Archive for the 'Luxury Listings' Category
Bargains in Luxury Real Estate
To paraphrase Charles Dickens, these may be the best of times and the worst of times at least with San Diego real estate.
Few are surprised that the real estate bubble popped in the plethora of new home subdivisions that peppered San Diego County in the last few years.
Stupid loans and and unwitting buyers created a marriage that has crippled the real estate industry.
But not all markets and communities suffer in the same way,
For example, few would consider Rancho Santa Fe, California real estate a bargain, when single family Rancho Santa Fe homes start at $1.15 million and currently peak at $29.9 million.
Moreover, only 16 of the current 167 active listings in RSF are priced under $2 million.
The bargain bin of real estate? Hardly!
Still, we have stumbled across a few notable buys:
- A 3220 square foot Del Rayo Downs home in Rancho Santa Fe was purchased for $1.74 million on 3/14/2006. It is vacant, in lovely condition and has been reduced to $1.395. The owner will even consider a trade.
- A gated, private and single story Mediterranean estate with over 5000 square feet on one acre just closed escrow at $2.1 million. It needed TLC, but the lots and bones were probably worth the total price. Located just outside Fairbanks Ranch.
- A 19.4-acre gated Covenant estate was listed at $29.5 million last August and closed escrow at a paltry $21 million last month. It was reportedly a cash sale.
- A Notice of Default has been filed against a lovely and very spacious 3-bedroom Rancho Santa Fe condo that has recently been reduced to around $1.2 million. I am already calling clients on this one.
- Another Rancho Santa Fe townhome was reportedly purchased for $1.675 million in the summer of 2005. It is now on the market at a value range of $1.3 to $1.4 million, has assumable financing, and guaranteed golf membership in the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club .
Do we expect Rancho Santa Fe real estate pricing to fall off a cliff?
No way.
But it is certainly worth our time to scout the market to find sound values such as these.
Moreover, many who are now home shopping in Rancho Santa Fe and other luxury neighborhoods now can thank their lucky stars that they werent buying two years ago.
If you would like more information on Rancho Santa Fe or other San Diego luxury real estate, just give me a call at 760-402-9101 or 877-818-8197. You may also email me: roberta@sandiegopreviews.com
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read comments (0)Luxury Builder Says 2007 Worst in 40 Years
If real estate investors are looking for blood in the streets, they had better be wearing galoshes.
Even the books of venerable Toll Brothers, America’s largest builder of luxury tract homes, are in the red. For the first time in 21 years, the company is suffering its first quarterly loss (Oct. 31) in the amount of $81.8 million. Much of this loss can be attributed to $314.9 million in pretax writedowns for homes it could no longer sell at a profit. Even Robert Toll, the company’s founder, concedes that 2007 has been the most challenging year in the company’s 40 year history.
But every loss also registers a gain–somewhere and somehow.
It has been evident that newer tract home subdivisions have been hit especially hard the past couple of years. Many homeowners needing to sell had bought during market highs and more than a few a have been forced to sell at a loss. Funds spent on landscaping, hardscaping, flooring/ surface upgrades, and window coverings (and perhaps even the down payment) have gone down the drain.
It is a tough time to be a home seller.
This has forced a number of builders with standing inventory to offer costly upgrades as an incentive for potential home buyers. Those buyers, who once had to budget for many of these improvements, are now getting them for free–sometimes packaged with interest rate buydowns and other incentives. It is a spiral that has forced builders and their prior home buyers to compete.
Many shrewd real estate buyers have been renting and waiting for opportunities such as these–and are coming out of hiding. Real estate investors who sold at or near the top of the market a couple of years ago are also back into buying mode. And so are foreign investors, who benefit not only from depressed real estate prices in prime US markets, but also the strength of their Euros and Canadian dollars against the US dollar.
This may explain the recent phenomenon in the beaten-down San Diego real estate market, where multiple offers are being made on properties that are priced under market. It’s something we haven’t seen in a long time, and just may be the beginning of a market bottom.
If you have any questions (or need to borrow a pair of rubber boots), just give us a call at 877-818-8197 or 760-402-9101.
Luxury Home Sales to Climb with Bonuses
by Scott Murphy
Many top executives at large investment banking firms will be depositing some jumbo bonuses by the end of this month.
Despite an overall bonus decrease of 10% due to months of multibillion-dollar bank write-downs and a spreading credit crisis, many will be pocketing some still-sizeable sums.
Depending on which firm they work for and the position held, bonuses can range anywhere from up to $2 million to $50 million.
