spec dev't

New spec construction in the Sand Section doesn't happen often. The spec market focuses on the suburban Tree Section and East Manhattan.

[Side note: Sand Castle construction for prizes happens this Sunday. See this DigMB story or the end of this post for more.]

In the past year, we count only 4 closed sales of new construction in the Sand Section. (It's 11-12 in the Trees over the same span.)

This week, we saw 2 of those 4 new homes close on the same day:

516 4th (5br/6ba, 4300 sqft.) is a spacious, fairly glamorous, white, bright and open "Plantation Chic" home in the quiet South End.

There's a welcoming, open living room on the entry level, opening to a covered patio and picket-fenced yard. The middle level has no walls except those surrounding a…

There's no dispute anymore that Tree Section new construction prices are slipping.

Today's crop is a bit hard to evaluate fully, because so many are in less-than-prime locations. But the trend is clear nonetheless.

It seemed that $3.500M or so was the going rate for a time. You saw 3101 Maple (5br/5ba, 3200 sqft.) pre-sell at that price in January this year, as well as 868 27th (5br/6ba, 3520 sqft.) [pictured] at $3.520M in April this year.

Two new construction listings in the Trees took that pricing as gospel and shot for the same mark.

2409 N. Poinsettia (4br/5ba, 3550 sqft.) came out at $3.499M in late January. (We'll put aside the fact that it began at $160K lighter before upping the price 51 minutes into the listing.)

To their credit, the…

Let's continue with a look back at data from 2015.

Here are the highest sale prices in the prestigious Hill Section last year.

Highest Sale of 2015

612 John (6br/8ba, 7400 sqft.) very nearly tripled in market value since its 2000 build.

That's a fascinating headline from the highest-ever public market sale in the Hill Section.

Closed Price: $9.400M in July.

This home was built on spec way-back-when in the year 2000, becoming a fine exemplar of the era's modern/Mediterranean estates that now dot the Hill Section. It sold new for $3.320M in December 2000.

The most recent prior purchase had been for $5.400M in 2011. That new owner went about customizing and updating the property inside.

Views from the property are considerable, among our town's best.…

With another new high sale for new construction in the Tree Section, it's time for another iteration of our theme: 3 is the new 2 in Manhattan Beach. 

What we mean here is that there was a time when new construction in the Tree Section could be had for a $2 million-ish price. (Use your Wayback Machine.) Now, there will be a 3 in front, for sure.

3101 Maple (5br/5ba, 3200 sqft.) is the newest example. And for this one, they've pushed the ceiling a little higher.

Oh, we don't mean 11' ceilings in the living areas or bedrooms. We mean that a sale price here of $3.500M raises the bar yet again for local home prices.

At 3200 sqft., this is quite nearly $1,100/PSF for a home that's east of Pacific.

The deal was arranged during construction, while the…