Real Estate sales in Bodega Bay
By Joel Hack
Posted March 16, 2007 -------- News of real estate lenders problems prompted sell-offs on Wall Street. But news of declining real estate prices are routine in Sonoma County and Bodega Bay.
Lenders of subprime home mortgages are squeezed by the high numbers of homeowner’s defaults. The stocks of those lenders are at rock bottom lows. Recent DataQuick Information Systems surveys show Sonoma County home sales dropping 7.9 percent matching the Bay Area decline. Home prices also declined 2.7 percent. Both figures are for the month February. The effects of the crisis in subprime loans are not part of the figures yet. Experts warn that the high flying home market will fall further since subprime buyers will not be part of the market.
Here in Bodega Bay both the number of homes and their prices fell in the past two years. The Bodega Bay Real Estate report (under page 2 button above) shows a price decline of about 10 percent in the past year. A table of prices from 2002 through 2006 is below.
Figures compiled by DataQuick show Bodega Bay home sale prices declined 19 percent in 2006 and 36 percent in 2005. They derive their numbers from a comparison of square foot prices that may not account for homes with or without a view or upgrades and other amenities.
Prices of homes here are driven by the “second home” market. “Since 2000,” said George Capone of Adams Realty, “90 percent of home sales in Bodega Bay are now occupied as second homes.” The category of second homes includes vacation rentals.
Capone cautioned that with the upturn in interest rates and declines in prices and number of sales, the market generally and here is hitting a flat spot. “Real Estate markets experience recessions but have always come back. This recession just started. In the past recessions have been 18 to 24 months.”
Indeed, Thera Buttaro of Frank Howard Allen says the changes in the market are the result not of statistics but of the number of homes for sale in the higher price brackets. She dismisses the notion that the Bodega Bay home market is sagging.
She says the market is very good. “This is a great time for buyers. There is a large inventory of homes on the market at different price levels. There are a lot more buyers with a lot more cash that have a choice of homes.” She noted that at the beginning of 2005 there were just a handful of homes on the market. As of Thursday there are 31 homes listed for sale in Bodega Bay.
The Bodega Bay home market has definitely changed in the past two years. In 2005 there were 58 home sales. In 2006 there were only 22. So far this year 10 properties have sold. They ranged in price from $515,000 to $1,750,000. Three were over $1 million.
Homes that have sold recently are usually in the lower end of the market even though several have closed escrow over $1 million. Also, sellers may motivations vary. Some sellers have other factors in addition to price driving the sale. Capone also warned that the figures of sale prices cover up the difference between the initial asking price and final sale price.
Often the owner of a second home is less inclined to sell. Capone noted how many sellers have taken their homes off the market and turned to leases or vacation rentals. “Because of the small number of units in Bodega Bay the second home market can skew any statistical analysis,” said Capone.
Buttaro points to the different levels in the market. She said that of the sales she handled in 2005 all those that were over $1.5 million were for cash. She thinks the market trajectory is up, and discounts the average or median lower prices for 2006. She says they were all smaller homes with smaller prices because there wasn’t the supply of more expensive homes on the market. She says that the quality of the view can move a house price by $250,000 or more.
Buttaro also believes the market can change from day to day; how many buyers and how many offers are made. She makes the emphatic point that the Bodega Bay market of better quality homes is now a luxury home market and the buyers are on the way here. She said the type and price of homes sold here aren’t subject to the same market forces such as mortgage interest rates and subprime lenders.
Homes in Bodega Harbour subdivision fetch prices 25 to 40 percent higher than other Bodega Bay properties. Buttaro expects that differential to grow with BHHA homes that are built with better plans, components, finishes and amenities. She says the luxury buyer looks for a range of qualities of the neighborhood and the home.
Sale prices of homes in Bodega Bay outpace all of Sonoma County with square foot prices over $700. No other zip code in Sonoma County is over $450 a square foot.
Real Estate summary of sales by year
Real Estate Roundup |
2006 |
2006 |
2005 |
2005 |
2004 |
2004 |
2003 |
2003 |
2002 |
2002 |
BHHA Homes |
Other Homes |
BHHA homes |
Other Homes |
BHHA homes |
Other Homes |
BHHA homes |
Other homes |
BHHA homes |
Other homes |
|
Number sold |
22 |
13 |
53 |
27 |
69 |
20 |
52 |
22 |
48 |
16 |
Average price |
$ 1,013,182 |
$ 834,269 |
$ 1,154,424 |
$ 765,815 |
$885,892 |
$616,938 |
$786,005 |
$541,362 |
$734,343 |
$425,156 |
Average sq. ft. |
2165 |
1326 |
2302 |
1432 |
2,269 |
1,443 |
2176 |
1,580 |
2133 |
1,267 |
Price per sq. ft. |
$ 478.00 |
$ 733.00 |
$ 501.49 |
$ 534.79 |
$390 |
$428 |
$361 |
$343 |
$344 |
$336 |
Based on information from Bay Area Real Estate Information Service (BAREIS) for the periods stated above. All information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed to be accurate. Prepared by Adams Realty --George Capone
