Did this man named Blaine Murphy also forge these disclosure documents? Were disclosure documents filed with the request for the deed transfer?  Are there situations when these disclosures are not required?  If not, why not?  Yep, I have a lot of questions.

I emailed John Kosich of newsnet5 to see if he can shed any light on this issue.  The story John reported on the forged deed transfer/flipping case can be found here.

This is the PD article from December 2011 written by Gabriel Baird, not only explaining  the charges and circumstances of Murphy’s alleged activities, but containing a nice map of the location of all the allegedly flipped properties in question.  

The PD article explains that delinquent tax payments seem to be what red flagged the alleged fraud, not property disclosures.  While I realize someone intent on a good scam can figure out a way to perform that scam, I’m just curious why the disclosures did not red flag anything at the Deed office. 

After I post this I will also be emailing Gabriel Baird, and maybe between the two reporters they can shed more light on this issue for all of us.

3C

Anyway, here is the rest of the home sale data, derived from our Multiple Listing Service(MLS), listed or sold by area brokerages.

As I said above, there are 519 single family homes listed for sale as of today.  In 2010, there were 632 single family homes sold (buyers were working hard to buy up the good sized inventory, weren’t they.)  The average sale price was $95,967 and $77 a square foot.

There were even more home sales in 2009: 737. The average sale price was $96,367.  Believe it or not, the MLS states that the average price per square foot in 2009 was $200 a square foot (I’m going to check back on Monday to see if that still holds true, seems high!)

For people relocating to NE Ohio: Parma is a large inner ring suburb with a population of about 80,000 residents.  Restaurants? Any kind of food you want.  German, Polish, Thai, Mexican, Irish pub food, Italian, they have it all, literally. The Little Polish Diner on Ridge Road.  Stancato’s on State Road has been a favorite local destination for decades. There are at least three vegetarian restaurants in Parma (that I know of).  One I really like is Charm Thai  on  Broadview Rd.  I ordered sushi so it doesn’t qualify as vegan, but it was delicious  and my dining mate ordered vegetarian Thai and loved it. (I’m laughing at myself by this point.  Eight posts on homes sold in NE Ohio and besides the housing stats I get most animated about the food!  What can I say, I write about what I know!)

Peace Out – 3C

First, there are 177 single family homes listed with area brokers for sale today. They run the gamut in price and size from 59k to 2 million dollars.  There are a few bank owned or short sale homes mingled into the mix. But 177 is a good amount of inventory.  And most of the homes have been on the market an average of about 180 days.  Some more, some much less.  This last fact holds true for the homes buyers have recently begun to purchase.  Some were on the market a year or so, some a half year.  Some less.

What are they buying?  Well, 26 offers are on the table and under contract waiting to transfer title.  There is a cute brick ranch on Bassett Road that was listed for $109k. 3BRs, one bath, an updated kitchen that includes granite counters, wood floors in living areas.  Move in ready.

Someone is waiting to take title on a 4BR 2BA ranch on Lincoln that was listed at $139,900.  This one was not updated and is a short sale, but it looks clean and well kept (at least the photos do).

Buyers are waiting to move into a 5BR 2BA bungalow on Hall which was beautifully updated in the kitchen and has a nice backyard deck. It was listed at $125,900.

Next we have a gorgeous ranch on Westwood that was listed for $189,500. It needs updating in the bath but the kitchen is gorgeously updated.

Another gorgeous brick ranch appealed to buyers that was listed for $199k. It is on Kathryn Drive and has 2,100 sq ft of living space a FP and is move in ready. although some cosmetic updates could be done.

Once I started looking at homes at $200k or more, they were turnkey or move in ready.  There is one on Mendelssohn with 2,100 sq. ft. of living space, 4 BR, 2 1/2 BA and was listed for $249,900.

The highest priced listing was a completely tricked out home on North Windsor for $849,000.  It has 1500 sq. ft. of living space on the lower level alone, and a total of over 4k sq. feet.

There was one home listed over $800k; one home listed over $600k; 2 homes listed over $700k and one home listed over $400k.  So it seems that all price ranges appealed to recent Westlake buyers. The average listing price for these 26 homes (remember, we don’t yet know sale prices) was $388k and $118 a square foot.

Westlake has condos, old and new, with a lot of 20 year old and newer construction condos located near Crocker Park. 

Ten condos appealed to Westlake buyers and are under contract waiting to close.  They include a smaller one bedroom condo on Westtown Blvd. that was listed for $45k, a 1985 built 1.241 sq. foot condo with 2BR/2BA on North Bay Drive.  It was listed for $79,900.

Westlake condo buyers liked a condo/cluster in a 55+ community on Crimson Drive.  It was listed for $139,900 and has 2BRs and 2BA and 1,298 square feet of living space.

There is a Bradley Woods Town House listed under condos, on Hawthorn.  It was listed for $174,900, has 1,774 square feet of living space, 3BRs, 2 1/2 BA and a two car garage. 

