November 2007 
There are 32 blog entries for November 2007.
What Can Sell 872 MBB?
Friday, November 30th, 2007 at 6:56am. 131 Views, 0 Comments.
If you hear there's a home for sale that's literally on Manhattan Beach Blvd., you're going to be skeptical.And then you get the pictures. Ugh.
A new listing for an SFR on MBB (872 Manhattan Beach Blvd.) wastes its first three photos by turning off potential buyers. (Click address for pics and details via Redfin.)
We're showing you #1 here – the (happily) fresh garage door. This is your curb appeal, by the way.
#2 shows the cavernous storage area, and #3 features the somewhat spare grass in the back yard.
Did we mention that the sellers would like $1.247m of your hard-earned money? Actually, no, we hadn't yet. That'll get you 3br/2ba and 1275 sq. ft.
Seems pricey? Well, it's – gulp – technically, the Hill Section.
But you see, you're not just paying for the…
Buyers Save Almost a Mil
Friday, November 30th, 2007 at 5:20am. 245 Views, 0 Comments.
The Sand Section has seemed like the hottest area for sales this year – no huge surprise. But there was a letup in sales activity recently, and no sales closed between October 25 and Nov. 20.The three Sand Section SFRs that did close in November (all in the two days before Thanksgiving) reflected buyers saving a combined $860k off the original list prices.
In order of price reductions:
2008 Highland (first pic), a newer 4br/3ba, 2325 sq. ft. modern home, got $2.175m, down $120k (-5%), after just a month on the market.
209 19th, a walkstreet home with 3br/4ba, 3350 sq. ft., located just north of downtown, was on and off the market this Summer (MBC counted 153 days from its first listing date). The sellers got $3.675m – awfully impressive – but that's down…
Getting Shorter
Thursday, November 29th, 2007 at 6:20am. 136 Views, 0 Comments.
As the weeks and months pass, the market value of 1313 Oak is approaching its Dec. 2004 sale price – $1.525m.
It was just three weeks ago that MBC noted that this home was now officially a short sale. That was with a price of $2.199m. Now the price is at $1.999m, off another $200k.
In our last story (see "Get Shorty") we noted that, at $2.199m:
The shame is that this home is still overpriced. A certifiable beauty down the block at 1725 Oak, built at about the same time (2004), sold quickly last month for $2.050m (but it was listed at $1.979m). It was about the same size as [1313 Oak]. Now, $1.999m at least puts 1313 Oak in the same ballpark as a recent comp on Oak.
Let's not forget how high of a moonshot these sellers tried to pull. Last year, this home was…
It was just three weeks ago that MBC noted that this home was now officially a short sale. That was with a price of $2.199m. Now the price is at $1.999m, off another $200k.
In our last story (see "Get Shorty") we noted that, at $2.199m:
The shame is that this home is still overpriced. A certifiable beauty down the block at 1725 Oak, built at about the same time (2004), sold quickly last month for $2.050m (but it was listed at $1.979m). It was about the same size as [1313 Oak]. Now, $1.999m at least puts 1313 Oak in the same ballpark as a recent comp on Oak.
Let's not forget how high of a moonshot these sellers tried to pull. Last year, this home was…
Modest House, Bold Move
Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 4:59am. 101 Views, 0 Comments.
The sellers of 2623 Palm have a message: We are ready to deal.They've had their modest 3br/2ba, 1950 sq. ft. ranch-style home on the market just 2 months, but they have now taken a post-Thanksgiving cut of $156k, bringing their price down $200k total from its start. Palm is now available for $1.399m. (Click the address above for details via Redfin.)
Think about that – 13% in cuts in a short window of time, much of that coming as the holiday-season slowdown really begins. If the sellers are already chopping like that, they're effectively saying "we'll take almost any offer."
How low can they go? MBC did not quickly find a sales record on the home, but it appears the current owners have held it for a number of years. That means they could have tons of equity…
60% Think Prices Will Drop 25%+
Tuesday, November 27th, 2007 at 6:39pm. 220 Views, 0 Comments.
Online polls are not scientific (not even a bit), but it's intriguing that this morning's LA Times poll (click for a link to current results) is, at this moment, showing that 60%+ of respondents believe that "Southland" home prices will drop by 25% or more.
Yes, it depends on what you mean by "Southland."
The poll jumps off of a front-page story (see "Homeowners' big question: How low will prices go?") offering more predictions about the future of the housing market.
There's agreement by the analysts that the Inland Empire is toast. The disagreement is over the Westside and luxury markets. And here, we have a little USC-UCLA rivalry (timely!).
First, one expert (a Berkeley guy) says:
... in areas where there is very little new housing, where it's hard to build…
Yes, it depends on what you mean by "Southland."
The poll jumps off of a front-page story (see "Homeowners' big question: How low will prices go?") offering more predictions about the future of the housing market.
