Sunday Opens (2/28)

February looks like it's going to close out with 38 new SFR offerings west of Sepulveda – a bumper crop here in Winter as Spring officially approaches.

Once again that means plenty of new offerings for open-house viewing.

Click here for the complete list of opens published in the Beach Reporter, or at any time use the link from the "Property Search Tools" pull-down menu in the top navigation bar.

As always, click any highlighted property address for more pics & details via Redfin.

Please report back here at MBC on any open houses you visit – what you like, what you don't like, etcetera.


Hill Section

1009 8th (5br/5ba, 4550 sq. ft.) is a big, newer (2004) home with a big sense of space, including amply sized secondary bedrooms. On this 7200 sq. ft. lot, you also get a real yard without going east of Sepulveda.

Yes, Highway 1 is relatively nearby, but the location is off the path enough to be a quiet corner of the Hills.

Sellers paid $2.280m new in Nov. 2004 and seek more or less the same price now: $2.3m. A larger family could easily prefer this offering to much of what's available in the Trees.

1009 8th is open Sun. 1-4pm.


Sand Section

Arches, curves and other unusual shapes accent 473 34th (3br/4ba, 3175 sq. ft.), a custom, newer (2005) home up near the quiet end of a cul-de-sac on the plateau.

Even if they re-open Sand Dune Park, it's virtually no factor at 34th St. The listing boasts of a "beautiful... hidden city lights view."

Click here for a narrated virtual tour, or drop by in person Sun. 2-4.

3316 Crest (4br/4ba, 2100 sq. ft.) is uptown contemporary beach living – an ambitious remodel that is cozy in parts (very small BRs), on a half lot. Includes a separate rental or guest unit downstairs.

Terrific, unexpected, big-time ocean views upstairs, and a nice execution of the modern wood/steel/glass look on the remodel.

Crest was offered in Summer & Fall 2008 for $1.995m, but didn't sell. Starts now at $1.785m.

3316 Crest is open Sun. 1-4pm.


Tree Section

2305 Pine (3br/2ba, 2000 sq. ft.) is a late-40s cottage with lots of updates all around.

Extra bonus: The covered patio/outdoor room for entertaining – really, why live inside here in MB?

As MBC noted the other day, Pine sold in Summer 2007 for $1.570m, and starts now at $1.449m. (See "2305 Pine Is Back, 3 Years Later.")

2305 Pine is open Sun. 1-4pm.

660 33rd (5br/5ba, 4750 sq. ft.) is probably the best deal by the square foot in the Tree Section, certainly in terms of new construction. At $2.195m, you can be the first occupant of the home for $461/PSF – 2/3rds the price of other newbies.

The "rustic spanish" (listing) already served a long tour of duty on the local market, running from June 2008 till late last year, when the bank took it back. It's now an REO. (See "REO Speckie Gets a Markup.")

The listing certainly lingered for most of that time due to price, but there is also the problem that people just haven't loved the house for any number of reasons. Price should cure the range of issues this year.

Speaking of price, for a little window last year, the same home was offered for $200k less (as our story linked just above noted), but that was then.

660 33rd is open Sun. 1-4pm.

3001 Valley (3br/2ba, 1975 sq. ft.) is a curious 1950s cottage that doesn't look like much on the outside, but offers decent space inside and a 5000 sq. ft. lot for $995k.

There are all kinds of issues, from the speedway location to the overgrown yard to the obsession with blue, inside and out. You'd want to update the updates and spruce up the ugly-duckling aspects, but if you take a little vision to Valley you get more land and more space than other entry-level homes.

Note that $995k is 30% below the price of similarly sized 2305 Pine, the first Tree Section listing above. Whether that makes this one a deal all depends on your priorities.


3001 Valley is open Sun. 1-4pm.

2305 Pine Is Back, 3 Years Later

Three years will give you some perspective.

The very first post here at MBC, back in March 2007, concerned 2305 Pine, a home that was for sale then, and is for sale again now.

Way-back-when, your blog author was aghast that 2305 Pine – and one other listing – had increased its price by $100k. That didn't seem like a smart way to sell a property in a market that appeared to be declining.

But you know what they say about predicting...

Your blog author's opinion about the market, in general, in that first post has proved to be right. We've seen prices slide 15-20% or more since MBC launched with a public statement that home prices locally were dropping.

But boy, were we wrong about 2305 Pine.

Pine began at $1.495m almost 3 years ago to the day (Feb. 23, 2007). The price hike to $1.595m took place March 5. (MBC's debut was 10 days later.)

MBC tut-tutted, and Pine lingered. The sellers largely missed the Great Spring Rally of 2007 – a last-gasp burst of enthusiasm in the local market before the slump of the last couple years.

The Pine listing hung around, in its price-elevated condition, till nearly July 4. And then came a deal a-knockin'. (See "A Happy Holiday on Pine.")

Now here's the surprise. 2305 Pine later closed for $1.570m, or $75k more than the start price.

Had the sellers panicked in the Spring that they'd made the wrong move, seeing everything else around them selling but not their home, they might have cut their price unnecessarily and left money on the table. (Isn't that every seller's fear?) Turns out that patience worked for them.

Now, here in 2010, here come the buyers who paid nearly $1.6m those 3 years ago. They're starting out at $1.449m, conceding – as anyone would have to – that the market has downshifted since they bought.

If they sell at that level, they would stand to lose about $200k, including 5% costs of sale. All in all, they'd still be better off than lots of 2006-2007 resales over the past year. (MBC's chart of resales of 2003-2006 acquisitions resold in 2009 shows 5 separate 2006 acquisitions that lost 20% or more.)

2305 Pine (3br/2ba, 2000 sq. ft.) enters a Tree Section market with fairly low inventory below $1.5m. There are buyers looking in that range who are frustrated by the options. Anything could happen.

Anyone want to advise them now to raise the price?

Neighborhood Runs Coming Up

One of the great little features of life in MB is the school-sponsored runs through town.

Yes, the beachfront MB 5k's in Summer and Winter are great, there's a friendship run/walk in October and, of course, the granddaddy of them all, the MB Hometown 10k.

As a newbie to MB, you'd be forgiven for thinking that everyone in town is a runner.

Where your blog author grew up (wherever that was), we simply didn't have such things. Nor did they shut down our main thoroughfares for a renowned bike race. And fireworks were usually in July, not at Christmas. But we digress.

