Does it seem like it's a desert for property listings lately? That's because it is, with one exception.

There you are, all ready to hit some open houses in Los Angeles over the weekend.  But you sadly realize that there are no homes for sale to see.  Hey, it's the holidays! Listings slow way down at this time of year!

However, there is a certain type of home that still pops up around this time -- flips.  Property flippers don't care about the time of year that their listings show up; they just want to make their money back on their extensive house remodels asap.  And most of the flipped homes are pretty nice.  So, if your goal is to purchase something that's in move-in condition, a flipped home may be for you.  Caveat: these houses are usually NOT sold at a discount; the opposite is often true.  And with the L.A. area's history of multiple offers, the house you like may actually go over the purchase price.  Even if not, you may have to wait for January for any price reductions.

Mark Freeman has just joined Judy Graff Properties

We are proud to announce that Mark Freeman has just joined Judy Graff Properties!  Mark is a long-time veteran of the Los Angeles-area real estate scene and we last did a deal together in 2005.  Mark and his partner now live in the Palm Springs area which will provide us an extra presence for those who would like to buy and sell real estate in the desert.  Here's Mark's bio:

Knowledge, Personal Attention & Customer Service - The Mark of Excellence in Real Estate.

Mark Freeman has successfully represented buyers and sellers in the sale and purchase of residential estates, homes, townhomes and condominium properties throughout the Los Angeles metro areas including the San Fernando and Conejo Valleys. And now, Mark’s representation extends to the breathtaking areas of the Coachella Valley.

Mark’s background includes careers in marketing, design, retail and management. A perfect foundation   necessary to effectively generate positive results for his clients.

Mark’s trusted and knowledgeable representation focuses on providing each client with an understanding of current real estate trends, effective marketing and staying connected with his clients during the nuanced real estate contract and escrow process.

Whether you are buying or selling a full time or seasonal residence, Mark’s keen ability to identify the needs of his clients together with his strong negotiations skills and attention to detail lead to successful closed transactions for both buyers and sellers.

Strong client commitment, ethics and knowledge of the real estate market are the keys to Mark’s success. His love of real estate, interior design and architecture, positive outlook and genuine smile offer a capable and caring business environment to each client.

Mark and his partner reside full time in the desert. Mark is excited to provide his services exclusively to buyers and sellers in Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert and surrounding desert communities.

“The desert is a glorious place to work and play. And an even better place to live! I look forward to working with you...”

Mark can be reached @ Markfreemanhomes@gmail.com or (818) 388-3905.

Buying. Selling. Leasing. The Mark of Excellence in Real Estate.

Once again...here we grow at Judy Graff Properties

This handsome guy is Gabriel Browne, and he is the newest associate agent at Judy Graff Properties.  Gabriel comes to us from KW and Owners.com, and has sold all over this state!  His background is as a paralegal for law firms, which has prepared him well for the challenging contractual aspect of real estate.  Gabriel can be reached at 323-274-9663 or soldbygabrielbrowne@gmail.com.

Palm Springs 4+3 for $629,000

Need a gorgeous Palm Springs home for $629,000? Judy Graff Properties' agent Victor Agbayani has just listed this beauty.  The address is 2388 E. Via Escuela.  It features 4 beds (two masters), 3 baths, a pool (obviously), a remodeled kitchen, travertine tile throughout, remodeled baths and more.  It's on fee land. Victor has been selling both Palm Springs and Los Angeles, including Silverlake, for over 20 years.  He's an amazing agent and his clients refer him time after time to their friends and family.  If you'd like to see this house or reach Victor for other r.e. needs, please email him at vagbayani@aol.com

New restrictions on short-term (Airbnb, etc.) rentals in L.A., damn it

Have you been considering building a guest house on your property and renting it out for short term rentals? Or do you have an extra bedroom that you've thought about using as an Airbnb-type rental? Or, are you planning to buy a condo for short-term rentals? Well, Los Angeles is putting some restrictions in place this July.  The link is below.  The main restrictions are:
- You can only rent out your primary residence;
- It has to be registered with the city; and
- It cannot be rented out on a short-term basis for more than 120 days a year.

https://planning.lacity.org/ordinances/docs/HomeSharing/adopted/FAQ.pdf

Yup, this makes short-term rentals much less attractive.  On the good side, this will probably cut down on noisy party houses that have been driving neighbors nuts.

