Palos Verdes Source

The Point Vicente neighborhood is located in Rancho Palos Verdes near the intersection of Palos Verdes Drive West and Hawthorne Boulevard. This is a small neighborhood of only a six streets and about a half a mile long. This is one of my favorite neighborhoods because nearly every home has ocean views. As you enter the homes, you are greeted by a full ocean view from the living room and dining room. There are also ocean views from the backyard. Point Vicente Elementary School is located in this neighborhood and a new Trader Joe’s is opening just down the street!

Currently, there are no active homes for sale in the Point Vicente neighborhood. The last two sales were $975,000 for a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1,670 square foot home and $1,200,000 for a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 2,364 square foot home.

Westfield is one of two Los Angeles County areas located off Palos Verdes Drive North that are designated as “Palos Verdes Peninsula” as their city. This area consists of approximately 300 homes, most of which are equestrian properties. There is a community riding ring (on Eastvale near Palos Verdes Drive North), riding trails and a community tennis court. The properties higher up on the hill have sweeping city views. The Westfield area is about 175 acres in size.

Currently, there are 9 homes for sale in Westfield ranging in price from $850,000 to $2,690,000. The photo above is my own listing at 26633 Westvale Road, Palos Verdes Peninsula, which is a 2 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath, 1,183 square foot home for $850,000. This charming starter home is on one-third acre of nearly flat horse property and has a large backyard with orange and tangerine trees.

Echoes of this oft-repeated question from our youth, are rumbling through the home buying community. Have we “hit bottom” in the Palos Verdes real estate market? Even the experts do not know. The Los Angeles Times August 17th edition tackled this subject regarding real estate in all of Southern California.

There were several stories of “experts” who predicted the housing bubble, sold their own houses and have been renting. Most sold a little too early and not at the peak. And now, when to buy back into the market? Dean Baker, an economist has bought back into the market because “The bottom isn’t here yet but it’s close enough for him. Baker said he’s psychologically prepared for his house to fall 10% more in value. That risk, he said, was offset a bit by the 4.25% mortgage rate he obtained and an $8,000 federal tax credit.” He went on to discuss the joys of home ownership emphasizing “that a house isn’t just a financial instrument.”

I hear the voice of reason. It sounds like we are returning to viewing our house as our home.

There were 20 homes on the August 18, 2009 Palos Verdes real estate Broker’s Tour. We currently have 280 active single family homes for sale in Palos Verdes ranging in price from $836,000 in Rancho Palos Verdes to $18,900,000 in Rolling Hills (the low in Eastview is $685,000). There are 48 townhomes/condos for sale priced between $250,000 and $1,500,000. My favorites were:

Gerard Bisignano’s 3909 Via Valmonte, Palos Verdes, (above left) is a 4 bedroom, 4 bath, 3,293 square foot house for $1,600,000. The Valmonte Cape Cod home features a formal living room and dining room, separate family room and wood paneled library with fireplace. Pamela Lieb’s 32 Strawberry Lane, Rolling Hills Estates, (above right) is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 3,246 square foot home for $1,899,000. This Equestrian Estate is located on a magnificently level 50,090 level lot and features a solar heated pool and a rare 20×50 meter Dressage Riding Arena.

Ray Nejad’s 28835 Doverridge Drive, Rancho Palos Verdes, (above left) is a 5 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,940 square foot home for $1,459,000. This remodeled Los Verdes home has outdoor entertaining areas both in front and back of home and breathtaking ocean views. Alice Kuroda’s 6903 Hartcrest Drive, Rancho Palos Verdes, (above right) is a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1,956 square foot home for $880,000. This well-priced Los Verdes home features a new roof and laminate wood floors and a beautifully remodeled master bathroom.

Photos courtesy of MRMLS

It was a fairly quiet week in the financial/mortgage area which is a welcome change from the last several months.

Rates are down slightly for all loans. The current interest rate for a 30-year fixed conforming loan is 5% and 5.875% for a jumbo loan. A 5/1 Year ARM is 3.625% for conforming loans and 5.125% for jumbo loans. A 5/1 Interest Only conforming loan has a 3.75% interest rate and a jumbo loan has a 5.25% interest rate. Jumbo loans (over $729,750) are down significantly since the beginning of the year.

