How Did This Home Go for $1 Million Over Asking Price?
Last month, this 4,385-square-foot home in Loomis, CA, sold for $4.5 million—more than $1 million over its original asking price. The farmhouse-style residence—initially listed on February 9 at $3.475 million—closed on March 23, just six weeks later. “It was absolutely a bidding war,” listing agent Michael Yarmolyuk of 1st Choice Realty told The Sacramento Bee. “As soon as the listing went live, it was clear the house was going to sell well above the asking price.”
The four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bath residence is nestled in the community of Sierra de Montserrat, on one of the luxury enclave’s most private lots. Of course, it comes with all the bells and whistles—from an infinity pool and a hot tub, to state-of-the-art kitchen appliances and a covered patio (not to mention a little casita in the backyard). But still, why all the hype?
“The sale just goes to showcase the trends we are seeing throughout the market,” says Sotheby’s International Realty broker Nick Sadek. “From first-time homes to top-tier luxury, the storyline remains the same. We are extremely limited in inventory, with eager buyers looking to make their most aggressive offers to lock in the low rates while we have them,” he explains.
Sadek attributes the frenzy to the sudden influx of homebuyers moving in from the Bay Area. “Not only do these migrating buyers impact the purchasing pool,” he says, “but they also tend to have more buying power due to the [upscale] market they are coming from.” That makes it easier to beat out the competition up north, where the average price of a house is markedly lower.
The mass exodus, he asserts, was likely triggered by the pandemic. “Given that increase in freedom and the decrease in commute, families were realizing that they could work remotely while paying a lot less for their homes,” he reasons. And buyers get way more bang for their buck in Sacramento, where properties with lower price tags tend to boast more acreage and offer more privacy.
“In the first quarter of this year alone we saw a 10% average or a $60,000 increase in median sales price,” he reveals, adding that there has been a 5.9% overall decrease in the average number of days a home in the area sits on the market, and buyers have been shelling roughly twice as much over list price on average compared to this quarter last year.
Though Sadek is confident there's a trend, not all experts agree. “I would say it’s a total outlier,” Ryan Lundquist, a real estate appraiser and market analyst, told The Bee. “This is sort of a headline-grabber, but it’s not something that typifies the market.”
Follow House Beautiful on Instagram.
You Might Also Like
