Eagle Rock is no longer affordable, as if you didn't know

This A-frame in Eagle Rock just sold for $969k in a bidding war.  Almost a million dollars...in Eagle Rock.  Let that sink in for a minute.  Yes, it's pretty, but this is just another nail in the coffin of affordable L.A. areas.
Photo courtesy of Deasy/Penner & Partners.

The east side of L.A. is hot, as if you didn't know

This is my client, Samantha and her dog Willis.  They are standing in front of the brand new #HighlandPark home that they just bought with Sam's boyfriend, Robin. Just in case you're new to L.A., Highland Park is on the north east side, and that whole part of L.A. has gotten insanely trendy.  It includes Silverlake, Eagle Rock, Glassel Park and Mount Washington. (It may include Atwater, Boyle Heights, Los Feliz, and other communities, depending on who you ask.)  Sam and Robin looked for a year and a half before they found this house.  They had been in escrow once before and had written countless offers.  But we finally found this brand new from the foundation on up beauty and all the stars aligned.  

The house was built by a pro flipper and the escrow went really smoothly.  Of course, there were several items that hadn't been completed by our inspection (no surprise) but the builder took care of everything.

This was Willis's first look at his new house.  Shortly after the photo was taken, he gave everything a thorough sniff and seemed to like what he found.  Best wishes on your new home, Sam, Robin and Willis!

Transactions that close and ones that don't close -- yes, it happens

The media always makes it sound like everything is coming up roses for all Realtors, right? Nope.  Here are some recent cancellations and what happened and why.

1. A home in Eagle Rock.  This was a great flip on a hill.  It was really nice inside and inspected really well.  Then we had a geologic engineer come to take a look at the hill and foundation.  There was a foundation settlement difference of over 4".  The city of L.A. only allows 1.5".  My buyer clients gave it some thought and decided to cancel.  They were broken-hearted, but that kind of stuff really costs a LOT to fix.

2. A home in Burbank.  My buyer client backed out just before closing.  Yes, that can occur in certain cases even after all contingencies are removed.  In this case, the client received some disclosures at the last minute, which opens up the buyer's right to review/disapprove/cancel.  She was never committed to the house anyway so this gave her a (bogus-but-legal) reason to cancel.  No, we are not working with her any longer. This was a big time suck for everybody involved.

Now, onto the good news: 8554 Burnet #141, North Hills, pictured above, closed at $370k this week.  The transaction was textbook-smooth and my sellers were wonderful.  So were the buyers and their agent, Jennifer Santulan.  This is a stand-alone home in a planned unit development.  These kinds of properties are excellent options for many people -- you get a (small) yard, a nicely-sized home, an attached garage, community amenities, and a security complex.  There are many complexes like this in the Valley, and I wish there were even more.  Seems that these planned unit developments would solve the density question in L.A. nicely, no?

Gorgeous Cape Cod in Adams Hill is now on the market

Check out 1221 E. Palmer in the Adams Hill section of Glendale -- it will be on the mls Saturday and is listed for $499,000. More pics can be found on my website at JudyGraff.com.  This adorable home is notable for its outstanding maintenance and the restoration of its original character charm, along with its peaceful hillside location.  The seller has done a beautiful job in making this perfect -- no detail has been overlooked. With peek-a-boo views from almost every room, this 2 bedrooms, 1-1/2 bath cottage also features a dining room, gorgeous hardwoods, large kitchen, dormer windows, laundry room (all appliances stay), garage, storage, central heat and air, and a flat backyard. Updated electrical service and plumbing, refreshed landscaping plus a whole-house fan complete the picture.  Adams Hill is located in south Glendale and is adjacent to Atwater and Eagle Rock.  This pristine neighborhood of character homes was listed by L.A. Magazine as “One of the Ten Best Neighborhoods (That You’ve Never Heard of).”  Please call me if you'd like to see it -- it will be open on Feb. 10 from 1 to 4.

My property showings on L.A.’s “Eastside”

Thanks to a couple of my buyers, I've been spending a lot of time in what's being called the Eastside lately. (Check out the Echo Park post below.) This past Sunday, I showed property in Atwater Village, Eagle Rock, Mt. Washington, Highland Park and Glassell Park. I had never shown property in the last two communities but I had a great time and really learned a lot about the areas. I was very delighted by what I saw and intend to get to know these localities more in the coming months.


Yes, some of the neighborhoods are “transitional” but they offer good housing stock at affordable (at least for now) prices. The gangs that were so prevalent in years past seem to have moved out. The flippers have gone through these neighborhoods and have worked their magic, too. And neighborhood amenities are increasing, too – cool coffee houses, restaurants, small retail, farmers’ markets, etc. (We could barely move through Atwater Village as the streets and sidewalks were so crowded.) Cons: the schools aren’t all that, and buyers would have a helluva commute if they work on the Westside.

Here are the highlights:

Decorating trends (above) The flippers are hiring stagers. Now, I love staging but I’ve seen a lot of it in recent weeks and it’s beginning to look the same. It’s all modern or semi-modern furniture with pops of color, folk accent pieces, and no window treatments. Not a bad thing, but..

Another trend: forget yards; it’s all rock and bark now.

Most disturbing/interesting trend: crazy chicken pictures as art.  I saw these in at least two houses.  Sigh.  Just another next big thing that I'm not cool enough to know about.

Coolest location: 1316 Highgate Ave., Highland Park, listed at $499k (above). This 3+2 flipped craftsman is in a charming, wooded hillside neighborhood.  You'd never guess that you could almost walk to downtown L.A. from here.


Nicest view: 3600 Maceo Street, Mount Washington, listed at $440,000 (above). This 2+3 is actually in Cypress Park and close to Glassell Park. At the top of its big terraced backyard, it overlooks the entire L.A. river area from downtown to Elysian Park to Glendale. And you have your own bare hillside right next door.

As you can tell, I get really excited about discovering new neighborhoods. IMO, these areas present excellent options for buyers looking for affordable price and revitalized neighborhoods.

What an influx of hipsters does to neighborhood home prices...

Eagle Rock used to be a hilly working class community with lots of affordable single family homes. Yes, there were some high-end homes around Occidental College and above Colorado Boulevard. For many years now, a more hipster crowd has been buying up real estate and consequently, home prices have risen. My recent look at the inventory showed only eight homes for sale, and none were below $400k. Most are in the high $400k's to mid-$500k's and one was almost $800k. Seems like a lot of money to pay for a neighborhood that, yes, has some cool coffee places but is still a little on the edge. Just shows what a creative crowd can do.