Real Estate and Area Information for South Bend, Mishawaka, Granger and Notre Dame, Indiana

About 1 in 10 homes listed for sale sold in June 2008 in the South Bend Area MLS

Homes for sale
2,793 homes with a combined price of $405,474,558

Sales in June 2008
total: 273 transactions for $35,014,607 in sales volume
One in ten sold in the overall market. Here’s the breakdown in $50,000 increments.

$0 -  $50,000: 67 sales, 531 for sale, about 1 in 8 sold
$50,001 - $100,000: 64 sales, 817 for sale, about 1 in 13 sold
$100,001 - $150,000: 60 sales, 490 for sale, about 1 in 8 sold
$150,001 - $200,000: 34 sales, 399 for sale, about 1 in 12 sold
$200,001 - $250,000: 17 sales, 195 for sale, about 1 in 11 sold
$250,001 - $300,000: 14 sales, 118 for sale, about 1 in 9 sold
$300,001 - $350,000:  4 sales, 71  for sale, about 1 in 18 sold
$350,001 - $400,000:  6 sales, 59  for sale, about 1 in 10 sold
$400,001 - $450,000:  6 sales, 30  for sale, about 1 in 5 sold
$450,001 - $500,000:  0 sales, 21  for sales
over $500,001:             1 sale,   21  for sale, about 1 in 61 sold

Single Family Houses
256 sales for $32,016,378 in volume.

Condos and Townhomes
There were 7 June sales through the South Bend Area mls:
one condo-hotel at Waterford Estates for $134,500
one North Shore Club condo for $95,000
One Irish Crossings townhouse for $412,079
One New London Lake condo for $135,000
One Dublin Village townhouse for $210,000
Two Oak Hill condos for $159,900 and $172,000

The developer behind Stonebridge also reports four June sales, at $209,242, $253,365, $254,593, and  $273,447, outside of the mls. That means the South Bend Area condo / townhouse market had 11 sales in June for $2,309,126 in volume.

Market Trends

Past market reports on the South Bend Area Real Estate Blog

Independence Day, commonly referred to as The 4th of July, commemorates our nation’s adoption of the Declaration of Independence. To many, it also means picnics, cookouts, parades, and fireworks! If you plan to shoot off your own fireworks, keep in mind our local laws as well as good fireworks safety tips.

If you decide to leave it to the pros, here’s where you can find some of our area’s displays:

Blast at St. Pat’s – St Patrick’s County Park
Saturday, June 28
South Bend Symphony Orchestra 8:00 pm; followed by the Fireworks display 10:30 pm
Admission: $15

SilverHawks games – Coveleski Stadium
Tuesday, July 1 through Saturday, July 5
Game time is 7:30 p.m. each night; fireworks display follow each game
Admission: $5-7; Children under 5 are free

Meet me on the Island – South Bend Regional Museum of Art
Thursday, July 3
Music by Clifford & Michaels Blues Band 5:00 pm; followed by fireworks at dusk
Admission: $7; Children under 12 and museum members are free

Comcast Day - East Race/Seitz Park
Sunday, July 6
Music and activities starting at 2:00 pm; followed by Fireworks at dusk
Admission: free

It’s time to enjoy great weather and great tunes. Check out the schedule of bands, days, and times below. There’s something for everyone.

Meet Me On the Island – Century Center, Island Park
Admission: $5; children under 12 free
July 3, 5:00 – 10:30pm – Clifford & Michaels Blues Band
August 29, 5:00 – 9:30pm – Darryl Buchannan
September 19, 5:00 – 9:30pm – The Whistle Pigs

Fridays By The Fountain, near W Colfax and N Michigan Streets
Admission: free
June 27, 11:30am - 1:30pm – John Sapen Band
July 11, 11:30am - 1:30pm – Little Frank & The Premiers
July 25, 11:30am - 1:30pm – Everyday People
August 8, 11:30am - 1:30pm – Kennedy’s Kitchen
August 22 11:30am - 1:30pm – Half-Pint Jones

Rooftop Rendezvous, near E Wayne and S St Joseph Streets
Admission: $7.00
June 21 , 6:00pm to 11:00pm - Driving Reign
July 12, 6:00pm to 11:00pm – Live Wire and Ruin Hayes
August 16, 6:00pm to 11:00pm – Vyagra Falls
September 20, 6:00pm to 11:00pm – Soul Funkshun

