Before this June, the house at 2331 Arthur St. in south Napa had seen better days. Much better days.
Years of deferred maintenance had taken a toll on the modest three-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath dwelling. Windows were broken. The walls were heavily scuffed. Floors were damaged. The kitchen and bathrooms were heavily worn and outdated.
The previous owner had lost the 1,075 square-foot home to foreclosure, according to Michelle DiChristopher, the Folsom-area realtor who sold the house for the bank that came to own it.
In June, 2331 Arthur St. became a small part of Napa history: it was the least expensive home sold in the city that month.
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Priced at $399,000, potential buyers were lined up for the chance to take on the house, which was described as “uninhabitable.” At the time, DiChristopher said she received 10 offers on the house.
“It was a bidding war,” she said. The house sold for a whopping $95,100 over asking for a total of $495,000.
The new owner would flip the home, DiChristopher said at the time.
However, when that new owner suddenly had to bow out, weeks later they then sold the home to yet another house flipper, DiChristopher said.
That second sale price was $527,000. That buyer, SMITH GNG LLC, then spent the next 60 days and an untold amount of money remodeling the house.
On Sept. 1, the house was listed again, this time for $749,000.
Today, the house has never looked so good. With new paint, a new front door, and outdoor styling, it has curb appeal galore.
“It was a total gut job down to the studs,” said listing agent Joey Esplanada of Sequoia Real Estate in Pinole. “Everything is pretty much new … the windows, doors, roof, new central heat and air and fencing.”
The home features the “perfect marriage of modern convenience and midcentury design,” said the listing by Esplanada and colleague Ricardo Velazco.
Other features include drought-conscious landscaping, quartz counters, stainless GE appliances, a deep sink with a faucet that operates at a touch and LED lighting and motion sensors. The kitchen and bathroom gleam.
“This is a prime Napa location — walking distance to River Park Shopping Center and a quick drive to South Napa Market, Century Center, and premium outlet stores,” downtown and Fuller Park.
Over Labor Day weekend, and also the BottleRock music festival, the agents hosted an open house.
About 15 parties toured the home, giving good reviews, but as of Wednesday, they had received no offers.
“I wish we did,” said Esplanada. “It seems like the market has cooled off a bit,” with school starting and other seasonal changes.
Yet, he remains confident. “Our expectation is that it will sell for above list price,” said Esplanada. “But it may take around 30 days, especially in south Napa.”
Velazco said Napa continues to be a prime destination for home buyers.
For example, “I have clients of mine selling houses in Walnut Creek, and they want to move to Napa.”
“It’s the vibe,” he said. Napa Valley offers a different lifestyle than the more congested central Bay Area, he said.
In addition, “Downtown Napa is really coming up, and it's where a lot of people want to go. We want to come to Napa because we don’t want to be in a cement jungle anymore.”
These buyers want a turnkey house, he said, because it’s all-new. "A lot of (buyers) don’t want to deal with an old sink and laminate countertops. They want instant gratification. It’s all done and they get to enjoy it.”
While this home may become a successful flip, according to ATTOM Data Solutions, in 2020, home flipping dropped nationwide.
The 2020 U.S. Home Flipping Report showed that 241,630 single-family homes and condos in the United States were flipped in 2020, down 13.1 percent from 2019 to the lowest point since 2016.
The number of homes flipped in 2020 represented 5.9 percent of all home sales in the nation during the year, down from 6.3 percent in 2019 to the same percentage seen in 2018. The declines in the number of homes flipped in 2020, as well as the portion of home sellers represented by investors, marked the first time since 2014 that both measures decreased annually.
While flipping activity declined, gross profits and profit margins shifted in opposite directions. Profits rose in 2020, but profit margins dipped - the third straight year that returns on investments declined.
Homes flipped in 2020 typically generated a gross profit of $66,300 nationwide (the difference between the median sales price and the median amount originally paid by investors). That was up 6.6 percent from $62,188 in 2019 to the highest point since at least 2005.
But the typical gross flipping profit of $66,300 translated into just a 40.5 percent return on investment compared to the original acquisition price.
"Last year was a banner year for the U.S. housing market, with the apparent exception of the home-flipping business, which saw its fortunes slide a bit more in 2020. Home flippers did still make a nice profit on investments that generally take around six months to turn around - just not as much as they did in the previous few years," said Todd Teta, chief product officer at ATTOM Data Solutions.
Before and after: This south Napa home, once in "uninhabitable condition" is now about to be flipped, and for a healthy profit
2331 Arthur St. "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur St. "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
2331 Arthur "before"
2331 Arthur St. "after"
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You can reach reporter Jennifer Huffman at 256-2218 or jhuffman@napanews.com