Archive for the 'New Construction' Category
More New Construction in Crabapple
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Recently I wrote about Anthem homes building 4 single family homes on slabs in the mid $300’s and 4 garden style attached homes on slabs in the high $200’s in Crabapple Crossing. All these floorplans are in the 2800 - 3000 sq. ft. range Not only is it good news for Crabapple but it’s no surprise. Crabapple is a great walkable community and while shops are somewhat limited right now I’m sure they are not far away. Additionally the restaurants in Crabapple are a big draw for the community and Milton area as a whole.
I think those people who bought (or buy) the remaining distressed properties there will end up doing very well. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say the buyers who purchase new construction in there now will end up doing well down the road too. Crabapple is the best option in North Fulton for a “Virginia Highlands Like” lifestyle in homes that are modest in size with very nice finishings.
Breaking Ground in Braeburn
Now John Wieland is breaking ground on three lots in Braeburn - this is the community behind Crabapple Crossroads that has the developed lots but has been sitting vacant for a couple of years. Originally they were going to build 45 homes in the 4500-4800 sq. ft. range in the high $600’s on 1 acre lots. The have re-configured the interior lots and will now build 52 homes in the 3000-3800 sq. ft. range. The lot sizes will range from .75 acres to 1 acre and the prices will range from the high $400’s for homes on slabs to the high $500’s / low $600’s for basement homes.
The home styles will be similar in style to Crabapple Crossroads and come with granite counters, tile in master bath (not secondary baths), hardwoods on main (not bedrooms), tall windows, transoms and mixed material exteriors (stone, brick, cedar shake and hardy-plank siding) and front porches.
Does Wieland know something we don’t?
Based on inventory and Anthem’s price point I have to admit, a 4/5 bedroom on a slab in the high $400’s seems like it’s pushing the envelope on price - although they do come with 3-car garages. I know Wieland has a very good product and is a long-standing, well respected builder in Atlanta. He is offering a 5yr / 20yr warranty and the community will have their own amenities (which will probably be in place before the homeowners in Crabapple Crossroads ever see their amenities).
I’m not sure that the market will bear the price quite yet though - but maybe they know something I don’t. Especially when Sharp Residential just went into Milton Place and is building in the high $300’s / low $400’s for a very similar product. Granted, you won’t be walking to shops and restaurants from Milton Place, Braeburn is in a stellar location, but - it’s a very competitive product. I hope Wieland gets what they want, I know they have sold one already and are working on another, but it may take some time.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 1 Comment »
Housing Starts Down In June?…..Not Really
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Metro Atlanta Statistics, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Let me see if I can make this really confusing….
Housing starts nationally for June are down 5% which the media purports as bad news..but I say it’s really good. But the real facts are that single family starts aren’t down that much, which sounds good but I say it’s bad. Confused yet? Stick with me.
When the Census Bureau releases housing starts the media will grab that number and pronounce it good or bad, but they never tell you what that number means. A start is really a ground-breaking and includes homes of all types — single family, condos buildings, apartments, and multi-units housing. For June that number was down 5% from May. I don’t know about you, but I don’t really care if apartment and multi-unit starts are down. I know it may effect the overall economy but they don’t mean a whole lot to Mr. and Mrs. Seller down the street.
But the number gets reported in the news as a big drop so that must be a bad thing. Is it really? If there are fewer housing starts then there will be less inventory on the market. Less competition for the re-sale market who wants to make a move. So in my book, a big number might be a good thing. However, when that 5% number is dissected it turns out that the majority of it is in fact multi-unit housing.
The Real Housing Start Number
For June, Single-Family housing starts were only down 0.7 percent from May….essentially flat. That’s a good thing, right? We’ll it certainly says that builders are being very cautious and not carrying too much inventory. The more inventory on the market the more they have to offer incentives and the more the re-sale market has to try and compete with heavy builder incentives. What it really indicates is that new construction has stabilized now that the home buyer tax credits are behind us.
We still have a lot of inventory on the market. Across all price ranges we have about 10 months of inventory in North Fulton and 12 months of inventory in Forsyth County. A buyers market is defined as anything above 6 months of inventory so controlled construction and growth is a good thing in my book. The one constant in this market right now is that rates remain extremely low. While inventory levels aren’t going to change quickly - we don’t really know how long rates will remain at such historically low levels.
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A House Grows in Crabapple
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Eight of them to be exact. You won’t see them until they go under contract as they are pre-sale only - but I don’t expect that to take long. I’ve been wondering for a while now why we haven’t seen a builder come in and breath live back into the new communities of Crabapple Crossroads and Crabapple Crossing but finally some builders are stepping up to the opportunity and I think they will do just fine.
Anthem Homes
Three veteran builders; Gregg Goldenberg, Jon Roby and Thomas Olson have come together and founded Anthem Homes & Neighborhoods and plan to build 4 single-family homes and 4 attached garden homes in the Crabapple Crossing community. The product will be very close to the existing homes in both look and size. Anthem is currently building in Cobb, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Jackson, Fulton and Cherokee Counties and has a solid track record.
