A Sign of the Times - Short Sale in Old Trail

by Jim Duncan on August 25, 2008

And it’s a great buy, located just west of Charlottesville in the Old Trail development in Crozet. This post breaks my unwritten rule guideline to not blog about listings, but it’s noteworthy for a couple of reasons -

1 - It’s a short sale in Albemarle, something of which we haven’t seen much so far in this market shift. There are three properties in the MLS with “short sale” in the public remarks and eight properties with “short sale” in the agent remarks.

2 - It’s in Old Trail, which is, in my opinion, just ahead of the curve and is poised for great success in the medium to long-term. (more on why in a later post)

3 - It is owned by local builder Church Hill Homes. More on this later.


Short Sale in Old Trail in Crozet Virginia

Unfortunately, there are no sold comps (per the MLS) by which to draw comparisons on price. (Have I mentioned that sold comps matter less?) Take a look at the active two bedroom townhomes in Crozet - there are no under contract ones …)

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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }

Keith 08.25.08 at 3:08 pm

Why do you care that it is owned by Church Hill? Church Hill didn’t build it, Hauser did.

Jim Duncan 08.25.08 at 4:00 pm

A builder doing a short sale? That’s not interesting?

Mark 08.25.08 at 7:02 pm

Which one is the short sale?

Ann 08.25.08 at 7:05 pm

what’s a short sale?

Jim Duncan 08.26.08 at 12:13 am

Mark - the one for $209,900 is the short sale

Ann - A short sale is:

From Business Week -

But some experts are now advocating a “short sale.” This is a case of a distinction with a difference: If your bank agrees to a short sale, you then hire an agent to find a buyer for the house, you sell the house for a loss, and with the bank’s blessing, they agree to eat the loss (although they could still demand the homeowner make some kind of payment or share the loss).

Matt Hodges 08.26.08 at 6:19 am

The last short sale that I assisted on financing sold for 90% of its assessment (I know - not the best indicator). My lender using Fannie Mae’s automated underwriting engine agreed to a “property inspection waiver” because their assessment indicated the value was sufficient. I always give my clients the choice to get a full appraisal, but both the clients and Realtor knew the property was worth significantly more than the sales price and, hence, opted for the waiver. There are bargains out there if you look for them.

Scott R 08.26.08 at 7:49 am

While I’m impressed that some are starting to ‘get real’ about pricing, I still think this property - attached in a PUD - is high. Median income in the county is around $65k, which suggests to me a median household price of around 200k. I’d expect more than a 1500sf duplex, which is not “median” stock in our lower-density MSA. Neighborhood is good certainly - nice schools - so that’s worth a premium but I’d predict these townhouses and duplexes settle in around 170s, tops. JMHO :-)

Jon Christopher 09.02.08 at 1:03 pm

Short sales are a great way for a homeowner to avoid foreclosure. They can create a true win win for all involved if dome correctly. Now is the time to get a steal.
Jon of Short Sale Way

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