San Diego Condos, Homes and Real Estate News

We certainly live in an interesting time in San Diego Real Estate history, but why would you ever want to invest in real estate in such a volatile market?  Well, precisely because it is a volatile Real Estate market might be the answer in your situation.

Remember the old saying "Buy low, Sell High"?

Prudent Real Estate property investment has historically been an area where investors have reaped steady profits with minimal exposure to risk.  What we have seen recently is a textbook example of what can happen when good sense is non-existent!  But on the flip side timing is everything and in certain areas of the Downtown San Diego condo market is rich in properties that can be purchased at attractive prices.   

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Before You Start Make Sure:

• Your finances are in order
• You were already thinking of taking funds from low interest or high risk investments and moving it to another financial option
• You have the resources and patience to buy "right"

Read Also:  Find A Good Mortgage: Downtown San Diego Condos

Why Real Estate?

• Downtown San Diego Real Estate is unique in that as you pay down your mortgage your equity increases accordingly
• Over time the rents you realize will increase, while expenses can remain pretty stable
• Tax ramifications can be considerable when you consider deductibles, deferrals and depreciation

Read Also:  Earn Money Buying Downtown San Diego Condos

Even if you wanted to, the remaining lending institutions have gone back to the conservative lending practices that never should have been abandoned.  In this market, Downtown San Diego Condo investors today will need at least 20% down and be able to show up to six months of operating cash reserves.  If you are able to do that, there are some incredible opportunities in the Downtown San Diego condo market.   Call us today at (800) 221-2210 to discuss your Real Estate needs.

WHY DON'T SOME CONDOS SELL?

Many of San Diego's sellers often ask me why their homes don't sell. With over 27 years of experience and more than 5,000 closed sales in my career I have noted the following reasons homes don't sell.

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LOCATION

Unfortunately, one of the main reasons Downtown San Diego homes don't sell is often their location. Especially in a buyer's market a poorly located home will not sell. If it is too close to the freeway, impacted by railroad tracks or even located on a busy street it becomes more difficult to attract a buyer. The only thing that can be done to overcome a poor Downtown San Diego location is to attempt to compensate for the location by pricing it aggressively.

Read Also:  How To Sell Your Downtown San Diego Condos

FLOOR PLAN

Somehow in San Diego's Downtown Condominiums the developers seem to always have some challengingly designed floor plans in every building. These floor plans probably sold sight unseen when the San Diego real estate boom was in full swing, but now that the cycle has cooled these plans become more difficult to sell. The fault may be one of many reasons why floorplans are undesirable;

• poor view
• small secondary bedrooms
• too few assigned parking spaces

Again the only solution is to price the San Diego Condo low enough to overcome the design flaws.

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THE ASKING PRICE IS TOO HIGH

There is an old axiom in real estate about "location, location, location". Frankly as we discussed in the first section location is important, but the location and all other issues can be overcome by the real real estate axiom "price, price, price". There are many negative things that can occur from over-pricing.

• A property sits on the market too long gives buyers the impression that something is wrong with the property. 
• You lose buyers that should be looking at your home, but pass since they or their Realtor® don't find it because it is not located in the price range they are targeting.
• The longer a property languishes on the market the more apt the San Diego seller is to receive a "low-ball" offer, if any offer at all.  Also the more likely the seller is to sell it at a price lower than it is worth. Many sellers want to be able to "come down" when they get an offer, but you have to generate the offer before you can even come down.

Read Also:  Getting Your San Diego Downtown home SOLD!

SAN DIEGO CONDO CONDITION

The majority of San Diego buyers want to purchase a condominium and not have to do any work at all. They want to turn the key and move in their belongings. Having a property listed that is in need of fixing greatly limits the number of buyers that are willing to purchase or look at the listing. Probably ten (10%) percent of buyers are looking for "fixer uppers" and those buyers anticipate buying your home at such a discount that they can fix it up and still make money themselves. Builders make model homes, car dealers wash and wax every car on the lot and so intelligent sellers also need to create a good first impression by staging the home, removing clutter and excess furniture, replacing soiled carpet and painting dingy walls.

