Comments on: Tradewinds Auction – Results & Analysis

By: Rick

Rick — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:36:50 +0000

Very funny to read this and then go to the property appraiser site and look up the condo sales now in Tradewinds. As much as you folks who earn your living in real estate want it to, the market won’t be booming anytime soon. Too many people getting a slice of the pie and prices are unrealistic considering the actual cost of materials and the cheap ilegal labor building these projects.

Even at the current prices these condos aren’t worth it. Much cheaper and less hassle to rent than to own.By the time you pay the payment,HOA,Taxes etc…you would be much better off renting and banking the extra cash and investing it elsewhere.

I have a family member renting a 2 bedroom in Tradewinds at 800 a month and they aren’t locked into it for more than their lease term.

MetroWest is turning into the next Pine Hills (I live there in a condo I paid 25K for) because of the increasing number of rental properties. Crime escalates in high density rental markets and that area and its proximity to the low wage tourist attractions is full of Illegal imigrants who bunk up with a bunch of others so that even though the rents are higher than they are elsewhere and the buildings are nice its diluted by the 6 people paying it.

If I were to invest into condos I’d buy in the downtown area highrises where those younger doctors are going to want to live

By: Dan

Dan — Mon, 05 May 2008 14:24:56 +0000

Check out this web site. Another auction has come!

By: Rob Crawford

Rob Crawford — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 16:22:54 +0000

I was thinking of the comps not so much from the appraiser side, but from Average Joe’s agent pulling them prior to him making an offer on a property.

Tough to see someone offering $110/sqft when there are 40 comps at $90/sqft staring him in the face.

Just not sure if a Realtor would use the same distinctions as an appraiser in evaluating comps.

By: Marcus Burke

Marcus Burke — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:09:40 +0000

Hey Rob, with a ‘distressed’ sale like this (i.e. an auction) any appraiser looking for comps may not include special event auction prices. Of course, there will be a slight lowering in the minds of everyone, but they should not be used as direct comps.

By: Rob Crawford

Rob Crawford — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:37:09 +0000

A “comp” is short for a comparable sale, meaning a recent sale of a property with similar characteristics in the neighborhood of the property in question. They are used by appraisers when trying to determine current value of a property, and by homebuyers to see how much per square foot other homes in the area have been going for prior to making an offer.

I was wondering if all of these auction sales would appear as comps to anyone looking at purchasing other condos on the market in the MetroWest area, thus lowering their value to the purchaser.

By: Ev

Ev — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 18:55:53 +0000

What does going comp in 30 days mean? I am new to property investment and am looking to educate myself.

By: P.L.

P.L. — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 18:40:20 +0000

If only they had a brain

By: Marcus Burke

Marcus Burke — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 03:51:13 +0000

Rob: As far as I’m aware, it’s not so much that he “failed” to offload them, rather that the bulk offers were so low that it seemed possible that an auction might actually produce better results. Looking at last year’s auction at the Village Townhomes and more recently, Solaire, it wasn’t beyond the bounds of possibility. For whatever reason, this one just didn’t go that way.
As for the total numbers sold, those should become more apparent this week, and others will no doubt chime in on that. As for comps, yes, technically they will become precisely that in 30 days, assuming they close – but in reality, anyone looking at comps will have to reconcile those new numbers with prior “real” sales since we all know that auction numbers represent a special kind of “distressed” sale. I know there are some that might disagree with me on this but appraisers would almost certainly design in some mathematical accommodation for this situation, the same as they would with a foreclosure or short sale. Perhaps someone who understands the appraisal side better can clarify this.

By: Rob Crawford

Rob Crawford — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 03:30:20 +0000

Thanks for the reply.

I *thought* that I had read/heard that the developer had already tried and failed to offload the units in bulk and that is what prompted the auction. I do not know if I got this from any reliable source or if it is just scuttlebutt that I picked up milling about before the auction.

A couple of questions for you…I saw a news report that said about 100 units sold, but by the time I left the place was pretty dead and I only had recorded about 40 or so having gone. Any way to determine what the actual figure was at this point?

Also, will all the auction sales appear as comps in the near future?

By: Marcus Burke

Marcus Burke — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 03:18:30 +0000

Some good points Rob, except I’m not sure this was ever intended (or billed) as an “investor opportunity”. Investors do their own math and if the price is right, then they make their move. At least one of my clients did this on Saturday – and looking at his math, I think he’ll be ok. I agree about the rents – one had to factor in for some reduction there, as well as factoring in for the 10% buyer’s “premium” when making the final bid. As for Monday morning, what you say is a great idea in theory (and I think some will do that), but what if the remainder are bought out in a bulk next week? The opportunity will be lost. And if I were the developer, that’s exactly what I’d be looking to do come Monday morning…