Here are the upcoming school fundraiser runs:

Martyrs 5k: This Saturday (Feb. 27) at 8am is the first school fundraiser run of the season, a 5k benefiting American Martyrs School. It's the 30th year for the race. Online signups are over, but Friday you can register at O'Donnell Hall (at Church & 15th) almost all day, and also there Saturday morning from 6:30-7:30. Sorry to say it looks like rain Saturday, but that can be terrific for dedicated runners.

Robinson Fun Run (5k): On Saturday, March 20, at 8am, Robinson Elementary hosts its 10th annual Fun Run (another landmark anniversary run). This year, the course should be faster and less perilous. Someone decided it's too dangerous to run on the walkstreets, so most of the run is on Valley and Ardmore down south.

Be sure to register online before next Wednesday to get the $25 rate and reserve a T-shirt with this adorable design. Organizers promise more finish-line, post-race fun this year.

When Grand View posts a date and info for their run, we'll note that as well. That one looks like a landmark, too – the 15th year. Usually it's in the first week of June.

A Dropout Sells Off-Market

One of the more unique properties in the Trees has found a buyer – 1811 Agnes is in new hands as of Wednesday.

That's interesting in part because Agnes quit the market in early November, as MBC noted at the time in "A Pair of $2m Dropouts." Speaking of Agnes and one other listing in the story, we said:

Perhaps buyers will get another crack at them after the Super Bowl.

In fact, the buyers made their move a couple of weeks before that, in late January, while selling another home in MB.

Let's reach back for a refresher on Agnes, which drew some oohs and ahhhs the couple of times we mentioned it here. From our MB Market Update for 7/31/09:

1811 Agnes (4br/3ba, 3425 sq. ft.) is on perhaps the most isolated street in the Trees, opening down a hill into a European-style courtyard. In fact, the old world stylings – mostly from a mid-90s remodel – are more serious here than in a hundred newfangled homes that claim an Italian or French style.

The home was never open to the public, and only rang up 105 DOM at $2.295m. But that was enough to make an impression, as it made a deal 3 months later. Final sale price: $2.150m.

We're still waiting for a bunch of other holiday-season quitters to return to the market. It's starting to be questionable whether many of them will.

Maybe they're all just making behind-the-scenes deals like 1811 Agnes. Or maybe they should be.

Long in the Tooth

Yesterday we discussed several listings that have sold quickly here in 2010. But of course, there's some stale inventory out there as well.
 
That contrast was on full display when 645 12th (pictured) made a price cut early this week amid the minor rush of fast sales. The "new" home near Martyrs is now down to $3.445m, down $1.054m from its start in September 2008, a full 515 DOM ago.

(We're saying "new" in quotes because, while the home is new construction, 515 days was a long time ago – here's a link to our Sept. 2008 open-house feature mentioning the first open. Note that the listing gives 2009 as the build date because that's when the occupancy permit was issued.)

So what else is lingering long-term, getting a little long in the tooth? Let's look by section west of Sepulveda, as is our custom here at MBC:


Hill Section

The DOM champs in the Hills are both halfhearted lot sales (1022 1st at 630 DOM, and 113 S. Dianthus at 403 DOM).

Among homes for sale, 2 listings stand out:

645 9th (6br/6ba, 7750 sq. ft.), a big, new certified "green" house with no views to speak of, now at 257 DOM after a start last Summer.

We've taken note of the home several times – it's a beautiful accomplishment, inspired, but also, we fear, off-base in its "green" mission. Such a massive house demands higher-than-average energy usage for heating and basic operations.

Still, it's not the Prius set that's turning up noses over some esoteric "green" debate. There's a different kind of green problem. After a start at $7.950m, the home's still at $6.999m, the highest-priced listing in the Hills (by $4k). It might take a bold move to get some action.

913 Highview, a fairly small (3br/4ba, 2350 sq. ft.) but luxe home with views, is now at 250 DOM and $2.199m, still nearly $300k above its February 2005 acquisition price.


Sand Section

The longest-toothed listings in the Sand Section are, first, the home of a prominent athlete who just doesn't seem to be in any hurry to sell, a new build and a Strand offering:

204 19th (4br/4ba, 4250 sq. ft.) is still on the MLS after 530 DOM. Someone may want to wake the listing agent or drop an update in Derek Lowe's inbox. (He's probably reported to Kissimmee by now, so he's likely preoccupied.)

To recap, Mr. Lowe acquired the home for $5.0m in August 2006 when he played for the Dodgers, but after clearing out of town, he tried to sell – first for $5.7m, then gradually allowed the price to come down to its current point, $4.599m. The last price adjustment was in May last year. Yes, May.

Also in the 200 block, but further south, 216 7th is a custom Tuscan with a corner lot along Bayview. We called it one of a few "big and audacious" homes in a "Weekend Opens" feature last June. Since then, 258 DOM later, the listing is down from $6.495m to $5.295m, but still not finding the love.

2920 The Strand set up the listing agent to fail. Acquired for $9.0m in June 2006, this one's been stuck at $12.5m since late June last year (240 DOM). This, despite a range of oddities in the layout and the simple fact that the home needs work to reach the tier it's priced at. (See our "Weekend Opens" description from October.) Mr. Lowe seems more committed to selling.


Tree Section

645 12th, which kicked off the story up above, is near the head of the pack, but not the leader in the Trees for DOM:

529 18th (5br/5ba, 5600 sq. ft.) edges out the 12th St. listing with 16 extra days on offer (531 DOM). It's also new construction, but someone's currently enjoying the digs. That means either that there's some bonus value to having the home pre-tested, or it's lost the caché of "new."

Take another look at that square footage (5600+) and the location (18th!!!) and you can imagine why the listing began at $4.279m. (Location note: The MB Badminton Club across the street is something of a distraction.)

Alas, the home now has an NOD against it and the price is down nearly $1m to $3.399m.

848 14th (5br/5ba, 3500 sq. ft.) is another speckie that began way too high in September 2008, and you know what happened right around then? Some called it Armageddon. The stony palace near Pacific School has lingered for 521 DOM, slowly dropping from $2.899m to $2.299m now.

This one also list a 2009 build date, due to an occupancy permit coming some months after the home was first offered. Re-lists cause the listing DOM to show up in the low 100s.

But we're going to go out on a limb and trust our own public market tracking and various posts on the Internets (like this one) in saying this one's dustier than they might tell you at the front door.

------------------------------------------
UPDATE: Upon receiving information that the build dates on 645 12th and 848 14th are properly listed as 2009, based on occupancy permits coming that year, some elements of this story were changed.

Spring's Intriguing Signs

Now there's more evidence that February 2010 is not going to feel much like February 2009.