There's agreement by the analysts that the Inland Empire is toast. The disagreement is over the Westside and luxury markets. And here, we have a little USC-UCLA rivalry (timely!).
First, one expert (a Berkeley guy) says:
... in areas where there is very little new housing, where it's hard to build…
Foreclosure Row No More
Monday, November 26th, 2007 at 5:55pm. 164 Views, 0 Comments.
For a while there, we had two listings in the Hill Section on the same street that were in foreclosure and up for sale at the same time. We were half-expecting a third, but now there are none.One of the houses, 402 Larsson (first pic), is now in escrow – the cheapest Hill Section listing we've seen this year at $1.1m. With 3br/3ba and 1800 sq. ft., the home offered, shall we say, tremendous remodeling opportunities. And for the seller, a million bucks should make those bad loans go away – at last.
Only one home in the Hills has sold for less than $1.1m this year, and that was 234 Larsson, a townhome that was listed at $1.3m but sold for $1.075m.
Why the Larsson discounts? Have you ever driven on Larsson? It's the Hill Section's version of Oak Ave. in the…
Making it Happen (-$325k)
Sunday, November 25th, 2007 at 7:08am. 124 Views, 0 Comments.
They say you can't time markets.Here's an example of what seems like bad timing – 2615 Valley came up for sale on July 31, a week before the mortgage meltdown began.
The RE world changed on or about August 7, 2007, and here was Valley, asking $1.799m for 4br/4ba and 1950 sq. ft. on a busy street.
Sure, the remodel was (is!) unusually good. A nice plus. But, really, $1.8m was high then, and it quickly looked ridiculous. So the price slipped to $1.699m and then to $1.599m.
About 3 months into the process, the sellers got a live one, and reeled him in by offering a further $125k discount. This week, 2615 Valley closed for $1.475m, down $325k (-18%) from initial list.
It's no catastrophe for the sellers, who were two-year-itchers. They paid $1.229m in April 2005.…
Worthy Causes
Friday, November 23rd, 2007 at 6:56am. 123 Views, 0 Comments.
Next weekend is the Holiday Homes Tour organized by the Sandpipers, a local charity.Four MB homes are on display (click here for the list w/ pics), one in the Hill Section, one on Martyrs Hill in the Trees, one on a South End walkstreet and one that you have surely admired before when visiting Sand Dune Park, a classically styled home at the end of 31st St. abutting a large park lawn. (The pic here is of the Martyrs Hill home, open Saturday only.)
Each home will have new and extra decor and holiday trimmings sponsored by area vendors. The tour is great, it's for a good cause, and you might just find a photographer, artist or designer to help you fill a need at home.
To order tickets online ($20 each, plus a meager $1 online fee – beats $25 at the door),…
A Real Turkey
Wednesday, November 21st, 2007 at 6:27am. 187 Views, 0 Comments.
As you prepare to give thanks for your blessings this week, here's one to add to the list:You do not now, and probably never will, live at 462 36th Place.
This dreadful SFR is currently the cheapest home west of Sepulveda – for the second time this year. (Click address above for details via Redfin.) For $929k, the listing says you will get 3br/2ba and 1150 sq. ft. on a 1260 sq. ft. lot. The writeup concludes: "Must see!"
But if you see it, you may be traumatized – so be warned.
After this home was purchased in August of this year for $760k (second pic is the "before"), it was rapidly remodeled – just 8 weeks between closing and return to market on Sept. 27. The remodel did update the exterior, and surely improved the interior, but it had to be pretty bad…6th Street is Turning Over
Tuesday, November 20th, 2007 at 5:09pm. 213 Views, 0 Comments.
MB's South End walkstreets are among the town's real treasures – particularly the flat, or nearly flat, family-friendly streets between 4th and downtown.
We can thank the developers who carved up the area south of MBB and west of Valley early in the last century. The design was brilliant – maximizing the number of lots per acre, while making each one of those lots more pleasant to live on and, ultimately, more valuable.
Walkstreet homes don't come on the market much. It's said that if you want one, you're going to need to be patient – there's a growing list of folks waiting to pounce.
Since MBC started publicly tracking the MB market in March, just 3 walkstreet homes in the South End have come on the market. Two sold, and one sat for 7 months before quitting…
We can thank the developers who carved up the area south of MBB and west of Valley early in the last century. The design was brilliant – maximizing the number of lots per acre, while making each one of those lots more pleasant to live on and, ultimately, more valuable.
Walkstreet homes don't come on the market much. It's said that if you want one, you're going to need to be patient – there's a growing list of folks waiting to pounce.
Since MBC started publicly tracking the MB market in March, just 3 walkstreet homes in the South End have come on the market. Two sold, and one sat for 7 months before quitting…
