Vicki Walker

For July, I decided to put myself in an investors shoes for a few minutes and scout the Davis real estate market to see what kind of deals are out there. I pictured myself as an investor that wants to find an investment home to use as a rental. But, a few parameters -

First, I would want to make the purchase, and close, in time to rent it out before the University starts it's fall session. That means a property that can close quickly. So I'm not going to look at any property that is a short sale. I can't be waiting around to hear from a bank. It could be months before they respond.

Second, it has to be in good condition. I don't have time for a lot of construction and rehab, and I want this home generating some sot of revenue by fall.

So I narrow my search and look for good buys in Condo, half-plex, and single family home. This is what I found.

Property #1 - The Single Family Home

Here's an investors dream. 4 Bedrooms and the price was just reduced, so we might have a motivated seller. The home has a large backyard already fixed up for the vegetable gardener. At just $379,000, that's just $94,000 per bedroom for a single family home. For a four bedroom home in east Davis rents currently run from $1,700 to $2,000 per month. You do the math. This could be a winner.

Property #2 - The Half-Plex

This is a sweet halfplex in a great location, right across the street from a large park, and down the street from a great shopping center. This beauty is just made for the universty rental market. No problem finding renters here. It's a clean 3 bedroom, 2 bath unit with off street parking. It has vaulted ceilings, newer appliances and roof so your maintenance costs should be minimal. It was built in 1990 and looks sharp. It's priced at $379,500.

Property #3 - The Condo

This is the cheapest property in Davis, that's not a short-sale. It's only one bedroom, so it would be better suited for the first time buyer, a couple or single person. This is a large one bedroom, One bath condo in Stonegate and includes Stonegate country club priviledges (Tennis, Pool, Workout room, Lake with picnic area). Close to shopping, too. There is the matter of quartery dues of $121. Okay, maybe not an investment rental, but at $229,000 still a great buy.

Summertime in Davis is the time when a lot of rental properties change hands. Students graduate, people leave town and move on. The next batch of students arrives looking for housing. If you are an investor looking for property in a University town, Davis is the place for you. I have more detailed information about Investing in Davis Real Estate on my website.

For July of 2010, these are three of the better buys in Davis right now. If you would like to see any of these homes, give me a call today at 530-219-7653 and we can set an appointment for you to see them, or any other Davis property.

The Davis, California real estate market has always had a seasonal component in that sales increase in the spring until late summer and then they tail off until the following spring. The weather and the University school year are two factors that contribute to this cycle. This years financial stimulus tax credits and low interest rates are two other factors. To see a three year graph that illustrates the cyclical nature of the Davis real estate market, check out my Davis real estate market page.

It's no surprise then that sales in April 2010 are up. The good news is that April 2010 is much better than April 2009.

To summarize the graph below, the number of homes sold in April 2010 is 25% higher than the year before, while the median price of homes sold is up 8% from last year.

In addition, homes are selling faster than they did last April.

Best of all, the average price per square foot is holding firm. While other markets have picked up, because home values have dropped, the Davis market has been able to hold onto value better than most. The average price per square foot for homes sold is nearly the same as it was last year at this time.

Good news on all fronts !

The graph below provides the details;




If you are thinking of selling your Davis home, it is wise to get in front of the wave of buyers that appears in the spring and then goes away in August. More buyers means more people interested in seeing and buying your home. This translates into a faster sale and a higher price for you. Don't wait until fall when the market slows down. Call me today to find out how much your home is worth in todays market. I'll be happy to meet with you, provide you a free Comparative Market Analysis of your home, and also give you some tips on how to prepare your home for sale to get the most for it. Call me today at 530-219-SOLD.

Google Maps has recently released a new feature that will be of particular interest to Davis residents and bicycling
enthusiasts. As you know, the town of Davis, California is all about bikes, bike paths and bike lanes.

Now when you use Google maps, you can get bicycling directions from one location to another that incorporates the citys bike paths into your trip.

