I’ve got a listing coming later this month in the Los Gamos co-ops. The co-ops are a different type of sale because people don’t own property, they own stock in the corporation that owns the property. Lots of buyers are turned off by the high HOA fees, not realizing that property tax is rolled into the fees, in addition to trash, water, electricity and more! The HOA is very well run, and when you take into consideration all the fees cover, it’s kind of a deal.
Lots of people downsize into the co-ops. It’s a way to stay in Terra Linda/Marin County, and the co-ops are walking distance to Safeway and the Northgate Mall. The location is extremely convenient. Plus, there’s a pool, and the greenbelt areas are very nice. It’s a good place to live.
The dilemma with this particular listing is that it’s in pretty original shape. It’s a one bedroom, upper level unit with a den that could be used as a second bedroom. The price is going to be attractive at $349,000. We considered selling it “as is”, but that didn’t seem like a good idea. New carpet, fresh paint and staging will go a long way to maximizing the value.
Before any of that can get done, I’ve got Think Pink and Green scheduled for a trash out next week. I might be mistaken, but it looks like two truckloads of stuff. I don’t envy the guys that do these trash outs, especially when they are on the second floor like this one. My back aches just thinking about it!
I’m getting very close to signing a fixer Alliance built home in Terra Linda. Think Pink and Green is also scheduled to come out. We considered doing a garage sale, but it really wouldn’t be worth it. The value is in the property, not the personal property. Lots of people get hung up on what to do with personal property. My advice is to take it with you, sell it, or trash it. Some people purchase storage space for the stuff they don’t want to get rid of. I don’t recommend that. Those people often end up dumping it all a few years later after wasting money on the storage than what the personal property was worth. That’s my real estate advice for the week.