Beverly Hills - Bel Air - West Hollywood - Sunset Plaza - Hollywood Hills - Santa Monica - Malibu
By Mia Trudeau - Estates Director
Dear Clients,
Welcome new and loyal clients as well as all of you curious real estate conesouirs! I am writing this blog to keep you up to date on the new articles of interest that may effect your next purchase or sale of luxury real estate. My areas of specialty are listed above. Here you will find tips on buying selling, lending, moving, hot properties, up-to-date information about what to do and perhaps not do in Los Angeles.
Enjoy!
Post September 1 2010
Courtesy of National Association of Realtor's
New online help from Fannie Mae Since the start of the housing downturn, the number of Web sites and foreclosure-prevention companies claiming to offer help to struggling borrowers has greatly increased. While some of the businesses are legitimate, others are fraudulent and offer services that consumers may be eligible to receive free of charge.
MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS This month, Fannie Mae ? the government-sponsored entity that helps set lending standards for most mortgages?started a Web site, KnowYourOptions.com. The site contains elements distinguishing it from those aiming to prevent foreclosure. All of the information on the site is available in Spanish or English.
KnowYourOptions.com provides video explanations of what users might accomplish in each of the tabbed section of the site. In the ?Take Action? section, for example,? struggling homeowners are advised that the first step to take in seeking help with their mortgage is to contact their mortgage company.
Other features of the site include contact information for mortgage companies and loan counselors, calculators to determine if the borrower is eligible for assistance, and information on commencing short sales or deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure.
Another helpful Web site for consumers is Hope LoanPort, which allows struggling homeowners and housing counselors to submit financial documents to mortgage companies and track the status of their efforts to avoid foreclosure. Hope LoanPort was created by Hope Now, a consortium of 12 mortgage companies and 250 counseling agencies.
Post August 7, 2010
Michael Jackson's Last Home: Will It Sell at $10 Million Less?
Designed by Los Angeles-based architect Richard Landry,
the three-story faux-French chateau in the posh Holmby Hills area of
L.A.'s Bel Air features -- in addition to the ghost of the King of Pop
-- seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, a wine cellar and tasting room, a
theater, an art studio and a guest house (you in there, Bubbles?).
After an unsuccessful attempt to generate interest with an asking price
of $38 million back in 2008, owner Hubert Guez, CEO of clothing brand Ed Hardy (dubbed "the BP of fashion" by one RealEstalker commenter), leased the house to Jackson for $100,000 a month. This week, the property was re-listed with Jerry Jolton of Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills South for a mere $28,995,000.
But don't blame the ghost. Buyers typically aren't lured by death sites, at least non-famous ones. Back in March, the Manhattan condo in which celebrity disc jockey Adam Goldstein (aka DJ AM) overdosed on a drug cocktail sold for its $1.7 million asking price. In August 2008, when power broker Linda Stein was murdered in her Park Avenue home, the penthouse quickly sold for $1.045 million (though it was reportedly worth as much as $2.4).
Jolton declined to provide further details, supernatural or otherwise,
about the house, claiming that he's bound by client confidentiality. We
do know, however, that all prospective buyers are subject to a rigorous
background check. Still, Jolton should expect that even the most
seriously interested may require at least some version of the white
glove test before signing on the dotted line.
Post July 26, 2010
Los Angeles Times
Luxury condo tower in Century City is completed
Deluxe high-rise living is relatively new in Los Angeles, but more projects are targeting buyers in the top financial strata.
The Art Deco-inspired Century City condominium tower expected to be
the home of wealthy widow Candy Spelling and many other moneyed
residents has been completed after nearly six years of planning,
demolition and construction.
With high-rise living still rarer in
Los Angeles than in other international cities, the dramatic 41-story
Century on Avenue of the Stars is targeted at a sliver of home buyers
willing to spend as much for a condo as they would for a sumptuous home
in an exclusive neighborhood such as Beverly Hills or Malibu.
The
Century is further challenged by hitting the market after one of the
most painful housing slumps in history, which depressed prices at all
levels including the top end. In recognition that times have changed,
developer Related Cos. reduced prices as much as 25% on the building's
140 units.
A handful of other deluxe condominium projects have opened in recent months, chasing the same plump wallets.
Post July 23, 2010
Courtesy of Beverly Hills Courier
The glamour and convenience of living in a fine hotel has helped
set a near-record sales pace for the Montage Residences Beverly Hills.
Nearly half of the limited collection of private residences has sold
since they were introduced.
At last count, eight of the 20
Montage Residences Beverly Hills have sold, while one additional is
under contract. The residences occupy the top two-and-a-half floors of
the nine-story hotel, and include access to the Montage's signature
service.
Montage Residences Beverly Hills has become am example
of a new kind of luxury urban living that offers service far beyond that
of a typical doorman-attended property. Montage residents may order
food delivered from any of the dining resources at the hotel, or have a
chef prepare meals in their professionally outfitted kitchen. Staff
members will manage and coordinate owners? day-to-day activities and
will arrange for transportation, stock pantries and deliver a personal
daily calendar of appointments.
According to John Mansour, VP of
The Athens Group, developers of the hotel and Residences, the
sophisticated buyers come primarily from the East and West coasts.
Montage buyers also include Beverly Hills residents, such as real-estate
developer Lawrence Field, who was the first full time owner/resident.
?The location is irreplaceable,? said Field. ?You?re in Beverly Hills,
adjacent to a park and across from a famous French restaurant. It really
is special.?
?Hotel living is terrific,? said Montage Hotels
& Resorts founder Alan Fuerstman. ?We are seeing people scaling down
from a large home to a more manageable property, but we are also seeing
second- and third-home buyers.?
When the 201-room Montage
Beverly Hills opened in November 2008, it redefined the city block
between Ca?on and Beverly Drives, north of Wilshire Boulevard. The hotel
and residences overlook a landscaped park. The urban resort and
residences are within walking distance of Rodeo Drive?s shops,financial
and medical services and restaurants.
The private residences are
available in a number of sizes and configurations. They range from 1,900
to 5,750 square feet; may include from two to five bedrooms and are
priced from $4,600,000 to $16,850,000.
Owners have access to all Montage Beverly Hills services and amenities, including:
?
