BELMONT–Week in Review for November 11, 2008

With no new listings for two weeks in a row, it’s nice to see a little activity before the winter market slows to a snail’s pace.

There was no agent "Tuesday tour" this week due the Veteran’s Day holiday so most of these homes we’ll not view in person until next Tuesday; and I won't be updating the week's activity until a week from Saturday–the normal day for my Belmont Update post.

Belmont has 53 homes currently for sale which is higher than normal for this time of year but with no new listings for two weeks in a row and four sales last week inventory should start to wind down.

Five new listings popped up recently and here they are:

Naughton 3817 Naughton-4 Beds 3.5 bath 2,103 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $1,550,000

Naughton is a nice street and this home shows beautifully. This is a great home for people who do not need a large level yard but want nice views–though it does have a level yard area out back. Also, if you are adverse to climbing stairs this home is not for you. OPEN SAT 11/15 1:00-4:00 & SUN 11/16 1:00-4:00 Listed By Bob Bredel, RE/MAX Today

 

 

San juan 2856 San Juan—3 Beds 2 Bath 1,540 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $1,088,000

Situated on a relatively busy section of San Juan, but on a very large 16,670 Sq. Ft. lot. Though a lot of that is sloped up in the rear so it’s not really usable. The home has been upgraded very nicely. Still, it seems priced a tad bit on the high side. Listed By Richard Beale, Beale Properties NO OPEN HOUSE LISTED.

 

Read 2614 Read.—4 Beds 4+ Bath 2,800 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $1,000,000. The sad story is this is a short sale. It was purchased back in July of 2006 for $1,233,000 and they put a lot of work into it since. This is one of those Belmont homes with a bungee line to the rear yard. Listed By Bryan H. Yoshida, Provida Mortgage & Realty, Inc NO OPEN HOUSES LISTED.

 

 

DSC_6870 1308 Academy—3 Beds 2.5 Bath 3,400 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for 998,000

I did a little reconnaissance on this home since they haven't posted any pictures or tours on-line. Frankly the home is not ready to be shown just yet but I've included a sneak peak that I took with my own camera.

Listed by Eda Diridon in our office at 3,400 Sq. Ft. on a 9,150 Sq. Ft. lot in the heart of Belmont’s Country Club area this home has a small creek which runs through the rear yard. There’s a nice deck at ground level and some flat yard area. The home has a dramatic setting with soaring windows that look out upon your own miniature park. It needs updating, but this is a good deal for the size home. NO OPEN HOUSES LISTED YET.

 

 

1905 Lyon—3 Beds 2 Bath 1,350 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $739,000.

What’s up with Lyon this year? There have been about five homes for sale this year alone. Too new to tour also but it looks to be a home that needs some updating. Listed By Kristin F. Leishman, Patriot Properties OPEN SUN 11/16 1:00-4:000

 

 

RE-LISTS

Kittie 15 Kitte Lane—4 Beds 3 Bath 1,900 Sq. Ft. home on a 9,000 Sq. Ft. lot for $900,000. If this home seems familiar it should. It was listed back in April of 2006 for $1,355,000. It’s now a short sale approved at $900,000. So what’s the catch? It has a small landslide problem in the rear yard where it needs a retaining wall to prevent the creek from eroding the lot. Sounds horrible but it’s a simple engineering feat to the tune of $150,000 probably (my estimate). Other than that, it’s a great location and nice home. Listed By Marcin Pendzialek, House of Homes Realty & Mortgage

NO OPEN HOUSES LISTED

1218 North Road—3 Beds 2 Bath 1,543 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $825,000. This too should sound familiar but are you ready for this…back in August of 2007 it was listed for $1,250,000. No prices have not dropped that far they just overpriced it by a long shot. It’s a real cliff clinger home and a driveway that would give any normal driver cause for alarm. Nice views though and the price is in-line now for this completely rebuilt home. Listed By Michael Robles, Coldwell Banker-Burlingame OPEN SUN 11/16 2:00-4:00

SALES

Casa Bona ↑2308 Casa Bona (pictured)-3 Beds 2 bath 1,570 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $899,000 SOLD for $925,000 in 4 days. This was a nicely remodeled home and priced to sell as you can see by the multiple offers.

↓3215 Upper Lock—3 Beds 2 bath 1,500 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $849,988 SOLD for $792,000 in 42 days. Why did this home sell for so much less than Casa Bona (above) being that they are virtually the same size? A) Casa Bona was totally remodeled and this home was all original—and it lacked the views.

