Is Piedmont (the city) an Island? Musings and Price Reductions

After 4 generations in Hawaii, my father and most of his siblings moved to the “Mainland” to raise the next generation. But every year, my father would take us back to Hawaii so we would know our grandparents and other relatives still there. And each year, my father would see changes in the islands, most notably in terms of development. As we watched real estate soar in Honolulu and its surrounding environs, my father would say “the bubble’s got to burst, it can’t keep going”. But each year, real estate prices did keep going, and are still holding, if not rising, today even as real estate everywhere else in America is tanking. Basically, Hawaii is, literally, an island (or rather, a grouping of islands) and on an island, you only have so much land to build on, especially on the most coveted areas such as beachfront. This fact, along with the weather and stricter lending laws than in many areas on the Mainland, seem to have protected Hawaii from the housing crash that is going on around the US. In fact, Prudential Locations reports that Hawaiian foreclosure levels are low with mortgage delinquency and default rates the lowest in the US.

So…what does this have to do with Piedmont? I’m just wondering if Piedmont is an island.  Piedmont is small. Piedmont is scenic. Piedmont has some of the most beautiful homes in Oakland. Still, there are other Oakland areas that can compete with these characteristics (Rockridge, Montclair, Claremont). However, Piedmont has something neither Oakland (nor even perhaps Berkeley) has: incredible public schools. Piedmont real estate prices seem to depend in large part on the desirability of its schools and this may be protecting it in a sense amid this bursting bubble.

At this point, prices appear to be holding. While there are some price reductions, they are not to the extent that other properties are undergoing in Oakland. As we move out of the slow selling winter months and into spring, it’ll be interesting to see what happens in Piedmont.

Photo Credit: Shelley Dante, “Poipu”

330 Sheridan Ave. Photo pictured at right.

2 Homes on 1 Lot: Main Home is 3bd/3ba; 2nd home is 2bd/2ba
Original Price: $2,988,000 Reduced to: $2,649,000
Designed by Clarence Mayhew.

221 Mountain Ave.
5bd/3ba
Original Price: $2,895,000 Reduced to: $2,650,000
Previous High Sale: $2,400,000 May 2002

49 Estrella Ave.
4bd/2.5 ba
Original Price: $1,650,000 Reduced to: $1,575,000
Previous High Sale: $1,495,000 in March 2006
Brown shingle crafstman, close to Havens Elementary

1859 Trestle Glen Rd.
3bd/2.5ba
Original Price: $1,049,000 Reduced to: $1,009,000

77 Oakmont Ave.
2bd/1ba
Original Price: $950,000 Reduced to: $899,000
On the market for 133 days. Description states “needs some updating”.
Appears to be the lowest-priced Piedmont listing on Redfin.