154 Mountain Vista — Okay, this isn’t in Mammoth but there are some good points of discussion here, especially pertaining to bank owned properties and “the process.” This is an awesome home in many ways. Located in a newer, modern subdivision in June Lake (that is a BIG deal), it is large (approx. 4100 sq. ft.) and beautifully built and appointed. It’s almost a mountain mansion. It is in basically new condition. It has incredible views of Gull Lake and the surrounding Sierra. The key selling points of a property are all home runs at this property: location, condition, view, great room appeal, kitchen size and quality, master bath size and quality, garage size, etc. It has a fireplace in the living room and the dining room. The bank is ready to put it on the market. We just sold a similar property that was bank owned and that property was a bit smaller (and maybe more efficient) and like new. (There is definitely a square footage “law of diminishing returns” in our market.) The overall quality was very similar. The location was a challenge for some but very appealing for others (private). The view was probably better, at least more stunning. That property sold for $662,500. We feel this property’s value is only 20-25% higher than the previous sale. The values our REO department places on REO properties are constantly being graded (by our clients) based on the final sales prices. Those grades have consistently been in the “A” range. But the banks rely on appraisers too. Sometimes pricing is a tug-of-war (see, appraisers are suppose to know more about values than brokers). In this instance the bank wants to market this property around $1,200,000 (based on an appraisal). Something’s wrong here. If this was in The Bluffs subdivision here in Mammoth it would be priced right. The appraiser must not know the difference. The asset manager notes the great disparity in the valuations and questions it. Ultimately, the market will speak. But this is the type of home that some buyers get real emotional about and “have-to-have-it.” And an appraisal doesn’t matter because they have cash. That’s always an interesting part of real estate in the eastern Sierra. We’ll see. Stay tuned.
8/11/11 Now listed at $1,114,900
9/24/11 This is now listed at $865,000
