such a deal

Late yesterday, 2112 E Sentry Ridge Court in Pima Canyon went to contract. Not a spec, it’s a custom built contemporary that ended up in foreclosure.

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about it here> once in a blue moon

The owners had it listed for 2+ years starting at $5.9 & ending at $3.5.  Then the bank took over. And after one month it went to contract yesterday listed at $1,999,000. Somebody did very well.
 
On the other hand, at that price it’s just another thorn in the side of the 18 homes still for sale in PC. See it here> 2112 E Sentry Ridge Court, Tucson AZ 85718
(Listed by Long Realty)

PS – for some inexplicable reason, sometime in the last couple of weeks, the sq footage was changed from 7000 sf to 6300 sf. In all of it’s previous listing life it was shown as 7000 sf. And the tax assessor has it as 7040 sf. So I’m stumped.

thefoothillsToday.com
to find your Tucson Foothills home

Comments

[Stuart]

Yes. JD...anyone who can add, multiply and divide will see that in today's depressed market 9 out of 10 times it is better to buy than to build from scratch.

I don't really know what that one time out of 10 it would be less costly to build now rather than buy would be...but few things in life are 100% black or white.

[JD]

A few clicks of the old abacus with those numbers and ouch, looks like it went for well below what it cost to build, but what a great bargain for the buyer! (Still kind've depressing though when it comes to the dream of building your own place in the current market, but then again, maybe the lesson learned should be that we should start looking at our homes less as investments and more as, you know, homes, and if you plan on spending a long time in a home, is resale price really your first consideration?) Thanks again for the response. I really enjoy your blog and your take on the Tucson market. And (not that I'm sure you don't already know this) what a great marketing tool...if & when I'm finally ready to make that move to the Tucson area, I have a feeling I know what realtor I'll be calling ;-)

[john schneider]

JD, they paid $546,250 for the lot in 2003. And I'd take an educated guess that it cost $450+/sf to design & build. It is all custom materials - no off the rack Home Depot stuff in this house,
JS

[JD]

Thanks for the response. I guess to clarify (since I know my own needs that I referred to are very hypothetical and I know contain too many variables), I was also thinking in context of the home in the article, which appears to be a very top of the line quality home in terms of design, construction and fit and finish (plus I know lots in Pima Canyon estates were/are very pricey), so I guess my thought was, beyond my own ponderings about my own needs, "gee, how much less than cost of construction did this house go for if it sold for $1,999,000 or less"...I'm thinking the lot alone had to have been at least $500K, factor in a 6300-7000 sf top of the line house custom house on top of that, and this house must've gone for well below the cost of land acquisition and construction...which, in a way, is kind've sad for those of us who hope to someday build our own custom dream home, if it would cost twice as much to build as you'd get for it if you went to sell it, it kind've makes you question whether it would be worth it to do so...

[Stuart]

Again, JS, you are right on the mark...as it is true that construction costs do vary significantly depending as you pointed out on the "quality/amenities" of the home.

Cost of the lot aside, as well as the ease or difficulty on building on said lot, there is a range that one could use even though one could "drive a tank" thru that price range.

Assuming one has a limit of $1 million for a home (including lot) and buys the land for $300,000, many builders can construct a fine quality home for $200 sq. ft. Thus,if this is accurate one should be able to build a 3,500 sq ft home in a good area of Tucson for about $ 1 mil.

Would one purchase an "inexpensive" lot for $50,000 and build a home costing $200/sq ft?That i would doubt...nor would one probably buy a very expensive lot, say $1.5 million and spend less than $350/ sq ft. to build it with all the "bells and whistles".

Bottom line, I believe that the home cost should be in line with the cost of the land. It makes sense to use a formula
that has proportionate data to some degree
...such as the land cost should be no more than 25% of the total end cost.

Perhaps other readers might wish to add their 2 cents here on this very interesting query.

[john schneider]

JD, construction costs are all over the place, depending on the quality/amenities of the home and the ease/difficlty of building on the lot. In the last 12 to 18 months there have been some homes that sold for significantly less than the cost of construction. In a few years, it's impossible to say where the market will be. But, the real issue with building is finding a good lot. And right now they are few and far between, or very costly. In a few years,I expect, there will be even less to choose from.

JS

[JD]

Given how low prices have gone on top-of-the-line custom homes in the Foothills, are these homes now going for below cost of construction/replacement? Any ball-park figure on what the avg. cost/square-foot is for a typical custom-built, luxury home in the foothills? (I'm curious because I hope to be able to retire to Tucson in a few years, and would prefer to build custom, but wondering if it would be a waste of money considering how low prices have sunk..)