Cooler Environment for Some Resales

A new closing at 1804 Palm (5br/4ba, 3150 sqft.) marks the third sale of the property in a bit more than 3 years.

And despite those quick turnarounds, the home has sold for more each time:

April 2017: $3,000,000

May 2018: $3,300,000

Sept. 2020: $3,600,000

Now, that's a super, must-have block, which is a factor. The home is a refreshed Mediterranean with a superb improvement of the family room to open it for real indoor/outdoor living. That's a factor.

Still, you don't necessarily count on a home rising in value by 10% for a quick resale.

Sometimes sellers might not even get what they paid.

There's one case in the extraordinary Tree Section compound at 3301/3305 Pine.

Back in 2016, the dual property sold for $6.750M.

This year, on resale: $6.000M.

(We last rhapsodized about that property in Feb. 2019, in "Compound Rapture.")

Or look at couple of more recent purchases with recent resales.

Up on the plateau, 436 27th (4br/5ba, 3475 sqft.) came to market last year as all-new construction. It sold for $4.150M in July 2019.

The resale this year: $3.985M.

And the upgradeable walkstreet modern remodel at 220 16th (5br/4ba, 2700 sqft.) has just closed for $5.025M.

But 13 months ago, in Aug. 2019, it sold for $125K more: $5.150M.

Several times here we've noted the difficult fate of the "Manhattan Pointe" townhome at 229 Aviation Place, which seemed to sell at the complex's peak ($1.080M in Nov. 2018) only to fail repeatedly to resell when plans changed.

It has now closed for $1.070M. On the positive side, that's $20K more than they were asking at a low moment in Spring/Summer 2019.

That recent purchase/sale is one of the lucky ones, though.

We catalogued several local listings in late July that were trying to find new owners soon after a recent acquisition. (See "How Will Recent Purchases Fare on Resale?")

Out of the 12 properties listed there, 1 is closed (229 Aviation Place), 1 just fell out of escrow (1350 23rd), 2 have quit the market, and 8 more are still on market, making for 9 of the 12 still out there, trying to answer that question from our headline: How will they fare?

No doubt, COVID-19 is driving a lot of unusual real estate activity, or contributing to it. You bought a house in Manhattan Beach, then realized you could never see your family in another state. Back you go. That's just one scenario. Life is happening to people at quite a rate.

Very few of our clients' sale or purchase decisions these days are unrelated to COVID. The pandemic, shutdowns and changes in workplaces combine to change what people need and value in a home. Not a big surprise to see some movement that would seem odd in another context.