Monday, June 22, 2009

And by "Rare", You Mean Bloody??

1233 N. Flores St. #204
$359,000
1BR / 1BA
744 sq ft
HOA: $330/mo

Short Sale

RARE OPPORTUNITY TO OWN THIS FABULOUS CONDO IN THE HEART OF WEST HOLLYWOOD * THIS BEAUTIFUL TREE LINE STREET CONDO HAS IT ALL * WALKING DISTANCE TO RESTAURANTS, THE MARKET, SHOPS AND NIGHTLIFE CLUBS * GREAT SINGLE LEVEL FLOORPLAN WHICH IS HIGHLY LEASABLE FOR AN INVESTOR * CEILING FAN * A/C * INSIDE WASHER/DRYER * DISHWASHER * THIS IS A DREAM HOME AND PRICE TO SELL QUICKLY * THANK YOU FOR SHOWING!

Sold: 5/98 - $75,000

Sold: 7/01 - $174,000 (and people say the bubble didn't start until 2003?)

Sold: 11/05 - $385,000 (yep, 100%+ in 4 years sounds right)

Why, why, why? Why, when I'd prefer to focus on SFRs or nice and/or unique condos/townhomes, do listings like this come up to bring my cynical side to the surface?

This is one of several "rare" listings I've seen recently. No, "rare" is when the price drops to a level where it's actually "highly leasable for an investor". You know, investors are people who generally like to make money over a period of time?

At the current pricing level, monthly payment would be around $2,300 (5.5% with 20% down). This place looks to be in a nice area, but to think you're getting more than $1600 or so for rent in this market is laughable. I've seen decent 2BRs at $1800-2000 on Craigslist recently. So, yes, by all means, investors come forward!

Of course, we have another case of a seller trying to walk away with minimal losses in this short sale situation. This property sold for the high $100s in 2001 and I wouldn't be surprised to see it back to that level (not nominally, but inflation-adjusted) in the next several years.

I'd say the odds are high (as in, over 100%) that this is foreclosed on over the next month or so. Will be interesting to see where the bank starts its listing.

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