remodels

A Quick Memo from the Dept. of Repeating Ourselves...

This is a Carrera.

It is made by Porsche.

It's got two seats, practically speaking.

It goes fast.

It's especially nice with the top down.

Meantime, the pretty white marble that is all the rage in new construction and remodels in Manhattan Beach is...

Carrara.

Carrara marble.

Carrara is a city in Italy, in a mining region where they don't have so many Carreras.

This is a photo from the actual, famous mine in Carrara.

There's really no mistaking the two.

Sure, it's just a one-letter difference, but it's a difference.

We hear and see confusion over this all the time.

Home descriptions are written routinely with references to "Carrera marble."

People talk about their likes and dislikes, what…

New to market this week (yes, odd timing) is a flipper remodel at 3613 Walnut.

There's a unique opportunity here to see a lot of before-and-after photos, since we can show you both the old listing and the new one.

3613 Walnut (4br/5ba, 3545 sq. ft.) sold in May this year for $1.665M. (Clicking the address in this sentence gives you the old, sold listing.)

At the time, the 80s build was dreary, pretty much spent and showing its age.

Dreary, uninspired listing photos taken with a smart phone did not exactly sell the place. The listing description was pretty frank at the time in calling it a project home for someone – designers, builders, anyone with "creativity and vision."

Turns out, it was a flipper that took it on.

Now, after a very thorough remodel…

Why would you spend $200K remaking an old house?

To live in it, or to make money, of course.

But at 1345 Voorhees (3br/2ba, 1750 sq. ft.), it looks like a flip is going to flop.

If they really did spend $200K – as stated – on the substantial remodel here, they're not going to get it all back.

So instead of a profitable flip, this one's turning into something more like a charitable contribution to community improvement.

The numbers here never made sense to us.

The current owner – and would-be seller – acquired the home at full retail back in April, paying $1.200M.

After overhauling and refashioning the home, they offered it on the public market at $1.499M, claiming right there in the listing that they had paid $200K for renovations.

The stated cost…

In a year already packed with record-breaking sales all over town, why should the "wrong" side of Oak be left out?

The freshly remodeled listing at 1720 Oak (4br/4ba, 3470 sq. ft.) stands a good chance to set that record.

As it stands today, the highest-priced sale on the east side of Oak in the Tree Section is $1.899M, set 13 months ago in August 2013 at 2600 Oak. That 5br/5ba, 3200 sq. ft. Mediterranean was built as part of the Speedy Speckies, a 6-pack of new construction using a template from the last cycle, built in 2011-12 and sold in the past couple years. (See "Reconsidering the Speedy Speckies.")

Now along comes the 1988 build at 1720 Oak, recognizable if you have seen these 80s homes with the 3 garages along the front – but also clearly…