In the "Get Directions" area of Google Maps, there is now a drop down menu (see graphic at right) which gives you the choice of directions by car, walking, bicycling, or by public transit.

I decided to test the Bicycling directions by choosing two locations in Davis and seeing if Google would know the bike paths in Davis and lead me from the Davis Farmers Market to El Macero golf course on a bike.

From experience, I know that you can avoid almost all city streets and the Richards Blvd. overpass by using the bike path that crosses under Highway 80 behind Borders books and then follow the bike path along Putah Creek that takes you almost all the way to Mace blvd without travelling on a city streets.

So I put these two location into "Get Directions", selected "bicycling" as my option and clicked.

Google returned with a map showing my path to get from Farmers market to El Macero, along with step by step written directions. Google did in fact keep me off many city streets, avoided the Richards blvd. overpass and kept me on bike paths most of the way.(see below)

Google chose to take a different, less scenic bike path that winds through south Davis, than I as a native would choose. I would have stayed along Putah creek rather than wander through South Davis neighborhoods, but why quibble.

The fact is that Davis has so many bike paths that there are many ways to get from one place to another. Choose the quickest route or the scenic route.

You can even modify the route that Google chooses for you by dragging and dropping the path to a new location. Google will automatically re-calculate your path.

This is a great new Google tool and can be particularly useful to new UC Davis students that arrive in town with a bike but don't have the knowledge of the Davis bike path system. To learn more about the bike paths in Davis, you can visit Bicycle Friendly Davis.

Thanks Google! You have added a tool to your search engine that seems to be custom made for Davis residents.

I'm providing this latest update to show that home prices, as measured by price per square foot, have held firm in Davis over the last three years. The graph below shows the price per square foot of homes sold from January 2007 to January 2010. Notice the prices started 2007 at about $300 per square foot and have remained fairly steady. Smaller homes will sell for more than this average and larger homes usually sell for less than this price per square foot. If you are wondering what your home might be worth, the $300 per square foot is a general rule of thumb as a starting point.

This next graph show the inventory for sale vs. the number of homes sold over the same three year period. Notice the cyclical nature of the Davis real estate market. Every July the number of homes sold peaks as the school year ends, rental homes become empty, and landlords put them up for sale. Also, in a University town like Davis, students and employees are moving in and out of town to other colleges and buying or selling their homeas the case may be.

If you are thinking about selling your home in Davis this year, get ahead of the curve. You can see that homes will be coming on the market in higher numbers by April, so call me today for a free market analysis of your home. I'll review with you my marketing plan for your home, have you meet with my expert on "staging" your home so it shows well, and give you an accurate assesment of what your home will sell for in todays market. I hope you are encouraged by the numbers above. Call me today at 530-219-SOLD and let's get started. - Vicki

Saturdays’ Incredible Open House


Just as I was setting up my signs for the open house in West Davis last Saturday another strong shower passed right over head. Setting up the signs is by far the least favorite part of any Open House and setting up the signs in wet weather just makes the whole experience that much more fun… not!

Open Houses can be and are usually a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. What Realtor doesn’t love talking real estate to a new audience.

There are however those Opens that drag on with little or heaven forbid, no visitors. Those Opens when your hoping you’ve brought a long a good book to read or spend a few hours scanning your Blackberry for new messages.

If last Saturday’s Open House activity was any indication of the Davis market this spring, it should be a great year.

My Open was absolutely packed; with visitors lined up at the front door waiting a turn to go in. I assumed my traffic cop role, moving potential buyer’s up the stairs with one group and into the kitchen with the second to avoid a buyer’s jam. Almost everyone seemed enthusiastic about the possibility of purchasing.

I think the fact that the tax credit for new and/or move-up buyers is ending soon, combined with very low interest rates and a low inventory of homes for sale in Davis, had everything to do with this incredible turnout… over twenty five groups of people!

If you are thinking about selling your house this year, don't wait until spring. The buyers are out there now and want to close on a home before the $8,000 tax credit goes away. Call me today!