Luckily, there has hardly been any foreclosure activity on the Island. Why? Well, the fact is that most of the people who buy a home on the Island are people of means. Many of the homes that were built by Lenox Homes that lie to the north of Harbor Town are purchased by fairly wealthy parents who want to furnish their child a nice, safe place to stay while they attend college to become dentists or optometrists or do their residency at one of the local hospitals. These people don't wind up in foreclosure- they have options.
The people of Harbor Town proper are an anomaly in Memphis. They come from all over the globe. They are the people who have been brought in from other parts of the world to be the movers and shakers of our society. The human resource head hunters found them and they, luckily, found Harbor Town. They are not going to stop paying their house notes. They are not going to get foreclosed on. In the past 5 years or so of this "media made economic crisis" there have only been a scant few foreclosures and almost all of them can be attributed to a divorce or some other personal crisis.
There are a few condos in foreclosure on the south end of downtown. I had the opportunity to show three of them today. These, folks, are amazing opportunities for the savvy investor. There is a 3 story townhouse in State Place, hardwood floors through out, granite and stainless in the kitchen and a one car garage for $134,900. Unbelievable! This unit sold for $225,000 in May of 2007! As far as the second and third property goes- never mind- they are no longer available- I sold them!
If you want to grab a bargain to live in, flip or add to your portfolio- email me at ksoro@comcast.net and I will send you information. We are living in historic times! Make the most of it!!!
Monday, January 30, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
ZILLOW- AND IT'S NASTY EFFECTS
Zillow- the real estate website that sets itself up to be the end all definition of any given piece of real estates' value is absolute hog-wash.
Please, stop showing me "Zestimates"! ( That's what they call their estimated value of any given home).
Here is the problem. Zillow, is nothing more that a computer data base. It collects the information on past sales and present listings. It has a radius of what it includes in the data that it sifts through to come up with what it thinks your (on any given property) is worth. Now, think about it. We live in Memphis. There are HUGE differences in neighborhood values- just going from one block to another- much less if you include things in, say, a two mile radius.
As I sit here writing this in Harbor Town Proper- that radius would include the Lenox Homes to the north of me on Mud Island, Waters Edge, Island Crest, the condos on the south side of the bridge, Uptown, the Pinch, and the homes along North Parkway. These are all VERY different neighborhoods, with VERY different home values. BUT Zillow does NOT differentiate. It can't. It's just a computer program.
(If we have BIG trouble with it here - just imagine what can happen in Midtown!!!)
If you don't get a real estate professional who knows what is going on in the area that you are looking in- and you rely on these computer sites- you are going to get BAD information. And don't just click the button to the realtor who is advertising on Zillow. They just paid for that- it does not mean that they know anything about a given area! Do your homework and use your heads. You should know that if you are looking at a home in the middle of a run-down neighborhood with a crack house next door , the property is not worth a gojillioon dollars, and conversely, a beautiful custom home in Harbor Town proper is worth more than a nondescript, mass produced tract home.
But Zillow- won't tell you that because it CAN'T. Zillow has never been here. Zillow has never seen the houses. Zillow doesn't understand that one home may have a beautiful view and exquisite finishes and another home has builder grade finishes that need replacing. It compares oranges to apples. So, please, don't buy into its notion. It is not accurate. Instead, rely on the advise of a smart, savvy realtor who is tuned into the area that you are interested in. Let them help you form an opinion of price. There really is no substitute.
Personally, I think that Zillow has done a lot of damage. I think that they should not be allowed to operate as they do. I believe that they have done more damage to real estate values that anyone can imagine. And I would like to see them gone. But Zillow is not the only offender- so watch out and use some common sense when making what will likely be the most expensive purchase of you life.
In the meantime- I know that if you can't beat em' join em'- so soon you will see my smiling face on the Zillow page and you will be able to click on me- and I will help you sort out what is fact and what is fiction.
Please, stop showing me "Zestimates"! ( That's what they call their estimated value of any given home).
Here is the problem. Zillow, is nothing more that a computer data base. It collects the information on past sales and present listings. It has a radius of what it includes in the data that it sifts through to come up with what it thinks your (on any given property) is worth. Now, think about it. We live in Memphis. There are HUGE differences in neighborhood values- just going from one block to another- much less if you include things in, say, a two mile radius.
As I sit here writing this in Harbor Town Proper- that radius would include the Lenox Homes to the north of me on Mud Island, Waters Edge, Island Crest, the condos on the south side of the bridge, Uptown, the Pinch, and the homes along North Parkway. These are all VERY different neighborhoods, with VERY different home values. BUT Zillow does NOT differentiate. It can't. It's just a computer program.
(If we have BIG trouble with it here - just imagine what can happen in Midtown!!!)
If you don't get a real estate professional who knows what is going on in the area that you are looking in- and you rely on these computer sites- you are going to get BAD information. And don't just click the button to the realtor who is advertising on Zillow. They just paid for that- it does not mean that they know anything about a given area! Do your homework and use your heads. You should know that if you are looking at a home in the middle of a run-down neighborhood with a crack house next door , the property is not worth a gojillioon dollars, and conversely, a beautiful custom home in Harbor Town proper is worth more than a nondescript, mass produced tract home.
But Zillow- won't tell you that because it CAN'T. Zillow has never been here. Zillow has never seen the houses. Zillow doesn't understand that one home may have a beautiful view and exquisite finishes and another home has builder grade finishes that need replacing. It compares oranges to apples. So, please, don't buy into its notion. It is not accurate. Instead, rely on the advise of a smart, savvy realtor who is tuned into the area that you are interested in. Let them help you form an opinion of price. There really is no substitute.
Personally, I think that Zillow has done a lot of damage. I think that they should not be allowed to operate as they do. I believe that they have done more damage to real estate values that anyone can imagine. And I would like to see them gone. But Zillow is not the only offender- so watch out and use some common sense when making what will likely be the most expensive purchase of you life.
In the meantime- I know that if you can't beat em' join em'- so soon you will see my smiling face on the Zillow page and you will be able to click on me- and I will help you sort out what is fact and what is fiction.
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