Now we see not just a noteworthy bounceback in demand, the first buyers of the Spring Selling Season diving in.

We see not just a few quick sales. (MBC first noted a few "impressive" quick sales in "Quickies in the Trees" earlier this month.)

Now we are seeing quick sales on new listings that don't even seem particularly well-priced.

For perspective, let's recall that February 2009 saw 14 new escrows open among SFRs west of Sepulveda, by MBC's count. (See the MB Market Update for 2/28/09.) In February 2008, the sales pace was exactly the same.

This year, we're already up to at least 18, with most of a week left in this short, fairly hot month.

Among the more surprising deals (click any highlighted address for more pics & details via Redfin):

The standout head-scratcher so far has to be 2708 Pacific (5br/4ba, 3400 sq. ft.), an early-90s home on a busy street that launched at $1.849m early this month. That was a price, MBC noted, near what new construction in comparable parts of the Trees was fetching recently – even a bit higher.

The home has been gracefully updated and showed well. Still, we would not have been surprised to see 100+ DOM and a closed price near $1.6m.

Instead, the sellers had a deal within 10 days – and early deals rarely involve big discounts. [UPDATE: 2 days after this story posted, 2708 Pacific fell out of escrow and returned to market at $1.777m.]

A newer home (2003 build) at 1900 Walnut is hardly the same kind of surprise, but it's always impressive to see a home hit the market and sell pretty much immediately, as is the case here. It hit the market at $2.029m, which seems to have been just fine with the buyers.

Yes, that would be a $2m+ resale of an average-size home (5br/4ba, 3150 sq. ft.) right here, early in 2010. Maybe not a shock, but definitely worth a double-take.

The location and corner lot are both clear draws for Walnut. The tasteful, shingled Cape Cod has the nice extra of a walk-up façade and entry along 19th rather than the garage-faced design most Tree Section homes are forced to use on their narrow lots.

Points of comparison: Across Walnut, new construction at 1901 Walnut (same size, 5br/5ba, 3150 sq. ft.) closed last February for $2.150m. Meanwhile, 1900 Walnut itself was purchased for $1.550m in May 2003.

432 9th (4br/3ba, 2650 sq. ft.) also joined the quick-sale club in the last few days. The surprise here is – again – the price.

432 9th launched at $2.699m, more than $100/PSF higher than a close comp from last May. That looked to be pushing the ceiling a bit, and that pricing strategy can succeed only when there's a lot of "must-have" emotion flowing.

The comp from last year was 408 9th, quite nearby, and also similarly sized (4br/3ba, 2400 sq. ft.) and nicely remodeled. 408 fetched $2.175m, a big step (more than $500k) below the $2.7m sought this year by 432 9th.

Did we say something about "must-have" emotion? It swirled around here, and a deal within 10 days at 432 9th, with multiple offers, could be viewed as a bullish sign all over the flat walkstreets.

For instance, the deal is clearly good news for 405 9th, a lot sale on the sunnier north side of the block, which is clearly too optimistic at $2.3m, but suddenly doesn't look as far out of line as it did a week ago.

Much the same might be said of plenty of new listings that will be trying to figure out the magic behind the quick Spring success stories around town.

Weekend Opens (2/20-2/21)

Pitchers & catchers reported this week, certifying that Spring is upon us.

As if those few summery days this week hadn't clued you in.

Here at MBC we're happy with any time of year that means more new listings and more new opens, and this week brings us a goodly new crop.

Click here for the complete list of opens published in the Beach Reporter, or at any time use the link from the "Property Search Tools" pull-down menu in the top navigation bar.

As always, click any highlighted property address for more pics & details via Redfin.

Please report back here at MBC on any open houses you visit – what you like, what you don't like, etcetera.


Hill Section

929 Highview (4br/4ba, 3550 sq. ft.) is for lovers of bold, modern style – or even dabblers.

The local architect who custom-designed the home nearly 20 years ago obviously had a forward vision. The exterior remains striking to any passerby, while the interior's sense of height and abundant light and openness keep it all fresh inside.

It helps that the home was recently remodeled as well. The current owner, who paid $2.280m in Aug. 2006, set about reviving the home with a kitchen makeover – high-end stainless appliances, of course – and lot of other details from bath fixtures to carpet to custom paint.

And did we mention ocean views from this quiet Hill Section sidestreet?

929 Highview starts at $2.895m. It's open Sun. 1-4pm.

201 Larsson (3br/4ba, 3900 sq. ft.) probably won't generate the same kind of enthusiasm from most visitors, but it is a bigger home and is literally at the top of the hill with some good views as a result. It's gradually trying to find its market with a cut this week to $2.690m.

201 Larsson is open Sat. only, from 2-4pm.


Sand Section

456 21st (3br/4ba, 3800 sq. ft.) will call to mind some of the nicer Hill Section homes, but this one offers baseball-field views rather than ocean views. (It's located right above Live Oak Park.)

There's a signature style and opulence to this newer (2006) Spanish, with fine woods and other materials throughout and plenty of extras.

The low number of bedrooms (3) may limit the audience for this one, and you'll have to roll with the location, which has pros and cons. Starts at $2.850m.

456 21st is open Sun. 2-4pm.

435 10th (4br/3ba, 2025 sq. ft.) began in October at $1.799m, and soon thereafter made some kind of deal. Maybe no big surprise – inventory on the flat walkstreets is typically low and this home has some charms amid its slight funkiness.

Alas, that deal didn't last, and 4 months have passed now without a taker. This weekend is the first we've seen 10th posted as open, and it's worth a drop-by if you are a flat-walkstreet shopper.

There is nothing run-of-the-mill about the home. Its Old World style, abundant tiles and other unique features will not be for everyone, but the right family could love it. Now priced at $1.579m.

435 10th is open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.

112 Shell isn't big (2br/1ba, 1000 sq. ft.), but it's clean, contemporary and very close to the water up in El Porto Norte. Far snazzier than the typical million-dollar surf shack. Starts at $1.049m.

112 Shell is open Sat. & Sun. 2-4pm.


Tree Section

3104 Maple (5br/4ba, 3350 sq. ft.) first hit the market 3 years ago, brand new, and returns now at something of a discount to its June 2007 price.

There's still a premium sought here, though, for an elegant home from one of the bigger-name builders in town. With exterior styling that's much more Montecito than East Manhattan, a bright living room with soaring ceiling, and great touches like the antique farmhouse beams in the master, you get much more with this package than any typical speckie.

