January 2011 Sales Analysis

The following sales analysis compares January 2011 sales data with data from the preceding month (December 2010) and the previous year (January 2010). Data is analyzed by region in the city: South Palm Springs, Central Palm Springs, and North Palm Springs.

South Palm Springs - South of Ramon Road

	January 2011	December 2010	January 2010
Condos Sold	16	35	16
Price Range	$54,900 - $400,000	$46,999 - $350,000	$100,000 - $350,500
Average Price	$162,469	$182,783	$226,581
Average Square Feet	1,316	1,300	1,437
Price/Square Foot	$117.59	$137.56	$159.57
Days on Market	116	108	126
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	38%	31%	13%

The start of the new year did not bring spectacular sales to South Palm Springs.  The number of units sold was equal with January of last year.  The big drop in sales from December shows how few people are looking to purchase property around the holidays.  Typically, people making offers in December would be closing escrow in January.  The range of prices sold is similar with last year on the high end, but the low end has dropped a lot from last year.  This can be seen even more clearly when we analyze the average price paid year over year...a drop of $64,000!  The average size is a bit smaller in January 2011 than January 2010.  The average price per square foot also took a huge drop of $42.00 this January compared to last.  Days on market is a bit better at 116 days vs. 126 days.  But the percent of sales that are distressed properties has almost tripled in the past year to represent 38% of all condo sales in South Palm Springs.

Central Palm Springs - Between Ramon Road and Vista Chino

	January 2011	December 2010	January 2010
Condos Sold	18	18	19
Price Range	$47,500 - $310,000	$57,000 - $575,000	$61,500 - $330,000
Average Price	$185,972	$149,161	$164,763
Average Square Feet	1,294	1,177	1,169
Price/Square Foot	$140.95	$120.95	$137.52
Days on Market	122	91	111
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	44%	67%	47%

Conversely, sales in Central Palm Springs looked pretty good in the new years.  There was no seasonal drop in sales, with quantity sold being equal with December and January of 2010.  The range of prices sold was similar on the low end with the preceding month and year, but a big drop from the high end of December.  However, I think the high in December may be attributable to one or two sales only because the average price sold in January 2011 was a lot higher than the average for last month and last year.  The average size condo sold in January was about 10% bigger than the preceding month.  The average price per square foot was mostly equal to last year, but a big increase of $20 over December 2010.  Average days on market took a big increase to a full month longer to sell than the most recent period of December 2010.  However, the percent of all condo sales that were distressed sales dropped down to 44%, a number similar to a year ago, but a big decrease from last month.

North Palm Springs - North of Vista Chino

	January 2011	December 2010	December 2009
Condos Sold	5	12	12
Price Range	$50,000 - $105,000	$41,000 - $211,000	$48,000 - $241,000
Average Price	$68,650	$91,917	$109,733
Average Square Feet	734	908	963
Price/Square Foot	$93.70	$95.96	$111.18
Days on Market	105	73	62
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	40%	75%	67%

Unfortunately, sales in North Palm Springs for the start of the year are looking more like South Palm Springs rather than Central Palm Springs.  Quantity sold in January 2011 is a dismal 5 units, less than half of what was sold last month and in the corresponding month of last year.  The range of prices sold was similar to earlier periods on the low end, but the highest priced sale is less than half that of the previous periods.  This can be seen clearly in the average sale price which is a huge drop from last month and last year.  However, part of the issue is that only smaller condos sold this month as the average square feet is a lot less than earlier periods.  This helps the average price per square foot which is similar to last month, although it is a drop from last year.  Days on market took a big leap up over 100 days in January, a lot more than previous periods.  But, happily, the percent of all condo sales that were distressed was only 40%...a big drop from last month and last year.  However, how much of a trend can we call when there were only 5 units sold?

The one bright spot on the sales scene is Central Palm Springs.  Most of the statistics in this region are better than they were last month and last year.  However, sales in South Palm Springs and North Palm Springs were down so much that, overall, the sales scenario is still down from last year.  For sellers it appears that the market is still challenging.  For buyers, make the most of it, because this is your time!

