April 2011 
There are 19 blog entries for April 2011.
A Saturday Treat (4/30)
Saturday, April 30th, 2011 at 4:07pm. 157 Views, 0 Comments.
Though we'll normally run all the weekend's new offerings within one post, we're going to break it up this weekend. There will be a "Sunday Opens" post also, but this one is occasioned by our rush to be sure you hear about 533 15th in the Trees with time to see it.
To plan out your Saturday OR Sunday tours, try this Redfin map list of open houses – you can sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
Martyrs Area / Tree Section
533 15th (6br/6ba, 5300 sq. ft.) could give a pulse to a dead man, bring songs to the lips of a cynic, or, for most of the rest of us, will just elicit "oohs," "ahhhs" and dropped jaws.
It's a giant, crisp, ocean-view beach house benefiting…
To plan out your Saturday OR Sunday tours, try this Redfin map list of open houses – you can sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
Martyrs Area / Tree Section
533 15th (6br/6ba, 5300 sq. ft.) could give a pulse to a dead man, bring songs to the lips of a cynic, or, for most of the rest of us, will just elicit "oohs," "ahhhs" and dropped jaws.It's a giant, crisp, ocean-view beach house benefiting…
Speedy Speckies Sprout
Friday, April 29th, 2011 at 3:34am. 441 Views, 0 Comments.
Nationally, the numbers for new-home construction and sales continue to be "very depressed."
Locally here in MB, almost all of the new construction consists of custom builds for owner-users.
But it's hard to ignore the 5 new spec homes sprouting in the Tree Section these days.
Rather rapidly, the area has played host to a whirl of demo dozers, foundation-builders and, already, framers who have given shape to 2 of the 5 homes, and a third is very close to looking like a house, too.
Most recently, the last of the bunch, 1601 and 1605 Pine, were flattened. Already they've got the first foundation elements framed and poured.
Maybe you didn't get the memo yet. Some kind of Spec construction is back in the Trees.…
Locally here in MB, almost all of the new construction consists of custom builds for owner-users.
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| 2600 Pine has been split for twin speckies. |
Rather rapidly, the area has played host to a whirl of demo dozers, foundation-builders and, already, framers who have given shape to 2 of the 5 homes, and a third is very close to looking like a house, too.
Most recently, the last of the bunch, 1601 and 1605 Pine, were flattened. Already they've got the first foundation elements framed and poured.
Maybe you didn't get the memo yet. Some kind of Spec construction is back in the Trees.…
Walkstreet Lot-Plus Closes
Wednesday, April 27th, 2011 at 6:23pm. 149 Views, 0 Comments.
In "Flat But Up" in early March, we were skeptical of the demand for $2.6m for 324 8th, a 1-1/2-size lot (4050 sq. ft.) on a flat walkstreet near downtown.Neighboring 316 8th – a corner lot of the same unusually large size – had sold for $2.150m in Sept. 2009.
324 8th did make a quick deal, but for much less than asking, and about 5% more than the neighbor had sold for during a trough for the local market.
324 8th's sale price: $2.255m (-$345k/-13% off start). That's equivalent to exactly $1.5m for a standard-size lot.
And here come the 'dozers.
Laurel Deal's Done
Tuesday, April 26th, 2011 at 2:45pm. 148 Views, 0 Comments.
A Tree Section house partly covered in ivy, featuring barred windows and gold shag carpeting, has found a new owner. The deal price: $995k.
That's really just the start of the issues we found over at 3100 Laurel (4br/3ba, 2100 sq. ft.). When escrow posted in early March, we said the home "has almost too many flaws to count," with a layout we said was "shockingly awkward," partly due to the mid-level garage. (Bedroom, bedroom, closet, garage. What, garage?)
We had previously called it "a major project that shows every bit of its mid-60s vintage," and said "[i]t'll take a visionary."
But we also viewed the inclined lot as poorly suited to development, imagining that this would be a remodel at some point. We remain eager to see what someone can do with it.
