Real estate agents described the house at 1550 Kings View Drive in Grand Forksas “a whole different world.”
At $797,700, the house is the third-most expensive on the market here.
“You don’t see this type of home in Grand Forks, or in North Dakota, very often. It’s exquisite,” said Lynn Kvidt, a real estate agent at Greenberg Realty, as she stood in the nearly 2,700-square-foot, five-bedroom single-story home, overlooking King’s Walk Golf Course.
There is a demand in Grand Forks for luxury, high-end homes, she said.
In June, Grand Forks County had 16 houses for sale for more than $500,000, according to data from Merilee Moen, another real estate agent at Greenberg. That’s 23 percent more than the 13 houses for sale in the same month a year ago.
ADVERTISEMENT
But the level of demand for high-end homes in Grand Forks is healthier, “more normal,” than the need for mid- to low-end homes, which can sell within a few days because of the high demand and few options, Moen said.
The house at 1550 Kings View Drive, built in 2009, has been on the market since January, Moen said.
Houses sat on the market an average of 97 days in May, according to the city of Grand Forks housing dashboard.
As of Wednesday, there were 87 houses for sale in Grand Forks - a relatively low number, experts say. Six of those houses cost more than $500,000.
The most expensive listing was a $1.25 million house at 1013 Shadyridge Court.
Luxury homes
Houses listed at more than $500,000 will sometimes be on the market for a year or two, but people selling those expensive homes usually have the finances to be able to wait longer for a buyer, Kvidt said.
They are often business owners or maybe people who have had financial success in agribusiness or farming, Moen said. Many are older, but some still have children at home, she said.
ADVERTISEMENT
There are few common trends among luxury homes in Grand Forks because most houses listed at more than $500,000 are “all custom, one-of-a-kind,” Kvidt said.
For example, 1550 Kings View Drive comes with many custom features including three flat-screen TVs, surround sound systems, a six-foot Jacuzzi tub, two fireplaces, a three-stall heated garage and a back-up power generator for the entire house.
The house has 11-foot high ceilings in the living room area, which has wide glass patio doors with a view of the golf course. Although the house is one story, it also has a fully finished basement.
Most house hunters looking for a luxury home want “all the bells and whistles,” Kvidt said. Even seemingly small upgrades, such as the Kings View house’s lighted walk-in closets, granite countertops and remote-controlled window blinds, can set a house apart, she said.
Buyers also often look for privacy in a luxury home, Kvidt said. For example, Kings View house has landscaping and trees to separate it from neighboring homes.
On the market
As of June, four houses listed at more than $500,000 have been sold in Grand Forks County.
The number of listings for homes priced at less than $200,000 dropped significantly between June 2013 and this past June, Moen said.
ADVERTISEMENT
But new construction has caused listings for homes between $200,000 and $250,000 and between $300,000 and $400,000 to each increase by about 45 percent in the past year, Moen said.
Since 2000, only two houses priced at more than $900,000 have sold in the city of Grand Forks, said John Herz, city assessor.
In 2008, 611 Vineyard Drive sold for about $1.17 million. In 2013, 5849 Pinehurst Court sold for $950,000.
Other expensive houses outside city limits may have been annexed into the city after being sold, Herz said.
As of Wednesday, the only two houses listed at more than $900,000 in Grand Forks were the $1.25 million Shadyridge Court house and a $999,000 house at 5700 Pinehurst Court.
