Clicky

Some Do Sell Lower – Manhattan Beach Market Update for 9/15/26

author image
by Dave Fratello

Whoa, Horsey! We let our mid-September update roll late into the month!

Let's cover the bases with a quick view.

We're looking at some sales that closed in the first half of September.

They show that even elite-level properties sometimes need some time, and price cuts, to make a final deal.

First up is 744 10th, a Hill Section corner lot of about 5250 sqft.

744 10th, Manhattan Beach,

The old-time house dates back to 1942, but it sure seems like everyone who took a long look (including our clients) concluded that this was not a remodel-in-waiting, but a pure land sale.

After starting out at $5.650M, the sellers had to let this one go for $1.350M less at $4.300M.

Think about a nearby sale that closed recently at 708 8th – that 10,000 sqft. lot nabbed $12.500M. 

Shouldn't a lot half that size, also on a corner, also running along Pacific Ave., be worth about half that $12.500M? We're talking about 2 blocks! 

But no. 744 10th is a little closer to MB Blvd. and a bit more traffic, its ocean views are less substantial and not as well-protected as 708 8th's, and heck, there's just a lot less you can do with a 5K lot compared with a 10K lot.

So it was not worth half 708 8th's take. Indeed, 744 10th was worth about 1/3rd of 708 8th.

214 S Poinsettia Avenue, Manhattan Beach, (A comparable market experiment of sorts is under way now with the sale of a corner lot [with house] at 214 S. Poinsettia, asking $4.500M. Lot size is even smaller [4686 sqft.] but the house has somewhat more potential, and the location is quieter. Watch that one.)

Let's stay in the southern part of town here, but closer to the water.

A mid-90s townhouse at 89 Bayview (3br/4ba, 2143 sqft.) emerged on the market in February, but only just now closed.

Did we say mid-90s? 

89 Bayview, Manhattan Beach, No no, it was virtually all new. 

The seller, apparently just to ready the unit for market, gutted, reimagined and rebuilt the unit to capitalize on its views and floorplan, delivering a modern showpiece.

They came out at $5.699M in mid-February, a prime listing time if there ever is one here in Manhattan Beach.

The house was pretty, but buyers said it was also pretty expensive.

The seller trimmed a few times on the original listing, then re-listed at a lower price ($5.250M), before trimming that one further. 

Once they got down to $4.999M, they got a bite. Sale price: $4.950M, or $749K under the start.

One more was simply hard to value from the jump.

429 20th Street, Manhattan Beach, That was 429 20th (3br/3ba, 1779 sqft.).

Here, an interior designer had run wild with no budget. It was a gorgeous look, playful, with color popping here and elegance showing there. 

To make the relatively compact space work, they also had all kinds of conveniences built in for storage and the like.

The rare, super private outdoor space facing the walkstreet was made out for entertaining, activity and relaxation – serious relaxation, with both a sauna and a cold plunge. (For those who can't decide whether to be hot or cold.)

Surely, this compact, private walkstreet masterpiece could be worth the $5.750M asking?

Nope. That was off by $1 million. 

Sale price: $4.750M.

When you get down to is, none of these three homes that sold significantly under asking was very straightforward. 

What's the market for an undersized lot? For a South End townhome? For an underbuilt walkstreet house? 

Sometimes, you gotta run it out there and see what the buyers say. 

------------------------------------------------------

Below, our update continues with the Movers. "Movers" are the:

(1) newest listings,

(2) newest escrows and

(3) newest closed sales within each of our 2-week market update periods. 

Here are the Movers for Sept. 1-15, 2026 (click any address to see the property)

New Listings (15)

ADDRESSBD/BASQFTLOTPRICE$PSFDOMSTART $START
3005 N Poinsettia 5/4 3,262 4,647 $4,499,000 $1,379 6 $4,499,000 09/10/26
640 33rd Street 6/8 5,001 5,024 $7,499,000 $1,500 6 $7,499,000 09/10/26
223 32nd St 7/3 2,628 4,055 $6,495,000 $2,471 6 $6,495,000 09/10/26
1627 Gates Avenue 6/7 5,012 7,498 $3,950,000 $788 5 $3,950,000 09/10/26
1142 Ronda 3/2 1,867 18,882 $6,500,000 $3,482 6 $6,500,000 09/10/26
1808 Highland Avenue 2/1 828 1,199 $2,150,000 $2,597 7 $2,150,000 09/09/26
218 14th Street 4/3 1,840 2,700 $4,499,000 $2,445 7 $4,499,000 09/09/26
721 12th Street 5/4 3,487 2,987 $4,500,000 $1,291 7 $4,500,000 09/09/26
1404 Manhattan 5/6 4,274 2,987 $14,299,000 $3,346 7 $14,299,000 09/09/26
2300 John Street 6/7 5,220 6,745 $7,395,000 $1,417 8 $7,395,000 09/08/26
1200 N Ardmore Avenue 3/3 1,944 3,115 $3,699,000 $1,903 8 $3,699,000 09/08/26
409 16th Street 6/3 2,763 2,692 $4,700,000 $1,701 8 $4,700,000 09/08/26
1551 Artesia Boulevard 4 3/3 1,590 6,732 $1,399,000 $880 8 $1,399,000 09/08/26
436 27th Street 4/5 3,607 2,402 $6,500,000 $1,802 13 $6,500,000 09/03/26
541 4th 4/4 3,596 2,698 $8,000,000 $2,225 13 $8,000,000 09/03/26

 

New Pendings (16)