Going…
That's really just the start of the issues we found over at 3100 Laurel (4br/3ba, 2100 sq. ft.). When escrow posted in early March, we said the home "has almost too many flaws to count," with a layout we said was "shockingly awkward," partly due to the mid-level garage. (Bedroom, bedroom, closet, garage. What, garage?)We had previously called it "a major project that shows every bit of its mid-60s vintage," and said "[i]t'll take a visionary."
But we also viewed the inclined lot as poorly suited to development, imagining that this would be a remodel at some point. We remain eager to see what someone can do with it.
Going…
Now Rewinding on 34th
Monday, April 25th, 2011 at 7:01pm. 156 Views, 0 Comments.
It was 3 months ago that we first took note of a listing for a home last purchased in 2006, for which the 2011 asking price was a bump up, not a rewind.
It so happened that earlier that same week in January, we had covered 2 other resales that had closed well below their 2006 acquisition prices. But 224 34th (4br/4ba, 3700 sq. ft.) was going to buck that trend.
Our first post was called "Not Rewinding on 34th," but now we have cause to change one letter. For the first time, 224 34th now is rewinding, priced below acquisition at $2.790m.
Not that this move came easily. Last month, 34th pulled a bogus re-list and raised the asking price, from $2.999m to $3.089m. It was a curious reaction to 2 months' worth of not selling. But then, Spring was really springing…
It so happened that earlier that same week in January, we had covered 2 other resales that had closed well below their 2006 acquisition prices. But 224 34th (4br/4ba, 3700 sq. ft.) was going to buck that trend.Our first post was called "Not Rewinding on 34th," but now we have cause to change one letter. For the first time, 224 34th now is rewinding, priced below acquisition at $2.790m.
Not that this move came easily. Last month, 34th pulled a bogus re-list and raised the asking price, from $2.999m to $3.089m. It was a curious reaction to 2 months' worth of not selling. But then, Spring was really springing…
Saturday Opens (4/23)
Saturday, April 23rd, 2011 at 5:07pm. 155 Views, 0 Comments.
Sellers mostly stay out of the way when the Easter Bunny comes – there are few Sunday opens and even fewer debuts for the weekend.
In fact, west of the highway, only one new listing is open this week – a big Hill Section property with an interesting custom design. Besides our review of that property, we're reprising our writeups on several other listings that will open up Saturday.
To plan out your weekend tours, try this Redfin map list of open houses – you can sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
As always, click on any highlighted address for more pics & details via Redfin. If you tour, tell us what you see, what you like and what you don't like in the…
In fact, west of the highway, only one new listing is open this week – a big Hill Section property with an interesting custom design. Besides our review of that property, we're reprising our writeups on several other listings that will open up Saturday.
To plan out your weekend tours, try this Redfin map list of open houses – you can sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
As always, click on any highlighted address for more pics & details via Redfin. If you tour, tell us what you see, what you like and what you don't like in the…
Some Sales Mix Changes, '06-'11
Wednesday, April 20th, 2011 at 6:15pm. 141 Views, 0 Comments.
It's not news that home prices locally are lower now than in in the bubble years. But the number of sales in various price ranges offer some dramatic evidence.
Consider just one number. In the first quarter of 2006, just a sliver, 6%, of all homes sold in Manhattan Beach (all areas) went for less than $1m.
This year (Q1 '11), more than a quarter of homes sold for less than $1m – 27%. Statistically, that's a 450% increase in the proportion selling below that magical $1m benchmark.
Our chart here (click to enlarge) draws a pretty stark line between the 2006-2008 period and the past 3 years. The sales mix changed drastically in the first true post-bubble year, 2009.
This year's entry-level sales in the first quarter look more like that year's, with about the…
Consider just one number. In the first quarter of 2006, just a sliver, 6%, of all homes sold in Manhattan Beach (all areas) went for less than $1m.This year (Q1 '11), more than a quarter of homes sold for less than $1m – 27%. Statistically, that's a 450% increase in the proportion selling below that magical $1m benchmark.
