Fontana, CA

Sierra Lake single-family home inventory showed continued signs of price stability in January 2010 however sales volumes are down both month-over-month as well as year-over-year.

January 2010 Summary Results:

• Sold prices ranged from a low of $235,000 to a high of $340,000
• Price per square foot ranged from a low of $112.03 to a high of $176.67
• Days on market ranged from a low of 1 days to a high of 107 days
• Sale-price to list-price ratio ranged from a low of 0.96 to a high of 1.20
• Total sales were 10 single-family homes

Average selling price in January 2010 was $282,210. The lowest priced sale was located at 16643 Canyon Lake which sold at $225,000 vs. listed price of $235,000 and was a bank-owned home listed by a San Bernardino based agent who also represented the all-cash buyer. The highest priced sale was located at 6253 Kingsmill which sold for $340,000 which was the listed price of this investor owned home. The Riverside based selling agent also represented the buyer who used conventional financing.

Average price per square foot was up from December's $128.78 per square foot to January's $137.42 per square foot. Year-over-year results are also up with average price-per-foot increasing from 2009's $130.48. The increase in average-per-square-foot is due entirely to the mix of homes currently selling as overall average price fell from $301,214 a year ago to $$295,047 in December 2009 to January's $282,210. The lowest price-per-foot sold home was the standard sale on Kingmill which at 3035 square feet was the largest home sold in the month. There were two homes tied for highest average sale price - both at 1500 square feet and both selling for $265,000. The home at 6059 Homestead was a standard sale as was the sale at 5782 Ventana however the property on Ventana was directly on the golf course.

Average days on market was 31 days but a deeper look into the data is required to understand what is actually happening as short-sale listings distort the data. Here is the break-down of days on market when looking at sale type:

• REO Listings: 18 days on market
• Investor Owned Standard Listings: 7 days on market
• Overall Standard Listings (investor & other): 9 days on market
• Other Owned Standard Listings: 11 days on market
• Short-Sale Listings: 99 days on market

Average sale-price to list-price ratio was 1.03 which reflects the competitive nature of all listings in Sierra Lakes. Contrary to prior periods, bank listings are no longer commanding premiums to listed price:

• REO Listings: 0.99 sale-price to list-price ratio (range 0.96 to 1.00)
• Investor Owned Standard Listings: 0.99 sale-price to list-price ratio (range 0.98 to 1.00)
• Overall Standard Listings: 1.02 sale-price to list-price ratio (range 0.98 to 1.08)
• Other Owned Standard Listings: 1.05 sale-price to list-price ratio (range 1.02 to 1.08)
• Short-Sale Listings: 1.13 sale-price to list-price ratio (range 1.05 to 1.20)

Total sales of single-family homes in January 2010 were 10 homes versus 19 homes in December 2009 and 20 home sales in January 2009. Of the 10 homes sold in January 2010, 2 were short-sale, 4 were REO, 2 were investor owned standard listings leaving 2 homes sold as other standard listings.

I have a wonderful listing in the Hunter's Ridge community of Fontana that hasn't sold quite as quickly as the sellers expected. A four bedroom home with bonus room priced right around $320,000 should sell pretty quickly in this market if all is 'right' with the home.

I decided to poll the agents who had recently shown the home to get their feedback on how the showings went. As expected, there were some comments about things that we couldn't do anything about (no downstairs bedroom, position of the house relative to an incoming street, etc.) But another common comment was about the paint - which I had already expected was a 'distraction' to some of the buyers.

So during a recent period of rain, we did what you are 'never' supposed to do on a rainy day and that was paint! The decision to paint on a rainy day was made based on a number of factors: it was a day off for the seller, it was a Thursday so few distractions and because of the heavy rains we didn't expect any showings. With 'Parisian Taupe' in hand we set off on the project and four people after four hours of work had the following results:

Before After

Clearly the changes were pretty dramatic and the home immediately felt cleaner, larger, more open and somehow warmer even though the prior colors were already considered 'warm' to most people.