If you have any questions or comments regarding this data and/or the analysis please feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you!

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

December 2010 Sales Analysis

The following sales analysis compares December 2010 sales data with data from the preceding month (November 2010) and the previous year (December 2009). Data is analyzed by region in the city: South Palm Springs, Central Palm Springs, and North Palm Springs.

South Palm Springs - South of Ramon Road

	December 2010	November 2010	December 2009
Condos Sold	35	30	30
Price Range	$46,999 - $350,000	$70,000 - $370,000	$44,800 - $515,000
Average Price	$182,783	$191,800	$217,856
Average Square Feet	1,300	1,623	1,370
Price/Square Foot	$137.56	$116.68	$154.91
Days on Market	108	150	87
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	31%	27%	23%

Sales in South Palm Springs did well in comparison with November 2010, but not as good when compared with December 2009.  Actual quantity sold was up 5 units over both last month and last year at 35 vs. 30 for the earlier periods.  And the price range looked okay too,  just a slight drop when compared with November, but a pretty big drop, especially in the higher end price point, when compared with last year.  The average price paid was a drop from November 2010, but not a huge one.  However, the average price paid in comparison with last year was a big drop at $35,000 less per unit.  A new category this month is the average square feet per unit sold, and in South Palm Springs it is 1,300.  The price per square foot went up nicely compared with last month.  As you can see the average size of a unit sold in November was really large, thereby lowering the price per square foot.  However, the price per square foot was also a pretty big drop from last year.  Days on market dropped a lot from November, but went up from December of 2009.  Percent of all sales that are distressed properties, while not a huge percent at 31%, have steadily been going up when compared with last year and last month.  All in all sales in South Palm Springs are looking decent in comparison with last month, but not as good when compared with last year.

Central Palm Springs - Between Ramon Road and Vista Chino

	December 2010	November 2010	December 2009
Condos Sold	18	19	22
Price Range	$57,000 - $575,000	$50,500 - $350,000	$84,900 - 575,000
Average Price	$149,161	$168,184	$253,291
Average Square Feet	1,177	1,196	1,395
Price/Square Foot	$120.95	$138.71	$174.81
Days on Market	91	101	113
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	67%	37%	55%

Unlike South Palm Springs, sales in Central Palm Springs were down from last month in addition to being a lot lower than last year.  Total sales were a slight drop at 18 units closed vs. 19 last month and 22 from December 2009.  Price range was actually pretty good, with the high mark being equal with last year's mark at $575,000.  However, it's downhill from here.  The average price per unit is a drop from November 2010 and a big drop of over $100,000 per unit from December 2009.  The average size of a condo sold is smaller than last year's average, so that helps some, but when we examine the price per square foot this is also a huge drop from last year and a slight drop from last month.  The only highlight in the picture for Central Palm Springs is that number of days on the market has steadily been dropping from last year and last month.  Sales of distressed properties (REOs and Short Sales) represent whopping 2/3 of all sold condos in Central Palm Springs, a large increase from last month and last year.

North Palm Springs - North of Vista Chino

	December 2010	November 2010	December 2009
Condos Sold	12	7	13
Price Range	$41,000 - $211,000	$35,000 - $168,000	$50,000 - $295,000
Average Price	$91,917	$80,361	$140,746
Average Square Feet	908	912	978
Price/Square Foot	$95.96	$84.81	$132.26
Days on Market	73	75	277
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	75%	86%	38%

Sales figures in North Palm Springs look similar to South Palm Springs this month...better than November 2010 but worse than December 2009.  The number of condos sold was pretty good at 12...a big jump over last month and almost equal with last year.  Price range was also better than November 2010, but not as high as December 2009.  Ditto for average price sold which was better than last month, but not nearly as good as last year.  This is the one zone in Palm Springs where the size of the average condo more or less remained unchanged.  Price per square foot was higher than last month, but not as high as last year.  (I'm sounding like a broken record!)  The high point of North Palm Springs is that condos are selling more quickly...equal with the pace of November 2010 and a lot faster than December 2009.  Unfortunately, distressed sales equal 3/4 of all condos sold in the zone, which is better than last month, but double the percentage from December 2009.

