Sacramento Appraisal Blog

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Sacramento Home Appraiser

A flashlight tour of a dark boarded-up house in South Sacramento

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I wanted to give you a little tour of a dark boarded fixer-upper house in South Sacramento. Honestly, sometimes it feels a bit creepy to inspect houses like this because utilities are off and every window and door is boarded with plywood. You never know what or who might be lurking in the darkness, right? 

As always, I had permission from my client to shoot and share video. I take client confidentiality very seriously for every appraisal I do, and I never share information on my blog or elsewhere that is confidential.

Let me know if you have any questions. Call me at 916.595.3735, send me an email, or connect with me on Facebook or Twitter.

What do you think of the video?

How much is one extra bedroom in a Sacramento condominium worth?

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Numbers can tell us anything. For instance, we can look at median price or price per square foot for a particular neighborhood or zip code, but these figures do not necessarily reflect specific market value for a specific property, do they? For example, let’s glance at a condominium subdivision in the 95825 zip code of Sacramento as an illustration. The median price for the year for the entire subdivision (all sales listed below) is around $70,000. However, this figure alone does very little to help us understand the market because there is a clear distinction between 1-bedroom and 2-bedroom units, isn’t there? You can see below that 1-bedroom condos are bracketed between $45,000-$65,000 whereas 2-bedroom units sold between $75,000-90,000 more or less (with only one 2-bedroom condo above $100,000).

So how much is the market willing to pay for an extra bedroom in this complex? Before reading the next few sentences, you be the appraiser and tell me. Based on the graph above it looks like the difference in price between 1 and 2-bedroom condos is generally about $25,000-$35,000 (plus or minus). Other factors to consider in the valuation process of course would be floor location, condition, level of upgrades, location of the unit (next to swimming pool, secluded, backs busy street, interior unit, etc…). 

Why do you think the market is willing to pay so much more for a 2-bedroom unit? What advantages does a two-bedroom have that a one-bedroom does not? I’d love to hear your insight.

If you have any questions about the appraisal process or condominiums in the Greater Sacramento Region, give me a call at 916.595.3735, email me, or catch me on Facebook.

Real Estate ballot recap: Arden-Arcade remains city-free and marijuana stays illegal

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Now that the first Tuesday has passed and the polls are closed, let me give a few comments about real estate-related measures and propositions on the ballot yesterday in the Sacramento area.  

Measure D: A vote on Arden-Arcade Cityhood
Residents voted very strongly against the Arden-Arcade area of Sacramento becoming a city. Based on conversations with residents and signage over the past two months, it seemed like the “no” vote was strong, but it was actually overwhelmingly strong with 76.05% of the vote against cityhood. The most recent areas in Sacramento County to become cities have been Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights & Elk Grove, but Arden-Arcade will not join their ranks anytime soon.

A blog post on the “Stay Sacramento” website today says the following:

In a lopsided win, Measure D went down to a sounding defeat with gathering only 23% of the vote to an overwhelming 76% of voters who said no to this risky venture. It was a passionate fight on both sides but the majority vote won out to prevent another layer of government coming to our region. Today it is time to forge forward and work together to make our communities better. We hope those who supported Measure D will join us in our efforts.

Proposition 19: Legalization of Marijuana.
This proposition did not pass, so I suppose I’ll continue to see more tomato and cucumber plants in backyards of properties I inspect instead of cannabis. 58.97% of voters said “no” to the legalization of marijuana. Speaking of pot, I just looked up half-a-dozen local pot house comps for a local Realtor who recently listed a former “growing facility” in a nearby community. Would you purchase a house that was formerly used for marijuana cultivation?

Any thoughts on the propositions above or any others that you feel impact real estate?

Past three years of sales in Rancho Murieta, CA

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I’ve been doing some research and appraisal work in Rancho Murieta lately and figured I’d share a graph. These are all sales in both Rancho Mureita North and Rancho Murieta South over the past four years. I like Rancho Murieta. I was just emailing with a home owner this morning about foundation issues in the “South” too. What do you see in the graph below?

Let me know if you have any questions as market data is certainly fresh in my mind. Do keep me posted also if you have any real estate appraisal needs – whether estate settlement, bankruptcy, divorce, or a second opinion of value, among other reasons. It’s always a pleasure to serve local home owners.

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