Will this be the next Richmond property that sells for -50% below assessed value?

Yesterday we told you about a condo in Richmond which sold for -50% below it's assessed value.

It was Unit #204-3411 Springfield Drive.

There's another court-ordered sale in the building, this time it's Unit #125. 

This one seems to be a little better looking than #204, which probably explains why it's assessed at a higher value:

#125 is assessed at $289,400.

As we mentioned with #204, there are no special assessments pending in this older building (built 1972) and amenities do include an outdoor pool.

Like #204, this one is a 3 bed, 2 bath unit.  However #125 is larger by 140 square feet (1345 vs 1205). So will #125 fair better than #204?

Assessed at $289,400, the current asking price is $195,000 - $94,400 and 33% below assessed value.

Will this unit sell for 40-50% below assessed value now that #204 has sold so low?

Meanwhile Scotiabank has declared the threat of a housing collapse over saying the Canadian housing market appears to have achieved "a soft landing"... so far.

==================

Email: village_whisperer@live.ca
Click 'comments' below to contribute to this post.

Please read disclaimer at bottom of blog.

Richmond records a property sale at -50% below assessed value.

Last Thursday we asked: How low will it go?

#204-3411 Springfield Drive, a foreclosure sale in Richmond, had dramatically dropped it's asking price. 

Listed as a spacious 3 bedroom, 2 bath, end unit condo overlooking the courtyard, it has languished on the market since May.

Assessment value: $265,900.

The asking price two weeks ago?: $185,000... 30% below assessed value.

Last Thursday another $45,100 had been chopped off that asking price and was now listed for  $139,900

(click on image to enlarge):

That's $126,000 below assessed value or 47% under assessed value.

In the comments section we were urged not to get excited because this was a marketing strategy.  Wait until the offers came into court and then see what happens. (the argument being a bidding war in court would push the value up significantly from that 47%  below assessed value listing price).

Well... #204-3411 Springfield Drive has posted at sale now (hat tip: bopeep @ Vancouver Price Drop).

No bidding war, though.

It sold for $135,000.

That's $4,900 below the last listing price and a full -50% BELOW assessed value.

Good thing we waited to see what would happen in court because now we know that Richmond has officially recorded a sale of a property at -50% below assessed value.  

For those who complain that these dramatic drops only represent the 'shit properties' (as one contributor observed yesterday), foreclosure court in Richmond has another sale on Monday.

This is #135-8880 Jones Road in Richmond.

The listing describes the property this way:

North-West corner large one bedroom with windows on 2 sides. Huge sundrenched 300 sq ft patio, gas fireplace, insuite laundry. Less than 10 steps to elevator & courtyard. Central location, just 5 blocks away from bus stop & 2 blocks from shopping mall. PCDS dates October 26, 2012. Parking stall #220, 2 small pets (cats or dogs) allowed. Rentals restricted to 15 currently at maximum. Priced over $50,000 below city assessed value for immediate sale.

#135-8880 Jones Road is assessed at $249,000.

It posted a sale in foreclosure court on Monday for $195,000 ($5,000 below the listing price, a listing price which was $50,000 below assessed value).

Was the low asking price part of a strategy?  If so, there were no bidding wars in foreclosure court on this property either.

Now this sale price is only -22% under assessed value.  Buy think about that for a moment.  Only -22% under assessed value?

Let's recall that it wasn't even 12 months ago we were telling you about properties in Richmond engrossed in bidding wars and selling for $200,000 - $300,000 over asking prices (which in themselves were hundreds of thousands over assessed value).

#135-8880 Jones Road is the new reality.  As bopeep reminds us, this condo sold in 2007 for $215,000.

This condo may have "only" sold for 22% below assessed value, but it sold for $20,000 less than what the condo exchanged hands for in 2007.

That's five years of so-called real estate appreciation wiped out in a heartbeat.  The seller LOST $20,000 in the actual transaction, not to mention five years of condo fees, interest on mortgage, realtor transaction fees and lost income by not investing elsewhere.

Doesn't real estate always go up?

The melt gathers momentum.

==================

Email: village_whisperer@live.ca

Click 'comments' below to contribute to this post.

Please read disclaimer at bottom of blog.

Did we say -40% below assessed value? Correction... it's now -50% below assessed value.

Last week we told you about a White Rock condo that had breached the 40% below assessed value mark.

Located at 1371 Foster Street, Unit #306 was for sale last week with an asking price -47% below it's $228,200 assessed value (last week's asking price $119,000).

Well the asking price has been cut again.

Now it's down to $109,900, a stunning -52% below assessed value with no buyer in site.

As we noted last week, this building has an upcoming strata repair assessment of $63,000 that will be levied against owners. But notwithstanding this, we have seen condo units with large levies before that have sold.

The fact it's not moving is a reflection of the current market, a Lower Mainland market that now has it's first entry in 50% BELOW assessed value club.

(hat tip Observer and Vancouver Price Drop)


Meanwhile on the -30% front

Speaking of the current market, Observer notes we have two more entries in the -30% below assessed value category.

The first is 32913 14TH Ave in Mission which clocks in with an asking price -33% below assessed value:

And the second is #125- 3411 Springfield Dr. in Richmond which now has an asking price -32% below assessed value:

Like rats on a sinking ship, speculators bailing on the west side of Vancouver

Finally Observer shares another fascinating stat which I couldn't resist highlighting.

The west side of Vancouver has long been held as the epicentre of our stunning housing bubble and the  bastion of HAM (Hot Asian Money). Because of this speculators have been buying houses to flip like it was the one day shoe sale at Army/Navy.

But in what is another sign the bubble is bursting in the Lower Mainland, Observer notes that over 20% of listed homes in Shaughnessy right now were purchased just one year ago (this is not including new builds, so the figure is actually higher).

These are speculators desperate to get out and cut their losses.

Profiled is this listing at 1029 Devonshire Crescent, Vancouver:

This home last sold on June 25, 2011 for $2,499,888 .

The current list price is $2,380,000 (assessed value is $2,401,000)

IF the house sold for list price, there would be $125,238 in transaction costs and a $119,888 loss on the sale for a total loss of  $245,126.

So this specker is looking at a quarter million loss and no buyer in sight.

Guess you gotta know when to hold... and know when to fold.

And the speculators on the west side are folding, big time.

==================

Email: village_whisperer@live.ca
Click 'comments' below to contribute to this post.

Please read disclaimer at bottom of blog.