↓809 North Road—3 Beds 1.5 Bath 1,160 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $629,900 and SOLD for $607,402 in 9 days. Nice clean starter home in a trailer park atmosphere neighborhood—hence the good price.

This information is for entertainment purposes only and includes no legal, accounting or real estate advice nor is this intended to be specific to your situation-always consult a specialist who is familiar with the details of your situation.

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. This is not intended to be a representation of homes listed or sold exclusively by Drew or Christine Morgan or Carlmont Associates.

Belmont Week in Review–Week Ending October 25th 2008

The media continues its relentless barrage of horror stories and down at ground zero people continue to go on with their lives buying and selling homes to fit a lifestyle, not a portfolio.

There are currently 56 Active listings for sale in Belmont down from 58 last week. The six new listings are typical for the last big push before the holidays and the seven homes that went into contract demonstrate the desire to nest before the winter.

NEW LISTINGS

Six new listing hit the market this last week and one of them was ours—we’ll dispense with that one first:

2824 Ext 500 sh  2824 Hallmark Drive, 4 Bed 3 Bath, 2430 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $1,298,900. Admittedly we are biased about this home not only because it’s our own listing but because we are also neighbors. Hallmark can be a busy street during commute hours but this home backs up to 300+/- acres of the Belmont Canyon open space with hiking and biking trails right out its back door. The orientation of the home is to the rear (as with most Belmont Height's homes) and you can’t get a more relaxing and tranquil setting. What truly makes this home unique is the level rear yard AND awesome canyon (and peek-a-boo) Bay Views. LIsted by Drew & Christine Morgan

OPEN SUNDAY 10/26 from 1:30-4:30 stop by and say hi, Christine and I will be hosting the open house. Here's a cool video tour if you want to get an early glimpse…

2835 Alhambra Drive 4 Bed 2.5 Bath 2,710 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $1,348,000.

This is the second home to have been listed in as many weeks. Alhambra is a great seclude dead-end street in the Belmont Canyon. This home has seen its share of turn over as we’ve seen it sell several times. This time though it has been updated and shows very well. There’s no level yard out back but it’s a neat home. OPEN SATURDAY & SUNDAY 10/25-26 1:00-4:00. Listed By Philip Watson, Prudential California Realty

3416 Beresford 4 Bed 2.5 Bath 1,810 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $949,915. Another nice Bay view home and with it, a yard two stories below. OPEN SUNDAY 10/26 1:00-4:30

Listed By Jimmy Chen, Out of Area Office

2949 Monte Cresta 4 Bed 2 Bath 1,670 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $899,000. Too new to review but it’s open Sunday 10/26 from 1:00-4:00 Listed By Katrin Kaukull, Century 21 Alliance

3901 Christian 3 Bed 2 Bath 1,660 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $868,000. This is a home where a thousand pictures isn’t worth one word—bad location. Nice home, but bad location. It’s the end home next to Ralston Ave. and every single homeowner and their cars must drive by this home to get in and out of this enclave. OPEN SUNDAY 10/26 1:30-4:30 Listed By Ron J. Bonhagen Sr., Intero Real Estate Services

3414 Beresford 2 Bed 1 Bath 890 Sq. Ft. home LISTED for $649,000. This is a contractor’s special so don’t think you’re getting any real deal here. Be prepared, but if you want a good project it’s OPEN SUNDAY 10/26 from 2:00-4:00. Listed By Rosa De La Rosa, Regency Prime Properties Inc

PENDING SALES

Seven homes went pending last week which is a good sign of overall activity in Belmont’s housing market—more than half were over a million dollars.

SOLD

Monroe â†“ 2037 Monroe 5 Bed 4+ Bath 2436 Sq. Ft. LISTED for $1,199,000 SOLD for $1,167,000 in 68 Days—19 after it was reduced.

This was a very nice home but it was on a smaller lot (4,000 +/-Sq. Ft.). It was remodeled nicely and had Belmont Country Club Canyon views. It was originally listed for $1,279,000 back in August. In September it was lowered to $1,199,000 where it finally received an offer a month after being reduced.

Square footage and/or acreage information contained herein has been received from seller, existing reports, appraisals, public records and/or other sources deemed reliable. However, neither seller nor listing agent has verified this information. If this information is important to buyer in determining whether to buy or the purchase price, buyer should conduct buyer’s own investigation. Information deemed reliable but not guaratneed.

