Just a few thoughts for today:

1.  No matter if you are selling your home or just living a happy life in your community, you can ask your utility providers (like First Energy, for example), to do an energy audit on your home.  Sometimes a private contractor will also do it for free or a small fee.  You could make a wish list of things to do to improve your home for a) sale or b) lower monthly bills!

2.  New green homes are fabulous.  EcoVillage’s town homes, at least the ones who opted in for solar panels, seem to pay about $75/month year round for utilities.  All this is good.  If you live in a sufficiently ‘green’ home like the one above, there IS one thing you might want to check out.  The tighter your house, the more chances exist for a radon gas issue.  Some communities (mostly lake side) have always had a higher ‘watch’ for radon, but now green homes should be added to the list.

The good news is, radon testing and radon issue abatement are both simple and low cost.  Remember when we all started putting carbon monoxide alarms in our homes? Just think of radon as a similar issue, IF you have a nice, tight house with low bills. 

3.  There is still a Federal Tax Credit for repairs/replacements like new windows.  If you have been meaning to get them, now might be the time.  Check with your tax preparer to get the details on what’s available tax-wise.  Other things like weatherization qualify too.  If you want to do a preliminary check on tax credits for energy issues, you can go to the Energy Star site here. 

The Government has an energy services website for info on choosing energy efficient appliances wisely.  They make a wise comment on this site: ‘….don’t make a purchase decision until you think you understand your choices and the trade-offs you are making…’

My stats are gleaned from listings/sales with area brokerages. These stats cover single family homes.

What style/price range of homes have appealed to buyers recently?  48 homes  are currently ‘contingent’  or ‘pending,’ meaning 48 buyers wrote offers that got accepted by sellers and now they are waiting for loans to be approved, inspections to be done (contingent) and titles to transfer (pending).  We know listing prices for homes in these categories but are not privy to agreed upon sale prices until the homes close. Having said that, here are some examples of homes waiting to transfer to their new owners.

1) 3BR, 1 1/2 bath 1919 built colonial on Somerton. It was listed for $99,500

2) beautiful brick 4BR/1 1/2 bath Tudor on Janette with a finished (large) third floor, sun porch, and garden landscaping that apparently attracts lots of song birds. It was listed for $114,900 when it went under contract.

3) brick ranch on Monticello with 1500 square feet of living space and 3BR/2 1/2 baths. It was listed for $125,000

4) listing said ‘violation free’ (Cleveland Hts has a point of sale inspection required by the City when homes sell, email me for details).  Gorgeous 1925 built center hall colonial  on Washington Blvd.  Updated kitchen (large, pretty), lots of clean wood floors.  It was listed for $179,900.

All four of these homes (and most homes listed for more than $70k that sold) were in move in ready condition, most with expensive updates done for buyers (like kitchens or baths or roofs).  Buyers were able to choose since the inventory is high, and they chose, mostly, move in ready.  I suspect a lot of these buyers were first time home buyers.  Some of them may have missed the deadline for First Time Home Buyer Credit (it got extended till Sept as long as you were already under contract).  But I’m finding that people were still buying after the credit date expired (June 30th).

How about homes that sold, and how about we compare 2010 sales (Jan through July) for 2008, 2009, 2010

329 Single Family Homes have sold, so far, in 2010. The average sale price was $115,370 and $55 a square foot.

306 Single Family Homes sold Jan -July 2009. The average sale price was $98,653 and $44 a square foot.

Lest you think we will find a steady ‘up’ trend, here is 2008

311 Single Family Homes sold Jan-July 2008. The average sale price was $120, 576 and $54 a square foot.

Yes, there is an increase, substantial really, in all of NE Ohio, for home sales in 2010.  What the comparison of the last three years tells you is to be careful.  Stats can be set due to many factors.  Could be a few more expensive home sales occurred in 2008 to jack up the average sale price.  Or it could be that sales are basically stabilized for the moment, since there isn’t that much difference in the three year stats.  What we do know is that homes sold, are still selling, even though the Tax Credit is gone. 

Hope this was useful!  Peace Out – 3C

Let’s get to the details !

There are 595 single family homes listed for sale right now. There are 24 listings around 90k, including a ranch on Velma with an updated kitchen and three bedrooms.  It’s listed for $89,900.

You could buy a bungalow with 4 bedrooms and two full baths on Liberty Ave with good square footage. It’s also listed for $89,900.

The average Parma single family home listing price is $122,124. For around that price you could buy……a cape cod home on Tuxedo for $119,000 with 3brs and 1 1/2 bath, a large kitchen a pretty landscaped yard.

A 3 br, 1 and 1/2 bath brick ranch on Ridge Road for $119,500 and a brick ranch on Dell Haven for $122,000.

Are homes selling after the Federal Tax Credit deadline passed?  Yes. Homes pending or contingent on our multiple listing service (meaning waiting to transfer owners) number 81 homes.  That is a healthy group of buyers.  The average listed price for homes buyers currently found attractive enough to  put under contract is $97,675.  