Read Also:  5 Tips That Will Help You Sell Your Condos: Downtown San Diego Condos

SELLING "AS-IS"

Most buyers regard "AS-IS" homes as too challenging to deal with. The seller may only mean that it needs carpet and paint and that the seller does not want to undertake those repairs, but to a buyer it screams out "cracked slab, damaged goods". These properties may often be a good deal for the right buyer, but advertising "AS-IS" is generally not a smart choice.

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THE LISTING AGENT SELECTED

Many Downtown San Diego real estate agents in the industry are known to other agents as "difficult agents". This often means that they do not return calls or they are slow to respond to offers or they keep a larger share of the commission and offer to the cooperating broker less than the customary three (3%) percent.

The best listing agents use numerous and aggressive marketing techniques. This is especially critical in a "down market". Websites such as www.realtor.com; www.zillow.com; and www.trulia.com are frequently visited by home buyers long before they ever contact an agent for assistance. Mailing to surrounding properties is often a great technique since many people have friends looking to move into the same condominium or neighborhood. Make sure your agent's company is connected to a relocation company with out-of-town buyers. Lastly do not  ever overlook that old standby the open house.

Read Also:  Prepare Your Downtown San Diego Condos For Sale

THE REAL ESTATE MARKET

Knowing the market you are in is critical to the success of selling your home.

• If you are in a seller's market, like San Diego experienced from 1998 until late 2005 you can be more aggressive since there is low inventory and more buyers which, in turn drives up prices.
• A buyer's market, such as we are experiencing in the San Diego Downtown Condominium marketplace, is just the opposite with more homes than buyers and lots of downward pressure on prices.
• Lastly a stable market, the most rare of all markets, is where there are an equal number of buyers and sellers and prices are generally stable.

Read Also:  Why Isn't Your Home Selling? : Downtown San Diego Condos

When interviewing for an agent find out what the average market time is for homes that are selling and when you reach that point revisit with your agent what they are doing to overcome any of the challenges and if they turn out to be the challenge make a change. 

Ask any resident of downtown San Diego condos to define one of the biggest buzzwords of the 21st century, "sustainability," and almost assuredly you'll get 10 different answers, ranging from renewable energy sources to environmental management to eco-efficiency. Downtown San Diego condos are beginning to respond to the future demand for sustainable living. Even so, many people living in downtown San Diego condos are concerned, and willing to do their part, they just can't seem to get solid answers to questions regarding environmental solutions.

But that shouldn't come as a shock. After all, the shopping center industry struggles mightily to define the term "lifestyle center" nearly 10 years after it was first coined.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary does little to clarify the meaning of sustainability. It defines this new-age word as "a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged." Talk about fuzzy.

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The East Village District of Downtown San Diego offers an abudance of variety these days for any condo owner. With new restaurants, Petco Park, and the upcoming Street Scene music festival, East Village's popularity is rising and its real estate is getting hot!

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With daily average of the California desert and Arizona being over 100 degrees this hot August, where do the over-heated residents look to when they need a ocean front escape? None other than San Diego of course!

Desert residents are seeking out homes in coastal San Diego, where they can cool off with San Diego's cooler weather and beautiful beaches. Downtown San Diego offers the condos and homes that Arizona residents seek and can one day own with the guidance  conveniently located office of Gregg and Debbie Neuman in the heart of Downtown's Gaslamp District. A vibrant community in itself, the Gaslamp offers a preview of the rich culture, gourmet dining experiences, and lively nightlife of downtown San Diego.

While Arizona visitors make the transition from being a visitor to a homeowner in Downtown San Diego, a simple drive or even a short walk from the Neuman and Neuman office can take them to a Padres baseball game at Petco Park, shopping at Horton Plaza, a visit with Shamu at Sea World, and more!

In fact the prices for real estate and condos in San Diego have held steady and the inventory is vast. It's your time, future San Diego home and condo owners, to strike gold. Neuman & Neuman have the resources that you need to buy a new, coastal, and cooler Downtown San Diego condo!