The aforementioned prior sale was for $2.490m at the literal peak of the local market. Can the sellers get $2.349m this year – a cut above almost every comparable resale last year – or where might they have to go to meet the market?

3104 Maple is open Sun. 1-4pm.

3213 Walnut (3br/2ba, 1850 sq. ft.) is a surprisingly charming remodel, but it seems to be a reach at $1.475m. Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.

665 27th (3br/3ba, 2250 sq. ft.) is just plain surprising – something different around every corner. Lots of updates in this 1950s cottage, not all reflecting one theme. Nice outdoor spaces as well in a good location. Records show the owner paid $1.650m in mid-2008, but now asks $1.499m.

665 27th is open Sun. 2-4pm.

MB Market Update for 2/15/10, Sand

In February we finally started to see some action in the form of new listings in the Sand, which had been pretty quiet in January.

Of the 21 new SFR listings in this 2-week period west of Sepulveda, 10 were by the beach. (See the page of Sand Section actives <$2m, or the Sand actives >$2m; use the links on our online spreadsheets to view properties directly.) The new listings included...

3 on The Strand:

• 112 The Strand (3br/4ba, 4400 sq. ft.), a late-80s home that holds up nicely enough today. (Pictured.) Light, bright, south and Strand – a worthy combo, starting at $7.795m.

• 908 The Strand (4br/5ba, 2775 sq. ft.), an older home with a bonus unit out back, offered at the come-hither price of $5.595m, below the lot values for 2 other Strand lots further south that sold last year. The strategy worked – 908 The Strand is in escrow.

• 1600 The Strand (3br/5ba, 5225 sq. ft.) is a jarringly modern, 1980s-vintage landmark. Bonus feature: A rooftop pool. Start price: $13.5m. For more on the home and perspective on the price, see "More Strand Options." 

There were also 2 new listings on 9th St., both mentioned in our most recent "Weekend Opens" feature:

• 325 9th (pictured) is a newer (2003), full-featured Cape Cod with 5br/5ba, 3700 sq. ft. Some great details, lots of little private spaces, and a nice flat walkstreet location very close to downtown. Starts at $3.695m.

• 432 9th (4br/3ba, 2650 sq. ft.) is a recent remodel that starts at $2.699m. More more, including recent comps, see the "Weekend Opens" post.

And finally there were 2 we saw last year, trying again:

• 420 1st (2br/2ba, 800 sq. ft.) is a little cottage – well, 2 little cottages with a small yard between. The property backs up to a school and abuts a parking lot. 

The current owners took it for $1.075m in June 2007, tried last year at $1.275m and start anew this year at $1.190m.

Yes, that's still a markup over 2007. (For more, see "A Wave of Wipeouts on 1st," from last September.)

• 215 S. Valley (4br/3ba, 2550 sq. ft.), a dated home with a significant location challenge, is back, after a hiatus, at $1.235m – a price MBC thought reasonable a year ago. (For more see "215 Valley's Back.")

There was also a little sales action in the Sand, 3 total, including 2 on 20th St.:

• 332 20th (5br/5ba, 4300 sq. ft.), an inspired Spanish with big ocean views well-featured by the home's design. 

The home was new in early 2008 and began at $4.795m, and was also one of 2 properties mentioned in an MBC poll (see "$1m to Cross the Street?") that compared it to a new-construction listing down on 19th closer to the water.

The comparison property west of Highland sold for $5.6m, quickly, way-back-when.

This year, 332 20th was last at $3.695m, after a couple of rentals in between. Clearly, the question in 2008 should have been, "$2m to Cross the Street?"

• 228 20th (5br/5ba, 4150 sq. ft.) is a late-90s contemporary that has been offered for more than 400 days. After a start at $3.899m, it was down to $2.999m before making a deal.

No closed sales this period. More on the Trees in another post soon.

MB Market Update for 2/15/10, Hills

The MB Market Update spreadsheets for the first half of February are online and can be viewed with this link here, or at any time by using the pull-down menu at the top of the front page.

The first half of February saw 21 new listings of SFRs west of Sepulveda, and another week has begun with a smattering more.

Yes, that did feel a bit like a "Super Flood." But it also put February 2010 right on pace with February 2009, which saw 42 new listings – including comebacker listings that had taken the holidays off. This year, few comebackers as of yet.

Inventory of SFRs stood at 80 as of mid-month. Looking by sub-region west of Sepulveda :

Hill Section: 16
Sand Section: 35
Tree Section: 29

The rush of new offerings was countered by some decent sales activity – 9 sales (new escrows) in the first part of the month.

We also took 6 listings off the spreadsheets due to cancellations in this period or within the past few weeks; cuts that hadn't yet been recorded.

Let's begin a brief run through the areas west of Sepulveda with a recap of Hill Section activity. Upcoming posts will cover the Sand and Trees.

Hill Section

There were 3 new listings this period, bringing inventory to 16, meaning single-digit inventory in the Hills is probably going to stay in the rear-view mirror for quite a while. These listings have already drawn mention prior to this update:

• 706 Anderson (3br/2ba, 1900 sq. ft.) (pictured) shows its late-60s vintage but has some charms. 

The exterior needs help (this pic was the last one in the listing), but inside, with décor they've made the mid-century/60s thing work. It's the lowest-priced offering in the Hills at $1.249m.

• 1018 2nd (3br/3ba, 1900 sq. ft.) offers much the same living space as Anderson, but in a more spacious-feeling, much-more-updated house. There are ocean views, too, from the top-of-the-hill location, balanced against a busier street on 2nd. The owners paid $1.952m in May 2007, back during the Great Spring Rally of 2007, and now seek $1.589m (-$363k/-19% over 3 years).

• 505 N. Dianthus (5br/4ba, 4650 sq. ft.) is newer (2002) and plenty big, with city views. Its start at $2.999m seems surprising given the fate of the recently closed 407 Larsson, a slightly bigger, somewhat newer (2005) Craftsman that sat more than a year (408 DOM) before selling recently for $2.190m.

Beyond those new listings, the only major note in the Hills was that the REO at 1026 Duncan shed a little from its start price, cutting $55k to $2.395m.

No one was buying in the hills this period, and the only pending sale we're still waiting to see close is at 222 N. Poinsettia.

More soon on the Sand & Tree Sections, which were busier.

REO Speckie Gets a Markup

The newest SFR listing west of Sepulveda is a failed speckie that's back after a few months in the clutches of a bank.

It's also marked up 10% over the last price we saw it at in 2009.

One of the most prolific spec-funding banks in the area got behind 660 33rd (5br/5ba, 4750 sq. ft.) in late 2006. The lot was scraped and the new home was ready for market by June 2008.