The two-story 20,000 square foot Spa Montage and its co-ed mineral
pool, co-ed relaxation room, club-style locker rooms with steam, sauna
and Vichy shower, yoga studio and fitness room;
? Dining options,
including the garden-view Parq, the casual Conservatory Grill, or the
Lobby Lounge, where afternoon tea is served daily.
? A house
account to provide signing privileges throughout the hotel--owners
simply sign for meals, spa services, sundries and collectibles at the
gift shop, or weekly grooming and shaves at Gornik & Drucker
Barbershop;
? Meeting and banquet facilities, including the 60-person glass enclosed rooftop Conservatory Dining Room;
? A separate concierge staff.
Interior
designer Darrell Schmitt has outfitted the homes with imported stone,
custom paint finishes, organic Berber carpet, pecan hand-hued parquet
floors and Waterworks faucetry. In addition, the residences have been
wired to accommodate sound, security and media networks.
The
residences blend into the Mediterranean styling of the hotel and offer
custom balconies, a minimum of three parking spaces and storage inside
and outside the residences.
In 2003, Montage Hotels & Resort
opened a flagship, oceanfront resort, Montage Laguna Beach, where
adjacent residences also proved attractive to discriminating buyers.
Fuerstman is expanding the model to Park City, Utah, where this December
he expects to open the 174-guest room Montage Deer Valley, which will
include 81 luxury residences for sale.
Post July 22, 2010
Compiled by Janine Gershon, Marty Geimer and The Courier's Steve Simmons
The Beverly Park home of Thunderball ?bad girl? bond girl Luciana Paluzzi has come on the market for $15.9 million.
The home was build by Paluzzi and her husband in 1988.
Set on more than 1.97 acres, the property features a main house with
seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms, two-story complete guesthouse,
lawns, landscaping, terraces, fountains, pool and tennis court.
Details include Spanish tile, wrought-iron railings, high ceilings, custom moldings, and arched windows and doors.
The main house includes a grand two-story entry, living room with
sunken bar, library/office, formal dining room with butler?s pantry and
temperature-controlled wine storage, family room with attached bathroom
and sauna with window, eat-in kitchen, master suite with duel baths and
custom walk-in closets, three additional bedroom suites, and large
outdoor covered patio with built-in barbecue and wood-burning pizza
oven.
The two-story west wing features its own living room, full kitchen,
family room, powder room, private terrace with views, master bedroom
with patio, and two additional bedrooms.
Additionally, there are separate staff quarters with a living room, bedroom, bath, and kitchenette.
Post June 10, 2010
Bel-Air mansion fetches highest price this year for a U.S. residence
The 48,000-square-foot French chateau exceeds the previous 2010 record of more than $46.5 million, although the final purchase price isn't released.
By Lauren Beale, Los Angeles Times
June 11, 2010
Los Angeles' high-end residential market just got a jump-start: A mammoth French chateau on 2.2 acres in Bel-Air has been sold for the highest price of any U.S. residence so far this year.
Although he wouldn't release the sale price, seller Mohamed Hadid confirmed that it was in excess of the previous record of more than $46.5 million set this spring in Colorado, falling between $50 million and the asking price of $72 million. In Los Angeles County, sale prices can take more than a month to appear on the public record.
Designer-developer Hadid had listed the walled and gated estate 15 months ago at $85 million.
The 48,000-square-foot estate, called Le Belvedere, was bought in the name of a limited liability company, not an individual. "Even I don't know who bought it," said Hadid, who has built Ritz-Carlton hotels, office buildings and king-size estates nationwide during his 30-year-plus career.
The mansion, built in 2006, has 19 fireplaces, 10 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms and a three-flight elevator.
There's a 5,000-bottle wine cellar and tasting room, a grand ballroom, a commercial kitchen, a screening room, a gym, a Turkish steam bath and a game room. The garage can hold 10 to 12 cars, and a motor court provides outdoor parking. A swan pond, fountains and rose gardens grace the manicured grounds.
The exterior uses more than 30,000 pieces of limestone mined in France. The entry, living room, library and master bedroom are gilded with 24-karat gold. The average room size is about 1,100 square feet, bigger than entire homes in less fancy neighborhoods. Lighting includes 90 sconces and 120 chandeliers made in France.
The sale is the first among a handful of ultra-expensive Los Angeles-area homes that have been patiently sitting at the top of the real estate market, weathering the down cycle. They include Candy Spelling's $150-million Manor in Holmby Hills, listed in March 2009, and the $125-million Fleur de Lys, also in Holmby Hills, on the market more than three years.
Last year, the highest-priced local deal was DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg's purchase of a 6.3-acre estate in Beverly Hills for $35 million. The most pricey home transaction ever in California was the 2000 sale of an 8-acre estate in Bel-Air to financial executive Gary Winnick for $95 million.
"I think it did put L.A. back on the map," Hadid said of setting the 2010 record. "If you have a good product and quality real estate, you can sell."
Multimillion-dollar home sales are difficult to track because there are so few sales in this stratosphere, but luxury home sales appear to have rebounded in 2010 after languishing for a few years. Closings of homes in the $2-million to $5-million range were up 32% in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to real estate research firm CoreLogic.
"The economy is irrelevant for these folks," Christopher Thornberg, principal at L.A.-based Beacon Economics, said of buyers able to afford homes like Hadid's. "They have really deep, deep pockets."
Because this sale is "head and shoulders" above most of the luxury market, it doesn't say a lot about a recovery in that sector, Thornberg said. But the rebound in the stock market and the reemergence of affordable jumbo loans have contributed to a nascent recovery at the upper end, where houses have started to sell again, he said.
Hadid, who declined to say where he was moving, spared no expense on his personal residence. Inspired by the architecture of the Palace of Versailles and other French chateaux, Hadid designed the house to be "true to its origins inside and out."
The intricate details in the design and decor make the house feel like a home "rather than a big hotel lobby," Hadid said. "You have to make it warm or it becomes like a warehouse."
Hadid, who bought the raw land less than a decade ago for $5.6 million, places the current value of the land alone at $35 million. He spent $11 million on redeveloping the lot and adding retaining walls to create the flat area and take advantage of the views of Bel-Air.
Someone trying to re-create the structure today would have building costs of between $50 million and $60 million and a wait of several years for completion, he said.
