What Will Coach Prime Buy?
This edition is a little tongue and cheek. We're super excited to have Coach Prime at CU and can't wait to see how he transforms the team. His contract was just approved by the CU Board of Regents, which means it's time for him to find a home here in Boulder.
For fun, this is written as if Coach Prime were our client, and how we might advise him to navigate the sometimes turbulent world of Boulder real estate. In short, we'll point out the pros and cons of each listing, uniquely tailored to our best guess at the needs of Coach and his family.
Coach Prime, if you're reading this, give us a call. Our mission is to educate our clients on market conditions. Deep market knowledge is the only way to make a smarter real estate decision.
What criteria should Coach Prime seek in a home? Our recommendations:
#1 Privacy and Security:
Although Boulder is an incredible place to live, some homes and locations offer far more privacy and security than others. Given the media and others that might disrupt his family life, this is almost certainly the number one criteria. Privacy and security are not necessarily the same thing, but they tend to go hand-in-hand. When you're not worried about you or a family member being accosted in the driveway, a well chosen property can go a long way to enhanced comfort in a living environment.
#2 Turn Key:
Coach Prime doesn't have time to manage a major renovation. He will be busy coaching CU football back into a world class organization. Even if he brings on a top builder or renovation company, the best ones are usually booked 6 to 12 months in advance. The house needs to be dialed in from day one or, at most, needs only minor cosmetic issues addressed.
#3. Family and Professional Life:
The Sanders family is going to need some space and room for guests. This means we're on the hunt for a home with five bedrooms minimum, preferably with en-suite bathrooms. Don't forget, Coach will also need a private and quiet home office, away from the potential noise disruptions that go with family life.
#4: Intelligent investment:
At this phase of life, Coach Prime may not be into taking unnecessary risks. He is in organizational building mode. Managing risk is all about being smart with money. Although we hope Coach Prime is part of our community for a long time, if for some reason if it doesn't work out for him here in Boulder, it would be unwise to acquire an oddball property - one that will be difficult to sell in the future or result in a serious loss.
#5: Hosting and entertaining:
Whether for his family, business partners, or team, beautiful and inviting areas to share a meal or a private conversation are critical. Coach's future home should feature generous indoor and outdoor spaces to prepare food and entertain. These spaces should feature dramatic views of nature, as much as possible. It's why people live here.
Market Conditions
As we venture into the market and discuss listings for Coach Prime, keep the following in mind.
- A lot of sellers have pulled or delayed listings due to soft market conditions. Inventory is well below average but it's now reverting to the mean. To put it simply, inventory should start to improve in the first and second quarter of the year.
- In a normal year, inventory begins to build in January and peaks in May or early June. As inventory rises, so does selection (more choices), but competition also increases among buyers. Absorption is the relationship between sales volume and inventory. It peaks about a month after the peak in inventory - typically July.
- If you don't want to overpay, it's important to see a lot of home in person. A second option is remote videography (which we provide to our relocation clients) but only if the video is actually critical of the home. Buyers don't need to see or hear another sales pitch, especially from their agent. If they wanted the sales pitch, they could just call the listing agent. Once the right home appears, the best strategy is usually to move fast and aggressively. But only if you're well educated on market conditions relative to your search - otherwise you risk overpaying for a subprime asset.
Get it, subprime? I kid, I kid.
Ok... let's dive in. To help educate Coach Prime, and other potential buyers, we're going to look not just at active and withdrawn listings, but homes that sold during the past twelve months that might have made Coach Prime's shopping list. We expect most of the withdrawn listings from the fall to reappear this spring.
Osman Parvez is the Founder and Employing Broker of House Einstein. Originally from the Finger Lakes region of New York, he lives in Boulder with his wife and their Labrador Retriever. He has been a Realtor since 2005.Osman is the primary author of the House Einstein blog with over 1,200 published articles about Boulder real estate. His work has also appeared in many other blogs about Boulder as well as mainstream newspapers, including the Wall Street Journal and Daily Camera. For more information, click HERE.
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The ideas and strategies described in this blog are the opinion of the writer and subject to business, economic, and competitive uncertainties. House Einstein strongly recommends conducting rigorous due diligence and obtaining professional advice before buying or selling real estate.
