"Palos Verdes Estates City Council recently reviewed completed reports on the slow, yet consistent, land movement at the north end of Bluff Cove, located at Palos Verdes Drive West near Via Montemar" reported the June 12th Peninsula News. I have noticed the red pylons decorating the road for months. During his presentation at an April Board of Realtors Meeting, Joe Hoefgen, City Manager for Palos...

Statistics for the month of May for Palos Verdes real estate are available and indicate our market is holding. Average price for single family homes sold in the month of May was $1,677,000 vs $1,667,000 in April. Number of homes reported sold (closed escrow) for the month of May was 43 which was the same for April. Number of homes pending for the month of May was 39 vs 40 in April. Inventory of...

Are open houses an efficient sales tool for sellers? I am up front with my clients selling Palos Verdes real estate. I tell them that I will hold occasional public open houses for them; statistics show that only 3% of homes are sold to buyers walking into an open house. Plus there is the security issue. I cannot be in every room at every minute and we receive periodic notices from other Realtors...

Friday's mortgage rates are up slightly compared to our last Morgage Update two weeks ago. At that time a 30 year fixed rate mortgage was 5.75% conforming and 6.75% jumbo. As you can see from the chart above, today a borrower will pay 6.125% conforming and 6.875% jumbo. Friday's mortgage rates for Palos Verdes homes are provided by Jim Kurata, Peninsula Mortgage/Chase...

This is a buyer's market, right? What happens when a buyer has read and listened to all the media reports about how the buyer is king now? The buyer may feel empowered to offer considerably less than the asking price and considerably less than all recent sold comps. Some sellers are so insulted that they won't even counter the offer. Here is an idea for those considering Palos Verdes real...

Today there were 26 homes on Broker's Tour. We currently have 253 active single family homes for sale in Palos Verdes ranging in price from $599,000 (in Eastview) to $23,000,000. My favorites today were: Joan Zirkel's 6739 Vallon Drive, Rancho Palos Verdes (above left), is a 5 bedroom, 3 bath, 3177 square foot home for $1,650,000. This remodeled home has an ocean view, 3 car garage and backs to...

Yesterday, I went to the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana to view the Terra Cotta Warriors, the Guardians of China's First Emperor. It was fabulous! I highly recommend it. It was very well organized. We had tickets for 10:00 am, only stood in line for a few minutes and then were given an audio phone to help guide us through history. This is the largest exhibit of the Terra Cotta Army ever seen outside...

The 21st Annual Palos Verdes Street Fair and Music Festival takes place this weekend. The theme this year is "Going Green" and will feature "Green Street" with exhibitors giving away free energy-efficient light bulbs, eco-friendly shopping bags and lots of free merchandise. There will also be demonstrations and seminars. Palos Verdes Street Fair will also feature over 150 street vendors, a Student...

Today there were 22 homes on Broker's Tour. We currently have 258 active single family homes for sale in Palos Verdes. My favorites today were: Al D'Amico's 12 Pony Lane, Rolling Hills Estates (above top), is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2317 square foot home for $1,575,000. This is "A Horse Lover's Dream" on a 20,000 square foot lot with a 2-stall barn and exercise ring adjacent to the...

Palos Verdes students have exceeded the prior years API scores as reported by the State of Calilfornia Department of Education. The new 2007-2008 Accountability Progress Report is available and shows the Palos Verdes Unified School District with a score of 899 with 9,127 studests included. The score for 2006 was 897. Great schools help maintain property values for Palos Verdes real estate. The...