Hadid, who has five residential projects on the market and five more on the way, is focusing his efforts on L.A.'s Westside these days. "They are all within a 5-square-mile drive from my house," he said. "I love working here."
Bullish on the value of L.A. real estate compared with other parts of the U.S. or Europe, Hadid said he planned to stay nearby, "building a completely different style" of house for his own use.
The previous year-to-date record holder, the 3,151-acre Boot Jack Ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colo., came on the market in 2008 for $88 million. The price was reduced to $68 million in response to the "radical shift" in the market, according to the seller's broker, Bill Fandel of Peaks Real Estate Sotheby's International Realty, Telluride, Colo.
The sales price of the ranch "seems representative of current conditions in the top-tier residential market," Fandel said, where high-net-worth buyers are "seizing the opportunity to acquire irreplaceable assets."
Writen by Lauren Beale of the LA Times
Post June 2, 2010
According to a study by MDA DataQuick for The Wall Street Journal,
there are bidding wars on homes priced between $2 and $3 million in San
Francisco, with one home that needed renovations in the Pacific Heights
neighborhood receiving nine offers. The study reported that 49 San
Francisco homes priced at more than $2 million sold in the first
quarter of this year, compared with 47 in the real-estate bubble of
2005. Other areas with strong sales include The Hamptons in New York
and Beverly Hills, Calif.
Post May 17th, 2010
From the LA Times Hot Properties: --Actor Bruce Davison and his wife, Michele, have put their remodeled
Sherman Oaks home up for sale at $1.8 million. The
listing is here. --Actress Patricia Barry has listed her two-story home in Beverly Hills
for $5.23 million. The home was built on a lot purchased in 1927 by
Charlie Chaplin and his soon-to-be-ex-wife Lita Grey Chaplin. Lita
Chaplin had architect Roy Seldon Price build the residence and set
designer Harold Grieve did the interiors. The
listing is here. --Filmmaker and commercial director Joe Pytka has sold the Frank-Lloyd
Wright-designed Taggart House in Los Feliz for $2.335 million. The
listing is here.
From the Real Estalker: --Queen Latifah bought a Hollywood Hills home owned by actor Henry
Simmons for $1.34 million. --Actor Scott Caan has listed his home in the Lauren Canyon area of Los
Angeles, shown above, for $2.075 million. The listing is
here.
Post April 30th, 2010
Los Angeles Times
Modern meets ancient Middle East in Beverly Hills
Real estate developer Mohamed Hadid?s newest home
pays homage to Egypt?s past, with pyramids and extensive use of
Jerusalem limestone.
Classic modern melds with a touch of the Middle East in designer
Mohamed Hadid's newest home in Beverly Hills, a dramatic homage to
Egypt's past, filled with fire and water features.
The entrance to
the contemporary residence features a glass walkway over a pond that
gives the illusion of walking on steppingstones to the mahogany front
doors. Inside, the spacious rooms feature 14-foot ceilings, exotic
woods and open fireplaces with sea glass-covered hearths. Gray-white
Jerusalem limestone is used for the flooring and walls throughout.
A pyramid sculpture, clad in gold flamed
Jerusalem stone, sits in the middle of a pond at the end of the foyer,
under a retractable skylight. Outside the living room, another pyramid
shelters the spa at the end of a 120-foot lap pool.
"Through my
travels in Egypt, I saw some elements from the past that I introduced to
the house," says Hadid, a real estate developer who has built
Ritz-Carlton hotels and lavish estates around the country. "The wood in
the ceiling is African zebrawood, so elements from the old world are put
in a modern setting."
The open floor plan includes a living room,
family room, dining room and kitchen. The living room and family room
are separated by a 9-foot-long, two-sided fireplace. Sliding glass
pocket doors open the length of the room to the patio, a half-bath and
pool outdoors.
The kitchen has a center island, a walk-in
refrigerator and Thermador appliances. Behind the kitchen is the master
bedroom, with a fireplace, that opens to the pool area.
The master
bedroom includes a 1,100-square-foot his and her closet/dressing room
with built-in shelving and two dresser drawer islands.
The master
bathroom suite is divided into his and her rooms as well. A spa tub sits
in the center of "her" side, with a dual-sink vanity, indoor shower and
an enclosed outdoor shower. On "his" side, a dual-sink vanity
stretches almost the length of the room, opposite an oversize shower
with multiple shower heads and built-in benches.
The guest wing of
the house includes three en suite bedrooms that open to patios and the
backyard.
An atrium with ponds, a waterfall and a Jerusalem
limestone walkway connects the guest wing with a larger guest bedroom
and bathroom on the opposite side of the house. This bathroom features a
glass ceiling above the shower and infinity bathtub.
Post April 29th, 2010
Britney Spears Takes a Hit Selling Beverly Hills Mansion
Via Real Estalker, the always unpredictable pop
princess Britney Spears has once again chopped the price of her 5
bedroom, 6 bathroom Beverly Hills Villa down to $4.85M. Back in
September of 2008, the 7,500 sq. foot Summit Estate was listed at $7.8M,
and it has since been taken off the market, re-listed, and marked down
multiple times. The Spears mansion features mountain views, hardwood
floors, original crown molding, two-story ceilings, pools and spas, and
an outdoor patio overlooking the sprawling landscape. Full listing
available at The
Sanborn Team.
Post April 28th, 2010
Curtosy PR Web and Associate Alejandro Aldrete
Rebounding Los Angeles Real Estate
Helps Ease the City Out of Recession, Investors Look to Bel Air Homes
for Sale
With the stabilizing Los
Angeles real estate market, bolstered by resurgence in demand, there has
never been a better time to invest in Bel Air Homes for sale. While the
housing crisis appears to have severe impacts nationwide it was more
pronounced in states like California, since it was one of the first
states to experience the negative side effects. As a Hilton & Hyland
Bel Air realtor, Alejandro has seen an influx in decreased real estate
values, while quoting, "this has given investors a strategic stance
which has encouraged an increase in home sales while the market was
down. This increase in real estate sales has contributed to the rebound
and is one of the key factors in moving Los Angeles out of the
recessionary slump."