But a start price of $3m, and the general chaos in the market soon after, combined to make it a rough ride for the listing. The bank imploded and eventually got absorbed in Summer 2009, but not before starting foreclosure proceedings on 33rd.

The bank that became the new holder of the note, worth $2m at the outset, took title at the courthouse steps last October. The listing remained active for a while at $1.995m as an openly labeled REO. (See MBC's "Bouncing Balls" for our story referencing that.) But that listing quit on Oct. 23.

Out of the blocks here in 2010, this large new (well, 2008) build is offered for $2.195m.

That price is still a relative steal compared to the smaller, snazzy Cape Cod next door, 664 33rd, which was happily and quickly sold new in mid-2008 for $2.6m, before these 2 speckies' fates diverged. 

But, as noted above, the new start price on 660 33rd is 10% higher than the listing was at last year when buyers repeatedly passed it by. Well, well, this is Spring 2010, and price increases are happening here and there. It's not yet a trend, but a curious development regardless.

This little website was launched about 3 years ago with some sense of shock that sellers were trying price increases in a declining market. What 2010 holds is anyone's guess, but a bank that wants to minimize its losses seems to be betting on a sunny Spring.

Re-Re-Repriced on 1st

Now it's clear that everything's murky over at 517 1st.

The owners launched and finished a custom rebuild in 2008/09. It was no spec project.

But then in October 2009, suddenly it was for sale. The sellers tried at $1.899m, a price somewhat below a new-construction price and recognizing, we gather, the location liability of 1st St.

That start didn't seem so far out of line, but the listing had no traction for a few months.

Just a few days ago, on Feb. 5, the sellers appeared to be moving boldly to find the market, shifting down suddenly to $1.599m. (See "Rebuilt, Repriced at 1st.") MBC's take:

An essentially new, moderately sized (4br/2ba, 2550 sq. ft.) home in the South End, with a kid-friendly bonus of being right near Robinson School's athletic fields, for $1.6m?

In context, that looks like a serious deal.

That "serious deal" lasted only a couple of days, then the price rose $100k. (See "Re-Repriced on 1st.")

And now, can you believe it?

It's up again.

This time by $76k more, up to $1.775m.

This means the bulk of the original $300k chop is ancient history. The listing's down $124k from start, and no longer down the other $176k.

This is not the normal mark-to-market scenario.

We don't yet have an insight into the sellers' actual thinking, just the outside evidence that they're unsure what to do. And proof positive that this listing isn't going to proceed in any kind of straight line.

Weekend Opens (2/13-2/14)

When two people love each other very much, they go deeply into debt together.

Usually it's for a house – first.

Consider that on this rare weekend when Valentine's Day falls not on an awkward weeknight (do we go out on Tuesday? or the weekend? before or after?) but on a Sunday, right during prime open-house time amid a flood of new listings. Wouldn't your sweetie love to check out a couple of the new offerings and noodle over them during a candlelight dinner?

There are a lot this weekend, so we'll be brief with each one.

Click here for the complete list of opens published in the Beach Reporter, or at any time use the link from the "Property Search Tools" pull-down menu in the top navigation bar.

As always, click any highlighted property address for more pics & details via Redfin.

Please report back here at MBC on any open houses you visit – what you like, what you don't like, etcetera.


Hill Section

505 N. Dianthus (5br/4ba, 4650 sq. ft.) is fairly new (2002) and plenty big, with city views to the north. It starts ambitiously at $2.999m, which calls to mind the recently closed 407 Larsson, a slightly bigger, somewhat newer (2005) Craftsman that sat more than a year (408 DOM) before selling recently for $2.190m. OK, Dianthus isn't Larsson, but we need to be convinced on this one.

Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.

706 Anderson is a modest 3br/2ba, 1900 sq. ft. home that shows its late-60s vintage but has some charms. The exterior needs help, but inside, with décor they've made the mid-century/60s thing work. Not many other ways into the Hills at $1.249m or even near that.

Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.


Sand Section

It seems like months we've been complaining about the lack of action in the Sand, or ignoring opens in the area entirely. Finally we're getting some new inventory.

325 9th is a newer (2003), full-featured Cape Cod with 5br/5ba, 3700 sq. ft. Some great details and a nice flat walkstreet location, very close to downtown without being stuck in the muck.

The start at $3.695 isn't so shocking, given the scarcity that's always a factor on the flat walkstreets. However, a larger, brand-new home at 440 6th is now actually priced lower at $3.598m. And 325 9th itself was last purchased in March 2007 for $3.659m. Everywhere else in town, prices have rewound far further back than March 2007.

One to watch given the rare combination of pros with a maximal price.

Open Sun. 1-4pm.

432 9th, further down the block, is another option for $1m less. The home's bones are much older, but a recent remodel/rebuild sparkles. There's also less square footage (4br/3ba, 2650 sq. ft.) than at 325 9th. 

Here the closest comp is a sale last May at 408 9th, obviously quite nearby, and also similarly sized (4br/3ba, 2400 sq. ft.). That sweet, beachy remodel fetched $2.175m ($906/PSF) last May, so $2.699m ($1,017/PSF) for the current listing at 432 9th is quite a step up. That may be fair if the home's features and details are superior.

Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.

129 8th is a modern remodel (4br/4ba, 3350 sq. ft.) west of Manhattan Ave., right in the thick of downtown. Offered last year near $3.5m, it's now at $2.995m.  Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.


400 Marine Ave. is a 10-year-old, FSBO townhome (3br/4ba, 1900 sq. ft.) that's pretty sharp and features ocean views. Once in a while, we like to plug the fizzbos. Priced at $1.699m and open Sat. 1-3pm.

215 S. Valley (4br/3ba, 2550 sq. ft.) is back, as MBC noted the other day, at a price nearly $200k below its last sighting a year ago. Restarts at $1.235m. The home's dated, the layout unusual and the location a challenge, but price can cure almost anything.  

Open Sat. & Sun. 12-2.


Tree Section

549 21st (4br/4ba, 2600 sq. ft.) is a zippy, modern rebuild with snazzy colors inside and out and a great, custom feel. Distinctive and fun. The location is close to parks and downtown, maybe a tad close to Valley for some tastes. Currently at $1.665m and open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.


2708 Pacific offers 5r/4ba, 3400 sq. ft. in a tasteful, remodeled early-90s home. Definitely worth a look for anyone who wants into the Trees, but you may need to be patient. The sellers begin at $1.895m, a price you could find new construction going for not so long ago – and not always on busy streets. Open Sun. 1-4.


