Cleveland Real Estate And More

Solon OH Luxury Homes Year In Review 2010

Here is our official year in review for Solon Luxury Homes complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide in depth commentary about the Solon luxury home market that is certain to raise a few eyebrows. Also, we will include some great videos of Solon luxury home neighborhoods at the bottom.

In the Cleveland real estate market, a luxury home is categorized as one that sells for at least $500,000.

Year                # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price             

2010                        26                      $686,375                            

2009                        31                      $599,060

Highest Sale = $1,700,000

Here is a breakdown of 2010 sales by price:

Commentary:

Things are beginning to turn around for the luxury market as is evidenced by the figures above. While there were less actual sales in 2010 compared to last year, the average price for a Solon luxury home was higher. The average sales price figures are probably a tad inflated as we saw two sales over $1,000,000, one close to $2,000,000 which is unusual in the Solon market.

While there were more sales in 2009 ( 31 ), 11 of them were distressed properties, those that were either bank owned or short-sales. Out of the 26 sales last year, only 4 were distressed sales. We believe that less distressed sales is one of the main reasons why the average sales price was higher this past year.

WHY ARE NEARBY SUBURBS DOING BETTER THAN SOLON?

While luxury sales were down this year here in Solon, there were some suburbs nearby that did very well. Pepper Pike for example saw luxury home sales more than double this year, from 14 in 2009 to 31 in 2010. Moreland Hills also saw better numbers this year as well.

Does this mean that Solon is no longer as desirable? Not at all. Solon earned the #1 report card from the Ohio Department of Education last year, so buyer demand isn't the issue here. We are now going to share some insight that you won't read anywhere else.

In some suburbs, the luxury home inventory consists of older homes where the sellers on average have lived in their homes for a longer period of time than Solon home sellers. Some sellers in areas like Pepper Pike bought their homes 20-30+ years ago and have quite a bit of equity in their homes. Since most Solon luxury homes were built within the last 10 years, many of today's sellers have been in their homes for a short period of time.

Sure, homes in areas like Pepper Pike took a hit on their values during the recent downturn just like everywhere else. But people there are less attached to the relationship of purchase price vs. current market value than many Solon home sellers, most of whom bought during the peak of the real estate market.

Let's look at this example:

                                              Year Purchased     Purchase Price      Value in 2006    Recent Sale Price

Pepper Pike Luxury Home Seller        1985               $450,000             $800,000            $720,000

Solon Luxury Home Seller                   2004               $699,000             $745,000            $665,000

Here, both sellers saw their homes depreciate over the last few years, causing them to lose money. However, when all is said and done, psychologically it's a lot easier for the Pepper Pike seller to accept the loss because in the end, they still made money on the home over the years.

To make matters worse, Solon home sellers, many whom bought new construction, could easily have spent an additional $80,000+ above and beyond what the purchase price states for items not typically included in new homes, such as landscaping, a finished basement, and window treatments.

At this point, it's not that sellers in Solon cannot sell their homes. Many are simply so emotionally tied to their purchase price and how much they put into the home, that they are not yet willing to accept what the current market will bear. For this reason, bringing buyers and sellers of luxury homes together in Solon is more of a challenge today than in some of the other suburbs. The buyers are still out there, they are just very smart and refuse to pay more than market value for a home.

If someone wants a newer home in an excellent rated school district, Solon is often at the top of the list, especially for those who are relocating to the Cleveland area. Subdivisions such as Chagrin Highlands , Signature of Solon, and Thornbury are highly sought out, so demand isn't the issue. The problem is the sellers.

Moving forward, we are seeing sellers, slowly and surely, become more realistic with their pricing and we anticipate sales of luxury homes in Solon to increase slightly in 2011.

FOR THOSE NOT FAMILIAR WITH SOLON OHIO, HERE IS A GREAT VIDEO OF SIGNATURE OF SOLON, ONE OF CLEVELAND'S PREMIERE GATED GOLF COURSE COMMUNITIES:

Here are links to videos of some other fabulous Solon luxury home developments:

Chagrin Highlands

Forest Hills

North Park

Thornbury

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Solon Oh real estate and homes see  Solon OH Real Estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Solon OH Luxury Homes Year In Review 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Solon Ohio Home Value Report 2010

The following is our official year end home value report for Solon Ohio. We will provide a comparison between 2010 and 2009 and give commentary regarding the Solon Oh real estate market.

Sales     # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price                High                  Low

2010                      201                    $300,791               $1,700,000         $52,000

2009                      247                    $284,294               $785,000            $25,499

Here is a break down of all 2010 sales by specific price bands:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary

It was an interesting year for real estate in Solon Ohio. We got off to a great start, thanks in part to the first time buyer tax credit. Then, we started to see a drop off in terms of total sales compared to 2009.