For $195k, a Vintage Glen condo near Crocker Park is waiting for it’s new owners to move in. It has 2BR, 2 1/2 BA , 1,698 square feet of living space, a fireplace, deck and two story living.

Buyers also liked a condo in The Preserves on Hummingbird Circle.  It has 2,772 sq. ft. of living space, 3BRs, 2 1/2 BA and lots of other amenities. Like I said earlier, tricked out!

Some of the lower priced condos and homes in Westlake appealed to buyers even if only one or two things had been updated.  Most important seemed to be the kitchen, but not everything had to be ‘done’ which is not the same MO we found in our last three communities.  The single family homes all had spacious yards as well…but that is not uncommon in Westlake, right?    Peace Out – 3C

PS: No multi-family homes pending sale in Westlake, not many IN Westlake.

There are currently 64 single family homes for sale in Beachwood.  It seems the inventory doesn’t increase or decrease as much as some other areas in NE Ohio, no matter if it’s a ‘good’ housing market or not.  There are a few bank owned homes for sale, not many.  The lowest priced listing is for $88,500, a large bank owned ranch on Concord.  There is also a 4BR 3Bath colonial for sale for $199,900 on Edgehill and a $495k (highest priced listing, currently) 1988 home with 6BRs and 9Baths (!)  on Blossom Lane.

How many people have written offers on homes in Beachwood in the last month or two, and what did they choose? That’s the heart of my series of which this is the third post.  12 homes have gone under contract recently.   This list includes a few fixer uppers, like other communities.  But I only found two!  The first is a $160k home (colonial) on Greenlawn.  The next is a $139,900 listing for a 1951 built colonial on Beachwood Blvd.  It’s being sold as is, and it’s as is condition probably includes updates needed like kitchen and baths (no pics, so I’m assuming) but the rest of the house, while not modern looking in updates, seems pristine with nice wood floors.

What else have buyers liked enough to plunk down some money?  How about a $195k listing for an unusual property.  Unusual in two ways.  First, it was built in 1860 so cool but not usual for Beachwood architectural design, and second, it’s two homes on one lot!  I’ve only ever seen those in Lakewood and Cleveland.  It’s on Richmond Rd, and even though it needs updates, people wrote an offer that got accepted.  The second home is touted as a great spot for an artist  stuido.

In case you think no one in NE Ohio is spending good money to buy a home, an offer was written on a listing of $1,0900.00 contemporary style home on Willow Lane.  5BRs and 8BA (!).  Needless to say, move in condition.

Also, a move in condition home on E. Silsby (a colonial) that was listed at $169,900.  Lots of new updates including mechanicals and updated kitchen with maple cabinetry.

Someone wants to own a large, mint condition, updated colonial on Letchworth with a very large yard, gorgeous architectural design.  It was listed at $399,900. 

For those who might not have read my posts before, homes that are under contract do not update the potential selling price untill closing.  So we have to be satisfied with listing prices for the time being.

The average listing price for the homes buyers are purchasing was $351,258 or $109 a square foot.  Square footage seems to be easy to get in Beachwood, and the average square footage for these 12 homes is 2600.  These 12 homes were on the market for about 120 days.  Peace Out – 3C

Beachwood City Schools

Beachwood Chamber of Commerce

One of my favorite NE Ohio eateries:  Corky and Lenny’s

Love local restaurants so good they have multiple locations.  One is Yours Truly  with a storefront in Beachwood.

If you are a shopping fanatic and like malls, Beachwood Place  is your destination with Saks and Nordstrom etc.

I particularly like the Riley Gallery  on Chagrin Blvd. They feature beautiful sculpture and other fine art pieces.

“….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.

I’m comparing sales in these eight communities ranging from April through July in each of the two years. So when I say ’08, I mean April – July.

Lakewood:  2008  140 home sales. Average sale price was $137,097 or $76 a square foot.

Lakewood  2009:  131 home sales. Average sale price $117,591 or $74 a square foot.  (pretty close both years, still slight drop in ’09)

Rocky River  2008:  58 home sales. Average sale price $265,759 or $125 square foot.

Rocky River  2009:  75 home sales. Average sale price $242,348 or $113 a square foot.

Fairview  2008:  45 home sales. Average sale price $142,686/$90 a sq. ft.

Fairview  2009:  59 home sales. Average sale price $141,615/$86 sq. foot. (very close both years)

Cleveland Zip Code  44113 (includes some of Warehouse District, Ohio City and Tremont).  2008:  23 home sales and an average sale price of $127,926 or $62 a square foot.

Zip Code  44113  2009:  24 home sales and an average sale price of $171,907 and $101 a square foot. (definite improvement in ’09)

Zip Code  44102 (includes Detroit Shoreway and Edgewater Cudell and West Blvd area) 2008:  89 home sales. Average sale price is $31,444 and $20/square foot.

