Buy One Home…Get One Free?

My brother-in-law, who lives out in San Diego County, California saw the advertisement in the local paper and couldn’t believe it himself. A San Diego developer frantic to clear inventory has come up with a scheme to lure potential buyers into purchasing his product.

Southern California much like South Florida, is a market that is out of control with foreclosures and plunging sales. Michael Crews Development will give away a “Row Home” valued at $400,000 in Escondido with the purchase of a $1.6 million, two acre “Luxury Estate Home” built in Royal View located in San Pascqual Valley. “We are targeting a niche market of investors who are interested in the opportunity to buy a new home for themselves and get a free rental property or second home for family members,” developer Michael Crews said in a statement.

The clever developer claims the row homes are not shoddy townhouses that are being given away with luxury estate homes. He claims the two-acre Royal View luxury homes that offer four bedrooms, four baths, up to six car garages, swimming pools would be paired with 2,000 square-foot upscale row houses. (Yeah right!)

“People don’t expect to get what they are getting with the row-homes,” said marketing director Dawn Berry. “These are well appointed luxury houses.”

It seems the Michael Crews planned to run the offer for only two weeks in May but the developer decided to extend it through June to give potential buyers more time digest the idea of buy one get one free.

Since the first advertisement went up nearly two weeks ago, they claim one man has made an offer to buy a Royal View estate home, but chose not to take the free row-home. My suggestion Buyers: Ask for a $400,000 credit off the Luxury Estate Home list price and tell the developer “Thanks, But No Thanks…Keep the row home, I’ll take the money!” (Who likes or wants to pay for property taxes on two homes???) However, the developers have a solution for that as well. “If you don’t know what to do with your free home, you could always give it away,” Berry said. My thought: Looks like someone is really desperate to clear inventory!

View Article: Local Developer Offers Two Homes For The Price of One