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Archive for the 'Avondale' Category
Where is the Avondale Post Office? A MOST Unlikely Place!
I’ve lived in some big cities like Atlanta and Miami where you have access to every service you can possibly imagine. In addition to being available, they are generally plentiful and easy to access – there are gas stations on every corner, multiple grocery stores within a neighborhood, lots of fitness centers and easy to find post offices!
What I’ve discovered about Jacksonville, is that most of the services people need are here, you just have to dig a little harder to find them!
The United States Post Office in Avondale is just such a place. Most people wouldn’t think of looking for a regulation post office inside a convenience store but hidden inside the St. John’s Food Store (in the same shopping center as The Goal Post sandwich shop that I wrote about in an earlier post) at the intersection of St. John’s Avenue and Herschel, there is a tiny (but regulation) post office!
Open from 9am – 4pm M-F and from 9am – Noon on Saturday, you can buy stamps, send certified
mail and ship packages. The best part, however, is that there is never a line! Most “traditional” post offices that I go to are always packed and even if you just want to do something simple like buy a few stamps, you wait FOREVER!
So, maybe there’s something to be said for an unassuming (nearly hidden) post office that only the locals know about — there ARE benefits to being “in the know”. The address is 3980 Herschel Street and the phone number there is 389-6433.
While you’re in the post office, you can pick up a lottery ticket, a cup of hot coffee, a little candy for the kids or some of the many other things that the owner stocks in his store.
Thanks for reading, please join me again for my next adventure in the Avondale, Riverside and Ortega neighborhoods.
GONE IN A DAY – Again!
A few days ago, I wrote a post about a house in Ortega on Longfellow Street that sold in a day — well, 21 days to be exact, and in this market, that certainly feels like a day! Sales that happen that fast are few and far between.
This morning, I found another house that went under contract almost immediately (21 days) after being listed. Located at 1252 Windsor Place, this is a 1927 renovated home with a pool at the end of a quiet cul de sac in Avondale. It has 3BR, 2.5BA in about 2,600 square feet. Designed by Marsh and Saxelbye, this home features mediterrean architecture with a new tile roof and detached two car garage with bonus room above garage.
The list price was $499K and was priced at about $191 per square foot. As soon as it closes, I’ll write a post to let you know what the selling price was.
I emailed this house the day it was listed to a customer who’s looking in the Avondale area but since they have a home to sell, they weren’t in a position to secure this great deal.
Thanks for reading! If you’re thinking of buying or selling in Avondale, Ortega or Riverside, be sure to subscribe to our blog so that you get the hottest news as it happens!
Monday Morning Market Report – Week Ending 10/25/2009
An important sale closed this week in Avondale. A lovely two story brick home at 3244 Oak Street with 4br,3.5ba, 2,960 square feet, a brand new two car garage and a 70 x 125 lot, sold for $550K after having been on the market for more than a year and a half! It was an important sale because there have been so few sales above $500K in 2009.
The house was purchased for $725K in May 2006. The owners then spent $125K in renovations which included the construction of a brand new two car garage.
They listed the house for sale at $829K in February 2008 (already less than they had in it) and then watched the market fall. By the time this listing was over a year later, the price of the house had dropped to $$699K.
It was re-listed with a different realtor at $679K and was quickly dropped to $649K, then $624K and then finally to $599K. Within 30 days of dropping to $599K, the house was under contract and then sold last week for $550K.
When the price of the house got dropped to $599K, it hit what we realtors call the “sweet spot” where anyone and everyone can clearly see that this house offered a tremendous value. Often, a house can lie dormant month after month with little showing activity and few calls, but once it hits the “sweet spot” the phone starts to ring off the hook and offers start coming.
So, the moral of the story is, price your house aggressively from the beginning or you run the risk of trailing the market down as this house did.
The market stats for this week were:
NEW LISTINGS: 8 To see all of the new listings for the week, click here
CLOSED SALES: 5 To see the list of closed sales for the week, click here
PENDING SALES : 3 To see the list of pending sales for the week, click here
PRICE REDUCTIONS: 21 To see the Full List of Price Reductions, Click Here
The big news of the week from the sales stats is: 1) A dramatic DECREASE in the number of new listings 2) A dramatic INCREASE in the number of closed sales and a Dramatic INCREASE in the number of price reductions. If we keep going like this, then a recovery can’t be far around the corner! This is what we want to see, less listings (inventory), more closings and more price reductions!