9076 Willis, #16, Panorama City is now $408,000

We've just cut the price on this amazing townhouse.  At 1727 square feet, this unit is one of the largest townhomes I've ever sold.  It features 2 bedrooms, a bonus room, 3 baths, 2-car attached garage, 2 fireplaces, balcony, patio, new paint, new flooring, and lots of other upgrades.  The HOA is proactive and has just re-roofed the complex, re-surfaced the pool and spa, and painted all exterior trim.  The monthly dues are still $295 with healthy reserves.

At $408,000, 9076 Willis #16 makes a fabulous rental, too -- rents for units this size in the neighborhood are $2500 to $2700/mo.  See 9076Willis.com for more pics.

House of the week: 210 N. Norton in Windsor Square, in an HPOZ neighborhood

Yes, we all love mid-century modern architecture, but I'm a sucker for this kind of character design.  Before getting into the specs, why did I select this home? Because it's in an HPOZ, or historic protection overlay zone.  This, yes, preserves the historic architecture of many L.A. neighborhoods.  Owners can't make many changes to these homes without city approval.  Before you get all "too much government interference in our lives" on me, here's the benefit.  Many homes in these HPOZ neighborhoods qualify for Mills Act property tax exemptions -- yes you pay property tax, but not nearly what you'd ordinarily pay.  Nice, eh?  Anyway, this home features three bedrooms, three baths, almost 3000 sf of living space, and is on an 8000+ sf lot.  It has been splendidly maintained inside and is priced at $2,699,000.  A property tax cut on that assessed value would be quite welcome.

Roof repair is so sexy

Californians, you probably haven't thought about your roof since the rains last year.  However, before it begins to rain again (if that happens), now is an excellent time to do roof maintenance.  You're probably thinking that I mean shingles.  Actually, the really important stuff is having the vents and pipes properly sealed (sealant wears out) because that's where moisture comes in.  And having the gutters cleared so they don't top out with water that sloshes back where the roof meets the house.  And shingles too.  Maintenance isn't expensive, and an ounce of prevention beats a pound of whatever, bla bla.  

Another reason to do this now: you can actually schedule a roofer now, something that will be impossible once the rains start -- these folks get all booked up really quickly. You don't want to be the person who wrestles a blue tarp up a ladder and over a leak.  It may be less expensive now than in December-January-February, too.

How will the election affect local real estate?

Here's my hyper-local take on what's going to happen with real estate inventory, prices and interest rates in the wake of the presidential election: I don't know.  And neither does anybody else.

Many questions will be answered over the next several months. Will interest rates go up? Will Los Angeles homes for sale inventory rise? Will lending tighten up or loosen up? Will foreign money leave the luxury and ultra-luxury market here? What about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? All this stuff impacts all this other stuff.

So the word here is uncertain.  Hopefully everything will shake out for the better sooner or later.  Yes, I will soon have a post on what buyers and sellers can do in the meantime.

Think it's easy to buy L.A. real estate with $1+ million in cash? Think again.

Not to give you home buyers out there even more reasons to be disappointed, but.  Some former clients of mine returned to town after moving to the San Francisco Bay area some years ago.  They had made cash offers on properties in Berkeley and the Oakland hills but were aced out on price each time.  It's not that they were submitting low-ball offers -- most of their offers were over asking -- but they were repeatedly beaten out by offers over $100,000+ more than asking.  The Bay Area real estate market is too crazy, they said.

It's not that bad here, I said.  I was wrong.

In the course of one week, we made three offers on properties in Studio City, Sherman Oaks, and Glendale.  All of the offers were all cash.  All were over the purchase price -- some significantly -- and all were $1.4 million or thereabouts.  Yes, million.  You'd think sellers would be crawling over themselves to take these wonderful, beaucoup-bucks cash offers, but you'd be as wrong as I was.

The first property went for significantly over the asking price for all cash.  We offered $50k over asking on the second property but seller terms were a little grab-y and it went into multiples anyway.  My buyers offered significantly over the list price, all cash, on the third property.  Plus gave the sellers a free 60-day rent back (unheard of in a normal market).  The sellers dithered.  And dithered.  And finally accepted on a Saturday afternoon.  We buttoned up the deal.  And the sellers changed their minds Sunday morning. Ugh.

My poor clients were very philosophical about all of this, and went on vacation to lick their wounds.  And in the meantime, they've decided the Bay Area is not so bad after all.

As for me, sure; these are not great experiences for a Realtor.  Yes, there's the income issue.  But also, it takes just as much work to not get an accepted offer as it does to get an accepted one. Sigh. Onward!

