Sun City Texas Real Estate Market Report & Home Sales Summary January 2012

Sun City Texas Real Estate Report© & Home Sales Summary

January 2012 Results

See online at www.SunCityTexasRealEstateReport.com

Data gathered from ACTRIS MLS Feb 3, 2012

Month of January 2012 – Things are off to a slower than anticipated start to the year, especially with the strong finish in 2011. Sales prices per sq. ft. were down across the board vs. prior year. All categories were affected with High-end homes turning the poorest performance down 13% and entry level home also dropping 11%. Average and median prices per foot were down 8% and 7% respectively. Even volume was down 1 unit, a6.3% decline.

Actual sales prices were down even more that the price per foot comparisons. With the exception of entry-level homes, all other categories experienced a 25% decline. Prices of entry-level homes managed to decline only 18.5%, but that is small consolation. January sales failed to include any sale above $275K and hurt the overall averages.

The Sun City Texas Real Estate Report is an analysis of sales activity for use by consumers who have an interest in Sun City Texas home values. It is not intended for use to value a specific property or predict future valuations. For more information contact Brian@RuggRealty.com or call 512-966-3200.

If you or a client are considering an Active Adult lifestyle in a 55+ Community and want to learn more about the advantages of Sun City TX Real Estate located in Georgetown, Texas 78633, give Brian Rugg of Rugg Realty a call. Rugg Realty specializes in Sun City Texas real estate focused on Sun City Texas new homes for sale and Sun City TX resale homes for sale properties. If you are selling a home Sun City Texas, contact Brian Rugg for a no nonsense market analysis and marking plan. Call Brian at 512-966-3200, e-mail Brian@RuggRealty.com or visit www.SunCityTXRealEstate.com.

Rugg Realty LLC is an independent broker serving Sun City Texas and not affiliated with Pulte or Del Webb.

Sun City Texas Georgetown TX 2012 Home Owners Association Dues Explained

The new 2012 Home Owners Association dues have been raised from $1000 to $1040 annually. What many consumers considering Sun City Texas may not know is that there are a handful of neighborhoods where lawn and shrub maintenance is provided at an additional cost. I some cases this extra fee is mandatory, and in other cases the homeowner could opt out of using the lawn maintenance service.

The 2012 Schedule for all homeowner’s dues is attached. When considering making a purchase of a resale home in Sun City Texas be certain to ask you buyer agent about these Lawn Maintenance Fees and see if the home you are considering is included in the program.

If you or a client are considering an Active Adult lifestyle in a 55+ Community and want to learn more about the advantages of Sun City TX Real Estate located in Georgetown, Texas 78633, give Brian Rugg of Rugg Realty a call. Rugg Realty specializes in Sun City Texas real estate focused on Sun City Texas new homes for sale and Sun City TX resale homes for sale properties. If you are selling a home Sun City Texas, contact Brian Rugg for a no nonsense market analysis and marking plan. Call Brian at 512-966-3200, e-mail Brian@RuggRealty.com or visit www.SunCityTXRealEstate.com.

Rugg Realty LLC is an independent broker serving Sun City Texas and not affiliated with Pulte or Del Webb.

Sun City, Georgetown, TX Real Estate Broker Rugg Realty Expanding

After just a little over one year of proving our business model in the Sun City and Georgetown Texas real estate markets, Rugg Realty LLC is expanding. We have just added Carol Fahnestock as an agent focusing on the Georgetown, TX luxury home market and Sun City Texas 55+ active adult community.

Carol brings with her a wealth of experience in the local Georgetown market and a solid business background seldom found in real estate agents. A brief bio for Carol Fahnestock follows:

Originally from Pennsylvania, Carol relocated to Texas in 1981. While making frequent visits to her parents and relatives in the Austin area, she was attracted to the beautiful landscape of the Hill Country and unique creative culture of central Texas. Carol decided to relocate and feels it is the best decision of her life.

Carol’s background includes employment for Home Sports Entertainment, McKinsey & Company, Xerox, Four Season Hotels & Resorts and Mercedes Benz Corporation. She understands the value of top-notch customer service. Thus, she treats everyone with compassion, fairness and integrity.