Overall, there were less sales in 2010 but the average sales price was higher. We believe the average sales price is a result of two things: less distressed sales, especially in the lower price points, and more sales in the higher levels of the Solon luxury market.

In terms of Solon luxury homes, we saw 26 sales this year compared to 31 in 2009. However, the good news was that the average sales price of a luxury home in Solon was $686,375 this year compared to $599,060 in 2009. The highest price sale in Solon for the year was $1,700,000.

So what does all this mean? Just because there were less sales this year certainly shouldn't take anything away from Solon. Solon is one of the most sought after suburbs in the area thanks in part to having one of the top rated Schools in the State of Ohio.

The problem with the housing market is that many home owners, especially those who bought within the last 10 years, are having a tough time when it comes to selling their home. Either they owe more than their home is worth, making it impossible to sell without having to do a complicated short-sale transaction, or they simply aren't willing to accept current market conditions and continue to price their homes too high.

The good news is that there are a lot of buyers out there. Sellers who price themselves competitively stand a great chance of selling their home, and move up buyers especially have a wonderful opportunity to buy up in a down market.

Moving forward, we anticipate sales to be flat, at least through this year, with the average sales price to be a little higher that they were in 2010.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Solon Oh real estate and homes see Solon OH real estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

LET'S CONNECT:

Solon Ohio HOme Value Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Twinsburg Ohio Year End Market Report 2010

Here is our official 2010 year in review for Twinsburg Oh real estate, complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide commentary after giving statistics on the Twinsburg Ohio housing market.

Sales     # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price                High                  Low

2010                      183                    $207,145               $409,000            $46,000

2009                      216                    $194,832               $460,000            $20,000

Here is a break down of all 2010 sales by specific price bands:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary

We saw less home sales this year in Twinsburg, but the average price increased. We attribute that to less distressed sales, especially in the under $100,000 price point.

While many of the area's older suburbs such as Pepper Pike saw an increase in sales and purchase price, cities with newer housing such as Twinsburg and Solon saw a decrease in sales.

There is no way to tell why this may be, but one theory states that there are more people under water on their mortgages in areas like Twinsburg, thus they are not able to price their homes to sell. The last 10 years saw a large amount of sales in newer subdivisions such as Ethan's Green, and many buyers put very little money down during the years when low down payment loans were the norm. Consequently, a lot of the folks now looking to sell have little or no equity, making sales more difficult.

Moving forward, we anticipate sales and average sales price to remain flat for a while here in Twinsburg until the local economy improves. However, with rates remaining low, it still remains a favorable time to buy, especially those that are moving up to a larger home.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Twinsburg Oh real estate and homes see Twinsburg OH real estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

LET'S CONNECT:

Twinsburg Oh Year End Market Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Shaker Heights Oh Year End Market Report 2010

Here is our official 2010 year in review for Shaker Heights Oh real estate, complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide commentary after giving statistics on the Shaker Heights housing market.

Year      # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price              High                  Low

2010                      337                   $240,913                $1,350,000          $9000

2009                      357                   $206,096                $1,500,000          $4000

Here are all 2010 home sales in Shaker Heights broken down by price points:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary

Shaker Heights real estate seems to have stabilized in 2010. While there were a few less sales this past year, the average home price was higher. We attribute this to less distressed home sales.

In terms of the Shaker Heights luxury home market ( homes priced over $500,000 ) there were 37 luxury home sales in 2010 compared to 22 in 2009.

Based on the statistics, we feel that the bottom of the market has passed us by and anticipate flat sales for the next few years. While the national economy is seeing some positive signs, things are still slow locally here in Cleveland, so major home appreciation is not going to be seen for a while. However, as depreciation ends, buyers and sellers should both feel more secure about the real estate market and will be able to move forward with their buying and selling goals. The fact that the upper-end market has picked up, not only here in Shaker Heights but in other nearby suburbs like Pepper Pike and Moreland Hills, is a positive sign.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Shaker Heights Oh real estate and homes see Shaker Heights OH real estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

LET'S CONNECT:

Shaker Heights Oh Year End Market Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Pepper Pike OH Year End Market Report 2010

Here is our official 2010 year in review for Pepper Pike Oh real estate, complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide commentary after giving statistics on the Pepper Pike housing market.

Year      # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price              High                  Low

2010                      85                     $448,058                $1,500,000          $115,000

2009                      71                     $383,267                $1,500,000          $117,000

Here are all 2010 home sales in Pepper Pike broken down by price points:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary

Pepper Pike real estate had a great year in 2010 considering the overall state of the real estate market.  In fact, Pepper Pike was one of the only area suburbs to see increases in both number of sales and average sales price. Even more impressive was the activity in the Pepper Pike luxury home market. This past year saw 31 luxury home sales ( those over $500,000 ) compared to only 14 in 2009. A truly remarkable figure.

