Inventory in Land Park and Curtis Park has dropped about 30% over the past year, which means there is very little on the market right now. There is a small handful of homes near a million, OK, I can count them on one hand -- and only 20 homes over half a million. And some sellers are pulling a Nancy Reagan and just saying "no" to showings.
A client sent me a list of the top six homes they want to see today. Of those, half are not available. Criminy, look at the way my requests for showings break down:
Property 1: I asked to see this at 1:30. The sellers wanted to know if we could come at 2 PM instead. What? How many showings could they possibly have had in this price range lately? We got the appointment for 1:30.
Property 2: This home has had all the copper plumbing ripped out, which is a growing concern not only in Land Park and Curtis Park but everywhere in Sacramento. It's a short sale contingent, meaning there's an offer at the bank and, um, it's a short sale. But the bank directed the agent not to send any another offers, says the agent. ?!?
Property 3: Taken off the market. Don't know when it will go back on the market. Seller has decided to make improvements.
Property 4: Eureka! We have our second showing. But the seller was concerned about setting off the alarm as the agent who showed it earlier this week had managed to do. Alarm city, that's me. I'm the worst with alarms. No matter what I do, I often trigger them. Now my heart will be palpitating as I slowly enter the alarm code and hope to god I don't set it off.
Property 5: Off the market so the seller can make repairs.
Property 6: Expired. I called the seller anyway to find out if she was still interested in showing. Turns out, seller says, that MLS made a mistake, and it's not expired. Sounds like an agent input error to me. We have an appointment for our 3rd showing.
Six homes and three showings. This is a strange real estate market in Land Park and Curtis Park right now. I know just about all the agents in these neighborhoods, and they know me. Up until now, it's always been very easy to get appointments for showings. When I list homes in Land Park or Curtis Park, I make certain other agents can show them, even if I have to drive over to the home and let them in myself.
Photo: Big Stock Photo
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Broker-Associate at Lyon RE. Selling since 1974, helping buyers & sellers in Sacramento. Land Park resident. Midtown office. Home Buying Columnist for New York Times' About.com. DRE license #00697006
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Well, Elizabeth your market has definitely turned to a Sellers market. We haven't seen ANYTHING like that in years here. We are getting back close to a balanced market here lately. Amazing, taking homes off the market for repairs.
Hi Gary: Land Park and Curtis Park have been somewhat untouched by the housing slump. These neighborhoods are near downtown, tree-lined, and the homes were built between the 1920s and 1940s, give or take. Even in our strong seller's market that teetered off in 2005, sellers in Land Park and Curtis Park have always been willing to accommodate showings. The DOM are a bit longer now, but fewer homes are selling because most of the demand is at the lower end of the market, and these are high-end homes.
Elizabeth - That would be very frustrating. I hope you were just having an unusual day... :)
Elizabeth
Why is it so hard to have showings sometime? Perhaps have a Seller packet, and tool kit they can call you for.
Sincerely
Tom Braatz
Interesting... you would think folks would want all the buyers they could schedule looking at the houses. Your market is definitely doing better than ours.
Land Park and Curtis Park have always been in demand. Their charm comes from the established vintage ambiance of the neighborhoods and the homes themselves.
I understand where you are coming from Elizabeth. I can never understand why someone would wish to market their home, and then restrict access to it for showings. It simply doesn't compute.
And you're right - Alarm systems are the pits!
Hi Debi: I hope it's just a fluke as well, but my gut instincts say no.
Hi Tom: That's probably a good idea, but it's not something I do. I don't interfere in another agent's listing and would never try to solicit their seller because it's considered unethical here. Agents who do that get an undesirable reputation, and it's not one that I want to be associated with.
Hi Jesse: There are certain neighborhoods in Sacramento that are doing very well right now, and Land Park / Curtis Park is one of them. But they've always been fairly stable, unlike other areas in Sacramento. Agents who work in outlying areas are having their share of frustrations and challenges.
Hi Myrl: Fortunately, the seller with the alarm system called me back to say he was turning it off. It was the most astounding and gorgeous home I have seen for a while -- a French Normandy. Some of the walls were covered in padded fabric with trim inserted around the borders that matched the window coverings. Charming seller and absolutely charming home.
3 of 6 - Your clients must have been scratching their head. Not to play my own violin, but you're very lucky not to be dealing with bank owned homes! I'm up to here with the snails pace/high demands, etc! Don't even get me started on out of town agents! :-)