If you didn’t know, the city of Rancho Cordova is home to several stellar monuments. Between appraisal inspections today I snapped the following images of a Pony Express memorial on Folsom Boulevard next to the Valero gas station on Dawes. This historic monument is an important piece of local history, yet it’s quite easy to miss because of its location in front of a vacant lot and next to commercial properties (gas station and Rosie’s Country Kitchen).

Does anyone know how many other Pony Express monuments there are in Rancho Cordova? And where are they located? What other tributes to history can one find in Rancho Cordova? Let’s see who knows local history. 

I put together a series of city-wide graphs to show the past three years of home sales within Folsom, El Dorado Hills, Rancho Cordova & Citrus Heights. It’s always interesting to me to take a look at a market-wide graphs to try and make sense of what property values have done over a specified time period. When looking at data like this, I ask questions like: What is the lower end of the market doing? Have there been any changes in the upper end? What does the overall trend look like? Declining? Stabilizing after a decline? Increasing? What types of circumstances may have triggered a change in the overall price levels during various times over the past three years? New laws or regulations? Unemployment? Loan rates adjusting? Economic factors? Zoning?

All graphs below are based on information from Sacramento Metrolist between 08/28/2006 to 08/27/2009. The points on the graphs represent single family residential detached units.

Number of Sales in the Past 3 Years:

• Folsom:  2,183
• El Dorado Hills:  1,665
• Rancho Cordova:  1,732
• Citrus Heights:  2,374

What do you see? What does it look like the market has done in the areas below? Does anything stand out to you or surprise you? What do you notice about the higher end of the market on all of the graphs?

Folsom Real  Estate Market Trends: 

 El Dorado Hills Real Estate Market Trends

Rancho Cordova Real Estate Market Trends:

Citrus Heights Real Estate Market Trends:

City-wide data is important to look at because what is happening in the overall city can sometimes have an impact on smaller niches and portions of housing within the same city. This is not always true, but it’s relevant to at least be aware of what is happening in the overall market so that we can more readily decipher a city’s sub-markets.

On the other hand, one of the glaring downfalls of city-wide data is that information is too general to really draw neighborhood-specific conclusions from. As we all know, each city or area typically has a host of different types of neighborhoods, and these pockets of real estate can vary drastically from each other in terms of buyer perception, price range, and many other factors. For example, Rancho Cordova has two main zip codes and the 95742 zip code (Anatolia) is far different from most of the 95670 zip code (everything else). Or properties near Old Town Folsom may have weathered the market differently than those in Empire Ranch. Or Governor’s Village and Serrano in El Dorado Hills may show differing market trends because of location, square footage, year built, or some other factor.

With all that being said, I am very curious to hear your observations and insight about the city-wide trend graphs above. Feel free to comment above (just below the post title)  or email info@lundquistcompany.com. If you are in need of additional and more specific research or an appraisal, let’s talk soon (916-595-3735).

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com Real Estate Market Trends: Past 36 Months of Sales in Folsom, El Dorado Hills, Rancho Cordova & Citrus Heights (August 2006 – August 2009)

I shot this video below earlier while in the field in between inspections. There are quite a few people searching for information on the “Capital Village” neighborhood in Rancho Cordova and this site is getting a good amount of hits on the subject. I figured it would be relevant then to shoot a little informative video about this Rancho Cordova subdivision.

Let me know if you have any questions about Capital Village. You can contact me at 916-595-3735, www.lundquistcompany.com.

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com A Video Tour of “Capital Village” in Rancho Cordova: June 2009

Here is a quick post to show what you can buy a house for in the 95670 zip code in Rancho Cordova these days. It looks like there are some good deals, huh? The 95670 zip code covers the North side of the freeway (”Riverside” portion) as well as some of the Southern side of Highway 50 (Stone Creek, Capital Village, some older tracts). There are currently 193 listings in MLS for detached single family residential properties.

