Homes on 1 acre + ($200,000 - $325,000)

December 4, 2008 at 9:03 am , by Jenel Looney

Yesterday, a reader called me to ask for some very specific information. He’s trying to decide whether or not to buy a home, and he wants to get started by doing his due diligence. Smart! He wants to get to know the market so that when he’s ready to buy, he can make an informed decision.
He asked me if I could help him find some information about homes with at least an acre that had sold over the past two months for $250,000 to $325,000. I expanded that a little bit and started my search at $200,000. A little more information never hurts. I told him that I would write an article about my findings, and that I would send him a spreadsheet with more details.
I love when people call me to ask specific questions. This website is much more fun and interesting with that interactive element. I created HometownGeorgetown.com as a way to meet people who are interested in buying or selling a home, so I’m happy when my phone rings. All I ask in return is that when you’re ready to take that next step, you keep me in mind. Give me a call at 512-876-6544 or email me at jenel@HometownGeorgetown.com. I’m here to help!
Ten properties came up in my search of MLS areas GTE and GTW. The map to the right shows the location of these properties. The newest of the homes was built in 1997. The average year built is 1983. Newer construction on 1 acre plus tends to be priced significantly higher.
I was surprised to find the majority of the sales were west of the freeway, in the MLS area known as GTW. I had expected to find homes in this price range to be in GTE. A couple of the homes are in Serenada, which is one of my favorite neighborhoods. The trees in Serenada are incredible. They’ve been there a long, long time, and so they look substantial and comforting. Just gorgeous.
The average sales price per square foot of these homes was $126.39. This number was brought up by one property that is on nearly 9 acres. When we take this property out of the mix, the average price per square foot drops to just over $120. This particular property sold the fastest, spending just a couple days on the market before going under contract. The average active days on market for the ten homes was 133. During the properties’ time on market, the list prices dropped by an average of about $43,000. This average was brought up drastically by the price reduction of almost $200,000 on two of the homes. The owners of those two homes obviously started out with a very unrealistic view of the worth of their properties. When you take these two homes out of the mix, the average price reduction was a much more reasonable $7,635, or 3%.