Beverly Hills, CA (PRWEB) April 28, 2010 -- According to
Real Estate Specialist Alejandro Aldrete of Hilton & Hyland, most
cities that rebound faster from a recession have strong, diversified
economies that aren?t focused solely on one industry. As a result,
they?re shielded from economic volatility as they benefit from a variety
of other secondary industries. Los Angeles is one such city, in which
Forbes has also ranked ninth in their recent list of 10 cities where the
recession is easing. With the Los Angeles, CA real estate market
staying afloat and showing encouraging signs of recovery as sales
continue to climb, 2010 proves to be an opportune time to invest in
luxury Los Angeles properties like homes for sale in
Bel Air California.
While the housing crisis appears to have severe impacts nationwide it
was more pronounced in states like California, since it was one of the
first states to experience the negative side effects. As a Hilton &
Hyland Bel Air realtor, Alejandro has seen an influx in decreased real
estate values, while quoting, "this has given investors a strategic
stance which has encouraged an increase in home sales while the market
was down. This increase in real estate sales has contributed to the
rebound and is one of the key factors in moving Los Angeles out of the
recessionary slump."
In recent months, the National Association of Realtors reported that Los
Angeles saw a surge in demand, with jumps in home sale prices up to 11%
during the third quarter and another 2% leading to the fourth quarter.
The numbers certainly show a lot of promise and are encouraging signs of
stabilization, making real estate experts optimistic about the
improvement of market conditions.
The resurgence can only attract more buyers and investors, as the market
picks up, helping the city out of the recession, and outlook on the
economy remains hopeful. ?There?s never been a better time to enter the
market and invest in luxury homes like Bel Air, CA homes for sale than now,? said Aldrete.
Located at the base of the Santa Monica Mountains just to the west of
Beverly Hills, Bel Air is an upscale residential district in Los Angeles
that has long been associated with quiet elegance and affluence, with
homes that mostly cater to the rich and famous. For more info contact Mia Trudeau or visit www.miatrudeau.com. The site features
property listings and extensive search tools, as well as a host of
guides and useful resources on buying and selling Los Angeles real
estate.
Post November 27th, 2009
Thank God for the end of year Real Estate rush. There are Buyers galore out there. Most of them have been waiting to jump in the game at these prices. Time to shop Buyers!
Post November 26th, 2009
For Mia, each open house has a routine. She drives around the neighborhood placing signs, brings in fresh flowers, stocks the refrigerator with bottled water and sets out a sign-in sheet. Similar scenes play out across Southern California every weekend, with one expensive exception. The contemporary style home she is "sitting," to use the industry term, is listed at $15.9 million. And anyone is welcome to see it. All 8,600 square feet of it. Whether spurred by the down housing market, the opportunity to promote themselves or a determination to make a sale, a select group of area real estate agents has raised the bar on public open houses above $10 million -- to $12.9 million in Beverly Hills, Malibu and Brentwood Park, $18.9 million in Pacific Palisades and even higher in the "bird streets" area of the Sunset Strip.
Post November 25th, 2009
The average drop in sale price within the past 6 months, from list price to sale price, is close to 33%. This was taken from the 14 sales above 10 million dollars in Beverly Hills, Bel Air, BHPO, Sunset Plaza and Malibu Beach.
Post November 24rd 2009
Sources tell me the famous Nick Cage estate in the exclusive lower Bel-Air neighborhood just lost it?s Buyer due to lack of financing. The property was put on the market with a 2 week window to ?see and submit offers?. Listing office received multiple offers and upped the price from $9,995,000 to $17,500,000 with the auction type scenario. This 6 bedroom, 9 bathroom home is 11,817 sq. ft. on 43, 170 sq. ft. lot. Gated and gorgeous! If you are interested in this property and have the cash to close quickly call me.
Post July 30, 2009
Ennis
perches on the hills of its Los Feliz, Calif., neighborhood like a
Mayan temple. "One hundred years from now, people will make pilgrimages
to this structure," Wright once predicted. Tim Street-Porter/Courtesy of Christie's
Ennis
perches on the hills of its Los Feliz, Calif., neighborhood like a
Mayan temple. "One hundred years from now, people will make pilgrimages
to this structure," Wright once predicted.Tim Street-Porter/Courtesy of Christie's
If
you're house-hunting and have an extra $15 million to spare, there's a
place with your name on it in Los Angeles. Known as the Ennis House,
it's an architectural masterpiece designed by the legendary Frank Lloyd
Wright. But, like a lot of old houses, it needs some work.
Drive
past the grime and glitz of Hollywood toward the hills of Griffith Park
and suddenly, there it is: a Mayan temple perched above the city. Ennis
House is one of Wright's most famous creations ? and not only to
architecture buffs.
The
juxtaposition of natural elements ? in this case, trees and fire ? is a
Wright custom. This glass-mosaic fireplace is one of only three ever
made, and the last intact example. Tim Street-Porter/Courtesy of Christie's
The
juxtaposition of natural elements ? in this case, trees and fire ? is a
Wright custom. This glass-mosaic fireplace is one of only three ever
made, and the last intact example.Tim Street-Porter/Courtesy of Christie's
A Damaged Beauty
The house has starred in several movies, from 1950s horror flicks to thrillers like Day of the Locust in the '70s. The house featured prominently in the '80s cult film Blade Runner, which is set in 2019 Los Angeles. Ennis House was the darkly elegant residence of the head of Tokyo's "yakuza," or mob, in Black Rain, starring Michael Douglas.
And, actually, it was rain that did extensive damage to the house's distinctive cast concrete-block exterior.
"When
the rains of 2004 and 2005 came, there was substantial damage from the
motor court, so it looked like the house was falling down the hill,
because the blocks had totally tumbled," says Linda Dishman, executive
director of the Los Angeles Conservancy and an Ennis House Foundation
board member.
So the house that starred in movies got what a lot
of movie stars get: a facelift. A few years and several million dollars
later, it's been partially restored.
High Maintenance
And now it's for sale. The three nonprofit agencies that oversee the house agree that maintaining it is a financial challenge.
Dishman believes the house needs a buyer with deep pockets and a passion to own an architectural gem.
Ennis House, shown from the motor court looking toward the front door. John Vincenti/Courtesy of Christie's
"What
this house offers, really, it's a trophy property," Dishman says. "Some
people have trophy wives ? this is a trophy house."