Real estate prices this year have dropped–and where else should these high earners invest their bonuses?
According to Forbes, some of these bonus recipients may also be rookies– as well as first time homebuyers–looking in the $5 to 6 million range. For top executives, the bonuses will be substantially more and potentially leading them towards the $20,000,000 home range.
Some rich real estate markets such as Manhatten, San Diego, the Silicon Valley area, Los Angeles and other top markets, just might see an increase of sales come the end of the year. Interest is already brewing in a number of these luxury markets.
In the coastal San Diego area, for example, Rancho Santa Fe, Del Mar, La Jolla, Carmel Valley, Coronado, Solana Beach, Cardiff, Encinitas, Carlbad and downtown San Diego (all coastal) offer some of the finest luxury homes in San Diego County. Inventory levels are also attractive for these flush buyers, which makes the home shopping experience even more fun.
At the other end of the country, many bonus-rich buyers will be shopping properties in Manhattan– including townhomes overlooking Central Park, which have asking prices at $50,000,000 or more. These executives might not be able to pay cash for one of these properties, but can rest assured that large down paymens will be coming from a secure source.
Of course the purchase of one of these homes will depend on the size of the bonus. But for some just starting out in the business, a nice condo in a great location would work very nicely.
Here’s wishing fat bonuses to all!
The Timeless Luxury Home
Sometimes you walk into a home, sense both ageless soul and serenity–and can’t help but smile.
We recently listed such an estate in the beautiful hills of Vista, California. Its current and original owners are a spirited and beautiful international opera singer and her dashing husband, a retired professor of art. With loving attention to detail, it seems nothing was missed in the completion of this luxurious 2003 custom home.
When I first walked into the home, I was struck by the use of old and rich colors, antique woods, the graceful wood and iron staircase, and light classical music that filled the rooms.
At first glance, I knew this home would be exceptional.
The gated hilltop setting offers both ocean and mountain views–as well as quiet privacy. The home’s flexible 4000+ sf floorplan has volume ceilings that carry classical music well, a grand foyer, large living and music rooms, multiple dining areas, and a kitchen Alice Waters might envy.
Upstairs, we discover a substantial master suite with an adjoining study, large dressing room and bath, 
spa tub, and large, organized closets. A romantic trellised balcony overlooks both the mountains and ocean horizon, while the two-way fireplace warms both the bedroom and bath areas. Three other large bedrooms and an open bridge complete the upstairs.
The bones of a home may be magnificent, but inspiring beauty comes from surfaces, windows, doors, lighting, amenities, color and textures. I share clients’ enthusiasm when all of these elements come together.
This home lacks nothing and blends all elements well. It has rich Tuscan colors, art niches and unfluted columns. It beautifully blends the use of stone, iron and woods, and offers contemporary conveniences such as central vacuum and a discreet kitchen vent that captures broom sweepings.
Outdoors is a large covered patio, lawn, gardens and small acreage for hobbies, horses or arborists.
I have often thought that equestrian homeowners in Poway, Rancho Santa Fe and Fallbrook who were displaced by the recent San Diego fires might find this property of interest.
Located on highly-desired Elevado Street in Vista, this estate is reasonably offered at $1.5 million by owners who are anxious to retire in Crete.
We intend to help them accomplish this dream–and look forward to having terrific clients in such a wonderful corner of the world.
Richistan Home Prices Continue to Soar
$50 million is the new $30 million, says Glenn Roberts over at the Inman News Blog–especially when it comes to high end luxury homes.
Citing a 2007 Mid-Year Luxury Report by Stribling Private Brokerage, Roberts explains how just a few years ago, even a rumor of a $30 million real estate sale in Manhattan would create big buzz. But since the sale of a $53 million property there in late 2006, prices have leapfrogged into the $50 millions.
This enormous inflation at the top tier of the real estate market is occurring across the country–from San Francisco’s $55 million fixer, to Donald Trump’s $125 million estate in Florida to Tim Blixseth’s $155 million estate offering for his 53,000 square-foot estate in Bozeman, Montana.
I couldn’t resist responding to Glenn’s article:
We are seeing a similar phenomenon in the San Diego’s luxury end of the real estate market. Late last spring, a Del Mar oceanfront estate was sold at $48.15 million–setting a California record.
Now, just listed, is another 5.5-acre Del Mar oceanfront estate with a price tag of $76 million.
Inflation in Richistan continues to amaze!
Other articles of interest:
Breaking All Barriers: Luxury Homes Reach Nine Figures
