[quote=kcal09]I suspect that these central locations are: 1) not the most popular locations for families, 2) many of the homes were bought as “investment properties” with little or no money down.
Look at coastal properties where the values have dropped much less.[/quote]
I suspect that the values in the areas that are the subject of the OP here have been hit VERY hard of late since the vast majority of them were and are:
-purchased during slightly before and during the height of the “millenium boom”
-over-encumbered with up to 40 years of exorbitant MR
-encumbered by HOAs with often pricey dues
-bought with little or no money down
-bought with subprime and I/O mortgages
-popular with “families?” Why exactly??
-buyers soon realized after moving in that they were actually living in a “fishbowl” and their daily commute was much longer than they imagined it would be.
The OP here asked for suggestions. She(?) apparently didn’t understand why she wasn’t finding 3000+ sf single-story homes situated on ample lots in the places she was looking in. The answer is very simple. She is looking in the wrong areas for them :=]
And btw, ALL of those areas I mentioned which are ALL more “conveniently located” than the “new-construction” areas mentioned in the OP are full of “families,” lol…