The Product
There are 2 options for the s ingle-family homes , which are both 4 bedroom / 3.5 bath homes with 2-car garages and come in a little under 3,000 Sq. Ft. All bedrooms will be upstairs. And the good news is the pricing will be in just under $350,000 . I’m sure this will be the last time we ever see new construction under $350k in North Fulton - and certainly in Crabapple.
The attached garden homes will also be 4 bedroom / 3.5 baths around 2800 Sq. Ft., with 2-car garages and priced just under $300,000 . One plan will have a master on the main, the other will have the master up. Both will have a bonus room and some room for potential expansion in the upstairs un-finished attic space.
Crabapple
The businesses in Crabapple continue to be a draw for residents around the area, with Scoops Ice Cream Shop as a new addition. Both the retail and residential will continue to feed off each other so I expect to see more growth in the coming months. For buyers who have purchased in the area recently - I think they got a great deal and will not only reap the benefits of price appreciation in the future, but will love living in the area too.
Let us know if you have any questions about the communities or available properties.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 3 Comments »
Will Market Improvements Spell Trouble for Existing Home Sellers?
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Foreclosures, Forsyth, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
It doesn’t sound like it makes sense, right? How can things get better but spell trouble for home sellers? Or maybe you’re reading this and asking "How can you even say they are getting better?". Before I get into any potential problems, let me start with the point about things getting better. Things are trending in the right direction, albeit at a very slow pace, but signs of recovery are there.
Signs of Improvement
Current inventory levels are down approximately 40% from the 2007 market peak. Even with the flow of foreclosures, there has been capacity to consume those distressed properties. In the first Qtr. of 2009 distressed sales made up nearly 38% of all home sales in Metro Atlanta. That number is now around 25%. Most sellers on the market today either need to sell or have the equity necessary to sell at current market value. Property owners who would normally be on the market just to "see what they could get" or toying with moving, generally speaking, aren’t out there.
The fourth Qtr. of 2009 was the first quarterly increase in units sold over the past 2 years, showing a 14% increase over the previous year. And we are seeing an increase in the RELO client. This data in anecdotal but our team alone has worked on several deals over the past 4 weeks involving RELO clients. Companies are moving their employees and the properties we’ve been looking at are disappearing fairly quickly.
So Where’s The Problem? - Mortgage Delinquencies and New Construction
Rising mortgage delinquencies will ensure that we will have foreclosures and short sales in our market for at least the next 2 - 3 years. As you can see in the chart to the right {click chart to enlarge}, courtesy of calculatedriskblog.com .
It appears that delinquencies may have dropped slightly from their peak, but unless some of the programs being implemented by the government and banks actually help homeowners and slow that process, then it could possibly begin rising again.
When the market tanked, new construction fell off a cliff, and we’ve had literally no new construction for the past 2 years. But now builders are grabbing developed lots at great discounts, new home starts are showing up and the sounds of hammers can be heard in more than a few communities. Most of these locations are in Forsyth County but over the summer we’ll see construction begin in some stalled communities throughout Alpharetta and Milton.
Buyers tend to gravitate towards new construction when available. That coupled with the fact that buyers are also looking for great deals (foreclosures) I think some pressure could be felt by the normal equity owner looking to move-up, down or relocate, due to the increased competition with new construction…along with foreclosures. That said, I think any pressure will be short-lived. As the economy and the housing market continues to improve, competition will increase for sought-after communities and school districts, ultimately putting the re-seller back into a stronger position. Of course the product they have to offer can always set them apart, which is why we are seeing well priced homes in good condition and locations sell quickly despite the current market.
Am I on target or off base? Let me know what you think….
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 5 Comments »
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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Alpharetta Real Estate for 2010: What will the future hold?
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Foreclosures, Local Market Conditions, Metro Atlanta Statistics, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
It’s a question buyers and sellers ask almost every day, especially in a market like this, but at the end of the year people look forward to that new beginning. For a brief period of time it’s like the slate gets wiped clean on January 1st. Anything is possible and we look for signs of what may come for Alpharetta real estate. I always say, in order to know where you’re going it helps to know where you’ve been. Looking back over 2009 might not be a pretty picture, depending on your perspective, but it’s telling.
Ouch : Sales declined through most of the year and Sellers really took it on the chin. And builders took it even harder. It’s tough to compete though when almost 40% of all homes being sold in the first 2 quarters were foreclosures or short sales. For those that could take less and get out, they didn’t like it but felt like they made it out. For others, they had to stay put or take a loss. Never before have I seen so many homes available to rent, which was a good alternative for many sellers out there that had to do something.
Cha-Ching : While Sellers were getting beat up, Buyers where cashing in. For those in a position to buy, the real estate deals were plenty and the banks had their shelves stocked with goods. First-time home buyers and renters were in the envious position of not needing to sell and having plenty to choose from. Still, competition was stiff for foreclosures. Banks started the year pricing at the old market value but later realized that aggressive list prices brought multiple offers fast and sales prices that were over list. They were still good deals but the time on market was reduced significantly. The tax credit did it’s job and continues to do so until it expires next year. Inventory levels were reduced quite a bit and now we are seeing an increase in homes sold year-over-year. Comparing November 2009 to November 2008, the number of homes sold in Metro Atlanta are up 52% and for North Fulton, they are up 82% .