The deep
pockets have already been calling, says Aaron Kirman, a Beverly Hills
real estate agent who deals in pricey, architecturally significant
properties.
"It seems that the majority of the people that are
looking are people that have multiple homes, in different cities, more
or less all over the world," he says.
The house has only been on the market for a short while, but Kirman says they'll wait to find exactly the right buyer.
Breathtaking Interior
It's
easy to understand all the avid interest if you visit Ennis House. The
outside, with its high walls and sharp edges, is definitely dramatic,
but it's the inside that takes visitors' breath away.
Enter the
low, dim foyer and take a short flight of steps up to the living room,
and all of a sudden you're in an explosion of space and light: the
ceilings soar several stories. Beautiful windows with stained glass
flourishes give a panoramic view of the city. The oak floors glow deep
russet; the brass lighting fixtures gleam. The large windows bring the
outdoors in ? a Wright signature ? but also provide something Wright
houses are not famous for.
"That's one of the primary
distinguishing features of the Ennis House," says Jim DeMeo, Ennis
House Foundation's president. "When people come in they're just really
floored by the amount of light, and it just really captures the
beautiful Southern California sunlight at different parts of the day."
Throughout
the house, there are the constant little visual surprises that Wright
loved ? variations in height, a window placed where one normally
wouldn't be, the luxury of scarlet bathroom walls as a counterpoint to
the sober elegance of wood and stone.
'Temple On A Hill'
All this has held up for more than 80 years. DeMeo says the architect predicted this just after he finished Ennis House in 1924.
"He
said, 'You know, 100 years from now, people are going to remember this
house as being literally the temple on the hill, and they'll make
pilgrimages to this structure,' and it's very much true today," DeMeo
says.
Recently, some of the pilgrims also have been prospective buyers, and one may add a new chapter to Ennis House's long history.
Post June 29, 2009
Going legally broke has made a big comeback - especially in the Los
Angeles, California, area - despite a mid-decade revision to the U.S. Bankruptcy
Code intended to curb filings.
The number of Southern Californians seeking bankruptcy protection
nearly doubled in 2008 from 2007 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court's
seven-county California Central District, by far the biggest increase
in the nation.
Bankruptcy is still booming. Personal filings from January through
April, the most recent month available, rose 75% in the Central
District compared with the year-earlier period.
Bankruptcy experts attribute the growth mainly to the mortgage
meltdown, which hit the region's adventuresome borrowers particularly
hard. Add soaring credit card debt and medical expenses, and people who
never thought they'd see a bankruptcy courtroom are lining up with
petitions in hand.
"California has been one of the biggest climbers in the filing rate in
the last few years," said Robert Lawless, a law professor at the
University of Illinois and contributor to the Consumer Bankruptcy
Project, which examined how the 2005 bankruptcy overhaul affected
filers. "I attribute a lot of that to the foreclosure problem."
The scene plays out weekdays in the downtown Los Angeles bankruptcy filing office.
In 2006 and 2007, with bankruptcy filings in the doldrums, official
statistics indicate this room was less than bustling. But on a recent
morning, nearly 20 people were waiting in the hallway before the doors
opened, many looking for a way out of their mortgage troubles.
Kim Smock raced in to ask a clerk: "Do you think I can make an 11:30 sale?"
It was 10:45 a.m. and Smock had only 45 minutes to stop the foreclosure sale of his home.
In short order, Gerri Colwark arrived for a similar reason - the bank
was ready to sell her father's foreclosed home that morning. A
bankruptcy filing stops a foreclosure sale, at least temporarily, even
if the paperwork is stamped only a minute before the sale is to take
place.
"I rushed over here," she said, a bit out of breath.
The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 was
designed to keep people who had the ability to pay debts from enjoying
the benefits of bankruptcy. At the heart of the changes is a complex
"means test" to analyze a person's ability to pay debts before being
allowed to seek Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, which along with
Chapter 13 are the types most often used by individuals.
"Too many people have abused the bankruptcy laws," President George W.
Bush said as he signed the measure into law. "They've walked away from
debts even when they had the ability to repay them."
Lawless, citing studies, said the revisions mainly confused legitimate filers and led to higher attorney fees.
"The effect was that people are arriving in Bankruptcy Court in worse financial shape," he said.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Maureen Tighe, based in the Woodland Hills
division, said the more complex rules ultimately stopped few
bankruptcies.
"The changes just made it more expensive for people to file," she said.
The 2005 revamp immediately cooled the bankruptcy frenzy.
In 2004, about 60,300 people sought Chapter 7 or 13 bankruptcy in the
district, which covers Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino,
Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. In 2006, the first
full year under the new rules, about 17,600 people filed, down 71% from
two years earlier.
Nationwide, filings fell less dramatically, 61%, to 612,000 in 2006 from 1.6 million in 2004.
Before long, filing rates were rising again as more and more people
were resorting to bankruptcy. Last year, about 65,000 Southern
Californians filed, sailing past the 2004 level.
The typical consumer bankruptcy filer isn't a scofflaw, said Harvard University law professor Elizabeth Warren.
"They have decent educations and they once had good jobs," said Warren,
whose public profile has soared recently as chairwoman of the
congressional panel monitoring the Treasury Department's distribution
of bailout money through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
"Nearly all of them are shocked that play-by-the-rules people like themselves have ended up in bankruptcy," Warren said.
The reason most turn to bankruptcy strikes close to home.
"It's real estate," said Encino bankruptcy attorney David S. Hagen, who
conducts free seminars for homeowners organized by the nonprofit
Neighborhood Legal Services.
"People got sold a bill of goods on some kind of nontraditional
mortgage and thought they could change it when the worth of their house
went up. But the worth went down and the payments went up," he said.
"They start to live off of their credit cards."
By the time Norris Daniels of Sherman Oaks made it to the self-help
desk staffed by Neighborhood Legal Services at the Woodland Hills
Bankruptcy Court division, he had racked up $47,000 in credit card debt.
His house troubles consisted mostly of storm damage repairs that
spiraled out of control. The house eventually sold, but then came a
divorce and support for his mother when she was ill.
According to a recent study by Harvard researchers, doctor and hospital
bills plus other costs because of illness contribute to about 60% of
bankruptcies.
"I was a person with a good credit score - 750 - when I bought my
house," said Daniels, 42, a salesman at a Beverly Hills clothing store.