Our chart here (click to enlarge) draws a pretty stark line between the 2006-2008 period and the past 3 years. The sales mix changed drastically in the first true post-bubble year, 2009.
This year's entry-level sales in the first quarter look more like that year's, with about the…
Double Lots: A Mixed Result
Monday, April 18th, 2011 at 10:40pm. 158 Views, 0 Comments.
Catching up here on a story from late last year, let's see what happened to 2 double lots in the Tree Section.
In "Double the Fun" back in December 2010, we noted how rare it is to see large or double-size lots on offer in the Trees. Usually, you have to take your 4400-4800 sq. ft. lot and be happy. We found just 11 instances from Jan. 2007-Dec. 2010 (basically 4 years) of lots larger than 8000 sq. ft. being offered.
One double lot offered last year was at 2912 Pacific (4br/2ba, 1875 sq. ft.), which began at $1.599m.
Far from a tear-down, the one-story, contemp- orary-styled remodel offered a fun and unique home using just part of the plus-plus-size 9300 sq. ft. lot. (See our open-house review for more.)
New owners took title…
In "Double the Fun" back in December 2010, we noted how rare it is to see large or double-size lots on offer in the Trees. Usually, you have to take your 4400-4800 sq. ft. lot and be happy. We found just 11 instances from Jan. 2007-Dec. 2010 (basically 4 years) of lots larger than 8000 sq. ft. being offered.
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| Back Yard at 2912 Pacific |
Far from a tear-down, the one-story, contemp- orary-styled remodel offered a fun and unique home using just part of the plus-plus-size 9300 sq. ft. lot. (See our open-house review for more.)
New owners took title…
Weekend Opens (4/16-4/17)
Saturday, April 16th, 2011 at 5:19pm. 142 Views, 0 Comments.
Remember all those weeks earlier this year with no new Sand Section listings?
As the air has warmed, the sky has cleared and thoughts of vacation homes have begun to enter the dreams of potential MB buyers, suddenly the beach-adjacent inventory is growing.
This weekend's a great time to reacquaint yourself with the beach and check out a few opens along the way. Also, enjoy a little weekend reading – this new South Bay Confidential column in the Daily Breeze is about listings with larger lots around the region.
Use this Redfin map list of open houses – sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
As always, click on any highlighted address for more pics & details via…
As the air has warmed, the sky has cleared and thoughts of vacation homes have begun to enter the dreams of potential MB buyers, suddenly the beach-adjacent inventory is growing.
This weekend's a great time to reacquaint yourself with the beach and check out a few opens along the way. Also, enjoy a little weekend reading – this new South Bay Confidential column in the Daily Breeze is about listings with larger lots around the region.
Use this Redfin map list of open houses – sort by price or sub-region of MB by clicking the title on a column. Or click here for the more traditional Beach Reporter list of opens.
As always, click on any highlighted address for more pics & details via…
How Q1 of '11 Compares
Friday, April 15th, 2011 at 2:57pm. 182 Views, 0 Comments.
When we last took a look at sales trends in MB, we called 2010 "clearly a rebound year for local RE." (See "4th Qtr: More Sales, Lower Prices.") So has that feeling carried over into 2011?
Signs point to "yes."
There were more closed sales in the first quarter of 2011 than in any year since 2007, a year when the bubble was popping but not everyone had gotten the message yet. As our graph here shows, that was true of data for all of MB as well as for the region west of Sepulveda.
(Click on either of our graphs here to enlarge.)
The boost in sales was +9 for both the region west of the highway and for the whole city – which leads to a logical deduction: it was West MB that drove the boost this year, while East MB was flat.
West of the highway, though, median…
Signs point to "yes."
There were more closed sales in the first quarter of 2011 than in any year since 2007, a year when the bubble was popping but not everyone had gotten the message yet. As our graph here shows, that was true of data for all of MB as well as for the region west of Sepulveda.(Click on either of our graphs here to enlarge.)
The boost in sales was +9 for both the region west of the highway and for the whole city – which leads to a logical deduction: it was West MB that drove the boost this year, while East MB was flat.
West of the highway, though, median…