So how did it work out painting in the rain? Perfect! We had no distractions and no one came to see the house that day. So despite the fact it probably took a little longer to dry than painting on a warm sunny day we weren't bothered because the sellers had already moved from the house. By the time I took the 'after' photos on Saturday all was completely dry.

Late on Sunday night, I sent an email to all the agents who had shown the home with the before and after photos that you see above. One agent hurried her clients out for a second showing on Monday morning and my clients had an offer in hand on Tuesday! The agent told me that the paint made all the difference!

So for an investment of about $100 and 16 people-hours of sweat equity these sellers have a much different home to present and potentially have saved thousands of dollars that they did not have to invest into a price reduction.

A total of 60 Fontana homes were added to those listed for sale during the week ending Jan. 26, 2010, according to the Inland Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service and 78 Fontana properties were reported as entering escrow during the week.

A total of 476 Fontana homes were listed for sale in the MLS on Jan. 26. Included were 439 single-family homes. There were 37 condominiums, townhomes and single-family homes in home owner associations listed for sale in Fontana on Jan. 26. The total number of homes in escrow was 778.

The MLS showed 110 standard listings and 91 foreclosed, or Real Estate Owned, homes listed in Fontana on Jan. 26; 258 others were in pre-foreclosure - listed as "in foreclosure," Notice of Default or Short Pay/Subject to Lender and 17 were listed as probate or not identified by type.

There were 42 Fontana homes reported in the MLS as sold during the week ending Jan. 26, 2010, and 493 sales reported in the past 60 days.

Ila Josephs, a Realtor with Tarbell, Realtors, prepares weekly reports for her website, www.ilajosephs.com, surveying home market activity in the Inland Empire cities of Chino, Claremont, Fontana, La Verne, Montclair, Ontario, Pomona, Rancho Cucamonga, and Upland. For more information, call Ila at (909) 261-3541.

A total of 58 Fontana homes were added to those listed for sale during the week ending Dec. 7, 2009, according to the Inland Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service and 59 Fontana properties were reported as entering escrow during the week.

A total of 428 Fontana homes were listed for sale in the MLS on Dec. 7. Included were 397 single-family homes not in associations. There were 31 condominiums, townhomes and single-family homes in homeowner associations listed for sale in Fontana on Dec. 7; 170 homes were reported as vacant.

The MLS showed 88 foreclosed, or Real Estate Owned, homes listed in Fontana on Dec. 7; 231 others were in pre-foreclosure - listed as "in foreclosure," Notice of Default or Short Pay/Subject to Lender.

There were 69 Fontana homes reported in the MLS as sold during the week ending Dec. 7, 2009.

Ila Josephs, a Realtor with Tarbell, Realtors, prepares weekly reports for her website, www.ilajosephs.com, surveying home market activity in the Inland Empire cities of Chino, Claremont, Fontana, La Verne, Montclair, Ontario, Pomona, Rancho Cucamonga, and Upland. For more information, call Ila at (909) 261-3541.

A total of 46 Fontana homes were added to those listed for sale during the week ending Nov. 15, 2009, according to the Inland Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service and 53 Fontana properties were reported as entering escrow during the week.

A total of 402 Fontana homes were listed for sale in the MLS on Nov. 15. Included were 377 single-family homes not in associations. There were 25 condominiums, townhomes and single-family homes in homeowner associations listed for sale in Fontana on Nov. 15; 185 homes were reported as vacant.

The MLS showed 90 foreclosed, or Real Estate Owned, homes listed in Fontana on Nov. 15; 198 others were in pre-foreclosure - listed as "in foreclosure," Notice of Default or Short Pay/Subject to Lender.

There were 25 Fontana homes reported in the MLS as sold during the week ending Nov. 15, 2009.

Ila Josephs, a Realtor with Tarbell, Realtors, prepares weekly reports for her website, www.ilajosephs.com, surveying home market activity in the Inland Empire cities of Chino, Claremont, Fontana, La Verne, Montclair, Ontario, Pomona, Rancho Cucamonga, and Upland. For more information, call Ila at (909) 261-3541.