"I'm a regular guy."
An attorney wanted to charge Daniels about $3,000, which he couldn't
afford on top of the $299 court filing fee. So, like approximately 25%
of local Chapter 7 filers, he'll represent himself. (Those who file for
Chapter 13 bankruptcy usually need a lawyer's help.)
The complications of the 2005 revisions caused attorney fees to
increase to about $1,200 and higher for a Chapter 7 filing. Before
that, lawyers charged about $800, said Tighe. Lawless estimated that
attorney fees had risen about 50% nationwide.
Chanese Cole, a medical administrative assistant, was one of the people
sitting quietly at the downtown Los Angeles filing room, waiting for
her turn to be called.
"I can't afford a lawyer," Cole said. Instead, she paid $200 to a
bankruptcy petition preparer - a job title for which no certification
or license is needed - to help her fill out the paperwork.
She had a $23,000 judgment against her because of an auto accident more
than 10 years ago. If Cole did nothing, her wages would be garnisheed
for a long time to come.
"I never thought I would experience something like this," she said. "It's kind of nerve shattering."
A Chapter 7 bankruptcy normally doesn't reduce secured debt, such as a
mortgage. So, even though it stops foreclosure proceedings, that's only
temporary; many who file end up losing their homes. Other debts a
bankruptcy usually can't wipe out include alimony, child support and
student loans.
And the person filing probably won't obtain credit for a long time. A bankruptcy stays on a credit report for 10 years.
That doesn't matter to Daniels. He wants a fresh start.
"There was no way I was ever going to be able to pay off $47,000," he said.
If his filing is successful, Daniels said he'd like to go to a low-cost college to get an MBA.
"I'm going to reinvent myself," he said. "And stay away from credit cards."
June 26th, 2009 Post (article relating to Liquidated Damages and Arbitration Sections of the Purchase Contract)
Posted in June 25th, 2009 by Bob Bredel in 2009 San Carlos Market Preview
?A lengthy document with a bunch of fill-in-the-blanks and legal jargon.? This is how one San Carlos home buyer described the contract. In a sense, she is right. However, too often buyers do not truly understand the numerous pitfalls that exist in the contract. I remember when we were buying our first home in San Carlos. At the time, I still had my law practice and I remember the realtor going through the contract with us. The amount of items that were glossed over with an ?initial here? and ?this is standard? and outright incorrect explanations over the legal meaning of certain terms, was alarming. I remember sitting at that conference room table distinctly thinking that I now understood why real estate litigation was so prosperous.
There are many different types of purchase contracts. The one that is commonly used in San Carlos is called PRDS Real Estate Purchase Contract. Another form that is commonly used is the CAR Real Estate Purchase Contract. If you have your choice, I would have you tell your agent to use the PRDS form. It my opinion the PRDS form is better written and has fewer gray areas.
This week I will be highlighting two areas that deserve more consideration and explanation in the PRDS contract:
(1) Liquidated Damages. Section 5 of the PRDS form talks about Liquidated Damages. By initialing next Section 5, you are asking the seller to include that particular clause in the contract. Here is how I would explain Liquidated Damages: It may surprise most people to learn that while civil litigators care about whether they can prove the ?more likely than not? burden that is required in California for a judgment in their favor, they care equally about proving damages. Many times an attorney will advise a client that the probability of a favorable outcome of their case is high, however, if you can?t prove damages, you just paid a lot of money simply to give an I-told-you-so to the defendant. Liquidated Damages takes that ?proving damages? out of the equation. Basically, when both parties initial the Liquidated Damages section of the contract they are agreeing ahead of time that, if there is a breach of the contract by the purchaser, the damages will be X. In most instances, X, is 3% of the purchase price.
>>> How Liquidated Damages affects buyers and sellers: It?s good for buyers because they know that if they have to breach the contract for an unforeseen reason, they will never be liable for more than 3% of the purchase price in damages. Items such as consequential damages, loss of economic advantage and other costly causes of action that the seller may have are taken off the table. It?s good for sellers because they have the assurance of knowing that if something goes wrong and the buyer breaches the contract the seller will usually end up keeping the buyer?s deposit of 3%. The seller can pocket the money and put the property right back on the market.
(2) Arbitration. Sections 7 A & B of the PRDS contract bind arbitration on the buyer and seller if the buyer and seller initial next to this particular section. Buyers are normally very confused on whether to include this clause in their offer. First, an explanation of arbitration: Arbitration is much like a court proceeding but it is done informally. There is not a court room, just a conference room. There is not a judge, just an arbitrator (normally a retired judge or very experienced attorney). The plaintiff and defendant make their arguments to the arbitrator and the arbitrator then issues a ruling which is binding on all parties.
>>> Why buyers and sellers like arbitration: Arbitration is far less formal and less intimidating than an actual courtroom, discovery rules are somewhat relaxed, and the process is usually far cheaper than taking a case through the verdict stage in a courtroom.
>>> Why buyers and sellers do not like arbitration: The arbitrators ruling is binding. Appeals are not allowed, except for highly unusual circumstances. Depending on the arbitrator, you risk a decision that is not exactly grounded in the most logical legal sense. Many attorneys will tell you horror stories of cases that would have gone one way in an actual courtroom and far differently in front of an arbitrator.
>>> What I recommend for my clients: For me, the answer depends on the behavior of the party on the other side of the transaction. I am generally in favor of arbitration because I believe that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. However, if you have reason to believe that something is a little shady on the other side or the property is one that could be fraught with issues which may not be disclosed, I would recommend not initialing this clause and leave the door open for a courtroom action.
>>> Here?s why: The issues the buyer will encounter are usually obvious and should have been disclosed by the sellers. While arbitration is usually less costly and less formal than a courtroom action, obtaining a summary judgment is usually cheaper and the buyer or seller would most likely never set foot in a courtroom. Additionally, the buyer can usually get a much faster result than with arbitration. When my firm was conducting summary judgments they usually ran about $5,000. $5,000 would probably be the fee just to hire the arbitrator?.so it?s an easy decision under those circumstances. The one item to keep in mind here is that the breach on behalf of the seller would need to be obvious in order to make it through summary judgment.
