July 2011 
There are 19 blog entries for July 2011.
Weekend Opens (7/30-7/31)
Saturday, July 30th, 2011 at 5:08pm. 199 Views, 0 Comments.
So there goes July...
We don't want to say sellers are afraid of the 6-man this weekend, because they're not. If you look at a list of opens, there are plenty to check out.
But debuts this weekend west of Sepulveda – none.
So we went where the compass pointed – east of Sepulveda. ("Go East, young man.") Our first 3 reviews will come from there, where we found new listings eagerly popping up and demanding attention.
Funny – each and every time your blog author is spotted in East MB it's the same question: Don't you only cover west of Sepulveda?
Why, yes, mostly – but not exclusively. Naturally, your blog author's first clients wound up buying in East MB. Oh, the irony.
After the East MB listings we'll point to a few West MB listings that are also worth your…
We don't want to say sellers are afraid of the 6-man this weekend, because they're not. If you look at a list of opens, there are plenty to check out.But debuts this weekend west of Sepulveda – none.
So we went where the compass pointed – east of Sepulveda. ("Go East, young man.") Our first 3 reviews will come from there, where we found new listings eagerly popping up and demanding attention.
Funny – each and every time your blog author is spotted in East MB it's the same question: Don't you only cover west of Sepulveda?
Why, yes, mostly – but not exclusively. Naturally, your blog author's first clients wound up buying in East MB. Oh, the irony.
After the East MB listings we'll point to a few West MB listings that are also worth your…
Distress Ends Quickly
Friday, July 29th, 2011 at 4:35am. 244 Views, 0 Comments.
It turns out that July was a good month to be in distress.
Not even 3 weeks ago, we mentioned 8 MB listings that were in some form of distress – REOs, shorties and homes facing foreclosure – and we discussed 6 of those in some detail. (See "The Distress List.")
Now, of the 6 we discussed, 4 are in escrow. Only 2 East MB shorties are still available.
Taken:
456 21st St. (3br/4ba, 3325 sq. ft.) was the highest-priced distressed property listing in MB, a 3br, custom-built Caliterranean overlooking the baseball fields at Live Oak Park.
It had cut from $2.8m to start (a rescue price?) to a short-sale offering price of $2.049m before finding a buyer.
Now, can they get the lenders to approve?
3108 Walnut (pictured) (4br/4ba, 3700 sq. ft.) was listed short with…
Not even 3 weeks ago, we mentioned 8 MB listings that were in some form of distress – REOs, shorties and homes facing foreclosure – and we discussed 6 of those in some detail. (See "The Distress List.")
Now, of the 6 we discussed, 4 are in escrow. Only 2 East MB shorties are still available.
Taken:
456 21st St. (3br/4ba, 3325 sq. ft.) was the highest-priced distressed property listing in MB, a 3br, custom-built Caliterranean overlooking the baseball fields at Live Oak Park.It had cut from $2.8m to start (a rescue price?) to a short-sale offering price of $2.049m before finding a buyer.
Now, can they get the lenders to approve?
3108 Walnut (pictured) (4br/4ba, 3700 sq. ft.) was listed short with…Work in the Hills
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011 at 10:05pm. 224 Views, 0 Comments.
We happened by a scraping today, once a familiar sight around MB, increasingly more so again.
This prompted us to catch up on a few goings-on around the Hill Section, where recent buyers have been pursuing various kinds of remodels and building projects.
922 11th is the scraper we saw, positioned on a Hill Section lot right across from a church parking lot.
Say what you will about the location, but it's a big 7500 sq. ft. lot with interesting treetop views to the south.
The little 3br/2ba 1950s cottage is now history. Someone's got bigger plans.
The lot was acquired for $1.075m in March this year.
The folks who bought it will now build out a custom home for themselves – no speckie here.
We've…
This prompted us to catch up on a few goings-on around the Hill Section, where recent buyers have been pursuing various kinds of remodels and building projects.
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| 922 11th - Now |
Say what you will about the location, but it's a big 7500 sq. ft. lot with interesting treetop views to the south.
The little 3br/2ba 1950s cottage is now history. Someone's got bigger plans.
| |
| 922 11th - Then |
The folks who bought it will now build out a custom home for themselves – no speckie here.
