We were a bit surprised recently to hear someone's surprise.
The surprise was at the recent sale of a large Mediterranean on a flat walkstreet at 401 4th (4br/5ba, 4450 sqft.).
List price: $4.500M. Sold price: $4.775M.
Sky high? Yes and no.
Sure, that's a lot of money for a house without substantial…
We were a bit surprised recently to hear someone's surprise.
The surprise was at the recent sale of a large Mediterranean on a flat walkstreet at 401 4th (4br/5ba, 4450 sqft.).
List price: $4.500M. Sold price: $4.775M.
Sky high? Yes and no.
Sure, that's a lot of money for a house without substantial views, and a lot more than one might have paid on the walkstreets even two years ago. Still, it's utterly consistent with the trend in the South End. Maybe "low."
We're in a submarket where lots are selling in the 3's – more on that in a moment – and the two most recent sales of fully built homes occurred off-market and at much higher prices. Specifically:
Almost a year ago now, in December 2014, an off-market sale of 429 8th (4br/5ba, 4120 sq. ft.) closed for $4.950M.
That's a 2010 build that had traded for $3.500M in those tender days before the current bull market.
So there was a precious home in "today's" beachy styles nearly hitting $5M.
In late January this year, 440 7th St. (4br/5ba, 3900 sq. ft.) came in at $5.500M.
440 7th is a terrific corner-lot property with Ingleside running along one side. It's a 2011 build that first sold for $3.650M.
So, gosh, the 4th Street Mediterranean was actually a step down from both of those sales.
Maybe that's specifically because 401 4th is a Mediterranean, a home style which is fading somewhat in town. But we did say here at MBC in our September open-house post:
"While we've seen plenty of Sand Section 3-story homes, we liked the extra openness of the top level, including the way the connection of the front living room to that deck. The walkstreet level also has an unusually spacious den/media room opening to the walkstreet, which was sunken a bit by design to allow for higher ceilings. That works."
Meantime, lot values on these flat (or even slightly hilly!) walkstreets east of Highland crept into the 3's with a bang earlier this year with the sale at 316 4th St. [ed note: "crept with a bang?" fix.]
That sale in March 2015 at $3.770M blew far past all expectations, demolishing the seemingly rich $3.300M list price. But this is how comps get reset.
Similar sales prior had been:
401 5th St. at $2.710M in September 2014.
440 8th St. at $2.700M in August 2014.
Somewhere in between the prior comps and 316 4th, you 328 6th close for $3.315M, a price that certainly reflected enormous land value. But that home had a "must have" charm as-is, even with just 2br and 1300 sqft.
You could say that the buyers paid land value and got a nice house to go with it.
Look for a lot now in the South End family walkstreets, and you can expect to be asked for something in the mid-3's.
And if $5M-ish numbers are going to be the norm for resales, that kind of land value makes sense.
As for the next new or spectacular home that comes available... watch out.
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See our prior 2015 posts on the flat family walkstreets of the South End:
"A $3.3M Keeper" (April 2015)
"South End Costs Rising Still" (March 2015)
Please see our blog disclaimer.
Listings presented above are supplied via the MLS and are brokered by a variety of agents and firms, not Dave Fratello or Edge Real Estate Agency, unless so stated with the listing. Images and links to properties above lead to a full MLS display of information, including home details, lot size, all photos, and listing broker and agent information and contact information.