Beutter Park Thursday Concert Series
Admission: free
Jun 5, 6:30pm - South Slope Cut Throats
Jun 12, 6:30pm – Steve Foresman Band
Jun 19, 6:30pm – Driving Reign
Jul 3, 6:30pm – South Side Denny
Jul 10, 6:30pm - Soundwave
Jul 17, 6:30pm – FBI – Funky Blues Intuition
Jul 24, 6:30pm – High Life
Jul 31, 6:30pm - Last Call
Aug 14, 6:30pm – Vehicle
Aug 21, 6:30pm - Jason Sapen Band

Sundays at East Race / Seitz Park
Admission: free
June 22, 1:00pm — Celtic Fest and Kennedy’s Kitchen
June 29, 4:00pm — Dry Flood
July 6, 2:00pm — Comcast Day featuring: Jetta & the Jelly Beans, The Whistle Pigs, South Side Denny, Ruby Jazayre, and the Sisters of the Nile
July 13, 4:00pm — Zonnix The Band
July 20, 4:00pm — NIPSCO Day featuring: This End Up, LD Swygg Band, Jetta & the Jelly Beans, Leonardo
July 27, 4:00pm — Los Hermanos Bueno
Aug 3, 4:00pm — Soul Riders
Aug. 10, 4:00pm — Soul Funkshun

I’m fortunate in my job that I get to work with smart people from around the country. Recently, I’ve been working with a businessman from Florida considering a purchase in South Bend. He brings an entrepreneur’s eye for value to his home search, and we’ve been discussing price per square foot as a means to screen and “pre-qualify” homes in the South Bend real estate market.

In our last conversation, we decided that any property that strayed too far from the average price per square foot for the area’s upscale homes would require a justification or we wouldn’t even look at it further. If a home is on acreage, offers unusual upgrades, a waterfront location, or some other good reason for a higher price, it could be considered, but most would be eliminated quickly, allowing us to focus on the best value propositions on the market. That sounded like a smart plan to find a nice home at a good price with the least effort spent scanning properties that would just waste time.

A casual acquaintance with South Bend’s real estate market suggested $100 / square foot as a typical price for nicer homes in the area to my client, but I checked the sales data to be sure our benchmark was accurate. A search of homes that sold in the last year with the criteria my client is seeking: sold for more than $300,000, were built in or after the year 2000, and are set on 4 acres or less, excluding townhomes sold at Irish Crossings and Wexford Place yielded 47 sales, enough to draw from for our benchmark. It’s worth noting that our mls rules mostly exclude basement square feet regardless of how well finished that level may be. Since most every home in the search results had finished or walkout lower levels, I think it’s an equal handicap for all the homes and therefore can be reasonably discarded. Looking at the sales, the average sales price per square foot was $164.82. The range is about $87/sf to $305/sq ft, with the bulk of the sales between $130 and $180/sq ft.

With some idea of what homes have recently sold for, we can apply it to the homes for sale in Granger and South Bend. Of course there will be justifiable variances, for example a waterfront all-brick ranch will cost more per square feet than a brick front 2-story on a through street. But we have a starting place for quickly evaluating homes and deciding if they justify a closer look.

If you’re looking for property in South Bend, Mishawaka or Granger, and want data driven searches from Realtors who respect your time, I’d like to talk to you:

Nick Molnar
mobile: 574-309-3758
direct to voice-mail: 574-235-4836
e-mail: nick@realst8.com

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We published our May sales report on June 1st, but here are the details of the May 2008 sales of South Bend - Mishawaka condos / townhomes. Remove the villas and there were 11 sales. Notably, Townes at Kamm Island reported two sales, indicating it may be possible to sell upscale condos that don’t target the Notre Dame market, and Keenan Court closed its first sale.

7 sales closed on new condos / townhomes:

• Irish Crossings sold 2 units, at $428,462 and $392,958.
• Townes at Kamm Island sold 2 units, at $399,800 and $340,000.
• Wexford Place sold 2 units, at $289,900 and $290,000.
• Keenan Court sold one unit, at $166,325.

4 older condos / townhomes sold:

• 2 Woodbridge condos sold, for $101,900 and $78,500. There are 9 active listings at Wodbridge.
• A condo in Somers Square sold, for $134,000. It was the only available condo in the neighborhood.
• A Topsfield condo sold, for $87,000. There are 4 active listings at Topsfield.