The information contained in this article is educational and intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute real estate, tax or legal advice, nor does it substitute for advice specific to your situation. Always consult an appropriate professional familiar with your scenario. These homes were not necessarily listed or sold by Drew & Christine Morgan.

Belmont Housing Activity-Week ending August 23, 2008

Belmont’s housing inventory once again is right at 44 single family homes for sale. A stable inventory is a key element to holding prices stable. We’re only a week away from the month’s end report and we’ll look at the absorption rate—the rate at which homes are selling compared to new listings—the days it takes to sell a home, and what percentage the seller is receiving of their asking price. These are three important indicators in predicating the direction of a market.

Belmont’s week in review:

NEW LISTINGS:

Belmont had four new listings this week.

Forest 2002 Forest 3 bed 2 bath 1,243 Sq Ft for $898,000. There’s an interesting back story on this home. It sold in June of 2007 in multiple offers for $945,000 and now it’s back on the market at $898,000. That’s a good indication of how the exuberance of the market forced buyers to pay top dollar. As for the home, it’s very cute (as in small). It’s tastefully remodeled but the garage has been converted (the seller says legally) to an office—so there’s no garage. How in the heck the seller ever got the city to permit the conversion of a garage in the Belmont hills is beyond me. In an effort to quash parking issues on narrow streets, the city now makes you ADD a garage space if you plan on a significant remodel.

Forest is up in the hills on the border of San Mateo and it has a great country feel, though at 4,000 the lots are small.

3215 Upper Lock 3 Bed 2 baths 1,500 sq. ft. for $849,988

Once again this home didn’t make the Tuesday tour so we haven’t seen it but we’re familiar with the homes on that street. These usually have a shared driveway and this home appears to be in rather original condition. OPEN SUNDAY 8/24 1:00-4:00

2947 San Juan 3 Bed 1 Bath 1,010 sq. ft. for $775,000

Anytime you can get a home in the Belmont hills for under $800,000 you’re probably getting a good deal. This home is located down in the San Juan Canyon and a more-or-less level section of the street. Someone may bulldoze this home but it could be salvageable too. Certainly the structure that’s there is not the highest and best use of the land. OPEN SUNDAY 8/24 1:00-4:00

318 Treasure Island 2 Bed 2.5 Bath 2,207 Sq. Ft. for $735,000

Treasure Island Homes are located out near Oracle and are technically in Belmont. This one has yet to be on agent tour and as you might recall another home came up last week at 320 Treasure Island Drive which was a 3 Bedroom for $775,000. If you’re planning a Sunday open house day, 318 is open SUNDAY 8/24 from 2:00-4:00 and 320 Treasure Island is open from 1:00-4:00 so you can kill two birds with one stone.

OK. There’s one more persistent listing that came back on the market. Reposo is back once again. This 3 bed 2 bath 1,600 sq. ft. home is now listed for $1,100,000. It started out at $950,000 back in August of 2007, was RAISED to $1,000,000 in October of that year when it didn’t sell and is now at $1,100,000. If you like this home you’d better hurry or it might be $1,200,000 by Fall…

PENDING SALES

Belmont saw two of its homes go pending this week. The home at 1134 North Court which sold for $951,000 in April of ’05 was listed for $745,000 and sold immediately.

2117 Cipriani from our Carlmont Associates office went pending too once it was lowered from $1,398,000 to $1,358,000. That’s a nice home.

Last week we talked about the new listing at 1514 pine Knoll. A 2 bed 1 bath 1,200 former cottage on a level knoll with views of Mt. Diablo and the San Francisco Bay. Listed for $799,000 I know it’s a two bedroom but what a great location.

SOLD HOMES

Three homes closed escrow this week:

South 515 South Road 4 Bed 3.5 Bath 2,870 Sq. Ft. home for $1,499,000. Listed originally at $1,579,000 and lowered to $1,499,000 where it sold in just a week and a half after it was lowered.

1756 Terrace 4 Beds 2.5 bath 3,209 sq. ft. listed for $1,275,000 closed for $1,235,000. It was on the market for 66 days.

5 Ridgewood Court 4 Bed 2.5 Bath 2,280 sq. ft. ATTACHED home off of Hastings Dr. Listed for $1,028,000 and closed for $1,000,000. It was only on the market for 14 days.