If you have any questions about the Rancho Cordova real estate market, feel free to give us a call at 916-595-3735 and see www.lundquistcompany.com or www.ranchocordovaappraiser.com

“Anatolia” is a newly-built HOA community in Southern Rancho Cordova located within the 95742 zip code. There are roughly 2000 housing units which have been built since 2005 and construction is still ongoing. Below you will find some of the latest real estate market trends in Anatolia as of today’s date.

The following graphs take the past thirteen months of sales into consideration and are based upon data provided through Sacramento Metrolist.

“Anatolia” in Rancho Cordova Real Estate Market Data:

• 347 sales over past 12 months
• 80 sales over past 90 days
• Average of 26.67 sales per month over past 90 days
• 201 current Listings
• 7.5 months of housing supply currently listed on the market (due to aggressive pricing, this inventory may not necessarily be on the market that long. In fact, the previous 90 days had 8.5 months of inventory and then the six months prior to that had 12.4 months of inventory. It would appear then that right now the inventory is decreasing).
• Median Sales Price over past 90 days: $288,000
• Median Sales Price over previous 90 days: $312,016
• Median current List Price: $275,000
• Median Listing Days on Market: 54

Please feel free to give your two cents, ask questions, or provide any supplementary information or data by commenting above. You are welcome to contact me for additional information and questions too at 916-595-3735 or www.lundquistcompany.com

I had a conversation today with a friend about Rancho Cordova real estate market trends and I made this graph to show her in an image of what words so often say – that the market has declined.

When making trend graphs in many local areas and cities in the Greater Sacramento Region, I often think the overall trend looks like a ski slope. This one above is maybe a bit more bunny-slope-like, but still, you get the point. If you have questions about the local real estate market, feel free to contact me at 916-595-3735 or www.lundquistcompany.com

A Closing Thought:  Looking at market trends doesn’t often times “bring gladness to the heart of man” so to speak (that was a quote from Chimay, if you follow), so let’s remember that relationships and so much of life can be wonderful even though home values aren’t much to brag about right now.

What’s been happening in the real estate market in the city of Rancho Cordova in 2009 so far? Below is a graph and some stats for you: 

Rancho Cordova Real Estate Market Trends in 2009:

• 179 total sales in MLS in 2009
• 77 current Active listings
• 129 current Short Sale listings
• 104 current Pending listings
• 99 of 179 sales were in the 95670 zip code
• 80 of 179 sales were in the 95742 zip code (Anatolia)
• Overall 2009 Median Sales Price for 95670:  $165,000
• Overall 2009 Median Sales Price for 95742:  $290,000
• Low Sales Price in 95670 in 2009:  $75,000
• High Sales Price in 95670 in 2009:  $420,000
• Low Sales Price in 95742 in 2009:  $220,000
• High Sales Price in 95742 in 2009:  $510,000

Property Taxes in Rancho Cordova (and Surrounding Counties):

While on the subject of Rancho Cordova, I wanted to say a few words on property taxes. When looking at my blog stats and what keywords people are typing in to get here, it is clear that property taxes are on the minds of fellow Cordovans as well as many locals in surrounding counties. There are quite a few people finding this blog by searching for things like “How to Lower Property Taxes in Rancho Cordova”, “City Taxes in Rancho Cordova”, “Stockton Property Taxes”, or “Placer County Property Taxes” (etc…) 

I hope the following information proves to be helpful:

1.Our local cities (including Rancho Cordova) do not collect property taxes. Property taxes are handled through the local Assessor’s Office (for Rancho Cordova, that would be the Sacramento County Assessor’s Office).

2. The Sacramento County Assessor’s Office has not yet released their assessed values for 2009. Their assessed values will be based upon January 1, 2009. You should receive a letter in the mail if they determined that your property taxes have decreased based upon a decline in value last year.

3. When the Assessor’s Office releases their assessment of your property in hopefully May 2009, you can follow a specific set of steps to contest the level of your property taxes if you disagree with their opinion (this process is the same for anyone in Sacramento County or for that matter, anyone in surrounding counties. The exact dates for appealing taxes may differ, so you can check with your local Assessor with specific dates).

4. Read an article I wrote called “The Skinny on Lowering Property Taxes” that gives you the gist of what you need to do to contest your property taxes. I would be glad to help you with this process also. Please see www.SacramentoTaxAppeals.com for further information.

