Temecula - 1/2 acre lot - $335K

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Submitted by dharmagirl on May 14, 2008 - 6:02pm

Hey fellow large lot lovers in Temecula...earlier today, I looked at a 20 yr old home in North Temecula. Just on the market. The selling agent wont even accept offers yet.

It's on a .47 acre lot about 20K sq feet. Surrounded by trees on one side with fence on the other. It feels private.

This is the listing: http://www.redfin.com/CA/Temecula/40486-...

This is the cleanest and most updated REO I've seen in Temecula - in this price range. Fresh paint, tile, 3 updated baths, granite, new - albeit cheap - carpet, new windows. The backyard is lush and lovely. Decent pool, spa, gazebo wired w/ceiling fan and pond/waterfall.

Things I didnt like: at 2200 sf the house is a bit small for us. We didnt care for the master bdrm configuration, but a handy person could probably make some adjustments, knock out a wall and expand it. Oh, it even has a nice storage shed in the RV parking area.

My agent said that the house will "probably sell for at least 20% over asking". She said that banks are pricing the REOs low to generate bidding wars/multi offers. My agent said that the selling agent has already received a ton of calls on the place.

Just curious to know what you all think. Are people waiting to snap up these places fast, and pay more for a larger lot?

‹ OT: Army of ants has invaded Ethical dilemma ›
Hi DG, I think that by the
Submitted by cashflow on May 14, 2008 - 7:19pm.

Hi DG,
I think that by the picts the yard looks amazing...I too think the house looks a bit tight, but 2200 sf isn't tiny. I always look at the family room/kitchen combo as I like that to be spacious....in my opinion it's priced okay, but they definitely are pricing in all the upgrades to the backyard...I know you are set on buying right now, but I would never get into bidding wars....we were looking casually in that area as well, but stopped as I'll never get in bidding wars in an area I KNOW has so much over-inventory...it's just the season right now...this too shall pass...better deals ahead!

I thought you had an offer accepted on a house already??

Yup. We're in escrow right
Submitted by dharmagirl on May 14, 2008 - 7:41pm.

Yup. We're in escrow right now. But ZipRealty still emails listings to me, and that listing piqued my curiosity. Hey, the deal isnt done till it's done, right? We're still in our contingency period.

One of the things that bugged me about the house is that there is no way to separate the master bath from the bdrm (both are smallish) without knocking down walls and remodeling.

There was a discussion
Submitted by pizzaman on May 14, 2008 - 8:45pm.

There was a discussion earlier about how the lenders have been using this strategy of listing low hoping to start a bidding war. There is a house I have been following in Murrieta that listed $100,000 below market and went quickly into escrow after receiving multiple offers. Yesterday it fell out of escrow for the third time and once again was active at the original low listing price. So today I called there bluff and made a full price cash offer, hoping that they are tired of people not qualifying for loans and having to start the process again. Gee, I hope I didn’t offend them with my full price offer.

I like those low listings,
Submitted by PadreBrian on May 14, 2008 - 11:52pm.

I like those low listings, and mini- bidding wars! Helps normalize the market...and it makes the buyer feel like he got a good deal...lol even though it was the figure the owner wanted all along.

Hey, dharmagirl. I like the
Submitted by marion on May 15, 2008 - 12:04am.

Hey, dharmagirl. I like the way they've updated this house. I like the layout of the kitchen sink in the island. The pool isn't that nice, but it's a pool. Those looking for a spacious lot would like this one. If I were in that category, I don't think I'd pay 20% over asking price though.

Hi Marion. The pool has been
Submitted by dharmagirl on May 15, 2008 - 8:28am.

Hi Marion. The pool has been filled since that photo. My realtor talked to the pool guy, and he said the pool is in great shape - it does have some rust stains on the bottom that need to be addressed - but the pool is also much larger than it looks in the photo.

If anyone is interested, I took a bunch of photos while there yesterday for a friend who couldnt come with me to look at the place.

The selling agent told my realtor that they've had "lots of phone calls" from people who want to buy the place. My realtor advised us to make a strong offer - if we were interested - and offer 20% over asking, offer to pay closing costs and ask for 30-day escrow. She told me that she's already had cases like this where a buyer with cash will swoop in, offer the lowball price and a 5 day escrow and it's done. She added that the bank is all about "net net" so they will go for the most money. There is no way that we'd do that.

I talked to my realtor
Submitted by dharmagirl on May 15, 2008 - 5:06pm.

I talked to my realtor earlier. The selling agent for this property told her that they've "already received FIVE offers."

Is it just the "season"? It just came on the market 3 days ago.

I think a few years from
Submitted by masayako on May 15, 2008 - 6:05pm.

I think a few years from now, you will see tons of Temecula houses like this sell for this price range or even lower. Honestly, I don't think it's such a good deal for the location.

Before the housing bubble, one can get a new Sabre spring house (92128), 2,000 sqfts for about the same price.

It's still overpriced. Just my opinion.

Masayako

Well, our full price cash
Submitted by pizzaman on May 16, 2008 - 10:00pm.

Well, our full price cash offer didn’t get it done. Not sure what the accepted offer was but the agent says they got 15 in the few days it was on the market again. Here’s the listing http://www.redfin.com/CA/Murrieta/23993-...
If the link dies, it’s a 2766 sq ft single story house on a 1/3 acre in Murrieta. Bank owned listed for 331,500. Sold new in November 2003 for 407,500 then again in May of 2006 for 715,000.

Wow, Pizzaman. That's
Submitted by dharmagirl on May 16, 2008 - 10:07pm.

Wow, Pizzaman. That's amazing. My realtor has been telling me that people come in with full cash offers and quick escrow...but 15 offers....wow.....

That's amazing. My realtor
Submitted by gn on May 19, 2008 - 11:45am.

That's amazing. My realtor has been telling me that people come in with full cash offers and quick escrow...but 15 offers....wow.....

There are 2 possible intepretations to this :

1. The market is recovering, hence the multiple offers.

2. There are still a lot of foolish "knife catchers" out there :-)

On a positive note the house
Submitted by pizzaman on May 19, 2008 - 12:16pm.

On a positive note the house in question has fallen out of escrow twice and the first time there was 25 offers, so we are making some progress.