CATCH-UP POST: THIS POST INCLUDES MY EARLIER POSTS AT WWW.DAVIDJWHITE.COM SO THAT ALL TEXT MAY BE SEARCHED FOR RELEVANT POSTINGS AND INFORMATION (using the Search function at right). Note: If a link in this post has expired or is broken, please email me and I'll send you the info.
May 2009
Loan mod: Go it alone?, Inman News, 5/11/09
Second homes: Live like the rich and famous in L.A.'s South Bay, USA Today
Seeking closure on short-sale holdups, Inman News
Home sales boom in 'busted' markets, Inman News, 5/5/09
House hunting? It's not a buyer's market everywhere, LA Times, 5/5/09
March 2009
GREAT NEW SOURCE FOR MLS SEARCHING & INFO
Here's the best new real estate resource to come along in a long time: It's called LISTINGBOOK, and with it you can search the MLS the same way I do PLUS save your preferences and receive up to the minute notices of properties meeting your criteria. And it's FAST. To get your own free account, enabled by me and offered as a free service to my clients and website visitors, send a brief message with your name and email address to david@davidjwhite.com. That's all it takes!
GOOD NEWS DESPITE THE WAR!
So much is happening in the real estate market that heads are spinning nationally, regionally, and locally. But the good news is that Manhattan Beach real estate began a comeback in January 2009. Not to inflated levels, but to a more normalized market with buyers and sellers entering the market and lenders beginning to loosen the stranglehold on credit.
Despite our government's War on Prosperity, we are genuinely seeing a substantial increase in demand for well-priced properties. That's a good thing, with positive indications for Hermosa and South Redondo as well. Give me a call if you'd like to have a frank discussion of what we're seeing in the local market. 310-916-1533.
December 2008
Mortgages hit 37-year low
From Market Watch, 12/18/08
Foreclosure home-hunting strategies
One of the most common questions asked of real estate professionals these days is some variation of the following: "Is now a good time to buy a foreclosure?" I get this question routinely, too, and my short answer is simply to "check with your local full-time professional real estate agent." - From Inman News, 12/16/08
October 2008
Need a mortgage workout? Call your mortgage insurer
From Market Watch, 10/31/08
'Tread carefully' with owner financing
Credit history can make or break a deal - From Inman News, 10/17/08
HUD puts out list of HOPE lenders
Participating lenders: 67 and growing - From Inman News, 10/17/08
More sellers are lenders, too
With tighter credit comes the return of seller financing. From MarketWatch, 10/17/08
Timing the market: Refi or keep ARM loan?
Homeowner fears rate could adjust above 9% - Inman News, 10/13/08
Mortgage approval is no easy task
Lenders requiring more steps in proving credit, finances - Inman News, 10/13/08
Seller financing is an alternative worth considering when it comes to increasing the market for your home (or the availability of a loan to purchase one. Click here for a useful overview on the topic from MarketWatch Personal Finance Daily (10/13/08)
What if I owe more on my home than it's worth??? See this article from Inman News (10/10/08) and my HOT TOPICS section on Keeping Your Home.
September 2008
Are you facing foreclosure or having difficulty making your mortgage payments? I'd encourage you to check into HOPE NOW, an alliance of lenders and credit counselors formed at the behest of the Treasury Dept. and HUD for purposes of helping people stay in their homes. Here's a background statement from their website:
HOPE NOW is an alliance between counselors, servicers, investors, and other mortgage market participants. This alliance will maximize outreach efforts to homeowners in distress to help them stay in their homes and will create a unified, coordinated plan to reach and help as many homeowners as possible. The members of this alliance recognize that by working together, they will be more effective than by working independently. The Department of the Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development encouraged leaders in the lending industry, investors and non-profits to form this alliance.
HOPE NOW is free. They may be contacted at 888-995-HOPE or at http://www.hopenow.com/
Economists differ on housing recovery, but If selling today, there's a formula to follow - Inman News, 9/29/08
See Milder economic hit seen for area for a forecast of the South Bay's economy by the South Bay Economic Development Partnership - Daily Breeze, 9/25/08
August 2008
The Beach Reporter featured David in a Real Estate Profile written by Jennifer Evans on August 7, 2008. Click here to see the article!