It looks like all three suburbs connected to the Orange School District ( Moreland Hills, Orange, and Pepper Pike ) have seen the bottom of the market and things are beginning to stabilize. High-end buyers are obviously more comfortable with making a purchase decision, aided by low interest rates and sellers who are more reasonable with their pricing than in the past. 

Pepper Pike is a very small community on the east side of Cleveland. It is in close proximity to the airport and downtown Cleveland, making it a popular destination for people relocating to Cleveland.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Pepper Pike Oh real estate and homes see  Pepper Pike OH real estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Pepper Pike Oh Year End Market Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Orange OH Year End Market Report 2010

Here is our official 2010 year in review for Orange Oh real estate, complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide commentary after giving statistics on the Orange housing market.

Year      # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price              High                  Low

2010                      42                     $279,598                $875,000             $75,900

2009                      42                     $259,121                $750,800             $87,500

Here are all 2010 home sales in Orange broken down by price points with average days on market noted:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary - Based on the statistics above, real estate in Orange Oh was better in 2010 than in 2009. The number of sales was the same, but the average purchase price went up. In terms of luxury home sales in Orange, we saw 3 in both 2009 and 2010.  Luxury home sales are defined as those being over $500,000.

When we analyze at the Orange real estate market, we also take into consideration neighboring communities Pepper Pike and Moreland Hills as they are all part of the Orange School District. All three communities had better years in 2010, leading us to believe that we have seen the bottom and things are beginning to improve. We don't foresee a lot of appreciation at this point, however.

Orange Ohio is a very small community of about 3000 people, and therefore has very few home sales in any given year. It is in close proximity to the airport and downtown Cleveland, making it a popular destination for people relocating to Cleveland.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Orange Oh real estate and homes see  Orange OH real estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Orange OH Year End Market Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Moreland Hills OH Year End Market Report 2010

Here is our official 2010 year in review for Moreland Hills Oh real estate, complete with a comparison to 2009. We will provide commentary after giving statistics on the Moreland Hills housing market.

Year      # of Homes Sold        Ave. Sales Price              High                  Low

2010                      32                     $408,809                $1,250,000         $130,000

2009                      31                     $333,199                $848,500            $149,000

Here are all 2010 home sales in Moreland Hills broken down by price points:

Source: NEOHREX

Commentary - As you can see from the numbers above, sales and average sales price for homes in Moreland Hills were both up in 2010. In addition, there were more luxury home sales in Moreland Hills last year ( 9 ) than the previous year ( 3 ). Luxury home sales are defined as those being over $500,000.

Overall, we feel that the market in Moreland Hills has already bottomed out, and that we will see stabilization in the future.  We believe it's too soon to think about seeing any appreciation, and that the market may end up being flat for a while. The communities within the Orange School District ( Moreland Hills, Pepper Pike, and Orange ) all seem to be doing a little better statistically than some of the surrounding areas.

Moreland Hills is a fairly affluent area of luxury homes, many that sit on 2+ wooded acres. Moreland Hills is in close proximity to the airport and downtown Cleveland, making it a popular destination for people relocating to Cleveland.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Moreland Hills Oh real estate and homes see  Moreland Hills Oh Real Estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Moreland Hills OH Year End Market Report 2010 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Here in Cleveland, we have actually seen quite a few radon issues in homes and highly recommend testing. If nothing else, consumers should educate themselves on the subject so they can then make an intelligent decision. This is a timely post from Connie Harvey, a top producing real estate agent in the Nashville, TN area.

Cleveland Great Big Home And Garden Expo 2011

The Great Big Home And Garden Expo takes place February 5th-13th at the Cleveland I-X Center and promises to be better than ever this year, with features and attractions suited for all ages. Here are just a few of the highlights that you can expect to see:

Idea Home - You will be able to tour an actual 3350 square foot home that will give you some great ideas for your very own home. There are some interesting design features as well as many "green" elements to this home.  Some of the features of this $1,000,000 home include: two waterfalls, an elevator, three fireplaces, a billiards room and entertainment center.

The major "green" components to this home include: a wind turbine that powers the entire home by wind, solar-powered air conditioner, and flat green roof from which barrels will collect rain water.

The outdoor of this incredible home will include: a cedar swing set, complete with a rock wall, tire swing and slide, in-ground swimming pool complete with a cabana and outdoor kitchen, half-court basketball court, and incredible landscaping.

New Man Cave - There will be a 1000 square foot basement that will be the envy of every man in Cleveland, but you have to promise your wife that you won't spend all day here. This specially designed basement will feature a game room, complete with poker table and fireplace, designer bar, home theater room complete with seating and TV , an office and luxury bathroom. There will also be an outdoor area complete with a fountain and fire pit.