Carol also has first-hand knowledge of the challenges of moving as she has relocated to 5 different states for business opportunities throughout her lifetime. She understands that people are simply seeking a better way of life for themselves and their families.

Education is a top priority to Carol as she consistently seeks and acquires multiple real estate certifications to add to her professional knowledge base and expertise. She feels as a business professional and in the best interest of her clients, it is important to stay informed through continuing education, of current economic and market changes in the area real estate market.

Meeting new people, listening to and assisting buyers, sellers, investors or relocating clients achieve their real estate goals is rewarding to Carol. She works hard for her clients. She has a high level of desire to make the experience easier and enjoyable as she guides them through the real estate process.

First-time or experienced home buyers, empty nesters, people downsizing or moving up, people needing to relocate, people who need to list their home or investors are all invited to contact Carol Fahnestock for information or other assistance on the Austin area real estate market.

Carol is a member of Active Rain, but has not been an active blogger. I will try to help her see the advantages of active blogging. Please join me in welcoming Carol Fahnestock to Rugg Realty LLC.

If you or a client are considering an Active Adult lifestyle in a 55+ Community and want to learn more about the advantages of Sun City TX Real Estate located in Georgetown, Texas 78633, give Brian Rugg of Rugg Realty a call. Rugg Realty specializes in Sun City Texas real estate focused on Sun City Texas new homes for sale and Sun City TX resale homes for sale properties. If you are selling a home Sun City Texas, contact Brian Rugg for a no nonsense market analysis and marking plan. Call Brian at 512-966-3200, e-mail Brian@RuggRealty.com or visit www.SunCityTXRealEstate.com.

Rugg Realty LLC is an independent broker serving Sun City Texas and not affiliated with Pulte or Del Webb.

Sun City Georgetown, TX Real Estate Sales Market Report 1997-2011 Investor Data

One of the investors I am working with has asked an unusual question about the historic values of Sun City Texas Real Estate located in Georgetown TX. He likes to crunch his own numbers and I can’t say as I blame him. When it comes to investing, having a clear picture and firsthand knowledge of how the numbers work out is essential.

In any event, he knows that this is an outstanding time to make a purchase in Sun City Texas. The charts clearly show we have turned the corner on home values and the direction is positive. His question has to do with calculating the upside potential and making a reasonable estimate for 5 to 9 years out. One of the things he like about Sun City Texas real estate investing, is that we never had the artificial run up of values when times were good and have not had the huge declines seen elsewhere. For example in the past five years, there have only been a total of five foreclosures or short sales in all of Sun City Texas.

So here are the numbers:

If you or a client are considering an Active Adult lifestyle in a 55+ Community and want to learn more about the advantages of Sun City TX Real Estate located in Georgetown, Texas 78633, give Brian Rugg of Rugg Realty a call. Rugg Realty specializes in Sun City Texas real estate focused on Sun City Texas new homes for sale and Sun City TX resale homes for sale properties. If you are selling a home Sun City Texas, contact Brian Rugg for a no nonsense market analysis and marking plan. Call Brian at 512-966-3200, e-mail Brian@RuggRealty.com or visit www.SunCityTXRealEstate.com.

Rugg Realty LLC is an independent broker serving Sun City Texas and not affiliated with Pulte or Del Webb.

As a Realtor, would you show clients FSBO properties… of course not, how would you get paid??

This headline is a sentence contained in a post published today titled For Sale By Owner | FSBO | Why NOT To Do It. I am completely on board with the premise that a home is best handled by a professional Realtor®, it struck me rather odd that a real estate company would not know how to get paid by an unrepresented seller, and I responded to the post with several suggestions:

1. As a true buyer’s agent, we have a written contract with the buyer covering the subject of compensation and the buyers obligation to pay for my services if the seller, doesn’t.

2. In Texas, we have a promulgated form that allows us to register a buyer with an unrepresented seller and reach an agreement for compensation, before we show the property. In many cases, that compensation includes a full buyer representation fee and an extra % for the trouble of managing the process with an unrepresented seller. All fees are negotiable.

3. One can always write an offer to clarify who will pay the fees to the buyer’s agent.

One could argue real estate agents not show “owner offered” properties until they knuckle under and list, but my duty is to my client, so if it works for them, it works for me.