1812 Laurel (3br/2ba, 1650 sq. ft.) is a 50s cottage that maximizes period charm in a fairly prime Tree Section location near the school at Martyrs. Newer homes nearby draw top dollar; here they're truly marketing the home as a livable, throwback alternative at $1.349m. Open Sat. & Sun. 1-4pm.

Flood Update

A week has passed since MBC's inventory update in "Super Flood?" and the flow of new listings has remained steady.

There are another 10 new SFRs west of Sepulveda since that post, plus a couple more that we know are in the pipeline, but which just haven't hit the MLS quite yet. (This post was updated from the 9 new listings initially reported.)

That's 20 new listings in the first 11 days of February, a real inventory bounceback. (The graphic here is from Redfin's MB page, a great place to get up-to-the-minute updates on inventory.)

And what's still intriguing is that few of the holiday-season dropouts have returned. Not yet.

We're looking at new offerings, not comebackers. (There are familiar faces, like 215 S. Valley, but that was last seen among the actives a year ago – see "215 Valley's Back.")

Here's a breakdown of where the 10 new listings have shown up:

• 0 new listings in the Hill Section (in a week);
• 7 in the Sand; and
• 3 in the Trees.

This weekend is shaping up as one of the busier ones in a long time for open houses, too, a sure sign of the season.

215 Valley's Back

It's one of the most popular, and least popular, features of MBC: Every once in a while, we suggest that a listing isn't so very well-priced.

You can imagine who does or doesn't like this sort of thing.

And we don't imagine that the sellers of 215 S. Valley much appreciated our fairly well-substantiated opinion that their home was overpriced last year.

In "Drip, Drip," about a year ago, we noted that the listing had begun at $1.650m in Summer 2008, a price that weathered the financial market meltdown in the Fall that year. Finally, by January 2009 it was at $1.480m, then gradually to $1.399m within days of that.

Of the listing's sudden series of moves to try to find the market, MBC said:

At this rate, 215 S. Valley could be at $1.2m by Valentine's Day. That might be about where it needs to get to find a buyer. We'll see.

Now it looks like MBC had the price about right, and even had the holiday right, too – just not the year.

215 S. Valley quit the market last March, and returns now at $1.235m.

That was about right last year – in one blogger's opinion.

In 2010, it looks like the market will really have a say.

Most Resales Are Bubble-Era Purchases

Half of the active SFR listings west of Sepulveda are homes purchased in the 5 peak bubble years of 2003-2007.

Most of the resales are from that bubble period.

An analysis conducted by MBC of active SFR inventory as of Feb. 9, 2010, shows the following:

• 20 active listings were purchased before 2003
• 12 actives were new construction
• 3 actives were purchased after 2007

That's a total of 35 listings that were not bubble-era acquisitions.

But a total of 35 other actives were purchased in the peak bubble era, or half of all the SFR listings. (Click on graph to expand.)

Looking at more routine resales separately, the bubble-era purchases dominate even more. We set aside the new construction and the 3 post-2007 acquisitions, which are all anomalies (one was rebuilt extensively and 2 are attempted flips).

Weighing only pre-2003 purchases against those made in the hottest 5 years of the local RE bubble, the bubble set makes up 64% of all current resale inventory.

Is it "normal" for almost 2/3rds of resale inventory to consist of homes purchased during a single 5-year period? Your blog author has no idea. This is not the way real estate markets are typically measured. Even a well-documented answer would probably boil down to "it depends."

It's beyond the scope of this post to explain any trends behind why these bubble-era buyers are getting out now. For some of them, the headline issues of the day are surely factors – job loss, loan problems, being-upside-down problems. But for others, you'll see some move-up buyers, mixed in with all the old standards – death, divorce, downsizing and job transfer. We just don't know the mix.

It's worth noting that 35 active listings emanating from all the sales during the 2003-2007 period represents a small percentage of all the homes traded during that time. These may have greater significance for the current market than as a sign of distress among bubble-era buyers as a group.

In fact, almost none of the active listings appear to be in default or bank-owned. According to a local "foreclosure" list posted the other day by Blake Roberts on his blog, we see just 2 bank-owned properties on offer (1026 Duncan and 617 6th), one with a fresh NOD (new construction at 529 18th) and one with a series of NODs and trustee's sale notices that just hit the MLS recently (3613 Pine).

There would be some distress for some of these bubble-buying sellers, though, even if they do make a deal.

As our chart here shows, almost half (16 of 35) of these bubble-era purchases now on the market are from 2006 and 2007, acquisition dates that almost always translate to a significant loss at closing.

For example, 2 recent sales (new escrows) in town, 3113 Laurel and 2603 Palm, were from 2007 and 2006, respectively. (They're not reflected on this chart, since they're not active listings.) Both pencil out to lose money.

With MB living in 2004 prices for now, 2005 purchases can't be expected to fare well upon sale, either.

Nearly a third (11 of 37) of these resales were purchased in 2003 and 2004, the 2 years for which there's some hope of recouping costs or, perhaps, making a little profit.

All 35 bubble-era acquisitions are listed below, by year of last sale (click any property address for more pics & details via Redfin):

2003 Acquisitions

228 34th
1605 Elm
763 33rd
505 N. Dianthus
549 21st

2004 Acquisitions

952 11th
1011 Pacific

217 Seaview
517 1st
622 Rosecrans
560 35th

2005 Acquisitions

913 Highview
1026 Duncan
923 8th

621 Valley

3408 Crest
3613 Pine
1724 Pine
616 29th

2006 Acquisitions

532 5th Pl
217 35th Pl
204 19th
2920 The Strand
629 MBB
672 19th
521 12th

2007 Acquisitions

123 44th
1516 Highland
4320 The Strand
937 27th
3305 Pine
706 Anderson
1018 2nd
420 1st
3104 Maple

Sales Pace Bottomed in '08

A downtrend in the number of SFR sales annually in MB began in 2002-03, and ran its course – we know – at least through 2008, when a new low was established. (See "Beach Sales: South Since '02-'03.")

For many of those years mid-decade, you hardly would have noticed declining sales. There were still plenty of sales going on (30-40 sales per month for all of MB) and prices were rising consistently, so there was little worry about the health of the local market.

But 2007 gave us one new low, the worst sales pace in 20 years. (See "Maybe It Can't Get Worse.")

And after 2008 scraped out a new bottom lower than that, 2009 began with a still slower pace. The first half of last year saw even fewer sales in MB west of Sepulveda than the first half of 2008. (See MBC's "Pace Slower, Prices Lower," from which our first graph is taken.)