Upcoming blog posts will further expand on other sections of the PRDS contract. Please note the totality of all cirucumstances should be used in making determinations in the PRDS contract. Therefore, these determinations should only be made with an experienced realtor or legal counsel. Please remember that none of the posts on the San Carlos Blog should be considered legal advice.
There's been a lot of denial among luxury homeowners. In 2006, it was thought that the luxury market wouldn't suffer the same fate as the broader market. A year later, high-end home buyers were thought to have endless, deep pockets, further insulating the top-tier from the cratering economy. As the nation's markets in 2008 went from bad to worse, some in the industry claimed that the dearth of trophy properties outstripped supply.
This year, reality set in. No one is buying $100 million homes. Few are buying $30 million homes. Properties in that range are either being reduced by amounts similar to the national debts of small countries--Dunellen Hall, reduced by $50 million from $125 million to $75 million, and BootJack Ranch to $68 million, a reduction of $20 million from last year's asking--or are being pulled from the market entirely. It's been a bad year for America's Most Expensive Homes, our annual list of the nation's priciest oceanfront mansions, urban townhouses, monumental ski lodges and country estates. Mainstays like the $125 million Fleur de Lys in Beverly Hills, a 45,000-square-foot re-creation of Louis XIV's palace at Versailles, and the $100 million Tranquility, a Lake Tahoe 20,000-square-foot mountain home on 210 acres, are still at the top of our list, two and three years after they came on the market, respectively.
In 2008, it took a $75 million price tag to make our list. Now there are four homes priced below that: the $68 million BootJack Ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colo., with its 77,000 square feet of cabin space, including a 13,800-square- foot main house, a $65 million Brentwood, Calif., ranch designed by Robert Byrd, a $60 million Beverly Hills mansion built in 1919 by silent-film stars Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford and a $60 million Upper East Side apartment with a mind-boggling 10,000-square-feet of space.
To compile our list, we spoke with brokers and consulted listing agents and real estate appraisers and scoured real estate listings. We didn't include private listings, also called pocket listings, because they're quietly shopped around among elite buyers, nor did we measure land sales. The so-called Spelling Mansion, a 123-room Holmby Hills spread, which has reportedly been on and off the market at $150 million is currently not publicly listed and therefore was not included. The penthouse of the Pierre Hotel in Manhattan is also officially off the market.
When did the high end of the market truly fall apart? When the financial crisis set in, particularly after Lehman Brothers ( LEHMQ - news - people ) failed Sept. 15 and Freddie Mac ( FRE - news - people ) and Fannie Mae ( FNM - news - people ) went into government conservatorship on Sept. 7. In New York, and the Hamptons, that completely shut off the sales spigot. "There are only two closed sales above $30 million that I know of," says Jonathan Miller, principal of Miller Samuel, a Manhattan-based appraisal firm. "There were a few additional sales that closed in September, but they went to contract before the party ended. "It's the same story on the West Coast, almost 3,000 miles from Wall Street.
"I'm calling peak June, July of 2008, that was the end of it," says Mauricio Umansky, a broker with Hilton and Hyland in Beverly Hills, who despite the downturn has sold two $30 million homes since the financial crisis set in. "When September 15 hit, that was the boom lowering."
For Those with Money: "You Won't Find a Better Time to Be a Buyer"
Cash Will (Again) Be King as Slower Than Expected Recovery Will Create its Own Set of Opportunities, According to Commercial Real Estate Professionals E-mail this article Print this article By Mark Heschmeyer June 24, 2009 Although the future of commercial real estate remains murky, current operating conditions are crystal clear: There is very limited capital, extremely tighter underwriting, shrinking net operating incomes, shrinking space demand and declining property values. For companies today, that means leaner and more efficient operations and more focus on tenant retention rather than tenant attraction.
The bigger question may be how long will these current conditions remain in effect. And while they are far different than what conditions were just three years ago, the smart money is starting to act as if it expects the current operating environment will be in effect for some time and is starting to look for opportunities that match the times.
This is the assessment of a wide variety of CoStar Group customers and readers we contacted about what they expect the flip side of the current recession will look like. Last week in Part I of this news story, readers said that, despite some signs of overall economic stability, commercial real estate is still reeling from the effects of the credit crunch while trying to avoid the recession's knockout punches. At the same time, they know the cycle will eventually turn will eventually come to an end.
"We probably have already experienced the worst, but our economy is still falling, albeit at a slower pace. Several leading indicators suggest that we will likely bottom out before the end of this year," said Tim Wang, Ph.D. and senior investment strategist for ING Clarion in New York. "Nonetheless, investors should keep in mind that the economy declining at a slower rate is a lot different from actually beginning to expand. The recovery process could be less robust and take longer than expected."
"We believe that there will be more distressed assets coming to the market over the next 12 to 18 months," Wang said. "Investors with cash can cherry pick the best assets in the most desirable markets. Preferred equity, mezz debt, super senior CMBS and 'loan-to-own' are also attractive investments during this period."
Paul J. Ruff, president of Triumph Real Estate Corp. in Englewood, CO, agreed that there are very early indications that an end of the recession may be in sight -- somewhere in the next several months.
"That doesn't mean the end is next month, but it might mean a continuation of reductions in job losses through the next two or three quarters, which will offer some hope but won't put a lot of money back in consumer's hands," Ruff said. "A return to growth is another story, because inflation and rising interest rates resulting from the stimulus is a real threat, and that will hold down spending and hiring. So the economy could very well flat-line or grow anemically for quite some time after the 'end' of the recession."
"That all being said, we will be seeking and making worthwhile real estate investments, with an emphasis on low cost basis, low or no leverage, and a lot of patience," Ruff said. "It would not be prudent to expect any quick turnarounds in value in the commercial markets, so conservative underwriting and forecasting will drive deals. We will buy office, industrial, retail or multifamily properties or whole loans backed by those types, and are anticipating the need to close quickly with cash."
"What does all of this mean going forward?" asked Joe Farr, Asset Manager for BGK Group in Santa Fe, NM; a question he then answered. "In my opinion, there will be a continuation of what everyone in the business now recognizes as the norm. First, lenders want more equity in the deals (whether it's a new loan or a refi). Second, prices have already dropped in most markets to the point where a lot of properties are under water or close to it, which will continue that downward pressure on prices because lenders will be taking back more properties and selling them at a discount to get them off their books and owners will be selling them at a discount to avoid going back to investors to raise additional capital for a ref,"
"We'll get through it, but it's going to take some time," Farr added. "I personally think it's too early to start any buying on a large scale, and you're going to need a lot of cash to make anything happen. The disconnect between what sellers want and what buyers are willing to pay is clearly pointed out by looking at sales volumes around the country-anemic compared to any "normal" year. I don't see anything that's likely to change that any time soon."
