June 4, 2004
Vermont on John Street
Martha Jeffrey (Round Hill Partners) has just listed 117 John Street for sale at $3,500,000. It’s an incredible property. The original farm house, completely restored, dates to 1833 (a living room and master bedroom were added in the 1930s) and the huge barn on the property with hand-hewn chestnut beams was built in 1750 ish (half of it, anyway — the other half, just about as old, was dissembled in Massachusetts, I think, and seamlessly grated onto the original). As you’d expect, the chain of title shows all the usual suspects as owners through the years, including Meads, Lockwoods and Closes. Nice as the house is, though, it is the land it sits on that makes this property so spectacular. Just about six acres of rolling meadows flow around and sweep past the house before running into the Audubon preserve. There are gardens everywhere, including an herb garden close enough to stroll out and harvest as your cooking needs demand. The house was deliberately priced at a level to discourage the spec-builder set but is that ever possible? We’ll see.
If I Had a Million Dollars
It would probably be because I’de just sold my house to a builder. The Sunday New York Times Real Estate section recently recently ran an article describing what a buyer could expect to get for a million dollars in Greenwich. The answer, surprisingly accurate for “the paper of record’, was: a building site. John Cooke of Merritt Associates is quoted as saying that, at that price, “the only thing the buyer brings to the closing is his wrecking ball.” Sad but true. Right now, homebuyers in the under a million range are competing with and losing to builders. Anything on more than a third of an acre draws builders like wasps to a rotting fish and the price zooms instantly out of reach. That leaves end users to scratch and squabble among themselves for the lesser properties. 21 Roosevelt Avenue, for instance, came on the market last week at $810,000. Because it was a fixer-upper on an undersized lot I assume it was safe from builders (FAR limits building size on this property, including a garage, to just 2,327 feet, at least a thousand feet less than what builders prefer) but it drew multiple bids and went to highest and best offer within days. All of this is wonderful for homeowners ready to sell out, but makes it tough for buyers. My advice for buyers in this range is to abandon hope for that “large” yard in Old Greenwich and focus on the undersized lots. You’ll still have competition but at least you won’t be competing with well financed builders looking to turn the property into a three million dollar resale. Another thought: much as dislike how our floor area regulation is applied, I’m rethinking my opposition to them, at least in so far as they act to keep some lots safe from builders and available to homebuyers. Is it fair to force certain homeowners to in effect subsidize homebuyers with a limited budget? No. But then, how often is life fair?
For Sale By Owner
A homeowner’s decision to sell his house himself and avoid paying a real estate commission makes a certain economic sense but, if you’re tempted to do so, try not to over-price the product. If you do, and your house doesn’t sell (most don’t), don’t compound your error by then turning the property over to a real estate agent and demanding a still higher price. We agents do wonderful things, sometimes, but one thing we can’t do is sell a house that’s seriously over-priced compared to similar homes. An example of just this irrationality occurred last week. A house came on the multi-list market and I sent its particulars to one of my clients. He recognized it as a property he’d seen months ago when the owner was attempting to sell it himself for a price several hundred thousand dollars less than what he is now asking through an agent. If someone didn’t like your house at a lower price, the fact that you are now going to pay a commission will have no effect on the buyer’s opinion of the proper price. He is not going to feel sorry for you and dig deeper into his pocket just to help you out. Price it right and sell it yourself, if you can, but don’t expose it to the marketplace and, after failing, try to sell to the same potential buyers at a new marked up price. Buyers are not that stupid.
Martha Jeffrey (Round Hill Partners) has just listed 117 John Street for sale at $3,500,000. It’s an incredible property. The original farm house, completely restored, dates to 1833 (a living room and master bedroom were added in the 1930s) and the huge barn on the property with hand-hewn chestnut beams was built in 1750 ish (half of it, anyway — the other half, just about as old, was dissembled in Massachusetts, I think, and seamlessly grated onto the original). As you’d expect, the chain of title shows all the usual suspects as owners through the years, including Meads, Lockwoods and Closes. Nice as the house is, though, it is the land it sits on that makes this property so spectacular. Just about six acres of rolling meadows flow around and sweep past the house before running into the Audubon preserve. There are gardens everywhere, including an herb garden close enough to stroll out and harvest as your cooking needs demand. The house was deliberately priced at a level to discourage the spec-builder set but is that ever possible? We’ll see.
If I Had a Million Dollars
It would probably be because I’de just sold my house to a builder. The Sunday New York Times Real Estate section recently recently ran an article describing what a buyer could expect to get for a million dollars in Greenwich. The answer, surprisingly accurate for “the paper of record’, was: a building site. John Cooke of Merritt Associates is quoted as saying that, at that price, “the only thing the buyer brings to the closing is his wrecking ball.” Sad but true. Right now, homebuyers in the under a million range are competing with and losing to builders. Anything on more than a third of an acre draws builders like wasps to a rotting fish and the price zooms instantly out of reach. That leaves end users to scratch and squabble among themselves for the lesser properties. 21 Roosevelt Avenue, for instance, came on the market last week at $810,000. Because it was a fixer-upper on an undersized lot I assume it was safe from builders (FAR limits building size on this property, including a garage, to just 2,327 feet, at least a thousand feet less than what builders prefer) but it drew multiple bids and went to highest and best offer within days. All of this is wonderful for homeowners ready to sell out, but makes it tough for buyers. My advice for buyers in this range is to abandon hope for that “large” yard in Old Greenwich and focus on the undersized lots. You’ll still have competition but at least you won’t be competing with well financed builders looking to turn the property into a three million dollar resale. Another thought: much as dislike how our floor area regulation is applied, I’m rethinking my opposition to them, at least in so far as they act to keep some lots safe from builders and available to homebuyers. Is it fair to force certain homeowners to in effect subsidize homebuyers with a limited budget? No. But then, how often is life fair?
For Sale By Owner
A homeowner’s decision to sell his house himself and avoid paying a real estate commission makes a certain economic sense but, if you’re tempted to do so, try not to over-price the product. If you do, and your house doesn’t sell (most don’t), don’t compound your error by then turning the property over to a real estate agent and demanding a still higher price. We agents do wonderful things, sometimes, but one thing we can’t do is sell a house that’s seriously over-priced compared to similar homes. An example of just this irrationality occurred last week. A house came on the multi-list market and I sent its particulars to one of my clients. He recognized it as a property he’d seen months ago when the owner was attempting to sell it himself for a price several hundred thousand dollars less than what he is now asking through an agent. If someone didn’t like your house at a lower price, the fact that you are now going to pay a commission will have no effect on the buyer’s opinion of the proper price. He is not going to feel sorry for you and dig deeper into his pocket just to help you out. Price it right and sell it yourself, if you can, but don’t expose it to the marketplace and, after failing, try to sell to the same potential buyers at a new marked up price. Buyers are not that stupid.
posted by Chris Fountain at 10:10 AM
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