As I've said several times in this analysis sales appear to be doing better compared with the recent past (last month), but not as good compared with the more distant past (last year).  It may be too soon to make a stand, but perhaps the numbers are starting to level off and prices are not dropping any more.  It will be interesting to follow the sales figures as we move in to 2011 and see what happens.  There's never a dull moment!

If you have any questions or comments regarding this data and/or the analysis please feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you!

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

November 2010 Sales Analysis

The following sales analysis compares November 2010 sales data with data from the preceding month (October 2010) and the previous year (November 2009). Data is analyzed by region in the city: South Palm Springs, Central Palm Springs, and North Palm Springs.

South Palm Springs - South of Ramon Road

	November 2010	October 2010	November 2009
Condos Sold	30	29	29
Price Range	$70,000 - $370,000	$59,000 - $435,000	$50,000 - $359,000
Average Price	$191,800	$186,471	$188,560
Median Price	$203,500	$172,250	$187,000
Price/Square Foot	$116.68	$128.47	$138.68
Days on Market	150	111	145
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	27%	28%	48%

Sales in South Palm Springs held their own vs. sales in the previous month and year.  Quantity was almost equal, with 30 this November and 29 for both last month and last year.  The range of prices paid was also mostly similar with previous periods, although the high of October 2010 was not quite reached this month.  The average price paid in November was a bit higher than last month and year, but the median price paid in November was considerably higher than the previous periods.  The price per square foot did drop over last month and last year by about 10-15%.  The number of days on the market jumped up from 111 last month to 150 in November.  It was mostly flat with last year.  The percent of sales that were distressed properties was mostly equal with last month (27% vs. 28%), but a big drop from last year.


Central Palm Springs - Between Ramon Road and Vista Chino

	November 2010	October 2010	November 2009
Condos Sold	19	15	15
Price Range	$50,500 - $350,000	$29,500 - $400,000	$65,650 - $332,000
Average Price	$168,184	$155,745	$181,597
Median Price	$163,000	$125,000	$157,000
Price/Square Foot	$138.71	$127.83	$150.36
Days on Market	101	142	123
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	37%	73%	40%

Sales in Central Palm Springs were also fairly consistent with the previous periods.  The number of sales did jump up over the preceding year and month...19 vs. 15 for each of the previous periods.  The range of prices paid was more or less in line with the previous periods.  The average price in November was about halfway between what it was last month and last year.  The median price was actually higher than either of the previous periods.  The price per square foot was also about halfway between the numbers for last month and last year.  Days on market was down from both periods, but particularly so when compared with last month.  More good news comes in the distressed sales arena where total percent of properties sold that were distressed dropped down to 37% from 73% last month.

North Palm Springs - North of Vista Chino

	November 2010	October 2010	November 2009
Condos Sold	7	15	15
Price Range	$35,000 - $168,800	$37,500 - $197,500	$44,550 - $276,900
Average Price	$80,361	$118,079	$131,243
Median Price	$57,500	$125,000	$105,500
Price/Square Foot	$84.81	$112.33	$110.98
Days on Market	75	62	102
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	86%	73%	67%

However, sales in North Palm Springs saw the worst numbers of all regions in Palm Springs.  At 7, the number of condos sold is less than half what it was last month and last year.  The price range for sold condos is in line with the preceding month and year for the low price, but there were not many more expensive condos sold in November 2010.  This fact is shown dramatically in the average and median prices, which are considerably lower than last month and year.  The average price per square foot is also considerably lower than the earlier periods.  The only good news here is that days on market was a bit higher than last month, but a lot lower than last year.  And as incredible as it seems the percentage of distressed properties keeps going up in North Palm Springs...now at 86% of all condos sold!