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| 822 John – Before |
What's 'Jumbo' Could Change
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011 at 4:04am. 186 Views, 0 Comments.
Kaye Thomas notes with some chagrin that the "conforming loan" limit will soon slide backwards from $729,750 to $650,000.
If you're looking to get a mortgage near either threshold, you could be shifting to "jumbo" loans after the change.
This shift will affect buyers in lots of higher-priced markets nationwide, including MB, though the current max represents 80% of a purchase of just $900k. That means plenty of buyers locally who want to put about 20% down have been stuck, pretty much all along, with only jumbo loans as an option.
Kaye says, with some urgency, that if you own now and want to refi, "DO IT NOW!" (She is trying to scream.) Documents filled out after Aug. 15 may not be processed in time to meet the Oct. 1, 2011, deadline.
We're going to wonder…
If you're looking to get a mortgage near either threshold, you could be shifting to "jumbo" loans after the change. This shift will affect buyers in lots of higher-priced markets nationwide, including MB, though the current max represents 80% of a purchase of just $900k. That means plenty of buyers locally who want to put about 20% down have been stuck, pretty much all along, with only jumbo loans as an option.
Kaye says, with some urgency, that if you own now and want to refi, "DO IT NOW!" (She is trying to scream.) Documents filled out after Aug. 15 may not be processed in time to meet the Oct. 1, 2011, deadline.
We're going to wonder…
Patience a Virtue
Monday, July 25th, 2011 at 11:29pm. 179 Views, 0 Comments.
If you wanted to bring a new spec home into the world, 2009 was not the year to do it.
This, the builders of 406 Anderson (5br/4ba, 4500 sq. ft.) learned.
The newly completed, big "plantation" style home launched in January 2009, when nobody was buying anything. (Maybe milk, bread and eggs.) The start price: $3.699m.
That was an ocean-view price on a non-ocean-view street, but more to the point, just awful timing.
It wasn't long before the listing began to look desperate. There were $200k cuts in early and mid-February 2009.
By mid-March, it was down $300k more to $2.999m. Even that didn't work, and soon it rented out.
406 Anderson popped up again this year for agents to view in June, while off-market options were being explored. We toured but did not write up…
This, the builders of 406 Anderson (5br/4ba, 4500 sq. ft.) learned.The newly completed, big "plantation" style home launched in January 2009, when nobody was buying anything. (Maybe milk, bread and eggs.) The start price: $3.699m.
That was an ocean-view price on a non-ocean-view street, but more to the point, just awful timing.
It wasn't long before the listing began to look desperate. There were $200k cuts in early and mid-February 2009.
By mid-March, it was down $300k more to $2.999m. Even that didn't work, and soon it rented out.
406 Anderson popped up again this year for agents to view in June, while off-market options were being explored. We toured but did not write up…
Weekend Opens (7/23-7/24)
Saturday, July 23rd, 2011 at 3:00pm. 190 Views, 0 Comments.
This week offers the calm before the storm... if this year's revised 6-man – next weekend – is going to be a storm again. Thinking of taking the kids down to the beach? Better this weekend than next.
Even as we get deep into July here, there continue to be intriguing new homes on the local market. For instance, this week you can take a first look at a couple of the Speedy Speckies, the first new Tree Section homes in a while – see the last writeup below for more before you tour.
Once again, one of the homes featured this weekend is also an advertiser and the sellers are friends – that's 849 10th this time – so we're providing a review with that disclosure and disclaimer.
Interested in how the beach cities are doing, sales-wise, versus the rest of the South…
Even as we get deep into July here, there continue to be intriguing new homes on the local market. For instance, this week you can take a first look at a couple of the Speedy Speckies, the first new Tree Section homes in a while – see the last writeup below for more before you tour.
Once again, one of the homes featured this weekend is also an advertiser and the sellers are friends – that's 849 10th this time – so we're providing a review with that disclosure and disclaimer.
Interested in how the beach cities are doing, sales-wise, versus the rest of the South…
Strand Beguiling for Some
Thursday, July 21st, 2011 at 10:05pm. 189 Views, 0 Comments.