Earth Day Is Every Day For Owners of Downtown San Diego Condos

Owners of downtown San Diego condos have been living green for quite some time, and it shows. School aged children of downtown San Diego condos are seeking ways to green their life for a better planet. Although they are learning these practices in school, the real learning begins at home. Here are a few ways that you can live by example.

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Del Mar Racetrack's 69th Season Livens up San Diego and its Real Estate Market

July 16^th kicked off the 69^th season of the Del Mar Races with an opening day filled with the same amount of pizzazz and extravagancy as always. San Diego, buzzing with the race track vibes, is now filled with all the usual pomp and pageantry spectators expect when they go "Where the Turf Meets the Surf." 

An ideal time for locals to head out of town, however, or put their second home to use, as the value of San Diego rentals more than double in value when out of towners come to San Diego for racetrack enjoyment. Downtown San Diego shows as a prime locations for many as it offers the city's prime dining and night all while remaining 20 minutes away from the races.

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San Diego's Historic Gaslamp Quarter has become one of San Diego's most popular neighborhoods, booming with business and hot attractions for all ages. Today, the Gaslamp Quarter offers something for any taste, whether it be theatre, upscale shops or fine dining. This neighborhood is vibrant and alive with the sights and sounds of America's Finest City.

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What you need to know to protect your condo and your family in the case of a California Earthquake

When preparing for an earthquake in your downtown San Diego condo, there are precautions that you need to take even before the bolting down of pictures and paintings on the wall.

Your condominium association insurance covers the condominium building, commonly owned property, and liability insurance for the association. But it doesn't cover losses to your unit as a result of a burglary, if water damage ruins your living room walls, or if someone slips on your wet kitchen floor and is injured.

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Tricks That Will Make Your Downtown San Diego Condos Look Huge!

You don't have to knock the walls down in your downtown San Diego condos to create more space. Unless you live in a custom-built downtown San Diego condo with a luxurious bath and dressing room, you probably wish your bathroom were larger. Without adding any more square footage, you might feel less cramped if you use some of our tips to make your small bathroom look and feel larger in your downtown San Diego condos.

It's true that a small bathroom can feel cozy and intimate. But it can also feel claustrophobic and depressing. Depending on your decorating style, it can be quiet and sophisticated, charming, or sparkling like a jewel box.

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How can you be sure that your downtown San Diego condos have healthy air? If you have allergies, headaches, or breathing discomfort, it could be caused by the things that you have used to decorate your downtown San Diego condos. A lilt bit of research and caution can play a big role in the quality of the air that you and your family breathe in your downtown San Diego condos.

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Solar power heats up downtown San Diego condos. Of course, the use of solar power to deliver heat and energy to your downtown San Diego condos is considered to be a new concept. But these days, finder ways to live green in downtown San Diego condos is becoming more of a necessity than it was back in the 70's when it first debuted for residential use. Now, more than ever, entire communities and buildings are joining together to save energy and utilize solar power.

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Convincing 40 Downtown San Diego Condo Owners to Go Green

This company's offer is simple: if a town, or one of many  downtown San Diego condos can get a sufficient number of residents to sign up for rooftop solar systems they receive a 20% to 30% cut off the local market price of a home solar system. The company typically aims to sell roughly 175 kilowatts to each community or to one of downtown San Diego condos. Since an average-size household in the U.S. can usually support at least a four-kilowatt solar system, 44 homes becomes the standard target. Commercial buildings and businesses can also be a part of the mix.

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Downtown San Diego Condos taking a few hints from green building, and it seems that the trend is not so trendy after-all. Green living is here to stay as far as downtown San Diego condos are concerned. For those skeptics who were convinced that green building was a mere passing fad, a new survey by National Real Estate Investor and its sister publications may prove otherwise. The survey reveals that not only is green building gaining momentum as a commercial real estate, and downtown San Diego condo strategy, but it is also vying for status as the new industry standard.

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