Proto Homes – New modern architecture we can afford!

About a week ago we had the pleasure of attending the “coming out” party for the first Proto Home located in The Baldwin Vista section of Baldwin Hills. You may not have heard of Proto Homes yet, but you will. This is really the beginning of a revolution in home building. The home is AFFORDABLE (especially for brand new construction!),FLEXIBLE meaning that the home will change to fit the owners needs rather than the owner having to fit into what the home dictates and INNOVATIVE for several reasons having to do with the building process itself. We will let you know when this home is open to the public for viewing, but in the meantime here’s a brief description.
The home is built around a patent- pending core or a “brain” if you will. This core is the basis of the homes innovation and affordability. The core is manufactured off site and then dropped in and the house is built around the core. This allows the homes to be completely built in about a four month period. (Affordable!) The core houses everything that runs the house including plumbing, electrical, HVAC, wiring, etc. (Innovative!) There are no wires or plumbing or anything that runs over, under or through the house. Everything is accessible and easy to reach and easy to fix if necessary. Never again do you need to have a trade’s person searching through your crawl space, walls or attic in pursuit of a leaking pipe or faulty wire. Everything is visible and accessible.
The home can change with the owners changing needs. (Flexible!) This particular model can be a one bedroom or a four bedroom house. There are soffits built into the ceiling in the second story of the house and custom walls can be slid in and out of them to create as many rooms as desired. If a couple were to move into this house and then have a few children down the road, they would not need to change their house. They would only need to order a beautiful, custom, affordable wall that becomes closets and shelving for the room it’s creating. They are easy to install and certainly much more cost effective than moving or adding onto a house. (Affordable!)
All of this is very practical and utilitarian, but we want to be very clear, style and aesthetic beauty have not been sacrificed! The home is largely comprised of open and airy space with incredible             natural light provided by long floor to  ceiling windows that let in light and views but they are not so big that they obfuscate privacy. The finishes are all sleek and high end, with marble counters and polished concrete floors, sleek cabinet design and thoughtful use of materials throughout. One of the coolest and sleekest things is that all of the homes are networked and can be controlled from your IPhone or your tablet. Out all day on a sweltering day in early September? No problem, an hour before you return home you can log on and turn on the state of the art cooling system. On vacation and want to make sure the house looks lived in? Switch the lights and music on and off and view the home via the security cameras. It doesn’t walk your dog for you yet, but we won’t be surprised if that’s coming.
Proto Homes will be built to be sold at the median price in any given neighborhood. This is remarkable because typically new construction is sold at the highest price point in any given market. What this means is that the consumer can buy a house that works for them and flexes with their needs for the same price as a house that was built 75 – 100 years ago that requires a lot of maintenance. Stay tuned because we plan to bring you much more information about Proto Homes and how you can have one of your own.

(photos courtesy of Proto Homes)

Don’t Judge a Book (or a house) by it’s Cover

This past Tuesday I looked at properties exclusively in the Beverly Center/Miracle Mile and West Hollywood sections of our fair city. Despite all of the economic turmoil of the past couple of years, these areas have held up quite well in terms of property values. That’s not to say they haven’t decreased, but if they have it has not been by much.

One thing I love about these areas, and particularly the Miracle Mile, is the architecture. There are many, many pristine, late ‘20’s early ‘30’s Spanish and Tudor style homes that have been lovingly preserved. However, sometimes a house sits on a beautiful street with great homes and looks gorgeous on the outside, but when you get in it’s a real let-down – kind of like people. Thankfully, it’s not always like (homes and people). But for me, on Tuesday, it was.

118 N. Martel in Miracle Mile was a perfect example. The street is a little busy as it’s used as a cut-through, but the homes and trees lining it are gorgeous. This house is a classic Country English with fabulous curb appeal. Unfortunately when you walk in, the house feels like its all hallway. The finishes are not high quality and they are not consistent with the structural quality of the home. It’s priced at $975,000 which I don’t think is unfair for the size and location. The home needs some style. Hopefully whoever buys it will have it.

849 S. Cochran in Miracle Mile was the same story. It’s adjacent to an alley which off the bat is not primo, but that  can be screened with proper landscaping. The home, a Spanish style, looks lovely from the outside but it all falls apart when you enter. The floor plan has surely been altered from what it was originally and the finishes are downright cheap in this one. The tile on the floors and in the baths is reminiscent of what’s in an apartment – and not a new one. It’s spacious and has curb appeal but that’s about it. It’s priced at $949,000 and I have no idea who will buy this house. It’s one of those homes that I feel has to be drastically under the neighborhood comps to sell.

