With the first day of Spring our thoughts go to nature and real estate. The flowers are blooming and there is life in Palos Verdes real estate too. Today, there are 223 active single family residences for sale compared to 216 last month. March 1st to date, there are 74 Pending transactions for March compared to 32 last month. March 1st to date, there are 18 sold or closed transactions compared...
Real Estate is like baking cookies because: 1. Research is key. 2. You must gather all information (ingredients) before you begin. 3. Care (measuring) must be taken during all steps. 4. You must be patient and attentive during the escrow (baking) process. 5. You get to enjoy the fruits of your labor for many years (days). photo courtesy of John...
The answer seems to change daily. I checked with a lender today and a 30-year fixed conforming loan (now $729,750 for Palos Verdes Peninsula/South Bay real estate) is 5 3/8% with one loan point while a jumbo loan is 6 1/2% with one loan point. On a jumbo loan, lenders are requiring a minimum of 25% down payment (this is new). A HUGE caveat on the conforming loans is that if the loan exceeds the...
The Cherry Blossoms are blooming at South Coast Botanic Garden. It is so magical to see the blossoms "rain" down onto the ground. This is the perfect time for a visit as the cherry, plum and peach trees are in full bloom. South Coast Botanic Garden is one of Palos Verdes' best-kept secrets. It is never crowded. One is free to amble for hours through 87 acres of beautiful settings. There is...
Summer of 2009, Palos Verdes Peninsula will have its first hotel and a luxury hotel no less. Terranea Resort will have 400 rooms, a spa/fitness center (25,000 square feet), three restauants, three swimming pools, a 9-hole golf course, meeting rooms (63,000 square feet), a wedding venue, an ampitheater, a sand beach, and a bluff-top trail connecting to miles of on and off resort trails. Terranea is...
After a public vote - winning with 50% of the vote - the new name for The Avenue (of the Peninsula), our shopping center, is Promenade (on the Peninsula). Why was the name changed? At a recent meeting, Elizabeth Griggs, General Manager of Stoltz Management Company, the new owners of the shopping center, explained the prior owner had branded "The Avenues" at all their national locations. Part of the...
I am seeing increased activity in our market on the Palos Verdes Peninsula which follows normal trends for this time of year. Spring is the "season" for real estate. In the last 6 days, 20 new listings came on the market, 12 properties became Contingent, 10 properties went into Pending and 5 properties closed escrow (from sales a month or two ago). Some of the Pending sales actually were properties...
This is a question that I am asked often. The answer is "Just fine, thank you" for several reasons. First, if you look at recent statistics such as "California Association of Realtors - LA County Economic Profile January 2008" the median price year to year November 2006 to November 2007 for Palos Verdes Peninsula shows an increase of 20.4%. Los Angeles Times in Southland Home Prices dated 1/20/08...
There is serious discussion between Congressional leaders and the White House about increasing the loan limits from $417,000 to $625,000 (perhaps as high as $725,000 in high-cost areas) for guaranteed/insured Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans. From LATimes.com - "And in a provision crucial to high-housing-cost states such as California, there would be a significant one-year increase in the size of...
The Valmonte neighborhood is located in Palos Verdes Estates. The best thing about this neighborhood is that it is a family neighborhood. There are usually groups of children playing outdoors on any given day. The topography is relatively flat which is great for walking, riding bikes, playing ball, etc. It is a very friendly area with lots of people taking walks and stopping to chat. Houses...