View Park, LA - my latest neighborhood discovery

You can live in L.A. for decades and still discover new places and neighborhoods.  That's why I love Los Angeles.  Last weekend's discovery was View Park and Windsor Hills.  I was completely knocked out by the stunning housing stock, the manicured landscaping, and the very quiet neighborhoods.  The rolling hills reminded me of Beverly Hills.  Much of the housing stock is large 1950's and 1960's homes, but there are also 1920's and 1930's character homes here. It was hard to spot any home that wasn't expertly kept up. This area is largely unincorporated, which means lower taxes when you sell and private water companies. While prices are soaring there as everywhere, the neighborhoods are still a bit cheaper than corresponding SFV ones -- $800's and $900's for larger houses, $600's for light fixers.  If you absolutely must live on the Westside, this neighborhood may be an excellent option.

Good news for buyers re low down payments and lower mortgage insurance! And a teeny bit of bad news.

As you may know, low down payment loans are back.  Yes, 3%-down conventional loans (not just FHA loans) are available to buyers.  Before anybody gets all "slippery slope" on me, think about this: in L.A. and the SFV, with average home prices hovering around $500,000 to $600,000 for modest homes, who has $100k to put down on one? Or even $50k? Not young buyers, who are usually saddled with debt from student loans, have been paying high rent, and are usually salaried a little lower than older buyers.  Not move-up buyers, who have been paying a good part of their salaries for their existing homes and haven't been able to save.  (Only one buyer has to be a first-time buyer.)  Here's an article from Forbes about the new program.  Also, it's almost impossible to get a condo complex FHA-approved -- there will be far fewer condo approval issues with the new lower conventional loans.

And if that weren't enough, mortgage insurance has been lowered, too!  As many of you know, this is the premium that you pay if your down payment and loan-to-value is lower than 20%.  Here's an article from the Chicago Tribune about it.  I've always thought this was a rip-off -- this insurance sure didn't help anybody that was in trouble with their mortgage during the 2008-2009 recession.  But anyway, it's lower now, and will help buyers.

Here's the teeny bit of bad news for those of you buyers that live here.  It will still be hard to get a low-down loan accepted by your seller if you're in a multiple offer situation.  That's because sellers perceive -- rightfully so -- that high-down loans have a better chance of closing.  There are other ways to make your offer stand out, though, and we'll discuss that in future posts.

Ask me anything: is Spring the best time to buy or sell a house?

Is spring the best time to buy or sale a house? If you live in a place that's buried in snow four months a year, yes.  Not here.  Here, the best time to list or buy is whenever it's the best time to list or buy for you.  Here's what I can tell you about seasons (what are those?) and Los Angeles area real estate:
- Because the days are longer, you can squeeze more showings into the spring and summer months;
- Inventory usually is shortest in December.  But that doesn't mean that houses don't sell -- they do; and just as rapidly as any other time if they are in good condition and priced well.
Please let me know if I can give you any other insights into good times to list or buy a home.

But you already know this: LA Times says home sales in Los Angeles are up

In case you didn't read the Los Angeles Times today, here's an article talking about how home sales and home prices have significantly increased in Los Angeles the past year.  Some quotes from the article:

The median home price for the region was $321,000, up from $315,000 the two prior months and a nearly 17% increase over $275,000 in November 2011.

and

All-cash purchases, many by deep-pocketed investors, also remain unusually high.

Real estate discovery of the weekend: Leimert Park

Yesterday, I found myself in a Los Angeles neighborhood that I've never been to before: Leimert Park.  This area is in south central L.A., and is close to both Baldwin Hills and USC.  The residential streets I saw were lovely and incredibly pristine -- much more so than most similar neighborhoods in the SFV.  No weird add-ons, consistently well-landscaped, etc.  The house above is an example of one the homes I saw for sale; it's on Norton (okay, true crime fans*, does that give away what I was doing there?)  The city of Los Angeles and its neighborhoods just continues to amaze and delight me.

*I was on Esotouric's "Black Dahlia" tour.  Poor Elizabeth Short's body was found on 39th and Norton.

In case you missed the headlines, home prices are up and sales are down

L.A. Times reports today that home prices are up nationwide. In L.A., however, the price rise is 1.3% over last month. Link to the article here.  However, numbers of sales are down.  You knew that -- inventory is ferociously low.  Here's a quote that we all like: "Economists have begun suggesting that the real estate market may have turned the corner for good since tanking in the recession."

See?! It's NOT our imaginations! Inventory IS short!

Here's a terrific article from yesterday's L.A. Times about our short inventory.  I'm copying the whole thing (and bolding some very pertinent info), but for those of you who want a link, here it is.

Shrinking supply of homes for sale has upended market dynamics

The stock of homes listed for purchase has fallen significantly from last summer, in turn raising prices and homeowners' equity stakes and reducing total sales.