Local Assessor’s Offices in Surrounding Counties:

Let me know if you have any questions. I am glad to talk you through the process of appealing your property taxes in Rancho Cordova (or elsewhere) and help you understand what you need to do. Even if you are in a surrounding county that I also serve (Placer, Yolo, El Dorado, San Joaquin….), feel free to give me a call at 916-595-3735. Just last week I spoke with two property owners who found me through this blog and I was able to shed light on what they need to do for 2009 property taxes and also what they could have done in 2008.

One of the key factors for our market to improve and get back to “normal” is for the oversupply of foreclosure properties to be absorbed. Basically, it’s a messy real estate market out there in the Sacramento Region, and the mess has to be dealt with to move on.

Sacramento MLS allows us to analyze past sales as well as current listings to see how many properties sold as bank-owned or short sales and so on. What about future listings though? How many foreclosures will be coming to the market? Two interesting data sources for this type of information are Realquest and Realist.

RealQuest provides a free service online for anyone to view properties which are in “Pre-foreclosure” (coming soon to the market unless something happens to stop them – loan modification, catch up on payments, legislation, act of God, etc…), “Auction” (you’ve seen the commercials for the auction properties where “there are 2000 properties to sell off and they MUST sell this weekend”), and “Bank-Owned” (yes, the bank has title already).

This is what RealQuest looks like when doing a property search:

Realist is also a service of First American Core Logic and is commonly known as “Tax Records” for Sacramento Metrolist Subscribers (a paid service). Realist has a new “foreclosure activity” search feature that covers the same categories that RealQuest does. But when looking up data in both RealQuest and Realist, there is definitely a difference. Sometimes the data is very similar, but other times the figures are way off. This may be due to the way RealQuest and Realist categorize their information as well as the difference between a free service (RealQuest) and a paid service (Realist). Ultimately there could be a number of factors why the data is so different, but it’s not the purpose of this post to go into depth about that. The real thrust here is to show that there is a new wave of foreclosure properties coming and we ought to be prepared for that. Let’s continue to be full of hope as well as avoid a lifestyle of worrying, but let’s keep an eye on what is going on.

Market Data from RealQuest & Realist:

City of Folsom in Sacramento County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 296 (RealQuest) 186 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 46 (RealQuest) 79 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 158 (RealQuest) 262 (Realist)

City of Citrus Heights in Sacramento County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 309 (RealQuest) 435 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 57 (RealQuest) 161 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 134 (RealQuest) 330 (Realist)

City of Orangevale in Sacramento County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 136 (RealQuest) 145 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 26 (RealQuest) 45 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 126 (RealQuest) 128 (Realist)

City of Rancho Cordova in Sacramento County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 245 (RealQuest) 256 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 32 (RealQuest) 107 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 223 (RealQuest) 298 (Realist)

City of Fairfield in Solano County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 309 (RealQuest) 710 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 51 (RealQuest) 283 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 140 (RealQuest) 745 (Realist)

City of West Sacramento in Yolo County

• Preforeclosure Properties: 232 (RealQuest) 225 (Realist)
• Auction Properties: 109 (RealQuest) 114 (Realist)
• Bank-Owned Properties: 159 (RealQuest) 207 (Realist)

NOTE: The discrepancy in the data above would be very important to research and explain if the data was actually used in an appraisal report or to support value conclusions in any way. It is very important to use the best available data in an appraisal report because solid value must be based upon reliable information.

The data above was really provided as an FYI for those who may be interested. Since RealQuest provides a free service too, go spend a few minutes on their website, see what you can find, and draw your own conclusions about reliability.

If you have any questions or potential appraisal needs, please contact me at 916-595-3735 and www.lundquistcompany.com

Here are some images from the field today in the “Capital Village” neighborhood within the City of Rancho Cordova. Capital Village is a new and ongoing project by Beazer Homes. It is distinct locally because of its mixed-use concept and unique design (small lots, 1 to 3 stories, units attached or detached, flat or pitched roofing, vibrant or earth-tone colors, close proximity to commercial retail, two parks…).