The good news is that sales in South and Central Palm Springs are holding their own when compared with previous sales periods.  There are a lot of transactions happening and the pricing is at least on par with last year.  North Palm Springs is a bit disappointing this month with low sales numbers, prices, and percent distressed properties.  In general, South and Central Palm Springs are more desirable areas and have larger more expensive condos than North Palm Springs, so perhaps the market is strengthening in these areas before it moves on to North Palm Springs.  Time will tell...

If you have any questions or comments regarding this data and/or the analysis please feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you!

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

Preparing for condo life.

At Palm Springs Condo Living we encourage people to purchase condos because it's such a desirable and easy way to experience the Palm Springs lifestyle.  However, it's not for everybody.  With this in mind for this week's blog I'm going to offer a link to an article I read in the Washington Post that spells out many of the good and not so good point about condo living.  Please read it and let me know what you think.

Click on this link http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/05/AR2008090501825.html

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

October 2010 Sales Analysis

The following sales analysis compares October 2010 sales data with data from the preceding month (September 2010) and the previous year (October 2009). Data is analyzed by region in the city: South Palm Springs, Central Palm Springs, and North Palm Springs.

South Palm Springs - South of Ramon Road

	October 2010	September 2010	October 2009
Condos Sold	29	28	28
Price Range	$59,000 - $435,000	$29,000 - $350,000	$61,000 - $440,000
Average Price	$186,471	$150,779	$170,782
Median Price	$172,250	$132,000	$137,500
Price/Square Foot	$128.47	$108.71	$134.34
Days on Market	111	115	80
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	28%	43%	36%

Sales in South Palm Springs were mostly flat during the most recent period compared with the earlier periods.  The range of prices paid was also mostly similar with previous periods, but the average and median prices did see an increase over last month and last year.  The price per square foot did drop over last year, but increased over last month.  The number of days on the market did see a big jump from 80 last year to 111 this year.  The percent of sales that were distressed properties dropped from last month and also from last year.  Overall, not a bad picture for South Palm Springs given where the market has been for the past couple years.


Central Palm Springs - Between Ramon Road and Vista Chino

	October 2010	September 2010	October 2009
Condos Sold	15	11	12
Price Range	$29,500 - $400,000	$30,000 - $400,000	$69,000 - $364,900
Average Price	$155,745	$143,409	$206,081
Median Price	$125,000	$105,000	$204,000
Price/Square Foot	$127.83	$133.89	$152.11
Days on Market	142	107	169
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	73%	64%	25%

The scenario in Central Palm Springs was not as rosy as South Palm Springs.  The number of sales did jump up over the preceding year and month.  The range of prices paid was more or less in line with the previous periods.  However, both the average and median prices were down dramatically from last year.  The price per square foot was also down compared with last year and last month.  The days on market was down from last year, but up from last month.  But the big news is that distressed sales represented 73% of all condo sales in the region, almost 3 times more than 1 year ago.


North Palm Springs - North of Vista Chino

	October 2010	September 2010	October 2009
Condos Sold	15	10	7
Price Range	$37,500 - $197,500	$42,000 - $235,000	$48,000 - $195,000
Average Price	$118,079	$94,445	$105,843
Median Price	$125,000	$66,350	$105,000
Price/Square Foot	$112.33	$93.81	$110.99
Days on Market	62	117	51
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	73%	80%	57%

Sales in North Palm Springs actually were not too bad during the most recent period.  The number of condos sold is double what it was last year and 50% greater than the previous month.  The price range for sold condos is in line with the preceding month and year.  Average and median prices, however, experienced increases, especially over the preceding month.  The average price per square foot is also higher than the earlier periods.  Days on market was a bit higher than last year, but a lot lower than just a month earlier.  The big news here, as with Central Palm Springs, is the amount of distressed sales...73% of all condo sales were distressed in the area, a small drop from last month, but a fairly good size jump from last year.

The good news is that in all regions of Palm Springs the number of sales is increasing or at least equal with last year.  As somebody who's out in the field daily this makes sense to me...it just feels like more transactions are happening.  Pricing, however, is hit or miss, with increases in South and North Palm Springs, but decreases in the Central area.  Also problematic are the percentage of distressed sales, which are lower in South Palm Springs, but quite high in Central and North Palm Springs.  All of this is indicative of a still volatile market.