Zip Code  44102  2009:  51 home sales.  Average sale price was $41,431 and $23/square foot.  (fewer sales, still not as many sales or homes on the market….but the prices improved this year).

Zip Code  44111 (including but not limited to Bellaire Puritas, West Park) 2008:  128 home sales.  Average sale price was $65,455 and $52 a square foot.

Zip Code  44111  2009:  112 home sales. Average sale price $68,531 and $53 a square foot. (sale prices definitely rose this year)

Zip Code  44135  (same areas again as 44111…only different lol) 2008:  110 home sales and average sale price of $61,363 or $52 a square foot.

Zip Code 44135  2009:   94 home sales. The average sale price was $58,901 or $51 a square foot.

Zip Code  44109  (Old Brooklyn, South Hills, etc) 2008:  104 home sales.  The average sale price was $50,600 or $36/square foot.

Zip Code  44109  2009:  86 home sales.  The average sale price was $46,625 or $34/square foot.

These are single family homes and I did the analysis by doing research on our NORMLS computer listing service.   Even though these stats  are real, keep in mind that lender owned homes, which typically are selling for lower market values,  are included in the averages.  We all look forward to the day when lender owned homes play a small part in these stats.  Having said all this, there is improvement in sale prices in many of these communities.   Peace Out – 3C

Between March and April, number of homes listed for sale rose 1.3%. Since January, 21,246 homes have been listed for sale. (Keep in mind this includes bank owned homes.)

The median sale price rose from $67,000 to $69,279

The average sale price for single family homes sold in Cuyahoga County rose 11% between the two months. And the average number of days on the market for these sold homes was 93 (that three month time frame is one of the things holding true over the last three years).

The average sale price for condominiums sold in Cuyahoga County in 2009 (through April) was $113,881.

I’ll be glad when we can get the stats for three months, it’s a better indicator.  So I will do this again for April through June.

Peace Out – 3C

1) sales between Nov and May in both 2008 and 2009

2) sales in two east side and two west side communities (Lakewood, Fairview, South Euclid and Cleveland Heights)

3) single family homes only in these stats

4) and only homes listed/sold with area brokerages are included in my stats.

Lakewood Single Family Home Sales Nov-May ’08 and ’09

There are 187 homes for sale in Lakewood today.

There were 175 sales in 2008 with an average sale price of $119,791 or $67 a square foot.

There were 100 sales in 2009 with an average sale price of $101,120 or $61 a square foot.

Fairview Single Family Home Sales Nov-May ’08 and ’09

There are 98 homes for sale as of today.

There were 56 homes sold in 2008 with an average sale price of $139,300 or $82 a square foot.

There were 50 homes sold in 2009 with an average sale price of $126,472 or $76 a square foot.

South Euclid Single Family Home Sales Nov-May ’08 & ’09

There are 258 homes for sale as of today.

There were 130 homes sold in 2008 with an average sale price of $81,106 or $48 a square foot.

There were 116 sales in 2009 with an average sale price of $65,060 or $40 a square foot.

Cleveland Hts Single Family Home Sales Nov-May ’08 & ’09

There are 426 homes for sale as of today.

There were 227 homes sold in 2008 for an average sale price of $43,362 and $51 a square foot.

There were 198 homes sold in 2009 with an average sale price of $71,928 and $38 a square foot.

Lakewood inventories are much lower than they were a few years ago, when there were frequently more than 300 single family homes for sale at one time. Fairview seemed pretty consistent in inventory. Cleveland Heights wins with the most homes of the four communities, currently for sale.

Hope this is useful, and Peace out – 3C

There are 91 single family homes listed for sale in Fairview Park. The average listing price for these 91 homes is $162,193 or $97 a sq. foot. 

There are 22 homes under contract waiting to transfer titles. The average listing price for these 22 homes most recently on the list to sell is $159,109 or $94 a sq. foot. (So far not a big discrepancy between homes for sale prices and homes just under contract yes?)

During the last six months, 51 homes sold. The average listing price for those homes was $144,630 or $86 a sq. foot.  The average sale price of these homes was $135,169 or $80 a sq. foot.  (Bigger difference, and if you wanted to list and sell quickly, I would suggest listing it in the $85 square foot price range.)

The least expensive home sale since October was for a three bedroom home circa 1926 on W. 220th. This home sold for $44,500. The highest sale price was for a four bedroom three and one-half bath home on Savoy that was listed for $235,000 and sold for $230,000 ($65 a square foot on sale price because this home had 3500 square feet!)

Fairview is a park oriented community with a great library, rec center, senior services, shopping (Jersey Mike’s subs yum!).  Here are some links that might be useful:

Fairview Park Schools

City of Fairview Park

Fairview Park Gemini Center (rec center)

Big Met Golf Course

Jersey Mike’s (best Italian sub…really!)

Fairview Park Library

Peace out – 3C