Statistics for single family homes for the month of July for Palos Verdes real estate are now available and for the second month in a row, the numbers are looking better. As you will note from the graph above, the number of active single family homes for sale in Palos Verdes have fallen from 437 July 2008 to 331 for July 2009. Pending sales climbed to 84 for July 2009 from 69 in June 2009 and way up from July2008 which had 33 pending sales.

Average price per square foot for the last 10 months has been holding pretty steady with small ups and downs and averaging $467 (July 2009 was $462). Average Days on Market in July fell to 69 from a high of 117 days in April. The average price has remained constant the last 3 months – It was $1,133,000 in July 2009. Months of inventory (months it would take to sell existing inventory at the current rate of sale) for July 2009 was 5.7 which was exactly the same at June 2009. Entire charts can be accessed by clicking here or on the “Statistic” tab above.

Currently, there are 280 single family homes for sale on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Additionally, 56 homes have pending sales, 42 homes are in escrow accepting backup offers and 15 homes have sold/closed escrow in the first 11 of August.

The Seaview neighborhood is located in Rancho Palos Verdes off Palos Verdes Drive South and above Portuguese Bend Beach Club and Trump National Golf Course. Most homes have spectacular ocean views as they are stair-stepped up the hill.

This is an intimate neighborhood of about a dozen streets that cover approximately one-half square mile. A steep (100-step) staircase from Dauntless Drive leads to Ladera Linda Park. Seaview’s location near San Pedro and access to the 110 Freeway make it an ideal location for those who work in Long Beach and even downtown Los Angeles.

Currently, there are 2 single family homes for sale in Seaview. 4129 Admirable Drive is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,111 square foot home for $899,000. 32406 Conqueror Drive is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,209 square foot home for $924,000.

There were 25 homes on the August 4, 2009, Palos Verdes real estate Broker’s Tour. We currently have 280 active single family homes for sale in Palos Verdes ranging in price from $836,000 in Rancho Palos Verdes to $18,900,000 in Rolling Hills (the low in Eastview is $585,000). There are 50 townhomes/condos for sale priced between $220,000 and $1,500,000. My favorites were:

Marion Sullivan’s 2201 Thorley Place, Palos Verdes Estates, (above left) is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 1,558 square foot house for $1,295,000. This lower Lunada Bay cottage sits on a large 15,660 corner lot. Gary Myer’s 777 Via Somonte, Palos Verdes Estates, (above right) is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,750 square foot home for $2,195,000. This charming beach cottage in Malaga Cove features unobstructed Queen’s Necklace/Ocean views and has been completely remodeled.

Marge Rankin’s 5430 Bayridge Road, Rancho Palos Verdes, (upper left) is a 3 bedroom 2 bath, 1,400 square foot home for $899,000. This Silver Spur home has a fabulous remodeled kitchen, crown molding throughout and a spacious flat backyard. Rick Edler’s 618 Via Del Monte, Palos Verdes Estates, (above right) is a 5 bedroom, 6 bath, 3,885 square foot home for $3,888,000. This exquisite Malaga Cove estate built in 1999 has Queen’s Necklace/ocean views from nearly every room.

Photos courtesy of MRMLS

Have you noticed that there are more visitors in Palos Verdes? Palos Verdes Peninsula was featured in the July/August edition of Westways magazine in the Day Trip section.

After commenting on Palos Verdes real estate, the article goes on to recommend two spots to hike. Trump National Golf Club is mentioned for its bluff top trails and public coastal access down to the beach. Point Vicente Interpretive Center also has ocean trails along the bluff and docents to answer questions. Wayfarers Chapel (also known as the Glass Church) was mentioned as a historical and interesting place to visit as well as Malaga Cove Library.

Malaga Cove Cafe and Malaga Cove Ranch Market (in Malaga Cove Plaza) are recommended for sandwiches and salads. Starbucks at Golden Cove Cener with its great ocean view and the Subway next door are also mentioned if visitors find themselves near Hawthorne Boulevard and Palos Verdes Drive West. The manager at Malaga Cove Cafe said their business had definitely picked up since the article was published.

Palos Verdes is no longer a secret after the opening of Terrenea Resort (and the multiple articles written about it) and the featured article in Westways Magazine (which goes out to Southern California Automobile Club members).

Photo courtesy of Wayfarers Chapel