Hopefully next week I will see some homes that dazzle me and I will rave about value and beauty. This just wasn’t one of those weeks.

Deals on L.A. Homes in 2011

So here’s our property report for our first caravan of 2011. (Caravan is every Tuesday when we run around and see new listings on the market.) There are great deals out there and the great deals at the entry level of the market (under 700k) are selling in multiple offers.

The winner of the day was 5260 Glenford St. in the Baldwin Vista hills area. This house is a true mid-century modern, built in 1956 up in the hills right off of La Cienega with killer views of downtown, the gorgeous mountains behind downtown and a panorama of the entire city! The house is about 1800 square feet, needs some updating but great architecture with lots of glass to enjoy the views. It’s priced at an unbelievable $499,000. The house came on the market on Sunday 1/9. We saw it on Tuesday 1/11. By then it already had 4 offers. That says it all. If you want a deal you can get one, but you cannot wait. You must be poised to act and in a case like this, the house will go to the highest bidder. We expect this house to sell around $550,000 and it’s a great deal at that price.

The other fabulous bargain is on 2419 Banyan Dr. in the Brentwood hills. This one is also a true mid-century modern, built in 1965. It’s got 4 bedrooms, 4 baths and is approximately 2600 square feet and in the Kenter Canyon School District. It has vaulted ceilings and a great flow and plenty of glass to bring the outside in. It also needs some updating, but definitely is a house you can move into. The price of this house is $1,249,000. This is an unbelievable price for the home and the neighborhood. A few years ago houses just like this in the same condition were selling between $1,500,000 and $1,600,000. This house has fallen out of escrow 3 times due not to a defect with the house but due to buyers who either flaked or had a drastic change in their situation. Someone is going to get an incredible deal on this place!!

Let’s Hear It For The Seventies!

Aaah, the seventies… a magical era filled with free love, fantastic American films and fearless fashion. But there’s another product of the magical era that doesn’t get the attention or praise it deserves – THE CONDOS. No, not the condoms, they didn’t use those back then. I’m talking about the ubiquitous condo buildings, built as such, (not as apartment buildings that have been converted) throughout the city. It was an era of construction! While some of these units may be relics with faux marble mirrors and shag carpeting, there are some fantastic and overlooked features that they have to offer. The first is space. Yes, plain and simple, space. They just built bigger units back then, with higher ceilings, larger balconies, taller doorways and more, bigger, better closets. There is elegance and grace inherent with that kind of space. Clearly land value and construction costs were so much less then that developers were able to build with less density and still satisfy their margins. Westwood has a wealth of these types of buildings and we have seen several phenomenal opportunities in the past few months for buyers to grab large, spacious, elegant units at excellent prices. Many of them need to be updated, but their potential is enormous. Many of these types of units that are selling now are being sold by the original owners or their heirs. I suppose I have a soft spot for these units too because sometimes I walk into a unit that’s as clean as a hospital, with Wedgewood tchatkies on display and ornately framed Marc Chagall prints on the walls and I feel like I’m in my grandmother’s apartment. I can almost smell the matzo ball soup. But I digress. If you are a buyer out there looking for a condo, don’t pre-judge the seventies. If you are willing to do some cosmetic updating you could end up with a gem, much bigger than any new construction out there and I’ll bet you the building will even have a pool, a spa and a sauna (talk about retro!).

(The image above is 1551 Greenfield #302, over 2k sq. ft. sold in 12/09 for 710k)

Short Sales – Are they all smoke & mirrors?

This week I want to talk again about short sales.  This is based solely on what we are currently experiencing – it’s not necessarily a rule.  But, the new trend is that the list price of the property – what buyers see on the mls and Redfin