Perhaps due to the sale of the property I discussed above, there has been a dramatic price reduction on another great house on Oak Street. It’s now a short sale and priced at only $599K. Located at 3546 Oak Street, this is another classic two story brick colonial within walking distance to the shoppes of Avondale and features 3,475 SF on a 105 x 93 SF lot. It has 4BR and 3.5 baths.
This house was sold for $577K in December of 2004 and then the current owners paid $775K for it in June 2007. The original asking price on this house was $697K ($75K less than they paid for it in June 2009). We’ll see very soon if this price reflects a “sweet spot” and if it goes under contract soon. I’ll keep you posted!
Thanks for reading and I hope you’ll join me next week for another Monday Morning Market Update!
Open House Attendance Way Up!
Good News! We had an open house today at two of our listings today. One at 1837 Ingleside Avenue and another at 4834 Arapahoe Avenue and they were busy!
Back when the market was strong, attendance at open house was strong too. The market was bustling with activity. Buyers were out looking for a house to buy, sellers were out looking to see what the competition was and realtors were out looking for a house for their customers.
Then, the market stopped. Over the last year at our open houses, we’ve been lucky to have one or two people stop by but they were probably just walking by with their dog — certainly not making a deliberate point to come and see this particular house. The level of traffic we had today (and over the last few weeks as well) indicates that the market is beginning to “buzz” again. We don’t know if it’s pent up demand or the fact that people always have had to (and will continue to need to) move around but there is definately a new energy around our open houses lately.
Several of the people who came by today would be perfect buyers for these houses. One couple has children in a school nearby, others have just relocated here from another state (and they’ve sold their house!), another is in a house that they feel is too small and yet another has just had a baby and is looking for a larger home. So, all in all, there were lots of potential prospects.
So, the message is good. The people are out looking again. We hope that lookers will become buyers and that this could be the beginning of something good. I’ll keep you posted!
New Listing on Great Street in Avondale!
Sometimes a really great deal comes along and, if you happen to be one of my lucky readers, you’ll be among the first to know about it!
This week we listed a little bungalow on what many consider to be one of Avondale’s best streets, Richmond Street. The property is directly across the street from the river (3629 Richmond Street), there is very little traffic here and it’s a real neighborhood where the people are super friendly.
Although the house looks cute from the street, it does have serious issues and we priced it for land value. The lot is large at 73 x 130 and the asking price is $359K.
The house has mostly aluminum windows and a large portion of it is concrete block neither of which are historic features. Because the house is located in a historic district, however, it may or may not be able to be torn down. One of the biggest issues is that the house is pushed up against the very back of the lot line leaving zero backyard.
I received the following list from the director of RAP (Riverside Avondale Preservation) that details the criteria that will be considered as part of the demolition evaluation.
307.106 (n) In considering an application for certificate of appropriateness for demolition, the Commission shall consider the applicable Historic District Design Regulations, if any, and the following additional criteria:
(1) The historic or architectural significance of the building or structure;
(2) The importance of the building or structure to the ambiance of the historic district;
(3) The difficulty or the impossibility of reproducing such a building or structure because of its design, texture, material, detail or unique location;
(4) Whether the building or structure is one of the last remaining examples of its kind in the neighborhood, the County or the region;
(5) Whether there are definite plans for reuse of the property if the proposed demolition is carried out, and what effect of those plans on the character of the surrounding area would be;
(6) The difficulty or the impossibility of saving the building or structure from collapse;
(7) Whether the building or structure is capable of earning reasonable economic return on its value;
(8) Whether there are other feasible alternatives to demolition;
(9) Whether the property no longer contributes to an historic district or no longer has significance as an historic, architectural or archaeological landmark; and
(10) Whether it would be undue economic hardship to deny the property owner the right to demolish the building or structure.
We feel that the house meets many of these criteria but the potential buyer of this property will either need to wait to see what happens with the current owner’s demolition permit or take on the task themselves. It is being sold as-is meaning no repairs will be made.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned for another adventure in Avondale, Ortega or Riverside! See you next time!
Local Sandwich Shop in Avondale – The Goal Post
If you’re thinking of buying a home in Avondale or Ortega, it’s fun to know where the locals go to eat. There are a few neighborhood “icons” where you’ll be sure to see familiar faces every time you go (note — you WILL see someone you know, so dress accordingly). This does NOT mean dress up, because the GOAL POST is a super casual sandwich shop that doesn’t put much (well, any) emphasis on decor. Located at 3984 Herschel Street in Avondale, the restaurant sits at the corner of where St. John’s Avenue and Herschel Street meet.
