While there are not many homes sales in the Castle Glen area to report on so far in 2008, the two that have sold are record highs for this Big Bear area.

The two closed sales were both sold for $1,900,000. The previous record high was $1,775,000 back in August 2005. Also, there is currently one home for sale in the area with an original listing price of $1,799,000, scheduled to close escrow in mid-April.

It took a while for these properties to sell but this is good news for an otherwise very slow sales market in the Castle Glen area.

Currently, there are 25 properties for sale in Castle Glen, quite a bit to choose from given the lack of buyer demand.  We are heading into the busier time of the year with the spring & summer selling months ahead of us so look for this list to change.  There will be some new listings to hit the market plus I am sure a few of these will go into escrow.

If you are interested in buying a property in Castle Glen, feel free to contact me with any questions.

One question that seems to come up often from people who visit the Big Bear area is, “How far down is the lake level?” The typical answer from me has always been more of a range, rather than a specific amount.

The Big Bear Municipal Water District, also called BBMWD, has been keeping records of the levels on Big Bear Lake for some time now. Their website has the lake level history going back to 1985. Big Bear MWD takes weekly measurements and posts the results to their website here.

As you can see, the levels of Big Bear Lake will fluctuate. It was nearly full in June 2006 and is now close to 5 feet down (up 2 feet though from the first of the year). We are having a great winter so far so it would not surprise me to see the lake level close to full come Spring and Summer. The lake was almost 18 feet down in Oct. of 2004 and rose to almost full (3 feet down) by the Summer of 2005.

The lake level will usually drop about 1 foot per month during the Summer due to evaporation. So, the levels of Big Bear Lake will drop about 5 feet a year without any new precipitation. Drought conditions will also lead to lower levels as we saw from 2000 to 2005.

Lake levels will have an effect on the values of Big Bear lakefront properties too. A good rule of thumb is that the lower the lake level, the lower the prices will be on the lakefront properties, irrespective of other market conditions.

A good example of this was during the real estate boom of 2002 to 2005. Lakefront properties were not going up at the same rate as other properties in Big Bear. This was also right in the middle of the drought and lower lake levels. As soon at the water levels of Big Bear Lake came up, so did the lakefront prices. This is why it is important to know if you are buying a shallow or deep water lakefront property.

Thinking of selling your Big Bear lakefront home? Then waiting until Summer might be the best time as that is when the lake level will be the highest and look the best. It all depends on the precipitation we receive the winter before, plus what the current real estate market conditions look like at that time.

If you are curious about lakefront properties for sale, or have questions about your Big Bear lakefront property, feel free to contact me for more details.

* photos used courtesy of BBMWD and teachtechmcg

The High Timber Ranch area of Moonridge has been around since 1999. The first phase contained 67 parcels. The second phase, which came up for sale in 2001, had 47 lots. There is potential for another 200 parcels to be developed within the next 2-5 years, depending on the real estate market conditions.

The area has underground utilities along with protective CC&R’s. Even though most of the properties are over 1/2 acre of land, horses are not allowed in the High Timber Ranch area. Currently, there is no Homeowners Association nor the associated fees/dues.

People like the High Timber Ranch area for several reasons. Every property in the area close to 1/2 acre or more with some over an acre. Most of the properties are heavily treed for added privacy and seclusion. Some properties also back to open acreage and the National Forest. The homes in this area will range in size from about 1,600 sqft. up to 4,000 sqft. Prices current range from the mid to upper $500,000’s up to $1,100,000 or so.

The subdivision in located at top of Moonridge which is known for being very quiet and private. This can be seen as a drawback if you want to be closer to town, in the middle of things, as it can take 10 minutes or more by car to get down to the Village area of Big Bear Lake. Though the area is always accessible, it can take a little longer to get to during the winter months with the snowy driving conditions.

According the Big Bear MLS, there were 7 homes sales in the High Timber Ranch area in 2007. See the particular details of each below.

I am experienced at selling properties in the High Timber Ranch area. If you have any questions about the area, or would like more details about homes from sale in this area, please feel free to contact me.

Below are the home sales statistics for 2007 in Meadowbrook Estates. The last sale was in August so things have definitely been quiet in the area since then. Currently, there are 13 homes for sale in the Meadowbrook Estates area, ranging in price from $750,000 to $1,695,000. The sizes range for about 2,000 sqft. to 4,500 sqft.

This is the perfect area for buyers looking for space and privacy with all the amenities. All of the properties in Meadowbrook Estates are a minimum of one acre of land, most of which are heavily treed, with underground utilities and protective CC&R’s.

If you are interested in the Meadowbrook Estates area, please feel free to search for the properties here. Otherwise, you can contact me and I would be happy to email you the properties in the area.

Below is a list of the 15 homes that sold in the Castle Glen neighborhood as per the Big Bear MLS. The number of sales were down as compared to 2006 but it was still good sales activity. Things have already started off for the better this year in the Castle Glen area as we have had one sale at $1,900,000, one in escrow that was listed for $2,200,000, and several motivated buyers looking in the area.

I am an expert in the Castle Glen real estate market so feel free to contact me with any questions.

There were a total of 20 lakefront sales in the Big Bear area according the to the Big Bear MLS. While the sales numbers are down from the previous years, lakefronts properties are still selling. Give me a call or drop me a line if you have any questions on these or other properties in the Big Bear Lake area.