Archive for February, 2010
The BIG Number
categories: The Big Number
5
The number of new construction homes for sale, in all of North Fulton under $500k with a basement and 3-car garage.
On the last day of each month I’m posting a "Big Number" or interesting figure related to real estate in our area.
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Alpharetta Real Estate Market Stats: It’s local
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Johns Creek Real Estate, Local Market Conditions, Milton Real Estate, Roswell Real Estate, Schools
I just wanted to put a few numbers together to illustrate that we have to temper what we hear on the news about the housing market. Lately a lot of people have been pointing out to me that the number of homes sold for January 2o10 has gone down, unexpectedly, from units sold in December 2009. It’s true, January wasn’t as good a month in our industry as a lot of people had anticipated. However, just like other markets, we shouldn’t pay too close attention to gyrations that happen over a short period of time, but rather look at trends year-over-year.
The local part
In all of North Fulton (which includes Alpharetta, Milton, Johns Creek and Roswell), across all price ranges there were 202 homes sold in December 2009. That number a month later in January 2010 was 109 or 54% less than the previous month. But looking at the year-over-year figures, the number for January of this year was up 25% over the January 2009 figure of 87 sales.
It doesn’t mean we’ve arrived, but the gloom and doom on the national news isn’t necessarily the case either.
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Luxury Home Builders and Home Buyers in Alpharetta and Milton - The Chicken or the Egg?
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Foreclosures, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
I’ve written several posts in the past about builders who are buying up developed lots in Alpharetta, Milton and Cumming out of foreclosure and building homes in the lower price ranges. It makes perfect sense, with the tax credits and persistent demand for new construction among buyers. Home buyers almost always gravitate towards new construction, given the chance. In communities where homes may have sold in the mid $300’s in the past are selling in the $190’s - $210’s and comparable homes can be built in those price ranges because the builder has a lower cost of entry into the community and materials are cheaper now as well.
But what about those communities where homes were originally selling in the $800’s to well over $1 million? Construction stopped a long time ago, lots are in foreclosure, there may be an inventory of homes (that have been standing for quite a while); and home owners who may have purchased earlier on are way upside down. The list is long, but a few are The Manor Golf and Country Club , Valmont , Echelon , The Oaks at Crabapple , King Estates Manor , Blue Valley , and Kingsley Estates .
20 Months of Inventory
There are 195 homes on the market in all of North Fulton, listed from $800,000 to $1.5M, 119 in that price range sold last year. The demand for luxury homes has waned a bit, but not vanished. Credit is tighter and qualifying for a home in that price range is significantly more challenging but not impossible. The rub is when a home buyer looks at a community that has been frozen in time and asked, "is it safe for me to buy a home here? What will they be building down the road, and when?". Which brings me back to the main question posed in the title of this post, who will come back first, the Luxury Home Builder or Home Buyer?
What if a Builder started building homes in one of those stalled communities? Would you as a buyer feel comfortable purchasing one of those homes or are you going to look for something a little older but in an established community? For me, it would depend on a few factors. First and foremost, who is the builder? What price range are they building in now, compared to the existing inventory. And what is the product they are building? Are there covenants in place that will dictate size, exterior materials, etc.? What is the vision for the community and is that vision different than what was started? If it is, that’s not necessarily bad, but it should be considered.
As more builders buy foreclosed lots or decided to start selling homes on the lots they currently own (at lower price points) these questions will come up from buyers. It’s not a situation buyers need to stay away from necessarily, just proceed carefully and with good advice from a local advocate. Tell me what you think, I want to know.
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Best Schools in North Fulton (Says Atlanta Magazine)
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Johns Creek Real Estate, Milton Real Estate, Schools
Atlanta Magazine came out with their Best Schools issue , listing what they have determined is the best Elementary, Middle and High School in each metro Atlanta county. The criteria they used to determine the best was based on the percentage of students who exceeded expectations in the most recently available CRCT results. High schools were selected by SAT scores.
Fulton county runs from Milton, through the city of Atlanta, to south of the airport. It is a very large school system, however it’s no surprise that the top schools were in North Fulton where a high level of parental involvement is the norm.
CRABAPPLE CROSSING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
12775 Birmingham Highway, Milton, 30004
770-740-7055
Grades K-5
Total Students: 757
Founded 1992
CRCT scores exceeding standards: Math: 71.5%, Reading 67.6%
Teachers avg. years of experience: 11
Homes for sale in this school district: Home Search
WEBB BRIDGE MIDDLE SCHOOL
4455 Webb Bridge Rd., Alpharetta, 30005
770-667-2940
Grades 6-8
Total Students: 1357
Founded 1996
CRCT scores exceeding standards: Math: 63.7%, Reading 62.3%
Teachers avg. years of experience: 12
Homes for sale in this school district: Home Search
NORTHVIEW HIGH SCHOOL
10625 Parsons Rd., Johns Creek, 30097
770-497-3828
Grades 9-12
Total Students: 2133
Founded 2002
SAT: 1722
Graduates going to college: 99%
Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 88%
Teachers avg. years of experience: 10
Homes for sale in this school district: Home Search
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