Home pricing trends in Murphy TX (Plano, Frisco: sale, foreclosures, custom home)

[calmdude]

I was looking at new home in Murphy and it is confusing. There are many homes over 4000 ft2 priced around $100/sq ft. Then again, some "custom" builders are asking $140/sq ft. If you visit custom homes, there is not much customization (compared to others) excepting that they may have extra large backyard which costs them maye $15k to purchase. One company posts the same agent with the same language describing every home and is about 20% more then expected price based on Collin county records. Another new company offers 10-20% within a couple of minutes of entering their office. Yet, the homes continue to be listed at ridiculous rates on the MLS.
Question 1: do you folks think that the high list rates are really for suckers (out of towners etc) who may bite, or there is a real strategy behind this pricing?

Question 2: if you look at Collin appraisals, in some areas of Murphy, 2007 prices have gone down by 5-10% over 2006, presumably because of new builders dumping inventory. However, it does not look like many owners have adjusted to the new reality and are listing pre-owned homes at rates expected in 2006. Then again, some owners are almost at foreclosure stage and they are listed real cheap. Has this been your experience also, or is it just me?? ANy comments will be welcome.

Thanks!

[MurphyPl1]

In my neighborhood, there's a huge disparity in home prices. We paid about $100/sqft 2 years ago and feel pretty comfortable that we could get that if we put it on the market. Our neighbor across the street is selling their house and are asking $120/sqft. DH's first response was "are they on crack?"

BUT the much larger homes in Phase 5 (6000) are selling at higher amounts.

Murphy was hit pretty hard with the whole flipping trend. Investors saw high growth rate and bought in thinking they'd make a fast buck. The builders weren't immune to that either. In the 10 months it took us to choose and build a home, they raised the price $20K every 6 weeks or so. Crazy.

I'd still aim for the $100/sqft if I were you, knowing that some areas will command a little higher price.

If you want to talk about a specific neighborhood or builder, feel free to PM me.

[calmdude]

We tend to like the area north west of Murphy Road and Betsy and are looking at homes 4500 sq ft and over. We have hired an agent and asked her to do some research on this but your thoughts on that area would be appreciated.
Some larger houses southwest of Betsy / Murphy road are also nice and the asking price seems to be lower. Is it because of the location? Did not know a couple of blocks in Texas (this is not CA) would make such a difference. Thoughts?
Thanks!
PS: if this starts to get more detailed, I would rather take this offline (sometime tomorrow) and do a pm instead.

[MurphyPl1]

It is. Rolling Ridge was originally intended to be a gated community until the developer, the city and the school district decided a park and a school would be nice. Once the school went in (and kids from south of 544 attend) no more gates planned. So the same home in Rolling Ridge with the same approximate lot size goes for about $100K more than on Mockingbird in the Aviary. RR started out as a slightly more affluent neighborhood and it's stayed that way. Hunter's Landing is also nice but I don't think lot sizes are as large.

One other thing that makes a difference in RR is that it's completely it's own neighborhood. South and east of RR are Besty and Murphy Rds. North and west are bordered by the city of Parker. Parker has a acre lot minimum so even if that were to develop, it would be a much more rural feel. And the Justice's who live on the large property to the west are probably not ever going to sell off.

[cdelena]

In my last home buying search (different location) I had to price lot and house separately. Found great finishes in homes 30% less per square foot because they were jammed together in a less desirable neighborhood, and finally bought home with fewer features on a terrific lot in a desirable area but the price per foot was higher. Lot prices can vary greatly so don't discount that factor too quickly.

[calmdude]

Thanks again for the replies.

Questions:
(a) S of Betsy / E of Murphy -> for larger yards and 4500 sq ft homes, which subdivision would you advise we look at?
(b) How busy is Betsy during rush hour? Is ths expected to increase significantly once Murphy is built out (in 3 yrs or so)? Reason I am asking is that there are a couple of houses on sale that almost back into Betsy, and we are not sure about the noise. Will it be similar to a major road in Plano area?
Thx!

[nsumner]

There are several homes in Rolling Ridge that are foreclosures in good condition priced between $70 and 85 pSF, all over 4000 SF.

I don't think that Betsy will ever be busy enough where it would be a downside to live in a home that backs to it. The traffic is just from the local residents. Nothing is scheduled for any type of commercial to make it noisy.

[calmdude]

nsummer - thx. Those are really good prices that makes one think of upsizing more.
Newer homes in Murphy are so much nicer than the ones in W Plano and cost 40% less. While Plano is a good place -we have lived there for quite some time - the differential for far W Plano is (in my view) ridiculous and one gets a 12-15yr old home in W Plano. If one is worried about schools, within the PISD, one can always transfer.
Looks like we will likely move from Plano to Murphy.

[nativeDallasite]

Murphy looks cute, but one thing that bothers me about it (and other suburbs) is the teeny tiny lot sizes. I grew up in a house that's on a half-acre lot and those yards are just so small; how can you do anything in them with tiny yards, very tall fences, and the entire street looking down into your yard?

Blech.

And if you want a decent-sized lot...meaning over 1/3 of an acre...it seems you'll have to pay out the nose for it. Ugh...I hate these mini-mansions shoehorned onto these tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiny lots.

[socketz]

I believe that Murphy has 1/4 acre mins, so it's about as good as it gets for new construction yard size. If you think Murphy's yards are small, don't even waste your time in Frisco. They are a fraction of the size there.

The disparity in cost per sq/ft may be between builders also...remember that here in Texas, people pay premiums for better quality builders.

For instance, a Sotherby or David Weekly home will also cost more (20-30%) per sq/ft than one from the mid-range or lower end builders.