And now here is where the story changes.

The second half of 2009 saw more SFR sales west of Sepulveda than 2008. In fact, 2009 had more second-half sales than 2007.

Whichever factor you'd like to point to from last year – declining prices, ultra-low rates, the return of jumbos, the rising financial markets, or, heck, even the first-time buyer tax credit – some combination of those things brought buyers out in the second half of 2009 like they hadn't been out in quite a while.

As our second graph here shows (click to enlarge), SFR sales late last year, at 95, were markedly above the 2008 figure of 73. And there was a nice bump of 8 sales over 2007.

Tracking the market here at MBC, we usually point to the Spring Rally of 2007 as the last gasp of the local bubble. The market had turned strange before that, and price declines were evident, but turmoil in August 2007 began the real problems for the local market. To see 2009 outperform that awkward period late in '07 may not be a huge uptrend, but it's something.

Of course, total sales west of Hwy. 1 for the year last year were not going to compete with 2007 and its notable first-half rally.

No, 2009 fell well short of that. (Click graph to enlarge.) At 171 sales, we were still 21% shy of the 2007 pace.

But we did end the year with 9 sales more than 2008 in MBC's subject area. So that's a start.

MBC once again offers our sincerest thanks to local realtor and blogger Kaye Thomas, whose data provided the backbone of this story. (See Kaye's post on Jan-June 2009 data and on July-Dec. 2009 data for much more.)

Kaye's presentation of the 2007-09 data (along with 2000-2009 data) comes with some warnings about what 2010 may hold for housing, nationally and locally. If you follow this stuff, the subjects are familiar – rates may rise, lending standards may tighten, etc.

Kaye set up the question that's floating all over town: Can we keep it going in 2010?

Quickies in the Trees

There's a flipside to the burgeoning inventory west of Sepulveda – some quick sales this year, too.

Some are quite impressive.

For a while everyone was talking about the quick sale at 1413 Pine, priced below $1.4m.

Next came 3113 Laurel, a resale of a newer home priced over $2m.

Most recently, it's 2603 Palm, a $3m listing, which now has a deal. (Pictured; see our mid-January MB Market Update for a writeup on Palm.)

All 3 listings had logged 3 or fewer weeks on the market – all of those DOM coming pre-Super-Bowl. Pine ran less than one week, and Laurel ran just about 2 weeks.

In addition, 1609 Oak made a deal at about the 3 week mark. Recently, some longer-term listings, 3004 Oak and 2204 Ardmore, also made deals. (Click any highlighted address for pics & details via Redfin.)

There were only 3 sales in the Hill & Sand sections combined in January, and just one more sale of an SFR in either region since then (332 20th in the Sand).

But the Trees are busy with both new listings and sales. Those coming out in the days to come are sure hoping they can be like the fresh listings that have come before – quick and done.

Re-Repriced on 1st

It turns out that was a short-term offer at 517 1st.

The price posted Friday of $1.599m got bumped up Sunday to $1.699m. (Graphic pulled from Redfin's listing of the property.)

Change of heart?

Data-entry error?

Maybe a declaration of "mission accomplished" in bringing new attention to a stale listing?

Whatever the case, the new price makes the concluding line of MBC's previous story ("Rebuilt, Repriced on 1st") completely incorrect.

We had said that you could now get 517 1st for less than a specific older, less desirable home up the street that sold in 2008.

Now you can't.

Well, maybe.

Rebuilt, Repriced on 1st

Last year a very tasteful, custom Spanish remodel was completed at 517 1st. By October, it was on public offer at $1.899m.

With a bold, single cut Friday, it's at $1.599m, and looking very different as a result.

An essentially new, moderately sized (4br/2ba, 2550 sq. ft.) home in the South End, with a kid-friendly bonus of being right near Robinson School's athletic fields, for $1.6m?

In context, that looks like a serious deal.

We would also note that the current owners bought 537 1st for $1.365m in July 2004, some years before undertaking the major rebuild. After costs of sale at $1.599m, it seems unlikely they'll recoup their costs of ownership and remodeling. 

Look just up the block for a surprising contrast:

437 1st (4br/3ba, 2600 sq. ft.) sold for $1.610m in June 2008. Though that mid-80s home was remodeled, MBC called it "jumbled" and "quirky." The home featured a peculiar layout and mostly standard-issue materials.

The main advantage 437 has over 517 is that the garage is accessed by the alley, whereas at 517 1st, the garage faces 1st St.  Both homes share the location liability of 1st as a busy neighborhood through street.

In MBC's first mention of 517 1st last year, we pointed to the sale at 437 1st and said: "Now, a year later, you can get a home that's mostly new for not too much more."

Now you can get it for less.

Super Flood?

It's already time for another update on inventory west of Sepulveda.

In the first 4 days of February, there have been 10 new SFR listings (just as of this writing), bringing inventory quickly over 80. (If you regularly track activity with Redfin's MB page, you've seen this daily burst yourself.)

These include:

• 3 new listings in the Hill Section;
• 3 in the Sand; and
• 4 in the Trees.

That, again, is over 4 days.

That informal rule about how inventory tends to climb at around the time of the Super Bowl is starting to look about right. In fact, this is starting to look like a super flood.


It's also news that only one of this week's new listings could be said to be returning from a holiday-season break (1018 2nd, which has been off since early October and has switched agents). Pausing on the sidelines right now are some number of recent listings poised to come back soon, and another group of would-be sellers who have been advised to wait till just a bit later this month.

A few samples of the new offerings:

• 505 N. Dianthus (5br/4ba, 4650 sq. ft.) (pictured), a glorious, newer (2002) home with city views to the north. It's also vacant and offered for $2.999m, or +$874k/+41% over its April 2003 acquisition price.

• 3104 Poinsettia, a major fixer/teardown adjacent to one of the very sweetest blocks in the Trees north of Valley. (See "The Street Where Listings Don't Last," which focuses on the section of 31st from Valley to 31st.) It's offered at $1.050m, which they would have called cheap a few years ago. Just a few doors down, 3009 Poinsettia went as a lot sale for $1.190m in Aug. 2008.

• 2708 Pacific (5br/4ba, 3400 sq. ft.), an early-90s home that has aged well thanks to updates, asking $1.849m.

• 3104 Maple (5br/4ba, 3350 sq. ft.), a newer (2006) build bought just 2 1/2 years ago in June 2007 at $2.490m, now offered back to the public at $2.349m. (No pics in the listing as of this writing.)