The owners, Michael and Eman Kassab, have been serving customers in the area for over thirty years and have a deeply loyal local following. They are always at the counter ready to take your order. It’s a family owned and operated business, so you’ve got Michael taking orders and running the register and other family members cooking, serving and cleaning up.
A few favorites are:
1) ”Steak in a Sack” which is a pita bread ”sack” stuffed with a combination of ground beef, onions, banana peppers and six different spices, all grilled together. Add lettuce, tomato and mayo and you’ve got a super delicious and satisfying sandwich. It’s the favorite of my son, Joe who often rides his bike to the Goal Post with his buddy Jake on Saturdays to get some lunch.
2) Incredibly delicious french fries – not too thin and not too thick, these fries are perfectly salted and are just the best!
3) The Camel Rider – Ham, Tabbouleh, Tomatoes and Onions – second most popular after steak in a sack!
4) The Veggie – Tabbouleh, Cheese (among other things) is Outstanding
Michael Kassab - Owner of The Goal Post
So, like the Cheers song says, “…. Sometimes you want to go - where everybody knows your name… and they’re always glad you came” ….. If you go to The Goal Post, you’ll be glad you came…and so will they!
The service is generally pretty quick but if you’re in a real rush or want to order your lunch to go, you can call ahead at 904-384-9262. Oh, and one VERY IMPORTANT NOTE. They are only open for lunch and close every day at 2PM!
When you’ve finished lunch, you might go take a look at a super cute new listing at 1749 Canterbury Street that’s just around the corner. Listed a few days ago, the 3BR/2BA home has 1,528 SF with a one car garage, updated kitchen and nice backyard. Priced at $262,500, or $171 per square foot, it’s within walking distance of the GOAL POST. To see the complete listing information about this house, click here.
Thanks for reading — join me again soon for another Avondale, Ortega or Riverside adventure!
Monday Morning Market Report – Week Ending 10/11/09
Well, it’s Monday evening — not morning! Sorry I’m a bit late with my weekly report but here are the stats. For the week ending 10/11/09, there were
New Listings – 10
Closed Sales – 2
Pending Sales – 1
Price Changes – 15
As I study the data, two things “jump” out at me — the (note the word “the” – there’s only one this week) pending sale is a beautifully renovated two story home on College street complete with two car garage, gas cook top in the center island and steam shower. The sellers paid $410K for it in Jan. 2007 and then did a master bath renovation.
A year and a half later in July 08, they put it on the market at $449K and left it there for a year until it expired. Then, in Sept. 09, they put it on the market for $330K ($80K less than they paid + renovations) as a short sale. The asking price was only $119 per square foot — a real deal — which is what today’s buyers are looking for. End of the story? It went under contract in less than a month! Stay tuned to see what the final sales price was!
The other transaction that popped out at me was a closed sale on 1389 Belvedere in Avondale. It was also a distressed sale and was a two story brick 4br/2ba with 2,190 square feet. It was purchased for $320K in Nov. 2004. There is no “interim” history, so we don’t know when the property fell into arrears but the bank took title to the property on 8/14/09, the property was listed for $257,900 on 8/20/09 and it was sold on 10/06/09 for $253,000 with a $10,000 contribution from the seller for closing costs and prepaids. This equates to a net selling price of $243K or $113 per square foot — and the house had a nice kitchen.
So….the moral of the story seems to be: Distressed Property in Good Condition + Low Price = Quick Sale!
Be sure to take note of the consistently high number of Price Reductions. In the past 3 weeks that I’ve studied/provided market statistics for the Avondale, Ortega and Riverside markets, there were 12 price reductions the first week, 19 the second week and 15 this week. That’s a lot of price reductions! We see over and over again that when a property gets reduced enough and hits the “magic” number proving itself to be a tremendous value, buyers take note and there is generally an offer shortly thereafter.
Thanks for reading! Have a great week.
The DANGER of Pricing Your Home too High – “Just to See What Happens”
It’s been a soft market, today’s buyers are super savvy and there is loads of data available to the public. Everyone knows what the house down the street sold for and it’s no secret that your house is overpriced in comparison.
There’s a term that realtors use called “trailing the market down” which means that if a person prices a home too high in the beginning, they miss the “prime window” that a new listing has to attract buyers. In a declining market, as we’ve had in the last few years, by the time the seller has agreed to reduce the price, the market has fallen more and, once again, the seller’s (reduced price) is too high. Thus the term, trailing the market down.