Our listing 11453 National

and a host of others -  has nothing to do with the price at which the property will actually sell.  We have one short sale listing and a couple of buyers “in escrow” on short sales and in each case the bank has come back for more money that the list price.  We have called on other short sale listings and talked to brokers who have explained that though it’s listed at x, the real price for which the bank will sell is x + y.  I have talked with brokers who have explained that for a buyer to actually get a property they need to pay in excess of 50k higher than the list price.  On our own listing at 11453 National we listed at 675k but in order for a buyer to get an acceptance from the bank they will need to pay 680k plus whatever termite work is needed.  We have a buyer who has offered full price on a condo downtown listed at 196k.  The bank came back asking for 204k, higher than any other comp in the building.  She has agreed to that price, but still we do not have a formal approval and we’re waiting.  So what’s the point of all this??  Buyers beware!!!  There is so much misleading information out there.  Nothing is what it seems at face value and it’s important to work with a realtor who can get to the truth about each situation quickly so that a lot of time and energy is not wasted.  Each case is individual and banks have a different value proposition on each property, so there is no rule regarding how much they will take relative to the outstanding loan amount.  Sometimes we wonder if it benefits banks to show more of a loss and therefore they refuse seemingly good offers.  It’s challenging dealing with buyers right now because they are all very attracted to short sales – thinking they’re a great deal.  Often it’s best to deal with regular old sellers, and we’re not coming from the perspective that it’s easier for us.  If a seller needs to sell their property then that’s what they will do.  They will evaluate what the market brings them, try to get the most money they can, and then if they really must sell they will sell.

The hottest properties in L.A cost 500 – 700k

The real estate market is so happening in the 500k – 700k range – it’s astounding! We had a listing this year in Brentwood around the 2m mark – gorgeous contemporary house and we would get about 80 – 85 hits per week on the listingbook site (which is basically an extension of the mls with tons of functionality). Our current listing is a short sale in West LA on National Blvd. It’s a really good house that needs cosmetic updating but has a great floor plan and really good space. It’s listed at 675k and we get about 425 hits per week on the same website. So far we have received 4 offers on the property. It’s a short sale so the initial accepted offer may or may not be the ultimate owner of the house. More on that next week – we’ll talk about our short sale experience. But back to the point, the amount of buyers in this entry level price range is creating an incredible demand and propping prices up. A large percentage of homes priced in the 600’s are getting multiple offers these days. Today we saw some good ones on Caravan and we’ll explain briefly.
4083 Bledsoe in Culver City is listed at 659k. It’s been on the market for 5 days and it has 3 offers already. (Seems like old times.) The house has an unconventional floor plan, but it’s clean and cute, has good space and it’s on a nice street.
5045 Pickford in Culver City is listed at 658k. It’s a 2 + 1 that’s around 1000 square feet, but the house has great bones and some architectural charm. It’s in a fantastic neighborhood right near Lindberg Park and walking distance from great shopping, public library, etc. It’s been on the market for 9 days and they were expecting an offer today.
6373 W. 84th St. in Westchester listed at 650k is adorable, beautiful, tasteful and charming. It’s also 2 + 1 around 1000 square feet but on a large lot with room to ultimately expand the house. Today was the first day that one was shown. It will sell right away.
If you need more information about these homes or about Los Angeles real estate call or e-mail The Savvy Duo.

Discover a New Neighborhood in Los Angeles Today!

So we haven’t blogged in forever – but WE’RE BAAACK! The week’s blog is about a neighborhood that we feel is yet-to-be-discovered by many. It’s time that the secret was out!! This neighborhood offers FANTASTIC opportunities to Los Angeles homebuyers and if you’re looking for a house you owe it to yourself to consider this area. It is, namely, View Park/Windsor Hills.

This neighborhood is situated between Angeles Vista on the south, Stocker on the north, La Brea on the west and Crenshaw on the east. If you have never driven through these streets please do yourself a favor, pull out your Thomas Guide and go (pg. 673). There are plenty of mid-century homes, built in the late ‘50’s & early ‘60’s. There are also lots of streets with English Tudor, Spanish and stately Traditionals built earlier, between the ‘30’s and ‘40’s. You may be wondering if the homes in a neighborhood called View Park have a view. And, yes, many of them do. The neighborhood is at the top of a rolling hill and depending on orientation there are views of Downtown, the San Gabriel Mountains and Mt. Wilson to the north. To the south and west one can see the Marina Del Rey, LAX, Santa Monica Beach and the Santa Monica Mountains. The streets are windy, curvy and hilly with houses that vary dramatically from one to the next in terms of architectural style. The neighborhood has such authentic charm that we have coined it “Westwood South.” It really looks like the hilly neighborhood know as “Westwood Hills” adjacent to UCLA.