July 2008
Pro Athletes?...They'll Take Manhattan (Beach)! See this article from the LA Times on why Maria Sharapova and a number of other professional athletes have moved to Manhattan Beach... Click here for the article
Photo Gallery: Pro Athletes who live in Manhattan Beach Click here
An amazing new source of economic and demographic information, presented graphically on detailed interactive maps, is available from www.policymap.com. Much of this information is free, and the site includes a number of preset "Quick Answers" links providing highly visual answers to many questions of interest in real estate research. Check it out. Like Larry the mattress guy says...it's freeeeeeeeeeeee!!!
June 2008
We get many inquiries about current hot topics in real estate, including buying foreclosure properties. Please click on the new section "HOT TOPICS" for links to articles we think present factual information you can rely upon - - instead of the sensational but largely uninformed perspectives generally served up by mainstream media!
INFO FOR BUYERS IN A SLOW MARKET
Buying, Investing, & Trading Up
What's the smart real estate move in a slow market with relatively low interest rates (like now)? Well, those conditions describe a buyer's market, in which the optimal decision for a real estate investor or a homeowner desiring a more valueable home is to trade up and be sure not to overpay. The reasons for this are very straightforward:
It's always best to have the negotiating leverage on your side when you are contemplating a transaction. In a buyer's market, sellers must compete for the buyer's business. A buyer represented by a Realtor who is also a good negotiator has the best possible chance of getting an excellent price and terms in a buyer's market
The less demand for properties, the more properties there will be to choose from, and the better the opportunity will be for a buyer to pick and choose among those properties. It's simple - - the buyer has less competition in a buyer's market.
Obviously, when interest rates are relatively low (as they are now), the buyer's monthly outlays will be considerably less than when rates are high.
The three points above apply to homebuyers or investors whether they already own a property or not. For those who do already own a property (and don't plan to hang onto it for investment purposes), a buyer's market is the right time to trade up to a more valuable property. This is because the benefit of the buyer's market derived on purchase of the more expensive property will be greater than the detriment of the buyer's market on sale of the less expensive property. Example: Moving from a $1.0 million home to a $1.5 million home, with 10% impairment in value of each during a slow market, yields $150K savings on purchase of the new less $100K impairment on sale of the old = $50,000 net benefit of trading up).
Therefore the buyer's choices are maximized, while purchase price and ongoing payment costs are minimized, buy purchasing or trading up in a slow ("buyer's") market. - David White, 6/13/08
Timing the Market: When to buy???
Is it essential to time the market so that your purchase is at the absolute bottom of a slow (buyer's) market? Certainly not!
First of all, market timing is fraught with uncertainty, and those who try to wait for the absolute best moment to buy tend to find themselves competing with others who think the same thing.
Second, no matter what the market, the goal is not to overpay
Third, interest rates often head up BEFORE home prices bottom out.
So if you're interested in buying property but think the market hasn't bottomed out yet, OFFER LESS for the property and let your Realtor use your excellent negotiating leverage to get the offer accepted! - David White, 6/13/08
May 2008
On May 30, David participated in a daylong session with Manhattan Beach city planning & building officials led by Mr. Dave Dockter, a senior planning official with the City of Palo Alto. Dave D. spent the day educating us on how to manage our city's "Urban Forest" of beautiful trees. As administrator of Palo Alto's highly successful tree ordinance, Dave D. showed us a number of highly promising methodologies for improving on the way our own tree ordinance is presently being enforced. As a result, David and the Tree Committee are very hopeful that the problems experienced by many with the current ordinance will soon be alleviated by responsive city officials...
On May 15, David was quoted in The Beach Reporter's front page article by Julie Sharp entitled Controversial Tree Ordinance to be Revised. His comments included, "The solution we seek is realistic, flexible, thoughtfully enforced, and enhances the canopy without sacrificing private property rights." Click here to read the full article.
As a member of the Manhattan Canopy Tree Committee, David spoke before the Manhattan Beach City Council on May 6 on the topic of revising our city's tree preservation ordinance in order to enhance and enlarge the tree canopy by sensible, community-supported legislation consistent with individual property rights.
Home prices are generally down of course, but not as much as popularly-quoted indices say. Click anywhere on this MarketWatch article for details:
SHADES OF GREEN
Home-price data has its flaws
Market anomalies painting skewed picture, index producers acknowledge
By Chris Pummer
Last update: 7:28 p.m. EDT May 1, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Commonly cited measures of U.S. home prices are overstating the degree to which the vast majority of Americans' home values have declined in the last year, producers of two of the most widely tracked indexes acknowledged this week.
