East Cobb’s Blistering Pope and Walton High Housing Markets – Spring/Summer 2015!

This is a look at two of the hottest hyper-local real estate markets in Marietta’s affluent East Cobb community. Market activity in the Pope and Walton High School Districts have been off the charts so far in 2015. (I will be posting about the Lassiter High District in a future edition.) Historically, the markets in East Cobb’s trifecta high school districts, Walton, Pope, and Lassiter have brisk buyer activity starting in early spring around late February to March. From there as buyers jockey for the ideal home in their chosen school system(s) market activity and buyer competition grows stronger each month, month over month until June/July when things peak and gradually start to cool off.

I thought 2014 had some very good numbers, and 2015 has been another good year for me, but I had no idea how good the market itself was overall. While doing some research for a special project I parsed the data in these two highly acclaimed high school systems and uncovered stats for sales through July 15th, that not only beat 2014’s numbers, but some took me by complete surprise – and I live and work here every day! It’s one thing to dig up the data on a particular neighborhood where I am listing a home or helping buyer clients get the best price, but it’s another thing to dig up custom highly targeted housing market data on an entire school system – or two! I say custom highly targeted data because this level of data granularity is not available in the monthly MLS market reports I get as a Broker/Owner, and it is not posted on any realtor or public website. This level of detail has to be manually/digitally hand extracted using comprehensive and accurate MLS tax and courthouse data!

So, what surprised me about 2015 Walton and Pope market data? Several things: 1. The percentage of homes that sold for 98% or better of LP(List Price) – in-fact, the real surprise was the sheer number of homes that sold for 100% (or more) of the List Price! 2. The number of Days on Market (DOM) – historically good average DOM for an East Cobb home in good condition and well marketed are 50-70. Most areas in metro Atlanta have far longer average DOM times than this. In 2014 average DOM in these two East Cobb school districts were an exceptional 45 days or so – very strong. The 2015 Days on Market stats in these two school systems are astounding – the mid 30’s. That’s very fast – remember we’re not talking about a specific neighborhood micro market stat – but an entire housing market! But the real surprise – the high percentage of homes that sold in 10 days or less, and the majority number – homes that sold in 30 days or less. I have lived in East Cobb since 1996 and practiced real estate here since 1998 , and I can’t recall such hot overall market numbers.

The Market Study Parameters: Homes Sold May 1 to July 15 and Priced $280K to $2M -Walton & Pope Districts:

The Overall Stats: (more pointed neighborhood level details, and actionable data and trend info on new home subdivision sales stats of various builders, local listing agent and builder agent negotiation performance, and the like are only shared with and used on behalf of our clients)

Walton High District Stats

Sales: 138
Average Days On Market: 37.8 –94 properties sold in only 0 to 30 days from the Listing Agreement – only 44 properties required over 30 days for a Binding Sale.
–43 properties sold in 10 days or less from the Listing Agreement
List Price vs Sale Price Insights:
-of 138 properties, 100 sold for at least 95% of List Price –69 properties sold for between 98% to *108% of List Price – *a result of multiple offers on some homes and for others, prices were raised in order to provide some buyer closing costs – many of the sales exceeding 100% of List were priced in the same exact amount as the seller paid closing cost listed! -Of the 38 properties that sold for less than 95% of List Price, the average List Price vs Sale Price was 91.39 % of List Price.

Pope High District Stats

Sales: 102
Average Days On Market: 35.7 –70 properties sold in only 0 to 30 days from the Listing Agreement – only 32 properties required over 30 days for a Binding Sale.
–36 properties sold in 10 days or less from the Listing Agreement
List Price vs Sale Price Insights: Out of 102 properties:
– 85 sold for at least 95% of List Price –60 properties sold for between 98% to *106% of List Price * a result of multiple offers on some homes and for others, prices were raised on in order to provide some buyer closing costs – many of the sales exceeding 100% of List were priced in the same exact amount as the seller paid closing cost listed!
-Of the 17 properties that sold for less than 95% of List Price, their average List Price vs Sale Price was 90.44% of List Price.

A ton of useful and in a few cases even unexpected information was gleaned and will be used on behalf of our existing and future buyer and seller clients.

A similar study was just completed for the summer/fall market in 2014 to see how that data compares with our projections for the upcoming summer /fall market this year. We are expecting at least equal or better results, and insights into specific agent and builder negotiations will be helpful in moving forward.

Takeaways for Buyers: In these markets, be pre-approved with a lender, be ready to act when the right home is found, and hire the most qualified buyers representative you can find – the agent/Broker you hire will make or break your deal. Contact an experienced buyers representative to partner with early in the process so they can assist and guide you in the right direction for your family’s needs and lifestyle! Too many buyers start out trying to look around on their own and waste a lot of time before calling an expert. You already have a job – trying to learn a new career will not serve you? By “trying to learn the market on your own” you will waste valuable time, look in the wrong places, and ultimately miss out on some great opportunities.

Takeaway for Sellers: To get top dollar and a quick sale, your home needs to be in well maintained condition, and preferably certain updates have been done. Second, hire the best marketing expert you can find- one who can help you not only get your home in the correct shape, help you stage it if necessary, but can prove an exceptional marketing plan and superior exposure and past results for sellers. *There is a huge difference between seller results and the stats high volume listing machine agents like to boast about – such as number of transactions per year – it may sound counterintuitive, but volume only tells how the agent did for themselves – it says nothing about how their seller clients fared!

Contact me for more information about East Cobb homes, schools, or markets.

Robert Whitfield – 678-585-9691