If you have any questions or comments regarding this data and/or the analysis please feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you!

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

The Condo Buying Process: Foreclosures

In last week's blog I wrote about the sales figures for September 2010.  Although I already knew that foreclosures and short sales represent a large part of our business today, I was reawakened to that fact by my examination of the sales statistics for condos.  Depending on the region up to 80% of all condo sales were foreclosures or short sales in September, and I don't see that number dropping radically in the foreseeable future.  For that reason, I thought I would share some information regarding the purchase of foreclosure condos for this week's blog.  Below are a couple issues I think should be kept in mind when in escrow to purchase a foreclosure condo.

Addendums

Typically a bank-owned foreclosure will have an addendum to the purchase contract that both buyers and sellers (the owner bank) will need to sign.  The addendum supersedes the purchase contract, meaning that if there is a contradiction between the two documents the Addendum will have precedence.  This is a very important fact because the purchase contract is written by the buyer's real estate agent from the buyer's perspective but the Addendum comes from the bank and written to be advantageous to the bank.  I strongly urge buyers read and understand what they are signing in the Addendum before they actually sign it. 

One other feature of Addendums is that they have passive contingency removal dates.  A passive contingency removal means that as the calendar date comes and goes the contingency will be removed automatically.  In contrast, when dealing with a traditional sales transaction, the buyer (or seller) will have to actually remove the contingency in writing, that it doesn't just get removed automatically.   For this reason it's very important to keep an eye on the calendar with relation to the contingency removal periods on foreclosures.

What do you do when the contingency is about to be removed and you're not ready yet?  Ask for an extension!  This happens a lot, especially for certain contingencies.  Loan and HOA Document contingency periods are two that are typically shorter than they need to be and therefore ripe for an extension.  As long as the extension is requested before the contingency has come and gone and is for a reasonable amount of time (let's say another week) the seller should be okay with this option.  Remember, the bank wants to sell this property or they wouldn't have accepted your offer in the first place, so a reasonable request will probably be accepted.

Repairs

When I'm working with a buyer on an offer to submit on a foreclosure condo I usually recommend that the buyer negotiate hard up front to get the best price.  The reason for this is because after the property is in escrow the seller bank usually doesn't reduce price at all.  Contrary to this, in a traditional sale if the home inspection discovers a few issues the buyer and seller can come back to the table to negotiate what will be repaired or reduced in price.  With a forclosure sale I'd usually not recommend asking for repairs on minor issues.  However, if a home inspection discovers a big problem the buyer should always put in a request for repair and see what happens.  I recently conducted a home inspection on a foreclosure condo and the process found that the entire heating and air conditioning system was worn out.  I got a specialist to give a price estimate and I submitted this to the seller bank for them to repair.  They don't usually do the repair and instead offer money back or a reduced price.  In this instance the bank could see that if these buyers didn't buy the property they'd be stuck with a property with a defective heating and air conditioning system so they accepted a reduced price close to the estimate of the new system.  So again, although a bank usually won't negotiate further on price after an in-escrow price has been agreed upon certain circumstances do warrant further price negotiation.

In today's real estate market foreclosures are still very common.  Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about purchasing your very own Palm Springs Condo.

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693

September 2010 Sales Analysis

The following sales analysis compares September 2010 sales data with data from the preceding month (August 2010) and the previous year (September 2009). Data is analyzed by region in the city: South Palm Springs, Central Palm Springs, and North Palm Springs.