Top officials with the National Association of Realtors and Standard & Poor's, which issues the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, agreed this week their monthly reports are giving imprecise readings of price changes at all levels -- national, state and regional -- due to rare market conditions that are skewing survey results........
March 2008
What's the Tree Section?
by David White (Van Zanten & White Development)
The "Tree Section" is a beautiful, family-oriented residential area of Manhattan Beach known for its lovely tree-lined (and in many cases, tree-named) streets, roads, and avenues. Also known as "The Trees," this area is bounded by Rosecrans Avenue to the north, Sepulveda Blvd. to the east, Manhattan Beach Blvd. to the south, and the Manhattan Beach "Sand Section" to the west.
The Tree Section is home to beach bungalows and considerable new development as well, contributing to a diverse and ever-changing appearance from block to block. Benefitting as it does from the town's outstanding schools, it has become a haven for young families preferring to invest in real estate than in private school tuition. At the same time, numerous residents have lived in the Tree Section for as many as 40 years, some maintaining their original homes and others beautifying the neighborhood with attractive remodels or complete rebuilds. Neighbors young and old come together for locally hosted block parties during the summertime, and lemonade stands are a frequent sight.
The Tree Section includes a number of curbless streets, plus several blocks (most notably along 24th St. and 31st St.) whose then residents voted to have gaslights installed for attractive lighting some years ago. Utility undergrounding initiatives, though costly, hold the promise of further beautifying The Trees.
The Tree Section is bisected from northeast to west by the meandering Greenbelt, which runs between Valley Dr. and Ardmore Ave. Once the route of Red Car trains used by many to access the area, the Greenbelt is now a well-maintained walking and running path, lined of course with lush stands of trees.
Live Oak Park, at 1901 Valley Dr., borders on the Tree Section, and is home to the city's annual Old Hometown Fair as well as two of the city's nicest Little League fields, Live Oak Field and Dorsey Field, plus six tennis courts, a dog park, the Joslyn Community Center, a play area, and the Tot Lot.
Sand Dune Park, at the west end of 33rd Street, features an unique 100-foot high sand dune, plus a play area for kids.
David owns a home in the Tree Section, and serves on the Manhattan Canopy Committee, a team dedicated to preserving and enhancing the population of beautiful trees for which the Tree Section is named.
January 2008
PRICING A 5-BEDROOM HOME IN THE
MANHATTAN TREE SECTION
Dear Clients,
I recently had the opportunity to analyze the pricing of a home in the Manhattan Beach Tree Section that had been offered for sale in the current buyer’s market for over 130 days without an offer. For that purpose, and as an example of the types of analytics we can create for you in the course of assisting you in pricing a home for sale (or evaluating what to offer for one), I present this analysis below.
The pricing of a home in a buyer’s market must be performed with a clear view toward the available substitutes on the market. Even strong advertising, frequent open houses, and special offers (e.g., financing and agent incentives) cannot overcome the stigma attached to an overpriced home in such a market. Moreover, in a buyer’s market involving financing resistance, buyers are generally reluctant to make what they fear might be perceived as a “lowball” offer for an overpriced home. So they make no offer at all.
Please see our analysis of this home below for our considered advice on this topic. Also please note that this summary analysis was supported by 40 page report also provided to the client.
PRICING ANALYSIS
A high quality property that has been on the market for more than a couple of months is quite likely overpriced for the market (supply, demand, local real estate economy, time of year). The biggest issue right now is that there are a number of brand new 5 bedroom homes still on the market from the summer and before, and new homes tend to sell before existing homes when the prices are similar (or less). In this case several are less.
SO, we've interviewed several brokers we respect and also created an updated CMA on this property evaluating 5BR Tree Section homes (1) currently on the market and (2) sold since 6/1/07.
Here's what this work reveals:
ACTIVE PROPERTIES
Average unadjusted price of the 19 5BR Tree Section homes* currently on the market is $2,299,000 (avg. days on market = 179).
