Windsor, CA

Despite the real estate market having it’s ups & downs in 2011, it’s up to us Agents to pass along the truth of the upcoming 2012 year: Home values are improving and selling prices WILL increase - so stop pushing those low-ball offers. Here is an interesting fact sheet I came upon that gives a good view of the 2012 market prediction.

Check out this informative article for good affordable home maintenance tips – no more 1-800-Landlord! You’d be surprised how you can save money on your home….if you do it right especially for you first time homeowners.

Windsor was the fastest growing community in Sonoma County for much of the last several decades. Residential subdivisions were being created on both sides of highway 101 and people fretted that Windsor sprawl would chew up the greenbelts between Santa Rosa in the south and Healdsburg in the north. Thanks to urban growth boundaries and the collapse of the housing bubble, we still have the greenbelts.

Residential sales have been strong in 2011. Month by month variations in the mix of sales types are typical in Windsor. The first chart shows both total sales and the breakdown of sales activity among REO, short sales, and open market sales. The year started with a relatively slow January and February, but then had a storng spring and early summer. The first part of the year featured fairly equal market shares among the three sales types. More recent moths show a growth in open market sales, but REO and short sales continue to be a big portion of the Windsor housing market.

July was unexpectedly slow, but it may have just been the way the calendar worked for closing transactions since August seems more in line with May and June.

Pricing has been reasonably consistent during the year. The second chart shows the distribution of prices according to sales type. Every month except Januar the open market sales are the highest average value with short sales and REO transactions switching back and forth for second place. If I had to call out a trend on this chart, I would say the tendency for pricing to max out around $350,000 is the key point. Some months have higher averages for open market sales, but $350,000 would have been a good guess both in January and August, both ends of this chart's data. Short sales have averaged closer to $325,000 and REO properties have been closer to $300,000. You can't submit an offer based on those figures, but they're a useful starting point.

The expertise of agents gets a good airing out in the third chart. I wanted to look at the comparison between the original listing price and the final selling price. It's a good indicator of the ability of agents to correctly pinpoint the market value of a residence. However, as every real estate agent knows, sometimes sellers aren't realistic about the current value of their property. This chart is flavored by seller input into pricing. The number I'm happiest to see here is REO pricing in the final two months, July and August. It's clear that the REO listing agents have nailed their pricing to the real market. On the other side of that are the big discounts from original listing price, primarily in short sales, but also open market sales. In the same July and August time frame where I praised REO listing agents, the average discounts for the other categories were over $20,000. Earlier in the year, mis-pricing in the $30,000 and $40,000 range was not unusual. It's clear that agents were having a hard time figuring out where the market was centered.

Windsor will continue to be an active real estate market with a decent mix of homes built after 1980 with many built in the early 2000's. Most of the foreclosures from houses sold early in the bubble have already happened. Many subdivisions have already had nearly complete turnover of residents so that fewer homes are underwater or distressed. However, there are still plenty of distressed homes on the market and short sales and REO properties will continue to figure strongly in the Windsor market.

9501 Essex Court, Windsor, CA 95492 has just sold! It sits nestled on a quiet cul-de-sac in the Deer Creek neighborhood of Windsor, CA.

Selling for $408,000, this 4 BR/3 BA home was beautifully remodeled this year with high-end finishes throughout. It includes an elegant double-door entry with Travertine tile and sweeping staircase to the second floor. The granite tile kitchen with stainless steel appliances opens to an inviting family room with gas fireplace. The spacious Master suite offers an elegant retreat with a large window seat and indulgent bathroom with dual vanity sinks, a separate soaking tub and shower.

Sonoma County, CA offers luxury and affordability. Set in the heart of wine country, and a short drive from beaches, San Francisco, and world class skiing, it is difficult to find another area offering this quality of life.

If you have any questions about Sonoma County real estate, let me know. Your dream is within reach.

Underlying all the REO activity I wrote about in my post about the Windsor REO market is the foreclosure process. Many homes in foreclosure are sold as "short sales" during the time between the Notice of Default and the Sonoma County courthouse steps auction. Still, houses do go on the auction block on a regular basis. Most go back to the bank when they place an opening bid that reflects the amount owed on the property. No investor will pay what the home was worth three years ago. They want to pay a discount on what the house is worth today, and when banks set appropriately low opening bids, the homes are sold to third party buyers who will typically fix and flip them.

The graphic shows both the homes the banks took back (marked with a B inside a red circle) and the homes that were sold to third party investors (marked with a 3 inside a brownish circle). This shows the 2009 results for every Windsor property that went through the trustees' sale on the courthouse steps.

It looks like a densely filled map. However, there were only 145 trustee sales last year. During that same time period 167 Windsor bank owned homes were sold, so the total inventory of homes in the end stages of the foreclosure process actually declined. There are more homes in the foreclosure pipeline, but demand like we see today will sustain a strong market.