Bargains Abound in NWAs Luxury-Home Market

Only one of the 10 most expensive homes in Northwest Arkansas is appearing for the first time on the list the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal compiles each year from the Multiple Listing Service.

A newly built home at 3487 N. Horse Meadow Drive, in Fayetteville’s Bridgewater Estates subdivision, is the only newcomer to this year’s list of the priciest homes in Benton and Washington counties. With 13,000 SF on three acres, the home is listed at $2.9 million.

The other nine homes on this year’s list have appeared in past years. Two of these — 0 E. Gate Road in Winslow and 23455 Cox Road in the western Washington County community of Summers — have been on the list since at least 2010.

Topping the list is 19713 Pummill Road, south of Elkins in eastern Washington County. The home also was No. 1 in 2011 with an asking price of $5.37 million. After a hiatus in 2012, it’s back on the market, but at $4.3 million — a price cut of nearly 20 percent.

The 5,194-SF estate was built in 2000 on 1,380 acres. The six-bedroom, lodge-style home overlooks one of two stocked ponds that attract an abundance of deer, turkey and other wildlife.

Listing agent Rob Florida with RE/MAX Associates said the property owner is willing to sell some of the acreage.

“Everything is negotiable,” he said. “Yeah, it’s 1,380 acres, but if you only want 500, just ask. Throw out an offer, but be reasonable. State your intentions: ‘I only need 300, 400 acres. This is what it would be worth to me.’”

Florida said he’s seeing a lot of interest in the Pummill Road property.

“I get several qualified calls a month on it, from retirees to movie production companies. It can be quite a variety,” he said. “The market has flattened out, [and] this is kind of bargain basement-type pricing for those types of properties, especially where [buyers] realize real estate always comes back, and they’re making their move now.”

Northwest Arkansas still has a substantial amount of inventory in the $800,000-and-up range, Florida said. As of early March, the MLS showed 36 homes in the two-county region listed for $1 million or more.

Still, of the high-end housing market, Florida said, “I think it is picking up a little bit because there is a little more liberality in the spending department of some of those that are in that ticket price.”

And for those in the market for a luxury home, bargains abound.

“A lot of properties that were built out or sold for $1.8 million, $1.9 million back in ‘07 are now going for $800,000 to $900,000,” Florida said. “So it’s a good time to buy.”

Some of the “perennials” on the top 10 list have seen their prices cut by $300,000 to $1 million since last year.

This year’s top 10 homes have a combined list price of $31.1 million, compared to $32.97 million last year — a drop of 5.67 percent. And last year’s total was 3 percent below the previous year’s $36 million total.

Notably absent from this year’s list is 1462 N. Hunter Drive in Fayetteville, the estate of the late Gregg Ogden now owned by Arvest Bank.

Topping the 2010 list at $4 million, the 10,992-SF home had a list price of $2.52 million a year ago. The seven-bedroom, 13-bath home on 12 acres is now listed at just under $2 million.