Coming Full Circle

Back in February 2008 I published a post about a condo on 15th street.

The first comment that was posted on the blog was from an anonymous reader and was as follows:

704 15th closed on 2/19 for 2.1 (it was listed for 1.99)

834 franklin also closed on 2/19 for 3.0 (it was listed for 2.395)

SO MUCH FOR THE BEARS!!!


So here we are, over 3 years later and I will draw your attention to 704 15th which is the first property that this person highlighted...

Address: 704 15th - 90402

Details: tear down on a 7,500 sq ft lot

Description: Lowest priced house in the Franklin School District North of Montana. This three bedroom home can be quickly torn down so that you can build your dream house in the coveted Franklin School district. The lot is a standard flat 7,500 square foot lot on the desirable west side of the street, which offers plenty of late evening sunshine. The elevation of the lot is such that the upper floors of a newly constructed house can enjoy a beautiful view of the sun setting in to the ocean each evening. The lot is located on a beautiful block. Also on the block is one of the most valuable houses in the entire Franklin School district, a house on the corner of 15th and Alta which Zillow values at 4.8 million dollars. Please call the listing agent directly in order to discuss this property.

Previous Purchase: 2/25/08 - $2,100,000

Listing History: 3/10/11 - $1,740,000

I kept reading the comments from the 2008 post and the anonymous person claimed they were being sarcastic, but nonetheless I think it is great to look at this situation as it shows we are still just getting around to clearing out some of the rot left in the market. I would imagine this is some builder or speculator who bought this place at too high of a price in a bidding war in early 2008 when it should have been clear that the music had stopped.

This seller is trying to escape with a 17% loss. As this listing has been on the market for 100 days with no action so far, they are clearly going to have to take a bigger haircut to get it to sell. Also, remember that they were eating holding costs for the last 3+ years. Ugh!

There were a lot of frustrated people on this blog back in early 2008 and before. It was obvious prices were going to come down but stupid people kept bidding things up until finally the market fell under its own weight. I think there is still a fair amount of rot to clear out, but we are a lot closer to a "normal" market than ever before now.