From $2,479,000. to $1,420,000 million. Was this a smart investment opportunity for the long run?
It all began on a bright sunny day in 2007. A builder had completed detailed craftsmanship on an old world designed english style country cottage on a 1.17 acre home site overlooking the golf course in a very prestigious gated neighborhood in Alpharetta, Georgia. It was four sides brick with stone detail and a four car side entry garage.
This estate home would be perfect for a growing family with 6 bedrooms, 6 full baths, 2 half baths with a grand square footage over 8,700. The grand dining room seated 12+ comfortably with plenty of room for an oversized breakfront and other fine furnishings. As the day drew in you could reflect in the quiet company of beautiful sunsets on the large covered veranda.
There were all the other “rooms”: the bonus, media, recreation and home theatre rooms, paneled library, exercise, office, family room, vaulted keeping and breakfast room. With a finished terrace level already completed you could make those into more rooms if the other rooms didn’t fill your needs. There were 4 fireplaces to keep you warm during the harsh Atlanta winter months of mid-December to March.
The home also featured the usual high-end appliances, “professional” landscaping and high-efficiency this and that.
After nearly 700 total days on market the home sold and closed. It was a very long and winding road from a builder’s proud handcrafted masterpiece, truly a work of art, to the back room and closed doors of the “bank owned” institution.
The original list price: $2,479,000 million.
Final closed sales price: $1,420,000 million.
57% off original sales price
And there are MORE details. On closing date buyer had three loans:
Loan #1: $1,065,000
Loan #2: $100,000
Loan #3: $100,000
Creative financing allowed the buyer to put down around 10% ($155,000) and the bank paid $18,000 in closing costs.
Do you think this was a good deal for that buyer? There are 16 NEW homes for sale today in that same neighborhood and 7 resale homes. The homes for sale range from $2,947,000 (which the builder recently INCREASED the price from $2,500,000) down to a resale home priced at $699,900.
Nine of the 22 for sale now are listed below $1 million.
January through October 2009, 23 homes have SOLD/CLOSED. Only 9 of those home sold for $1 million or higher.
The least expensive sale was a foreclosure that originally was priced at $1,200,000 million and closed at $420,000 after 527 days on the market which would be 40% off original list price. In fairness, this particular home was not 100% completed.
Even at these incredible rock bottom prices, do you think this neighborhood would be a smart investment opportunity…ever?