View Park is literally minutes from Culver City, Westchester and The Marina. And, the most incredible thing is that it’s possible to get a very lovely house between 500k – 700k. Of course things like view, condition and lot size factor greatly into pricing. There are deals there as low as the 300k – 400k range and prices top out around 1m. The value here is astounding to someone coming from the Westside. One would have to far outside of the normal Westside realm to compete. And the really, truly beautiful thing is that View Park is not far! If you are looking for a great home at a great value let us know and we’ll turn you on to something new and wonderful. And, look out for future blogs about undiscovered, hidden gem neighborhoods.

Only one great deal this week – Mid-Century fixer in Brentwood

It was a disappointing caravan this week. Everything we saw (Brentwood, Westwood and Mar Vista) felt over-priced. But we chose to have a positive blog and not trash other peoples’ homes. After all, everything looks good at the right price so really there are no homes to trash, only pricing strategies.

So, that said, the only well priced property we saw this week was 1436 Alllenford Ave. Ok, it’s on Allenford, a busy street and yes it’s next to Paul Revere Middle School. However, you don’t see the school at all from the property and you do not hear the street from inside the house or from the backyard. The house is over 2300 square feet and the lot is over 14k. It’s not all flat, but a significant portion is and there is room to install a pool. The house is an original mid-century modern built in ’54. The floorplan is excellent. There is lots of glass in the common rooms and everything is oriented to the backyard. The kitchen is open and has an eating area. It’s a one story house that’s calling out for remodeling. It has potential to be the hippest of the hip. It’s priced at $1,299,000. It’s not so easy to sell a house on a busier street, so this house may be obtainable under list price. For anyone who appreciates mid-century and wants to create something really cool – this is a great bet.

If you’re interested in this property, or other homes on the westside of Los Angeles, call The Savvy Duo.

Deals on homes – Brentwood & Beverlywood

After a brief hiatus, our caravan review is back. There is a great piece of property for sale in Brentwood and we think the price is right for all it has to offer. It’s located at 250 S. Canyon View, which is one of our favorite streets in Brentwood. You really connect with nature there and don’t feel like you’re in the city at all. But the best thing is that you really are smack in the middle of everything there. This property is on over 21k square feet of land and the house is over 3200 sq. ft with a guest house. This house is up a private driveway and not visible at all from the street. The privacy it offers is great for a celebrity or high profile person. It’s a traditional home with gracious rooms, a pool and a full guest house. The master is downstairs and there are 2 very large en-suite bedrooms upstairs. The upstairs could be re-configured to house more bedrooms. The house needs some cosmetic updating but it’s got great bones and it’s a stately, elegant solid residence. Oh yeah, the price – $3,299.000

The next great house we saw is in Beverlywood. That is where the best deals on the Westside in a totally solid neighborhood reside these days. This one is located at 2257 Guthrie – an absolutely lovely, tree-lined street. It’s a traditional house but it has a very mid-century, open floorplan and feeling. This house was owned by an artist there is just a calm, groovy, S. California vibe about the place. The fact that it’s adorned with ‘50’s era paintings and sculptures and that whole thing flows out to the pool doesn’t hurt. It needs cosmetic updating but the structure and the floorplan are impeccable. The house is over 2800 square feet and the lot is almost 9k! This listing price is $1,149,000. I think this is definitely the buy of the week and we WOULD LOVE TO SELL THIS HOUSE TO SOMEONE WHO GETS IT. This house could be a masterpiece. Come one, come groovy and make this house what it’s dying to be. Call us about these or any other properties that peak your interest.

Calling all Condo Buyers!

We saw the new development at 11715 Chenault in Brentwood at the corner of Barrington Tuesday – and their beautiful. The least expensive unit is $859,000. It is a 2 bedroom + 2.5 bath in about 1500 square feet. It faces Chenault – not Barrington, which means it’s not noisy. The quality of the building and the finishes are fantastic! The fact that something brand new, with this level of fine detail can be purchased in proper Brentwood in the $800,000 range tells you that condo prices have come down dramatically. The other units top out at $1,399,000 for the penthouse unit that sits above single family homes and has some expansive view. That unit has two balconies, one off the master and one off another bedroom. We felt it was a shame that there was no balcony off of the living room. The ground floor units, though not as bright at the top floor, have huge patios which would serve almost as a small yard.
Our condo, in Mar Vista at 3460 Centinela with an ocean view is still available. It has 2 bedrooms + 2.5 baths, top floor with expansive views in a great building with spa-like pool and tennis court. It’s in the sought-after Mar Vista School District. We received one offer, but it’s still available and it’s the right moment for a buyer to get a great deal on the place!
Ready to talk condos, or see one of these places? Call The Savvy Duo.