Sunday Opens (11/30/14)

It's a time of plenty, but there's a paucity of open houses. As expected on a holiday weekend.

What we do have going on around here these days is another bout of Indian Summer. (Can we still call it that?)

Some Californians get all worried and bothered about sharing our gorgeous "Fall" beach weather with friends and family in colder climes. You see it on Facebook and elsewhere: "Sorry, just one more beach pic," on a day when, say, Buffalo has 10 feet of new snow.

But you know what? Enough. We're here. You're there. We're just sharing. You send us snowman pics, and we send you surfer pics. Fair trade. If the surfer pic recipients are so upset, they'll move here. And if we miss "seasons" and snow so much, we'll move back. Simple. We really can all get along. (Photo courtesy of Charlie Scholz Photography; see Charlie's Facebook page here.)

To plan your open-house tours for this week, use MB Confidential's online list of Manhattan Beach open houses (it's mobile-friendly!).

Don't forget, when previewing homes here on MB Confidential, you can click "Open All Images" right above the main listing photo to get immediate display of all the listing photos at once.

Sand Section

220 8th St. (4br/5ba, 4200 sq. ft.) is a newer (2007) Cape Cod on a quiet walkstreet near downtown with nice ocean views.

The floorplan features 3br on the middle (entry) level, including a spacious master with ocean views and a large master bath. There's a step-up master closet beyond the bath.

Downstairs, as might be expected in a walkstreet floorplan, is a large den opening to a walkstreet patio, along with both a spare bedroom and an office-type room that could also serve as a sleeping room in a pinch.

The top floor features high ceilings, open living spaces, and a rear deck with nice views. The open kitchen/great room area has tons of light, a nice casual dining nook and, shall we say, a family-room corner. (It's not maximally set up now as a major family space.)

The knotty hardwood flooring (we thought perhaps hickory) used on most floors sets a modest, classic tone for the home. It's a part of the understated elegance of the whole package.

This home was sold new in 2007 for $5.400M. But now it's 2014.

220 8th St. is asking $6.490M and is open Sun. 2-4pm.

460 Rosecrans (3br/2ba, 1200 sq. ft.) is a remodeled 60s townhome with ocean views and – what's that? – a price barely over $1M.

You might expect 2br, but you get 3. You might expect some kind of apartment-grade carpet or 60s details, but no, you get light-colored hardwood and a remodel that goes to the late 90s.

Sure, the building's dated, the street is busy/noisy and the remodel dates back a bit, but these are the things you can account for with price.

Oddly, the listing makes a point of saying you can "relax, watch the sunset, and then listen to waves crashing in the night." In truth, you'll hear more than waves.

Historical Curiosity: This year's experience at 460 Rosecrans with overly ambitious pricing wasn't the property's first. In 1998, the TH was listed at $444K, only to sell 13 months later for 15% less, or $375K.

This property was listed for 3 months earlier this year at $1.149M. It's now at $1.059M. To repeat the 15% chop from 1999, it would have to sell for $977K.

460 Rosecrans is asking $1.059M and is open Sun. 12-4pm.

Hill Section

906 9th (6b/7ba, 5425 sq. ft.) is a very big spec-built Mediterranean from the last cycle. It never sold, and rented out instead, and has been recently refreshed to look "like new," per the listing.

There are grand, open spaces on the main (middle) floor off the entry, with a spacious deck in front off of the formal living room and nice covered patio spaces in back off the family room, which feels gigantic with its 2-story ceilings. In between, there's a large dining room with a custom-designed patterned wood floor.

The kitchen is spacious, though a bit dark, and opens directly to a casual dining area and the family room.

Upstairs, the master is a true king's suite, a huge space with a large, open bath area and considerable city views to the north from its high perch on 9th Street. There are 4 other bedrooms upstairs, plus a 6th and final bedroom/office suit down on the very first floor on the same level as the garage.

This listing has run most of this year now, launching in April when there were tenants (and it was harder to see), reaching the point now where the home shows vacant and almost cavernous. The price has come down quite a bit, too, from $4.895M in April to $4.595M today.

It's probably to the benefit of this listing that the similarly numbered listing at 606 9th (5br/5ba, 5000 sq. ft.) has now sold for $4.895M. That home is a bit smaller, 9 years older and comparatively unconventional when set against 906 9th. The location advantage goes to 606 just for being so darn close to town, but otherwise it's a close match – and now no one will confuse the addresses anymore.

Disclosure: Dave's clients wrote an offer below asking price earlier this year on 906 9th, which was (obviously) not accepted.

906 9th is at $4.595M after a recent cut, and is open Sun. 2-4pm.