380 Parma single family homes have sold since January 2010.  They ranged in price from $19,900 for a smaller, 2br home on Russell, to a fancier 4br, 2 bath home on Lourdes which sold for $222,000.  Yes, there are still foreclosure issues as there are in other communities, but of the 8 pages of listings sold in Parma, the bulk of the sales occurred between the prices of $80,000 and $115,000.  This includes a listing Melissa and I sold at 1208 Parkleigh for $89,900.

Did you know that Parma is the largest suburb of Cleveland? The population is around 87,000 (we’ll see what the 2010 census states, but for now, these stats come from the last census).

Parma City Schools

City of Parma Events and News

Home Values In Parma  Go here if you want to learn more stats about your own Parma home and the neighborhood in general!   

Any questions, don’t hesitate to let me know.  Peace Out – 3C

One note: some sales are single family town homes, so they won’t show up in this analysis.  But they still count as housing sales in these communities – and admittedly, there are fewer town homes downtown than condos (to say the least!)

Anyway, how are sales stacking up so far?

Since January, 17 condos have sold between West 10th (just east of the Superior Bridge) and University Circle/Little Italy. 

The average sale price for these 17 homes is $283,173 and $190/square foot.  What sold?

Riverbend (that west 10Th address) is represented with a fabulous one bedroom  sale.  And I do mean fabulous, over and above your normal one bedroom one bath unit there (it’s a great building and I’ve sold and listed a few in it)

Point at Gateway at 750 Prospect (near the Gund….no LBJ comments please!)

Random Road had a few sales, not just one (Little Italy).

Grand Arcade, Warehouse District on St. Clair

Beacon Place (near the Clinic at E. 82nd Street)

Circle 118 (univ. circle) had several sales, it’s a gorgeous newer development with amazing floor plans and finishes.

Joshua Hall (a gem  on Prospect with only  a few units, built out by Korfant and Mazzonewho normally do commercial only.  It was nice to have them venture into residential, they did a fabulous job on this smaller building with a handful of loft style/exposed brick units and wonderful rooftop decks.   I sold one there this summer)  Korfant and Mazzone do a great job renovating and yet preserving the architectural character of the neighborhoods in which they purchase.

Villa Carabelli in Little Italy

Pinnacle on Lakeside.  (with more than one sale, so anyone who says luxury condos are not selling, think again!)

The part you may find interesting (I know I do) is the growth in Fairfax and University Circle.  It’s definitely another Cleveland success story.  And I love that it’s happening on the East side.  The 17 sales are pretty evenly divided between the already existing places downtown and in the warehouse district, and the newer homes in The Circle and Fairfax.  Good stuff.

Moving to Cleveland?

You can read about the 1000 new homes on University Circle’s Development Co website here.

You can read about the Fairfax neighborhood’s development in an older article on EcoCity Cleveland  here.

Housing isn’t just about buying a place, is it?  Michelle Jarboe of the PD wrote an article about a week ago on new University Circle apartments planned.   And there is a cool map to help any out of towners with locations.

Peace Out – 3C

140 Public Square, one sale, great view of Public Square and

There are lots of reasons why some of our neighborhoods face immense challenges in rejuvenation: low population, poverty, etc.  I’ve heard the stereotypical phrase ‘absentee landlord’ all my life, but did you know just how ‘absentee’ a landlord can be? Read Bill’s posts and find out.  Even though I knew about this, seeing that Google map of properties is still startling.  These types of investors may have the best of intentions, but if you own a zillion homes somewhere, who is overseeing the properties?  Ask Cleveland’s Housing Court (or go sit in on a day’s worth of cases there) and you could get an answer.

I don’t always agree with Bill’s solutions, and am admittedly anti political party this year, but I tip my hat to him for remaining vigilant on this issue.  In some ways, I wish he had taken the CEO’s plane ticket and gone to California and talked and maybe taken Ray Pianka of the Housing Court with him.  Or better yet, EZ homes execs need to come here for an extended period of time.  They can always stay in one of their homes!   Are these people doing this because they are part of a REIT investment program?  Not sure how they can be making money on properties with no increase in investment possibilities unless they are fixed up.   Any ideas?   Peace Out – 3C

 Here is a blog post from Slumlord Watch  in Baltimore about EZ Access here and a lawsuit filed against them.   Peace Out – 3C

Anyway, I’m examining 2010 sales compared to 2009, so I’m using the same time frame, Jan through July 15th for each year.  I’m covering single family (which includes town homes), condos and multi-family.

Multi-family sales are definitely down in this zip code, for both years.  But I will let the stats I just pulled out speak for themselves, regarding sales comparisons for each year.

2009    Single Family Home Sales.  25 sold, the average sale price was $165,386 and $99/square foot.

2009    Condo Sales.  13 sold with average sale price of $194,991 and $173/square foot.

2009   Mulit-Family Home Sales.  15 sold.  The average sale price was $27,757 and $12/square foot.

2010    Single Family Home Sales.  36 sold.  The average sale price was $150,325 and $83/square foot.

2010    Condo Sales.  19 condos sold. The average sale price was $184,568 and $152/square foot.

2010   Multi-Family Home Sales.  12 sold.  Average sale price was $43,218 and $17/square foot.

If you have a zip code you’d like me to examine (or NE Ohio city), let me know.  Peace Out – 3C

“….The Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio metro area followed with 20.5% quarterly and 62% yearly gains….”

