I recently signed a listing in the Meadows. We have changed the carpet and painted. The kitchen counter was badly scared by a pot, leaving a telltale blackish brown ring in its wake, and we are in the middle of replacing it. I’d provide the address, but Zillow no longer allows us to pre-market properties in any other form than the MLS ‘Coming Soon’ status. If I did give you the address, I’d run the risk of being reported to the Zillow police and they would not list the property for sale when it goes active. But I digress.
This blog is not about Zillow trying to strongarm the industry into not pre-marketing properties on any other platform, including the mere act of putting a sign up in front of the property before going on the market. No, this is about the 6 and soon to be 7, 2 bedroom, 2 bath townhouses and condos on the market in the Meadows. Why so many?
This coming week owners at the Meadows are voting on a $20,000 assessment. This is on top of an $871/month monthly HOA due. Granted, HOA dues have gone up significantly throughout Marin County. When you add property taxes that will likely be in excess of $8,000 per year on a $500,000 sale for example, that’s a lot of doe-ray-me to choke down before trying to swallow a mortgage payment at rates near 7%. The HOA is in the midst of a financial situation which eventually will become resolved. In the short term there is a lot of pain for owners and sellers, but due to the elevated inventories this becomes a buying opportunity for someone looking to purchase in a great Terra Linda location.
In the words of the great band, Talking Heads, “Well, how did I get here?”
I don’t know the particulars of the Meadows situation, but I do know being in a high fire zone has not helped as premiums have gone up in recent years. The high dues can’t all be blamed on climate change. Often HOAs will put off deferred maintenance because of the costs, which only get steeper over time. Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today, when you’ll be looking at even more maintenance and higher costs tomorrow? Is this the case in the Meadows? I honestly don’t know, but one suspects this is the case. At some point it all becomes overwhelming.
What I do know is that people are selling, and not just for the normal reasons like someone passing away, a job transfer, divorce, a 1031 exchange, or selling a condo to buy a house. People may be leaving because they don’t want/maybe can’t afford to pay the assessment and high dues. This is creating an extraordinary opportunity for buyers to come in and pick out the place they want at reduced prices before the HOA become financially healthy again. I don’t know how long this will last, but for now the power has swung to the Meadows buyers.
Buyers shouldn’t be too put off by the high HOA dues. We are seeing more and more HOAs raise their dues to approach $1,000 month in Marin County. It’s just a fact of ownership in HOAs and inflation in our very expensive area. Opportunities like this don’t come around often for buyers. It’s just a shame that it got to this point in the Meadows HOA, putting current sellers in a rough situation.