Because of the pricing disconnect between buyers and sellers, many in the industry are mining the books of lenders looking for nonperforming loans, foreclosed properties and pending loan maturities as a place to extract current opportunities.
Tax Credit Nears End Posted June 23, 2009
New home buyers planning to apply for a $10,000 state tax credit with their purchase have little time remaining to do so.
New home buyers planning to apply for a $10,000 state tax credit with their purchase have little time remaining to do so.
As of Wednesday, the Franchise Tax Board had received 9,848 applications. It began accepting them March 1. Those applications would eat up $94.7 million of the $100 million allocated for tax credits, but many of them are duplicates or invalid, state officials said.
To make sure enough valid applications are received, the tax board is accepting a total of 12,000.
The tax credit was introduced in California as an incentive for buyers to consider newly constructed homes in a market dominated by foreclosures. The credit is good for $3,333 a year for three years.
Home builders have taken advantage, heavily advertising the credit, which can be coupled with an $8,000 federal credit to total $18,000 for a home buyer.
The credit is available for qualified buyers who on or after March 1 and before March 1, 2010, purchased a home that will be their principal residence and has never been occupied.
The state Franchise Tax Board will update its Web site, www.ftb.ca.gov, weekly until it reaches 11,000 applications. It will update the site daily thereafter
LOCALS call it ?the Bu? ? a laid-back, celebrity-filled beach town that sparkles in the collective consciousness as a sun-drenched state of mind. With the busy Pacific Coast Highway running through and no discernible center of town, some of the best of this small city, with around 13,000 residents, can disappear in a drive-by. The staggering natural beauty of the sea and mountains is obvious, but pull off the road and stay awhile, and you?ll find more: a world-class art museum, local wines, top-notch restaurants and chic shops.
DiCaprio sells Malibu home
Published Saturday June 20th, 2009 Actor Leonardo DiCaprio has sold a bluff-top contemporary in Malibu that had been listed at $7,999,000 (U.S.)
BLOOMBERG NEWS Leonardo DiCaprio
The main house has two bedrooms and two bathrooms in 2,374 square feet. Walls of glass frame ocean views in the living room. A guesthouse has two one-bedroom suites, and a stairway leads to the beach.
DiCaprio, 34, put the property on the market in mid-November. He purchased it for $6.35 million in 2007, according to public records.
The three-time Oscar nominee has the lead in the upcoming thriller Shutter Island, scheduled for October release. Last year, he starred in Body of Lies and Revolutionary Road and was ranked as the fifth-highest-paid actor in Hollywood by Forbes magazine. Among his acting credits are Blood Diamond (2006), Catch Me if You Can (2002) and Titanic (1997).
He is a producer of Greensburg, a series in its second season on Planet Green about a community in the Midwest rebuilding after a 2007 tornado. The actor-environmentalist-producer-writer-L.A. Lakers fan wears many hats - literally. After studying photos of DiCaprio courtside at Staples Center since 2004, Canada's National Post observed last month that it looks like he never wears the same baseball cap twice.
*****
Former talent manager Sandy Gallin has put his 42nd residential project - a more than 12,000-square-foot remodel and expansion in L.A.'s Bel-Air neighbourhood - on the market at $32 million.
The late-'30s Paul Williams-designed traditional was home to Father Knows Best actress Jane Wyatt until her death. Gallin purchased the house in 2007 for $7 million, with the intention of tearing it down and building a two-story contemporary.
"I bought it for the land and the view, and five days after I closed escrow, I heard from the landmark conservation board that I couldn't tear it down," he said. "I was ready to have a heart attack."
But the result is a seven-bedroom, 12-bathroom home that blends Williams' traditional style with the contemporary architecture of Scott Mitchell, who has worked with Gallin on about half a dozen houses. Among the signature Williams design elements is a two-story circular entryway with a sweeping staircase.
Gallin wanted to replace Wyatt's terraced gardens with more flat yard space and built three sets of retaining walls, one of which serves as a wall along the new 140-foot infinity pool. He estimates he spent more than $7 million on hardscape, trees and other landscaping.
To make the interior contiguous, he chose reclaimed white oak for floors throughout the house and wood for the ceilings and walls of many rooms, spending more than $3 million on the wood and labor. Gallin, whose extensive credits have included TV and film production and managing the musical talents of Barbra Streisand and Dolly Parton, has reinvented himself by rebuilding and flipping expensive houses. Frank Sinatra, "Survivor" producer Mark Burnett and sax player Kenny G all purchased Gallin properties.
Although he had thought this would be his last project, this latest home is "too big for one person," Gallin said. "I need to definitely build another."
*****
Britney Spears' Beverly Hills Post Office-area villa is back on the market at $6,499,000, according to the Multiple Listing Service.
The pop star most recently listed the house in September at $7.9 million and reduced the price to $7,195,000 before letting the listing expire in March.
The Italian Renaissance-inspired home, built in 2001 in a gated community, has six bedrooms and 6 1/2 bathrooms in about 7,500 square feet. There are marble, hardwood and mosaic tile floors and carved millwork. The master bedroom has a fireplace and his-and-her bathrooms. The landscaped grounds include a swimming pool and a gated motor court.Spears, 27, launched her comeback Circus tour in New Orleans in March. Named after her sixth studio album, which debuted late last year in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200, the tour is in London through mid-June before moving on to other parts of the United Kingdom and Europe.
Hot Property by Lauren Beale of the Los Angeles Times features the hottest celebrity real estate deals.
Compiled by Janine Gershon, Marty Geimer and The Courier's Steve Simmons
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Although the future of commercial real estate remains murky, current operating conditions are crystal clear: There is very limited capital, extremely tighter underwriting, shrinking net operating incomes, shrinking space demand and declining property values. For companies today, that means leaner and more efficient operations and more focus on tenant retention rather than tenant attraction. 
