, showed them, raced them, loved them and lost a few along the way. We've experienced the joy of winning and the heart break of losing a true friend.

    The following statistics were gathered from the MRMLS listing service and deemed to be reasonably reliable. The geographic area represented is comprised of the following Thomas Bros. Map Guide pages: 775 south of Cajalco Rd., all of 805 and properties west of juniper Rd. on page 806 (properties in the mobile home development along Gavilan Rd. are excluded). 

2010 SALES STATISTICS
January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2010

DESCRIPTION    2009           2010         CHANGE 

CLOSED SALES      22              30           +27%
REO SALES*         18              17
SHORT PAY*          0                5               
STD (owner)         2               8       Significant
TOTAL VOLUME  $7,881,700   $9,926,250  +23%
AVERAGE PRICE  $358,260    $330,875    -7.7%

*REO and SPAY sales represented 82% of CLOSED sales in 2009 and 73% in 2010 - a reduction of approximately 27%, but still a huge amount

THERE ARE 27 ACTIVE LISTINGS - as of 7/31/2010

    In making a comparison, at the end of January, 2008 there were 64 active listings in the geographic area - five were listed at $1M or above. Today, there is one listing close to the $1M range, however, it's been on the market for nearly a year. There is another listing at $759,000 but it's been offered for sale for well over a year (450+ days).

SO WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?

    One thing we can all see from the numbers is that the majority of home sales are from REO's (foreclosures) and SPAY (short sales). There's no way to avoid that statistic. However, when we look at the STD sale (straight-owner sale) average price, which is $385,000, that is very encouraging for those that have not "lost" their homes - it's well above the average sales price.
    What this means for home owners in our area that are not looking at foreclosure is that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Certainly, the home prices are not what they were three or four years ago, but they aren't at the bottom of the barrel either. 
    End result: If you have a nice, clean home, one with little or no deferred maintenance, and you haven't borrowed half the world against it, you have a reasonable expectation of getting a decent price at today's market value and putting some money in your pocket.

THE REAL BOTTOM LINE

    If you have questions about what your home is worth, or what another property is worth, call me - you'll get the information you need straight from the horse's mouth - so to speak. Seriously, I live here, this is my home base for the rest of my life. I study the market area every day and I have a broker that is without doubt the most knowledgeable in our community.
    My one and only goal is to assist my clients in making an intelligent decision based on fact - I'm not here to amaze you with sales techniques, although I'm extremely adept in that area (which is very important when dealing with other agents, lenders and all the numerous other individuals involved in the home sale process). 
    If you have any questions regarding real estate (or horses) call me. My cell number is 951-707-7832 and I can be reached at home at 951-780-0856.