A good deal on a foreclosure? Well maybe, but I'm guessing it sold for true market value.

179 N. Maple Avenue, a back lot but one that's 0.87 acres, sold for $1.325 million.

The house, now bank-owned, is occupied by a tenant, and there were no showings permitted. My guess is that didn't matter, because this 60-year-old house is almost certainly slated for either replacement or renovation as a rental.

The owner, who died in 2009, paid $1.8 million for it in 2005 and, courtesy of Countrywide (of course) took out a $2,008,000 mortgage on the place in October, 2008 and died a year later. From the foreclosure records, it would appear that he never paid a dime on the loan, but the confusion of the 2008 collapse of Countrywide indicates that no one noticed until 2017 (!).

In any event, foreclosure proceedings were initiated in 2017, with the lender claiming an amount due of the aforesaid $2,008,000, unpaid interest of $993,000, property taxes, insurance, etc., all adding up to $3,234,945.62. I'm assuming that the successor to Countrywide took on this bad debt for pennies on the dollar and made out just fine on this sale; otherwise, someone, besides us taxpayers, took a bath. 

The foreclosing party had it appraised in 2017 at $1.6 million, but that figure estimated land value as $1.2 million, and the existing structure at $400,000. Allowing for a bit of upward adjustment on that land valuation and discounting the house down to, probably, zero, $1.325 was probably a fair price.

Gosh

17 Welwyn Road, Riverside, hit the market in March at $4.1 million, went via bidding war for $4.210. 

Well at least this former Folsom Housemaster's only moving up the street. I drove one of his predecessors to Idaho

Jim Mertz, second from right, looking happy. If i only accomplished one good deed in my life, this was it

News of GHS Headmaster Chris Winters resignation from that post and his acceptance of a job as head of Country Day should come as sad news for GHS parents, and welcome news to the CD community: he's been a good man, doing a very difficult job. 

I hadn't known until reading the linked-to article that Winters once served as Housemaster for Folsom House, which made me laugh. The Folsom Housemaster in my time at the school (Class of '71) was a great guy named Jim Mertz, who I drove to distraction by being fairly bright while resolutely refusing to be a good student. "Rebellious" might best describe my attitude.

Just before my graduation, a miracle brought about by Mertz's intervention, rule-bending, and ear-pulling (mine), he called me into his office and told me, "Fountain, you've accomplished what I never thought anyone could do: I'm quitting education and moving to Idaho to grow cherries on my father-in-law's ranch". 

And so he did. I always thought I'd done him a huge favor, and as you can see from the below, he prospered, retired, and his children are now running the operation. Maybe he should send me a box of cherries.

Symms Fruit Ranch

Another quick Riverside sale, and with a bidding war at that

134 Lockwood Road, one of the many homes built on that road in the post-war '40s, was listed May 15th for $1.575 million, but sold for $1.638. I'm watching my entire generation of friends leave Riverside, which is understandable, but sort of sad.

Milbrook Contract

52 W. Brother Drive, asking $3.895 million. Nice old (1929) house, but its start price back in February, 2017 of $5.495 turned off buyers. Leaving it at that price for almost a year was misguided.

I'm not getting this

113 Stanwich Road

113 Stanwich Road is newly listed today, for $1.750 million. A 1966 house on a busy road, with not a whole lot to recommend it. I'm currently working with buyers looking in this general price range, in the North Street/Central school district, but even if they weren't already receiving an instant MLS feed, I wouldn't bother sending along this one.

I'm only saying that because I know my clients' taste, of course, and other buyers' opinions may vary drastically. Still and all, I predict a few price corrections on this property as time moves on.

No comment

Same no-comment

A tipi might have been a better buy

881 King Street, described in its listing as an "antique" 1952, 925 sq.ft. home and listed for $529,000, has gone to contract after just 77 days. Everyone has to start somewhere for their starter home, I suppose, but this 2 bedroom, 1 bath structure is a pretty depressing place to begin. 

Mind you, if the buyers are handy, they can probably do wonders with the place: nowhere to go but up, and I very well remember Pal Nancy and I doing exactly that with our first two homes. I guess I'm just a bit shocked at how little a half-million dollars goes in Greenwich, even on the Port Chester border. 

The listing describes this as a "retro-bathroom". I'm tempted to call it obsolete

That same listing claims that this is a "just renovated" kitchen. Maybe the wall vent is new?

Riverside sale

219 Riverside Avenue, $2.925 million. A lovely house, owned by good people (or the other way around). I'm sorry to see them leave Riverside. Of note, the house was listed on May 19 and received a full-price offer within a week, so all my cautions regarding waiting too long to list a house notwithstanding, the right price for the right house will still prevail. 

Realtors aren't the only ones who can improve a photograph with PhotoShop

Fake, but accurate

(Oops! Sorry, Holden, posted this before I got around to checking the comments section)

I'd hang 'em high, but I suppose stripping them of their security clearance will do for now

Yes, a security clearance is a "lucrative commodity". 

“While Clapper and Hayden have said their clearance status doesn’t matter, other officials do use their security clearance to perform lucrative consulting work.

The threat of losing their status and, therefore, any employment obtained on the contingency of having a clearance, could have a chilling effort on potential critics.”

Available for counsel? Here's admitted-communist John Brennan, Obama's head of the CIA, the man who oversaw the corruption of FISA: Who, other than Democrats engaged in a continuous effort to hobble and destroy the current administration, would call on him for "help"?

"Donald Trump's press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors.' It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump's comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???" he tweeted.