Celebrities - As always, there will be appearances and presentations given by many nationally recognized stars in the home improvement world. Here is just a glimpse of what you can expect:

Mariel Hemingway - The Oscar nominated actress has been promoting health and wellness over the years and will be speaking about her partnership with Cambria, quartz counter tops that are stain resistant and easy to care for.

John Gidding - host of HGTV's "Curb Appeal: The Block" will be appearing Feb. 5th and 6th.

Matt Fox and Shari Hiller - host of "Room by Room", will be providing a presentation titled "Great Weekend  Projects" that will showcase easy and inexpensive projects that can be done by anyone.

Cooking Stage - Since the kitchen often brings everyone together, there will be several cooking demonstrations taking place on the Cooking Stage every day. This feature of the Great Big Home and Garden Expo is sure to be a hit as attendees will get a chance see some great local chefs in action and will learn some tips that they can use in their own kitchen. There will be specific lessons during the evening sessions on how to prepare easy meals.

Garden Showcase - The area's top landscape designers will be showcasing their talents in the Garden Showcase. The gardens will be inspired by famous movies such as "Edward Scissorhands", "Alice in Wonderland" , "The Matrix", and "The Wizard of Oz". Visitors will be entertained by music and attendees will be able to vote for their favorite garden.

Innovation Avenue - The hottest products of 2011 will be on display. Learn about innovative new products and trends in design. 

There will also be plenty of food and local vendors on hand. This promises to be an event not to be missed with fun for the entire family, so please plan on attending. Mention the promo code BLOG and receive $1 off, courtesy of the Great Big Home And Garden Expo.

Ticket Info:

$14 Box Office (Adult Admission)

$11 Online, AAA or Home Depot locations ( Adult Admission )
$10 Seniors 65+ with ID ( Monday-Thursday only, tickets must be purchased at show box office )
$9 Group Tickets (Minimum 20 )
$5 Children ages 6-12 years

FREE Children 5 and under

(Single tickets valid for one day of the show )

Photos reproduced with permission from the Great Big Home And Garden Expo.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Cleveland Oh real estate and homes see  Cleveland Oh Real Estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Cleveland Great Big Home And Garden Expo 2011 is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011

Winter Driving Tips From Snowy Cleveland Ohio

Since Cleveland was recently ranked the #2 snowiest city in America ( we will catch you Denver ), we thought it was appropriate for us to give out some friendly winter driving tips to our friends who may not be as accustomed to driving in the snow and ice. Hopefully, this will help keep you and your family safer this winter.

1.     Have your car serviced for winter driving.  This will include checking tire pressure, coolant, and oil.

2.     Always have these specific items in your car: a snow scraper, flashlight ( with fresh batteries ), blankets,  jumper cables, and flares.  You may also want to keep a shovel and some kitty litter in case you get stuck, or to help out a fellow driver who has encountered problems.

3.     Before going on a long trip, call ahead to check on road conditions.  Check your states website to see current conditions.

4.     Make sure you and all passengers are wearing a seat belt.

5.     Take frequent breaks, especially if it is snowing.

6.     Keep distractions to a minimum, especially if kids are in the car.  Yes, we realize that children today have a wide variety of electronics at their disposal while in the car.  For the drivers sake, please keep the noise level down.  You can even tell your kids I said so.

7.     Carry a cell phone and a charger to make sure it doesn't run out of power while on the road.

SOME ADDITIONAL TIPS YOU PROBABLY DIDN'T KNOW:

Here are a few interesting tips:

*     Getting out of a slide is different with today's cars. When many of us first learned how to drive, we were taught to pump our brakes if our car started to slide. Well, while we can't speak for every make and model of car,  many newer vehicles are so technologically advanced, that they automatically do this for you.  Now, it may be better to press the brake and hold it down until your car automatically takes you out of the slide.  For further information, we recommend reading your car's manual or speaking directly to your dealer.

*     Replacing the air in your tires with nitrogen may be better to improve a car's safety and efficiency.  The cost for this is very minimal and the results may be dramatic.

We would personally like to thank our good friends at Metro Toyota for providing a lot of this information. They can be located at: 13775 Brookpark Rd. , Cleveland OH , 44142,  Phone - ( 216 ) -267-7000.

Please follow these tips and drive safely this winter.

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About The Authors:

Dan and Amy Schuman live on the East side of Cleveland and specialize in Cleveland Luxury Homes, working with buyers relocating to Cleveland, and first-time buyers.

For Ohio and Cleveland Oh real estate and homes see  Cleveland Oh Real Estate

For a personal consultation or to speak directly to The Schuman Team, call 216-346-3235 or email.

 LET'S CONNECT:

Winter Driving Tips From Snowy Cleveland Ohio is the property of The Schuman Team and may not be duplicated or used without their written consent. ©January, 2011