Updated vs . . . Not

Fixer Uppers On Sale

Fixer-uppers are not the darlings of the New York City real estate market right now. With so many well-groomed apartments for sale to choose from, why bother? But when there is a lot of inventory on the market, the price gap between the renovated and unrenovated often grows.

--For the Right Price, the Right Fixer-Upper; The New York Times (10/30/09)

Not all New York housing trends apply to the Twin Cities: different housing stock, different demographics, and most certainly, different prices (New York's are 4x-6x more).

However, in this case, the parallels stick: fixer-uppers locally are now as discounted as I've seen in my 8+ years selling Twin Cities real estate.

One more reason for the deep discount not mentioned in the above article: mortgages are cheap, renovation money is expensive (and scarce).

Obamas' Hyde Park Home

Now That's a Tough Comp

Not since Richard M. Nixon lived in a New York City apartment has the market tried to assess the value of immediate proximity to the president in a dense, urban neighborhood.

--Susan Saulny, "Hyde Park House for Sale Comes With a View: The Obamas; The NY Times (9/15/09)

As I've been posting recently, pricing a home -- whether it's done by a Buyer, Seller, or appraiser -- is all about the comp's.

The magic number is three -- as in three, recently closed homes similar in style, size, and condition to what's called the "subject home."

To clients, their home is always "one of a kind"; to them, there's nothing as inviting, beautiful, functional, etc.

Usually, they're wrong about that.

Not this time.

Complicating matters further in the case of the Obamas' neighbor (pictured above): the home is a complete 'fixer (as in fixer upper).