By Kenneth R. Harney

July 29, 2012

WASHINGTON — Though many home shoppers who assume they are still in a buyer's market find it hard to believe, one of the sobering fundamentals shaping real estate this summer is shrinking inventory: The supply of houses for sale has fallen significantly in most areas compared with a year earlier, sometimes dramatically so. And that is having important side effects by raising prices and homeowners' equity stakes and reducing total sales.

In major metropolitan markets from the mid-Atlantic to the West Coast, the stock of homes listed for purchase has dropped by sometimes extraordinary amounts — 50% or more below year-earlier levels in several areas of California, according to industry studies.

In Los Angeles, available inventory is 49% lower than it was last summer, San Diego by 53%, reports Redfin, a national online realty brokerage. In Seattle, listings are off 41%. In Washington and its nearby suburbs, listings are down 28%.

According to the National Assn. of Realtors, the total number of houses listed for sale across the country in June was 24% lower than a year earlier. The dearth of listings is often more intense in the lower- to mid-price ranges, less so in the upper brackets.

Just south of San Francisco, Redfin agent Brad Le says inventory in Silicon Valley is down so drastically — and demand so strong — that the bidding wars are spinning off the charts.

"We're not just talking about 10 or 15" offers, he says, "but sometimes 40 and 50."

Some buyers are inserting escalation clauses into their contracts to keep pace with counter-bids, and waiving financing contingencies, inspections and even agreeing to increase their down payments to counter any differences between the accepted sale price and the appraised value. One modest, 1,700-square-foot house recently was listed at $879,000. It drew more than 50 competing offers and sold to an all-cash buyer for $1,050,000 in less than a month.

Silicon Valley is in its own special economic niche, but inventories have declined nationwide. Online real estate and mortgage data firm Zillow reports that some of the steepest declines are in places hit the hardest during the bust, and where sizable percentages of owners still are underwater on their mortgages. In Phoenix and Miami, for example, 55% and 46% of owners, respectively, have negative equity.

Both cities have seen significant drops in inventory, and both are experiencing strong appreciation in home prices. Phoenix prices are up 14.7% for the year and Miami by 9.7%, according to data from research firm CoreLogic.

What's behind the widespread declines in listings?

Analysts say negative equity plays a major role — it discourages people who might otherwise want to sell from doing so. They don't want to take a big loss, especially in a slowly improving price environment. So they sit tight rather than list. Banks with large stocks of pre-foreclosure and foreclosed properties are doing the same, creating a so-called "shadow inventory" of houses estimated to total 1.5 million units.

Where's this all headed?

Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow, says the likely trend is for more of the same: Constricted supplies will lead to price increases, especially in segments of local markets where demand is strongest. Longer term, price increases will gradually rewind the cycle, increasing owners' equities and convincing more of them to list and sell. This, in turn, should put a brake on price increases, especially under today's super-strict mortgage underwriting and appraisal practices.

Bottom line for anyone looking to list or purchase any time soon: Though conditions vary by location and price segment, lower supplies of houses available for sale are changing market dynamics — putting sellers in stronger positions than they've been in years.

I predict the short-term future of the local real estate market

Although I don't have a crystal ball, I think we're in for a strong first and second yearly quarters, as far as San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles real estate goes. Why do I say that? It appears that buyers are coming out of the woodwork.  There's a nexus right now between low interest rates and lower-than-in-recent-memory home prices and short inventory.  Everything is going into multiple offers.  There are lots of cash buyers out there.  Plus, I think that potential buyers may just be tired of sitting on their hands and may be feeling a little more confident than they have in the recent past.  I wouldn't be surprised to see prices go up before the summer. We'll see...

Canadians and Australians are investing in L.A. area real estate

Apparently, a significant number of Los Angeles real estate investors are coming from Australia and Canada, and many are paying all cash for homes for sale in L.A!  Will it be long now before California secedes and becomes part of the British empire? Do you know anybody in either of those countries? If so, please let them know that you know a top Realtor. By the way, the pic above is Australia on the left and Canada on the right.

Happy New Year! Four months early and not a moment too soon

September has always felt like the beginning of a new year to me, no doubt because this is when the new school year starts. Real estate-wise, it has always seemed like the end of one selling season and the beginning of another. After all, buyers are looking to buy because interest rates are down and homes are more affordable.  Sellers, inventory is low (actually, lack of inventory is the r.e. market's biggest problem right now, IMO) and some houses which previously had price reductions have now sold over list price.   So let's declare it a new year for real estate in Los Angeles, too. Let's pop the cork on some champagne, put the past behind us and start fresh, si? At least until the traditional Xmas slowdown...