In the spirit of March Madness, I thought it might be fun to create our own brackets with the sweetest 16 homes for sale in Newport Beach. Each day for the next 8 days, I will post a "match up" of two homes with some information about each home and in 9 days any homes that have sold are our winners!

There will be two divisions: condos and single family homes.

CONDOS

Match up #1

101 Scholz #233 Listed for $399,000 vs

1063 Dover Dr Listed for $459,000

Match up #2

950 Cagney Ln #208 Listed for $525,000 vs

20402 Santa Ana Ave #13 Listed for $525,000

Match up #3

394 Villa Point Listed for $985,000 vs

408 A E Balboa Listed for $1,150,000

Match up #4

1018 Bayside #509 Listed for 1,850,000 vs

310 Fernando St #410 Listed

…

As I write this post honestly I feel like I am losing a friend.  Most people in Newport Beach have been to Villa Nova many times and is a place I highlight to newcomers looking to buy a home in Newport Beach. Located on Mariners Mile in Newport Beach, It was on the water, had great food, great wine and a great staff.  On February 28th 2013 Villa Nova was sold at a public auction for $6,000,000.  The buyer, Newport Beach resident Mike Moshayedi who owns Joe's Crab Shack says he will be entertaining offers to bring a new restaurant to the site with a hope of opening a new restaurant there sometime near the end of the year.  Right now the leading contender is The Winery Restaurant & Wine Bar currently located in Tustin.  So for those who have been many times…

Well the bottom is in, says Data-Quick Information Systems (a national real estate data tracking company).  Orange County home prices have moved by the biggest margin in 8 years!  As of Feburary 2013 the midpoint of all sales in Orange County was $477,000 a increase of 22.3% in the last 12 months.  Looking back since the crash the lowest midpoint of all sales in Orange County was in January 2009 where the midpoint was $370,000 and the highest was in June of 2007 at $645,000.  

Bottom line, prices are moving up and rates couldn't be any lower.  If you are thinking about buying a home in Newport Beach, Orange County areas or its just time to upgrade your existing home, contact us today!

Due to exceptionally low interest rates and low prices as a buyer it can be a challenge to not only find a place you want to purchase but also to have your offer accepted. Many properties are receiving multiple offers within the first 24 hours. For sellers this is great news, but for buyers it can be a frustrating experience.

What to expect?

As a buyer if you are putting down less then 20% expect to make multiple offers on different properties before you will find an offer that will be accepted. If you are putting down more then 20% or even making an "all cash" offer your chances of having an offer accepted increase dramatically.

How much to bid?

In January 2013 the average price for a single family home in Newport Beach was $1,730,597 and

…