South Palm Springs - South of Ramon Road

	September 2010	August 2010	September 2009
Condos Sold	28	31	23
Price Range	$29,000 - $350,000	$36,500 - $388,000	$69,000 - $456,000
Average Price	$150,779	$173,203	$191,424
Median Price	$132,000	$150,000	$170,000
Price/Square Foot	$108.71	$121.77	$146.30
Days on Market	115	110	119
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	43%	55%	13%

Overall sales in South Palm Springs are down 10% in September 2010 vs. August 2010, but they are up 22% over September 2009.  All of the pricing information, however, has dropped.  The price range this September is similar to August, but it is a significant drop over the price range experienced last year.  The average sales price this September is down 15% over August and is down 27% over September of last year.  The median sales price figures are similar with a 14% drop vs. August and a 29% drop vs. last year.  The average price per square foot is down 12% compared with August and down 35% compared with September of 2009.  The number of days on the market are similar for all three time periods...115 days, 110 days, and 119 days respectively.  The percentage of properties that are distressed did drop 22% vs. August, but the percentage of properties that are distressed had a huge increase of over 3 times the number sold in September 2009.


Central Palm Springs - Between Ramon Road and Vista Chino

	September 2010	August 2010	September 2009
Condos Sold	11	9	13
Price Range	$30,000 - $400,000	$59,500 - $175,000	$72,000 - $647,000
Average Price	$143,409	$110,049	$210,138
Median Price	$105,000	$105,500	$160,000
Price/Square Foot	$133.89	$116.63	$170.96
Days on Market	107	176	135
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	64%	67%	46%

The number of condos sold in Central Palm Springs were consistent with last month and last year, experiencing a 22% increase over the sales of August 2010, but an 18% decrease over September 2009.  The price range of all condos sold was also in the middle in comparison with last month and last year.  The price range was a lot higher than the dismal August 2010 results, but not nearly as high as September 2009.  The average price was 30% higher in September than August, but 32% lower than September 2009.  The median price was even with August at approximately $105,000, but both of these were a drop of 35% over September 2009.  Average price per square foot increased 15% compared with August, but decreased 22% compared with September 2009.  The number of days on the market dropped a whopping  40% compared with August and also dropped by 21% compared with September 2009.  Percentage of properties sold that are distressed stayed similar in September and August 2010 at approximately 2/3 of all sales, and this was an increase in comparison with last year when the distressed sales was under 50%.

North Palm Springs - North of Vista Chino

	September 2010	August 2010	September 2009
Condos Sold	10	6	15
Price Range	$42,000 - $235,000	$113,500 - $250,000	$48,000 - $232,000
Average Price	$94,445	$164,367	$85,340
Median Price	$66,350	$153,750	$60,500
Price/Square Foot	$93.81	$142.55	$119.12
Days on Market	117	92	53
% Distressed Sales (REO or Short Sale)	80%	33%	53%

In North Palm Springs the increase in sales (66%) over last month looks really dramatic, but with only 6 sales in August anything would look good!  Number of sales compared with 2009 were down 33%.  The price range of condos sold across all time periods is similar, although in August there were no inexpensive condos sold in the area which impacted sales figures considerably.  For example, the average price in September compared with September of 2009 was up 11%, but compared with August it was down 43%.  Median price is similar...an increase of 10% compared with last year, but a 57% drop from August.  Price per square foot dropped 35% vs. August and also dropped 21% vs. last year.  Days on market increased in September 21% compared with August and also increased a whopping 121% compared with last September.  The big news in North Palm Springs, though, is the number of distressed sales...80% of all condo sales in the region were distressed in September vs. 33% in August and 53% last September.

I'm sounding like a broken record, but Palm Springs is still experiencing a very volatile condo market.  Pricing in South Palm Springs was considerably lower than last year, although the number sold was higher.  Similarly, Central Palm Springs experienced lower sales and pricing compared with last year, although there were better sales than in August.  North Palm Springs was the main point of difference with last year in the region.  Sales were similar or even better than last year, although considerably worse than August 2010.  The only issue that is similar across the region concerns the percentage of distressed sales.  More and more, across all areas, the condos that are sold are either foreclosures or short sales.  For the foreseeable future this trend should continue.  This means it will still be a challenging market for sellers.  But for buyers, it's a buyer's market and the savvy buyer can get an incredible deal on a Palm Springs Condo.


If you have any questions or comments regarding this data and/or the analysis please feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you!

Alan Wilke
Condos@PalmSpringsCondoLiving.Com
760-464-6693