ADDRESSBD/BASQFTLOTPRICE$PSFDOMSTART $START
3504 N Poinsettia Avenue 4/3 2,326 4,640 $3,150,000 $1,354 34 $3,150,000 08/13/26
1732 N Poinsettia Avenue 3/3 2,102 4,538 $3,950,000 $1,879 16 $3,950,000 08/31/26
2412 John Street 3/3 1,940 5,062 $4,295,000 $2,214 30 $4,295,000 08/04/26
323 31st Street 3/3 1,875 2,697 $3,349,000 $1,786 221 $3,699,000 02/02/26
221 3rd Street 5/5 4,067 2,705 $7,995,000 $1,966 69 $8,495,000 07/09/26
209 15th Street 3/2 1,278 1,345 $3,649,000 $2,855 6 $3,649,000 09/10/26
1016 The Strand 4/4 2,859 3,330 $8,695,000 $3,041 90 $9,295,000 06/18/26
309 Gull Street 2/2 1,126 1,388 $2,200,000 $1,954 58 $2,399,000 07/17/26
214 El Porto Street 4/5 2,235 1,480 $4,600,000 $2,058 54 $4,850,000 07/24/26
401 4th Street 4/5 4,448 2,738 $8,695,000 $1,955 7 $6,895,000 09/09/26
201 5th 3/4 2,170 1,663 $5,500,000 $2,535 15 $5,500,000 09/01/26
457 26th Street 5/5 4,022 2,691 $8,495,000 $2,112 97 $8,950,000 06/11/26
221 3rd 5/5 4,067 2,705 $7,995,000 $1,966 69 $8,495,000 07/09/26
814 Pacific Avenue 6/7 10,000 23,212 $25,500,000 $2,550 7 $25,500,000 09/09/26
426 S Peck 4/2 1,280 4,857 $1,701,000 $1,329 16 $1,701,000 08/31/26
424 S Meadows Ave 3/2 1,529 6,164 $2,449,900 $1,602 96 $2,690,000 06/12/26

 

New Sales (19)

ADDRESSBD/BASQFTLOTPRICE$PSFDOMSTART $CLOSED
840 18th 5/6 4,738 6,402 $7,520,000 $1,583 1 $7,499,000 09/14/26
429 20th Street 3/3 1,779 2,695 $4,750,000 $2,922 101 $5,750,000 09/14/26
220 20th Street 4/4 3,716 2,615 $7,450,000 $2,018 157 $8,295,000 09/14/26
2909 N Valley 2/1 1,062 5,017 $1,850,000 $1,882 25 $1,999,000 09/11/26
424 36th Street 2/2 870 1,349 $2,174,500 $2,068 18 $1,799,000 09/11/26
1643 10th 5/3 3,257 7,507 $3,600,000 $1,101 5 $3,585,000 09/10/26
716 13th 3/2 2,070 3,002 $2,915,000 $1,449 7 $2,999,000 09/09/26
1332 10th 5/3 1,605 8,072 $2,550,000 $1,589 0 $2,550,000 09/09/26
3501 Maple Avenue 4/4 3,404 4,602 $3,960,000 $1,058 4 $3,600,000 09/08/26
849 12th Court 5/6 3,528 5,020 $5,990,000 $1,698 0 $5,990,000 09/08/26
3311 Elm Avenue 6/7 5,320 8,760 $7,700,000 $1,504 35 $8,000,000 09/04/26
229 25th Place 3/4 1,936 2,707 $3,072,000 $1,524 12 $2,950,000 09/04/26
614 Manhattan Beach Boulevard 3/3 1,606 7,508 $2,365,000 $1,494 13 $2,399,000 09/04/26
1029 10th Street 5/5 4,000 7,498 $5,500,000 $1,238 0 $4,950,000 09/04/26
477 35th Street 3/3 2,512 2,698 $3,068,000 $1,194 19 $2,999,999 09/03/26
744 10th 4/3 2,189 5,253 $4,300,000 $2,282 73 $5,650,000 09/02/26
1812 Ocean Drive 2/1 690 1,350 $3,950,000 $5,797 61 $4,195,000 09/01/26
89 Bayview 3/4 2,143 3,466 $4,950,000 $2,333 85 $5,250,000 09/01/26
1440 19th 2/1 1,079 7,006 $2,550,000 $2,317 15 $2,500,000 09/01/26

Here's the rest of our local real estate market update report for the period ending 9/15/26:

> 63 active listings as of 9/15/26 (+2 from 8/31/26) 

> 47 SFRs (+1)

> 16 THs (+1)

See the Inventory list as of 9/15/26 here, or see the MB Dashboard for up-to-the-minute data.

Active listings by region of Manhattan Beach in this report:

> Tree Section: 8 actives (flat)

> Sand Section: 31 actives (flat)

> Hill Section: 5 actives (+1)

> East MB: 19 actives (+1)

We're also providing a report on closed sales by region of MB.

Sales data, including PPSF for all properties, are organized by sub-region of Manhattan Beach.

Here's a link to the spreadsheet: "MB Pending/Sold as of 9/15/26".

Recent Posts

Please see our blog disclaimer.

Listings presented above are supplied via the MLS and are brokered by a variety of agents and firms, not Dave Fratello or Edge Real Estate Agency, unless so stated with the listing. Images and links to properties above lead to a full MLS display of information, including home details, lot size, all photos, and listing broker and agent information and contact information.

Based on information from California Regional Multiple Listing Service, Inc. as of October 12th, 2026 at 4:30am PDT. This information is for your personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties you may be interested in purchasing. Display of MLS data is usually deemed reliable but is NOT guaranteed accurate by the MLS. Buyers are responsible for verifying the accuracy of all information and should investigate the data themselves or retain appropriate professionals. Information from sources other than the Listing Agent may have been included in the MLS data. Unless otherwise specified in writing, Broker/Agent has not and will not verify any information obtained from other sources. The Broker/Agent providing the information contained herein may or may not have been the Listing and/or Selling Agent.