On occasion of a new deal and one big new price cut, it's time for another look at The Strand.
We really can't set the scene much better than we did in our last update a month ago:
The year 2011 has seen some big-dollar trades on The Strand, and a little too much kool-aid passed around among other would-be Strand sellers. Overpricing is like an epidemic at the beach. As the air warms Summer takes hold, you still see signs of that "epidemic." An unusually clogged Strand has seen relatively little action, despite growing inventory. But you get the sense that things might be about to start really moving, and we could have a whole different Strand assortment by Labor Day.
First, let's review what actually has sold on The Strand this year:
…
We really can't set the scene much better than we did in our last update a month ago:
The year 2011 has seen some big-dollar trades on The Strand, and a little too much kool-aid passed around among other would-be Strand sellers. Overpricing is like an epidemic at the beach. As the air warms Summer takes hold, you still see signs of that "epidemic." An unusually clogged Strand has seen relatively little action, despite growing inventory. But you get the sense that things might be about to start really moving, and we could have a whole different Strand assortment by Labor Day.
First, let's review what actually has sold on The Strand this year:
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| 2920 The Strand |
Close the Books on 521 MBB
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011 at 10:02pm. 237 Views, 0 Comments.
It took more than 4 years, but they've finally transferred title to 521 MBB, a little duplex just up off Ardmore.If you've ever been stuck at the light at MBB/Ardmore, you've seen it. You may see it tonight. For the first time in... forever, you'll know there's a new owner.
It's hard to recap the tale as well as we did last year in "Forget the $300k, Forget It All," which took note of 521 MBB as it became a short sale.
But the super-short version is:
- Purchased for $1.495m in Aug. 2006
- Tried to resell, 2007-2010, from $1.875m-$1.499m
- Offered short for $980k in Spring 2010, found a buyer
- Repo'd Oct. 2010
- Sold July 20, 2011, for $1.130m
Can Palm Turn the Corner?
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011 at 3:42pm. 304 Views, 0 Comments.
It's hard to believe more than 4 months have gone by with 1801 Palm (4br/4ba, 3900 sq. ft.) still on offer.An attractive, newer (2000), corner-lot home in a great location – what's the holdup?
Yesterday Palm made its second cut, and is now offered at $2.129m, more than 8% below its 2004 purchase price ($2.325m).
Maybe people don't like the tiered layout (as you can see here, the home runs along an upslope), or the thick, long shag carpeting, or the limited number of bedrooms (4) for the square footage. But none of these are major issues, and that location does sing.
The home also has a couple of bonuses, as we noted in our "Weekend Opens" review back in March:
A smallish basement space that's adequate for a small media room plus wine cellar – nicely…
First Half '11: More Sales, Lower Median
Monday, July 18th, 2011 at 8:36pm. 175 Views, 0 Comments.
We had not yet published YTD sales date for the first half of 2011, and now we can.
In short: Prices in MB are down a bit this year compared to 2010, on somewhat higher sales.
The story takes on a couple of wrinkles after that as we look at MB west of Sepulveda and all of MB separately.
All of MB
It's remarkable, at first blush, to see median prices in 2011 hovering very close to 2009 levels.
Citywide, the improvement in the median price 2 years after the trough of 2009 is less than a full 1%. Another way of saying that is that MB is flat to 2009 prices.
By contrast, the median price's year-over-year improvement from the first half of 2009 to the first half of 2010 had been 5%. Sunny days. We've now given up 4%.
Whatever the median prices, it's got to be…
In short: Prices in MB are down a bit this year compared to 2010, on somewhat higher sales.
The story takes on a couple of wrinkles after that as we look at MB west of Sepulveda and all of MB separately.
All of MBIt's remarkable, at first blush, to see median prices in 2011 hovering very close to 2009 levels.
Citywide, the improvement in the median price 2 years after the trough of 2009 is less than a full 1%. Another way of saying that is that MB is flat to 2009 prices.
By contrast, the median price's year-over-year improvement from the first half of 2009 to the first half of 2010 had been 5%. Sunny days. We've now given up 4%.
Whatever the median prices, it's got to be…