I certainly saw three times the number of buyers/sellers as last year, but 62%?  Clear Capital provided the data and you can read the entire pdf report by going to NuWire and downloading it.  I’ll let you know what other stats are revealed.  Peace Out – 3C

Interest rates are still at a 70 year low…last check they were 4.7% (depending on your credit, etc) for a 30 yr fixed loan.  This means that over the course of 30 years, you can definitely make up the difference for the tax credit having expired.  Food for thought?

Four examples of homes to buy in Fairview:

1.  a 2 bedroom cottage with amazing curb appeal. Gleaming hardwood floors, a fireplace, tasteful decor and a pretty back yard deck. Priced at less than $99k, definitely could be a monthly mortgage payment that would make you smile.

2. a 3BR and 1 1/2 bath Bungalow with two downstairs bedrooms, a fireplace, eat in kitchen and a two car garage. Plus a finished lower level. Listed around $99k.

3. For $114,000 you could buy a brick cape cod with a sun room, ceiling fans, two car garage and a nice deep lot (194 feet).

4.  Or, if split level layouts are your thing, Fairview is one of the communities where you can find them and still be close enough to Downtown Cleveland.  For about $124k  you could have 1700 square feet of living space, a fireplace, a large family room, two car garage, stainless appliances in the updated kitchen.

Back to the housing health of Fairview. I found less than ten homes listed for under $90k.  There are communities with page after page of homes listed for under $90k. 

Want more information on your Fairview community home values? Check out  Home Values in Fairview  where you can do an analysis of the streets near your home.  

Peace Out – 3C

update: I forgot to add one thing!  There have been 61 home sales in Fairview since April and the average sale price was $133,000.

Life in real estate in Cleveland since I blogged has changed.  The tax credit allowed tons of people who were waiting for the right time to buy their first homes, to do so. It also allowed a number of people to buy a new home and still get a tax credit of their own.

Some of the changes are small but significant to me.  I live in zip code 44111. Home buyers have finally resurfaced for this area. My partner Melissa and I had several buyers and listings and sales in the past four months. We even had a listing in 44111 sell after the tax credit.  Since home sales are one of the benchmarks of a vital neighborhood, this made a lot of us breathe a sigh of relief.

I’ve developed a keener sense of the neighborhood compositions. Cleveland is not like some of the other cities where people move in and out. Our neighborhoods are full of people who grew up here and want to stay here when they go out of their parent’s nests and  have a place of their own.

I spent some time going over home transfer records in all of Cleveland proper.  I started doing it because I wanted to see where people were coming from, when they purchased a home in a particular neighborhood.  As it turns out, many homes are ‘willed’ to relatives.  Many people move five or six or ten streets from their childhood homes. Some communities have developed a strong community based on their country of origin.  That is pretty cool too, and is also a traditional way for population placement, since they began keeping records. 

And I still feel lucky to be involved in real estate.

The weather has kept people in a good mood, at least that is my observation. Since I last posted in January (!), we dodged a serious winter, and have basically enjoyed warmer than normal temperatures. As I walk the dog every day, I notice how wonderful the weather has been to the flowers. Hydrangea’s are in their splendor this year.  One of my neighbors has Columbines lining a six foot flower bed.  They were bedazzling. 

Now, if only LeBron had stayed here.  I am not mad at him.  But I am sad and not sure it was the best decision for him.  But, he’s the only one who can make the decision.  The Cavs will have a tough time rebounding.  But it does get back to my long standing belief that a city can’t afford to put all their eggs and hopes in one basket…sports.  I’m happy to see the tech world growing here, the medical community thriving (including the medical neighborhood expansion around The Clinic). 

I’m impressed that we have not lost our creative spirit here in NE Ohio.  We can survive without LeBron.  Oh, and we do have some Independent candidates for the new County positions. 

Regular posts to resume before you know it lol

Peace Out – 3C

The Baltimore decision was written in such a way as to indicate the city’s claim was too broad (vague? this is my interpretation) but that they could come back with more specific charges (that is from the article). 

Tricia Bishop of  The Baltimore Sun covers the story  and goes a bit more in depth regarding the issue of Fair Housing and Redlining. 

Here is a quote from her article on the dismissal ruling:

 The city could restrict its claims to specific damages allegedly suffered because of actual houses made vacant by Wells Fargo’s lending practices, he wrote.

“…He’s asking the city to paint with a less broad brush if it wishes to do that,” City Solicitor George Nilson summarized. Counselors plan to discuss their options, which include appealing or filing a narrowed lawsuit, as early as today, he said…”

Cleveland is supposedly appealing their ruling as well.  There are still other cases being brought by different cities.  It will be interesting to see if any of the strategies work.  The Baltimore ruling seemed to indicate that narrowing the focus of a suit could work.  We’ll see !  Peace out – 3C