Vibrant Colors & Unique Design: 

View of one of the local parks and detached units in background:

Construction is currently ongoing within Capital Village.

In the words of Beazer Homes:

Located in Rancho Cordova, off Zinfandel Drive just south of Highway 50, Capital Village is a progressive new home community featuring a combination of various architectural designs, several popular retail stores and restaurants, a mixed-use town center, numerous parks, a water feature and more! Urban living meets true suburban comfort at the new Capital Village community by Beazer Homes.

Capital Village Links:

• Capital Village Blog
• Beazer Homes Website
• Capital Village Video Tour by Lundquist Appraisal

If you are a Capital Village home owner, what is it that drew you to this community? And what do you think now that you are there? What commercial retail shops do you want to see come into your neighborhood?

If anyone has appraisal-related questions pertaining to Capital Village, let me know. I am experienced with appraising properties in the Capital Village market as well as the nearby “Stone Creek” area of Rancho Cordova. I can be reached at 916-595-3735 or www.ranchocordovaappraiser.com  And no, I am not paid to advertise Capital Village. I simply mention things I think I worthy of mentioning.

What has been happening in the Anatolia real estate market lately? Anatolia is a planned community located in the Southern territory of Rancho Cordova near Sunrise Blvd. & Douglas Rd. 

Over the past 90 days there have been 93 sales within the Anatolia market area (95742 zip code of Rancho Cordova). These sales are depicted below on the graph:

There are currently 92 available properties in the Anatolia market (per MLS). It is possible that not all builders within Anatolia are listing their properties on MLS, though it is typical for them to do so in today’s market).

Anatolia Neighborhood Data in Rancho Cordova, CA:

• 92 current Active listings (Active, Active Short Sale)
• 48 current Pending Listings
• 93 sales over past 90 days
• Median Price over past 90 days: $300,000
• Low Sale over past 90 days: $170,000
• High Sale over past 90 days: $513,000

The information above can be informative to the casual reader who is interested in local data, for the Anatolia home owner, and also for prospective home owners. If you are pondering the data and have questions or any sort of potential appraisal needs, please comment above or contact me at 916-595-3735 or www.lundquistcompany.com

Rancho Cordova and Gold River may share a zip code, but they are definitely distinct. The truth is that any city or area has certain neighborhoods or places where properties tend to sell for more for certain reasons – even if they do share a common zip code. This is true in portions of the 95670 zip code, which contains Gold River and portions of the city of Rancho Cordova. 

The graph below analyzes the entire 95670 zip code and contains Gold River area sales in blue and Rancho Cordova sales in red (not 95742 zip code – “Anatolia” neighborhood of Rancho Cordova).  

“Gold River HOA” excluding “Gold River Station” – 95670:
- 74 sales in past 12 months
- 12% of sales were bank owned
- 2.5% were short sales
- Low Sale: $235,000
- High Sale: $650,000
- Overall Median Price for Past 12 Months: $414,000

Rancho Cordova – 95670:
- 458 sales in past 12 months
- 64% of sales were bank-owned
- 12% of sales were short sales
- Low Sale: $71,150
- High Sale: $580,000
- Overall Median Price for Past 12 Months: $190,000

“Gold River Station” in Gold River – 95670:
- 17 sales in past 12 months
- 41% of sales were bank owned
- 1 short sale
- Low Sale: $263,000
- High Sale: $340,000
- Overall Median Price for Past 12 Months: $315,000

The data above is from mid-February 2009 and is based upon Sacramento Area MLS through a search of SFR properties. It is interesting to see a much higher foreclosure rate in the city of Rancho Cordova in the 95670 zip code in comparison to the Gold River community.

Lundquist Appraisal Company is based out of Rancho Cordova and knows the local area very well. We do also appraise properties within ten counties surrounding the Sacramento area. See www.lundquistcompany.com or www.ranchocordovaappraiser.com for more information.

NOTE: The lower Western portion of the Gold River area is comprised of an area called “Gold River Station”. Since Gold River Station is not a part of the Gold River HOA, it was prudent to look at data separately from Gold River.