Real Estate

House Hunt: Five 'Median' Homes in Wauwatosa

Three bedrooms, two baths, about 1,750 square feet, in a style you like in a neighborhood you'll love, all for around $250,000 – that's what's in the middle of the Tosa home market.

 

When the city or the School District talks about the local property tax levy, they usually provide an example, known as the 'median-priced home,' and tell you what the taxes on such a home would be.

'Median,' for non-statisticians, is different than 'average.' The median is the point where half the units of any given sample – in this case all home values in a community – are above, and half below.

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In real estate, median is used instead of average to avoid having the figure be skewed by a small number of very high-priced homes at the top or of very low-priced homes at the bottom.

Lately, the example being used in Wauwatosa is, "the levy on a $250,000 home would be...." (If you're interested, it would be just shy of $5,500.)

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Such a nice round number is not, in fact, the exact median, but rather a figure that is conveniently close for easy arithmetic. In 2010, the median price for a detached, single-family home was $246,220.

At any rate, what is that median home in Wauwatosa, the one that can be yours for a cool quarter of a million dollars?

Based on a search of AOL Real Estate listings for the five homes for sale right now in Wauwatosa that are priced closest to $250,000 – above and below – it has three bedrooms and two bathrooms.

That isn't based on finding an average or a median. Every one of them has exactly three bedrooms and two bathrooms. 

They are within about 200 feet of being the same size, with the largest (and most expensive) being 1,848 square feet, and the coziest (in real estate, homes are never small, they are cozy), being 1,616 square feet.

Size not being everything, they are advertised according to style and being conveniently located to parks, parkway or schools.

They are Tudors, Colonials and ranches, of varying ages, and spread out over the city – although two of them happen to be just doors away from one another at 110 and 124 N. 87th St.

The mortgage payment at current best rates on such a home would be about $900 a month with a fixed-rate 30-year loan and a 20 percent down-payment, or $1,000 a month with a 10 percent down-payment.

Here are the five homes listed in AOL Real Estate closest to $250,000. Interestingly, all claim to be reduced in price. Click on the address to see the full listing.

2603 N. Lefeber Ave.

  • $269,900 PRICE REDUCED
  • 3 Bed, 2 Bath 1,848 Sq. Ft.
  • Single Family Home
  • Brokered By: Realty Executives – Integrity

124 N. 87th St.

  • $265,000 PRICE REDUCED
  • 3 Bed, 2 Bath 1,653 Sq. Ft.
  • Single Family Home
  • Brokered By: Realty Executives - Integrity

110 N. 87th St.

  • $264,000 PRICE REDUCED
  • 3 Bed, 2 Bath 1,616 Sq. Ft.
  • Single Family Home
  • Brokered By: Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

3258 N. Colonial Dr.

  • $244,900 PRICE REDUCED
  • 3 Bed, 2 Bath 1,756 Sq. Ft.
  • Single Family Home
  • Brokered By: Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
  • Open House: Sun 12/9, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. 

1549 N. 122nd St.

  • $235,000 PRICE REDUCED
  • 3 Bed, 2 Bath 1,800 Sq. Ft.
  • Single Family Home
  • Brokered By: One Rate Real Estate


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