These new listings are adding to a burst of 24 new listings last month. For the whole month of January, inventory grew in each region by:

• 8 in the Hills;
• 3 in the Sand; and
• 13 in the Trees.

So you see a real swell building in the 'burbs. We haven't yet written up the Tree Section activity for the second half of January, but you can use these links to check out the Actives Under $1.5m for that period, Actives Above $1.5m and Solds. (New listings are prominent in green.)

No doubt, we ended 2009 with a tentative balance taking shape. Inventory began the year very high, but got worked off over the months.

Here in 2010, we've seen some impact of what they call "pent-up demand" from some quick sales early in the year. But that sense of balance could be upset if this pace continues after the Saints go marching in.

More Strand Options

Most of us mere mortals must content ourselves with enjoying The Strand on an occasional jog or dog-walk. To actually hang one's hat in one of those beachfront abodes – that means you're playing at a high level, and maybe winning more often than you're losing. Bravo.

So The Strand represents a crazy subset of MB real estate, but an increasingly interesting subset to track, as we see more and more activity there.

As we noted in a year-end wrapup (see "Strand Sales of 2009"), for most of MBC's first 2 years (2007-08), few Strand homes changed hands.

Last year, 6 Strand properties sold.

Now there are 5 more on offer. (See this page Sand Section actives from the current MB Market Update for the first 3.) The 2 newest:

1600 The Strand (3br/5ba, 5225 sq. ft.) is a high-style 80s modern. Think steel, glass and leather.

The listing touts the architect's rep and labels the home "Grandieur Embodied." The rooftop pool is one of the rare, not-to-be-duplicated extras.

No doubt this is a unique property, a signature step on The Strand.

The start price, $13.5m, exceeds by nearly $2m the highest price paid for a Strand home last year: 1800 The Strand, which went for $11.65m. Though they have similar square footage and both are on north-side corner lots, 1800 was newer (2000 build) and had more beds & baths (5/7), making it a bit more family- and guest-friendly.

908 The Strand is most likely a lot sale. (The two structures there now are livable but not the main attraction.)

The midblock lot is close to downtown and, well, on The Strand. So what's the dirt worth?

As we noted in "Strand Sales of 2009," there were 2 adjoining lots further south at 204 & 208 The Strand that sold for a combined $12.8m ($6.1m for 204 and $6.7m for 208).

A downtown location like this, versus the deep south, calls for some kind of discount, so 908 The Strand starts well below the "lesser" of those 2 southern lots, at $5.595m.

That may not be far off. Just for reference, we'll point further north, where 3216 The Strand sold for $4.7m last year and 3404 The Strand sold for $5.350m; the latter of those 2 had a structure worth keeping and improving.

It's the first week of February. Think more Strand options will unfurl this year? Yep, us too.

MB Market Update for 1/31/10, Hills & Sand

As noted the other day, the new MB Market Update spreadsheets for 1/31/10 are online, reachable by using the link in this story or, at any time, the link under the pull-down menu on the front page under "MB Market Updates."

On Monday we said that overall inventory at month's end was at 74, the same figure as for 2008, but with one correction, it was at 73, still down quite a bit from 2009 at the same point. Here was the inventory by section:

Hill Section: 13 (+4 over mid-month)
Sand Section: 32 (even)
Tree Section: 28 (+3)

Just since then, we've seen 3 new SFR listings pop up west of Hwy. 1.

Much of the activity in this 2-week period was in the Tree Section, so we'll combine coverage of the Hill & Sand sections first.


Hill Section

Each of the 4 new listings in this period has already had some screen time at MBC for in "Weekend Opens" and other posts. (Click here for the Hill actives page.) They are:

• 800 N. Poinsettia, a nicely positioned corner lot with city views that also has some kind of structure on it right now. (For more see "Weekend Opens (1/30-1/31).") Starts at $1.899m. 

• 923 8th (pictured), a newer (2005) home just steps from 800 N. Poinsettia, but this one's luxurious. It also offers nice city views to the north. (For more, see " Sunday Opens (1/24).") Starts at $3.599m. 

• 1026 Duncan, a newer (also 2005) Cape Cod with ocean views upstairs. It's an REO but the listing doesn't yet say so. Purchased for $2.5m new in March 2005, went back to the bank recently and is now offered at $2.450m. 

• 1011 Pacific, a fairly new (2003 build) home with nice ocean views down the hill. This one tried last year at $6m, then $5m, and is now at $4.199m. (See "Pacific Connection" and "Weekend Opens (1/30-1/31)" for more.)

One sale (new escrow) in the Hills this round: spectacular 511 Pacific (see "Pacific Connection"). This huge, surprising home began at $8m last year; was last at $5.750m.

Just one closed sale in this period, which MBC actually reported on previously. That was 815 2nd, a spec home that saw its developer partnership go BK, with the home selling in bankruptcy court for $2.650m.

Yes, that's what we reported on Dec. 28, 2009 (see "Close the Books on 815 2nd"), but court confirmation and a final closing only came in late January.


Sand Section

By the beach, you can hear the crickets.

That is to say, things are unusually quiet. While the rest of MB is seeing a little inventory surge and some interesting quick sales, the Sand Section is focused on those storm surges sloshing around the lifeguard stands and washing away El Porto.

Just 1 new listing in this period, 1 sale that closed almost instantly, and 1 other closing.

The new offering is:

405 9th, a lot sale in a great midblock, flat walkstreet location. That's the good. The problem is the start price at $2.3m. 

Just last May, neighboring 408 9th, a wonderful, if not-so-big (4br/3ba, 2400 sq. ft.) remodel sold for $2.160m. (That's the tax record price; MLS says $2.175m.)

That price was for a move-in-ready house. The land value there would have been $1.7m-$1.9m. 405 9th is on the sunnier south-facing side of the street, but that's the only positive difference.

We're looking at the recent lot sale at the very desirable corner of 7th/Ingleside (441 6th Place), where the dirt traded for $1.5m in early January. Now we look back to 405 9th and say, "Hmmmmm."

Those 2 closed sales:

• 1704 Highland (4br/4ba, 3300 sq. ft.), the last new listing of 2009 in MB, and one of the first sales of the year, closed at $2.1m. This was well below the May 2005 price of $2.425m, but barely below what the previous owners paid ($2.125m), as relayed in "Last to First on Highland."

• 216 30th, a bright, clean, smallish (2br/3ba, 2000 sq. ft.) ocean-view home on a half-lot, closed for $1.615m after a very quick deal (2 days) cut made late last year.

More soon on the busier Tree Section.