Bye Bye: No, all the deals aren’t gone but they are slowly fading away. The expanded tax credit will continue to help but I’m seeing the mindset has changed with both buyers and sellers. At the beginning of the year Sellers were still amazed that a home reduced by $100K could still be on the market and Buyers were amazed it hadn’t been reduced more. Now sales prices have come down further, Sellers except much of the current pricing as market value and Buyers are not willing to spend months looking for that spectacular deal because they are slowly disappearing.
Looking Forward : We will see a higher than normal level of activity for the first 4 months while the tax credits are still in effect. This will help continue to reduce inventory levels and we will continue to see the number of home sold year-over-year go up. Sales prices will flatten out for most, and begin to increase in small pockets of demand and sought-after communities later in the year. The 400 corridor is well positioned with great schools and businesses that are still moving employees into the area.
New construction starts, which showed up in the 4th quarter of 2009 will widen through 2010 due to an abundance of developed lots at bargain prices. Forsyth County will lead the pack here, mainly because builders will be able to buy lots and build in lower price ranges to a greater degree than in North Fulton, but we’ll see that in North Fulton as well. Knight Construction is selling out in the Cumming community of Union Station, which is no surprise as first-time buyers typically gravitate towards new construction when it’s available. I suspect new homes in Crabapple and Milton will have the most opportunities.
Foreclosures will be present for the next couple of years (no surprise) but banks will continue to roll them out slowly keeping competition for them fairly high. Also, thanks to the banks, Short Sales will remain an excruciatingly painful and slow process (thank you Bank of America). Interest rates are anybody’s guess but until unemployment comes down to a respectable 7 or 8% then they will have to remain reasonably low.
How do I know it will all turn out this way? I have inside information that "It is decidedly so".
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Shhh…..Developed Lots are Beginning to Move in North Fulton
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Lots, Milton Real Estate, New Construction, Roswell Real Estate
I don’t hear anyone talking about this but I’ve noticed recently that some residential developed lots in Alpharetta, Roswell and Milton have sold. Builders appear to be cherry-picking some good values out of foreclosure. On the surface it may sound surprising with what seems like a lot of resale inventory still out there. However, that inventory is down to levels not seen since the end of 2005. And, of course, new construction inventory fell of a cliff.
On top of that, the first time home buyer tax credit has been expanded and extended to move-up buyers that have owned their home for at least 5 of the last 8 years. With 47% of home sales this year (nationally) coming from first time buyers; this tax extension / expansion will definitely help bring those inventory levels down even further.
The lots that seem to be moving are mostly in more expensive communities such as Echelon , The Overlook at Litchfield, The Manor Golf and Country Club and newer communities that have not really been built out too much, like Crabapple Oaks . Homes for sale in Crabapple Oaks were originally listed for the high $800’s but are now selling in the low $600’s. In fact, there is a fantastic deal in one of the new Crabapple communities that I’m surprised hasn’t been jumped on yet. However, one surprising sale was a 1 acre lot in Country Club of the South that sold for $750K. Not exactly what I would call a deal, but someone certainly wanted it.
I had recently written a post about this same situation in Forsyth County, where builders were buying developed lots for sale out of foreclosure, building new homes in the first time buyer price range and selling them rather briskly. This is a clear indication that there is a healthy appetite for new construction and again, may be a leading indicator of a stronger recovery in the local housing market. I think we will see more of this to come in the 1st half of 2010.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 1 Comment »
Would you like a $1.2M home for $750,000? | Bargain Hunters Part II - North Fulton
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Buyers, Luxury Homes, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Milton, Ga. - This is inside information and you are getting it before anyone else. We informed the readers of this blog about 4 amazing deals in January, you can see the post here: $700k homes for half price, and we sold them in four hours….yes, 4 hours. So, this is fair warning, if you are interested then contact us now as this is first come, first served.
Nearly 40% of all sales are foreclosures or short sales and most of those are GOOD deals. But everyone is looking for really GREAT deals and believe it or not, really GREAT deals only come up occasionally. You can choose one of these 3 nearly $1,200,000 homes for $750,000.
They are all new homes and built by a well respected custom home builder who has built hundreds of million dollar homes in various North Atlanta communities. These are all 4-side brick and stone, 3-car garages and pre-planned terrace levels that have high ceilings and open plans. All with very custom features & finishes and all on 1+ acre lots.
I hate clichés but with interest rates this low and the economy beginning to show signs of improvement-this is the proverbial no-brainer. I challenge you to find another home like these at prices even close to this in North Fulton.
But wait, there is more. We know of a nearly $800,000 new construction home you can get for under $600,000 and the owner will finance. For more details on this one-you have to call.
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