If you really want to sell, you must price your house to be competitive with (or below) the other homes listed for sale. Let’s face it, there are a lot to choose from and you’ve got to find a way to make yours stand out. In addition to having a great price, everything has to be in tip top shape. Clean, organized, de-cluttered and nice landscaping are essential. You cannot sell a place that appears to have deferred maintenance ( a realtor’s term for peeling paint, burned out light bulbs, air conditioning grills caked with dust, unsightly clutter and grass that hasn’t been mowed).
If the house is priced too high, buyers know it immediately! They’ve been out there looking and they can sniff out a good deal like a bloodhound! They’re equally good at spotting an overpriced house and will avoid it like the plague. So, do yourself a favor and listen to what we’re telling you. If you overprice your home, you’ll only get in your own way and your house WILL NOT SELL! Trust us….we know.
Thanks for reading. If you like what you see, we’d love for you to subscribe so you’ll get our posts directly to your inbox. If you or anyone you know is thinking of buying or selling in the Jacksonville area, we’d love to have the referrral. Our email address is steilberg@comcast.net or you can give us a call at 904-252-5181. Thanks!
Some GREAT reasons NOT to shop for real estate on FSBO websites!
I recently attended a class where they told real estate agents (like me) that a great place to find potential listings is on For Sale By Owner websites. Afterall, the people who have posted their homes on these sites have publicly declared that they intend to sell their homes, they’ve gone to the time and trouble to “list” the house for sale, established a price, etc…. and (more likely than not) have figured out that people aren’t flocking to their homes for appointments and might be ready to talk with a realtor.
The idea seemed to make sense so this morning, I googled “for sale by owner” websites, pulled up the top three on the search, opened their sites and searched for homes in the zip code 32210. Guess what — there were only 6 homes listed for sale, the majority of them have only one photo and very limited descriptions of the property. Guess what else? By contrast, there are 99 homes listed for sale on the MLS in zip code 32210. So, would you rather choose from 6 or from 99? The answer seems pretty clear.
Another important point — I quickly noticed several properties that I’m familiar with that have not only sold — they were sold months ago! For example, 2847 Doric Avenue is listed on one site for $315K — this home sold on July 31, 2009 for $275K and yet it’s still listed as actively for sale.
Another example is a home located at 4751 Apache Avenue that’s listed for $452K. This home is not only not for sale by owner, it was listed for a while by ReMax and is now listed with the Fred Miller Group for $375K.
I even saw a home in Murray Hill (1309 Lamboll) that we listed and have now sold. It closed on August 27, 2009 for $162,250. That listing stated the last time the listing was updated was 548 days ago — don’t you know that a lot has changed in the last 548 days!!!
So, it seems pretty clear. If you want the most current information about what’s for sale, how much it costs, where it’s located and other important details, work with a realtor who specializes in the neighborhood where you want to live. Don’t waste your time looking at a very limited selection of properties and chasing down ones have already been sold! And remember….working with a realtor to find a house is FREE!!!
If you register on our website allaboutavondale.com, you can create your OWN search — price, bedrooms, baths, lot size, waterfront or not, etc… and it will not only give you a CURRENT list of properties available but will also send you updates when there are new listings or price changes.
PS – If you’re a seller and reading this, you may want to reconsider listing your home on a FSBO website and call me for a FREE analysis of what your home is worth in today’s market! I can be reached at 904-252-5181 or by email at steilberg@comcast.net.
Thanks for reading – have a great day!
New Listing in Avondale with Guest House!
I’m proud to report that we have a wonderful new listing in Avondale with a fantastic guest house. The main house has 3Br/2Ba in about 2,910 Square feet and has been very nicely updated. Upgrades include a 5 burner gas cooktop in the kitchen, a fantastic vaulted ceiling family room with custom built cabinetry and fireplace,
plantation shutters throughout and a lovely light filled breakfast room.
In addition to the great main house, you’ll be thrilled to discover that there is a new (2004) brick guest house PLUS large two car garage with extra storage. Because it’s new, the garage will easily accomodate large SUV’s. In Avondale, parking is at a premium and “guest houses” are often coverted garages. Come see this amazing space that has a living room with kitchen, bedroom, large walk-in closet and full bath. You won’t find a musty “coverted” garage here — it’s really fantastic!
The asking price is $719K which breaks out to about $211 per square foot if you take into consideration the 484 Square foot guest house. Call us today for more information about this fantastic property at 904-252-5181 or shoot us an email at steilberg@comcast.net. Thanks for looking!
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