Of those, average unadjusted price of the 14 NEW 5BR Tree Section homes* currently on the market is $2,315,000 (avg. DOM = 196). The scuttlebutt among builders is that they are about to start dropping these prices to get the homes sold and their prime-based construction loans, currently costing them an average of around $13,000/month, paid off.
Given the similarity in prices, the predilection of MB homebuyers, and the likely price cuts by developers, one would expect the new homes to sell first and (see sold property analysis below) ultimately for MORE than the existing homes.
SOLD PROPERTIES (using actual sales prices individually adjusted by us for comparability with this home in terms of size, age, yard, etc.)
Average adjusted price of the nine 5BR Tree Section homes* sold since 6/1/07 is $2,245,000 (avg. DOM = 95). These homes were priced more attractively than those that haven't sold, and therefore sold considerably faster than will those still on the market
Of those, average adjusted price of the four NEW 5BR Tree Section homes* sold since 6/1/07 is $2,351,000. This includes a $100,000 downward adjustment for the market's current preference for new vs. existing homes
And average adjusted price of the five EXISTING 5BR Tree Section homes* sold since 6/1/07 is $2,160,000, which is 8% ($191,000) less than for new homes sold, so perhaps we still haven’t adjusted the new home sales prices downward enough to reflect the market differential.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Range of pricing suggested by brokers we spoke with last week and this week is $2,000,000-$2,299,000
2310 Palm, included in the "Active Properties" information above, opened escrow yesterday at a price $2,200,000. It is a new home that was on the market for 441 days (not a typo), and its list price was $2,399,000.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on our analysis and the information summarized above, we believe that the current pricing of this home, which was at the top of the market in summertime, is now completely out of the money.
Because we must look to the market for confirmation of asset values, we further believe that the proper pricing of this home to generate offers at this time and in this market is now $2,195,000-2,249,000.
As professional advisors, we recommend a price at this level. As an alternative, we could offer the property for lease (MLS, Craigslist, Westside Rentals) for 6 months, and then relist at what would be a better time of year and hopefully a better overall selling market. However we believe it unlikely that the inventory of new homes will have fully worked its way through the market by that time, so this approach, while covering current costs, would involve greater uncertainty.
*Below 4000 sq. ft. (generally meaning without media room & wine cellar) and off the ultra-premium "gaslight district" 600 and 700 blocks of 31st St.
November 2007
Picture featured in The Easy Reader!
Article on Michael Locke in The Beach Reporter!
Dear Clients and Friends,
This incredible article came out in the most recent publication of The Beach Reporter. I was honored to give the interview about this brave local kid! I have included the link below so you can share in our community outreach to help Michael and his family.
http://www.tbrnews.com/articles/2007/11/15/manhattan_beach_news/news09.txt
November 2007
An Incredible Opportunity to Help!
Join me for a benefit lunch!
August 2007
Register Today!
I'll pass along a GREAT discount & more!
Dear Clients and Friends,
Are you thinking of selling your home? Want great tips on preparing for a quick sale? Looking for ways to save money for those simple upgrades to make your home shine even more? Register today on my site and I'll send you some great tips on preparing your home for sale & a 10% off coupon for Lowe's merchandise.
http://davidjwhite.com/contact.sell.htm
Are you thinking about buying and you are looking for ways to save on big purchases for your new home? Unsure of where to begin your search? Please register today and let my team of professionals help you find your dream home.... while interest rates are still low! I'll also send you a free 10% off coupon from Lowe's!
http://davidjwhite.com/homesrch.htm
July 2007
A FEW THOUGHTS ON TREES
Share in my experience
Dear Clients and Friends,
Over the years with my Residential Development partner, Jim Van Zanten, we have come across some incredible trees. Below you will find the link that allows you to share in our experience.
http://www.vzwdevelopment.com/1901957.html
June 2007
NEW WEBSITE TO ENHANCE CLIENT
SERVICE AND CONVENIENCE
Dear Clients and Friends,
We are currently bringing up the brand new web site you are viewing in order to serve you better than ever. If you will bear with us for the time being, I'm certain that you won't be disappointed when the site is fully built out in the near future. In the mean time, please:
Call me at 310-916-1533 so that I may address all of your Beach Cities real estate needs personally
Visit my South Bay Brokers agent site at http://southbaybrokers.com.birdview.net/david_white
Thank you so much!
Cordially,
David J. White
T: 310-916-1533
E: david.white@southbaybrokers.com
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