Visual Tour Update: 1801 Palm Ave., Manhattan Beach Tree Section

Here's a new, improved VisualTour of my beautiful listing at 1801 Palm Avenue in Manhattan Beach.

Lovely 5-Bedroom Home; Perfect Tree Section Location

I'm proud to present this lovely new listing in the American Martyrs area of the Tree Section in Manhattan Beach   -David

Charming Off-Market Home in the Tree Section

If you're looking to invest in the Manhattan Beach Tree Section, here's an opportunity that hasn't hit the market yet:  3513 Palm Ave.

At $1.2 million, this vintage home captures the charm of the north Tree Section while remaining quite affordable for the area.  1310 square feet on a 4640 square foot lot (per public records), with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths.Contact me at 310-916-1533 to see it!  - David

What's the Tree Section?

by David White

Satellite Map of the Manhattan Beach Tree Section

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.

Tree Section homes viewed from the top of the sand dune
(photo Copyright (c) 2010 by David J. White)

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. Benefiting 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 curb-less 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 if the city once again elects to offer them.

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.

The Tree Section's Live Oak Park
(photo Copyright (c) 2011 by David J. White)

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.

The Tree Section's Sand Dune Park
(photo Copyright (c) 2011 by David J. White)

Sand Dune Park, at the west end of 33rd Street, features an unique 100-foot high sand dune, plus a play area for kids.

In sum, the Tree Section is a lovely, family-friendly neighborhood.  From a real estate standpoint, it holds its value well.

Zillow Got You Down? Look Beyond the Averages!

Speaking with a good friend and very savvy client this morning, I happened to comment that "Zillow is directionally correct 50% of the time" for overall prices in a given local market.  Of course this is because Zillow uses mathematical algorithms that fail to address property condition, changes in sales mix, shortages in inventory, and similar qualitative and quantitative factors not available without a modicum of local expertise.

As an example, relying on Zillow, one could easily conclude that property values in Manhattan Beach have suffered to the tune of 5-8% in recent months.  This dramatic but misleading conclusion results from what I call the "tyranny of averages." By this I mean that averages of non-homogeneous groups (e.g., newer homes vs. older, desirable homes vs. teardowns, better locations vs. commercially-impacted streets, markets including builders vs. markets without significant building activity) are little more than hash totals until underlying factors are revealed.

In the Manhattan Beach Tree Section and in East Manhattan, few newer, larger, highly-desirable, well-located homes have been available in the inventory of homes for sale in recent months.  I have well-qualified buyers for both RIGHT NOW, and have yet to find suitable properties to match their needs. As a result, Tree Section statistics are skewed toward smaller, less-desirable properties that have been marching through the ranks.  Zillow interprets this as meaning Tree Section sales volumes and values are down, an uninformed conclusion.

The reality:  South Bay Brokers' sales are up 18% year-over-year from 2010.  Of course that's a composite number too, but I can give you the details!  In fact, many such details can be found at the South Bay Market Data section of this very Beach City Digs Blog!

So as frequently mentioned in this blog, watch out for averages.  You'll find them rampantly reported in the general press, which is a great place for real estate ads but seldom for actionable real estate news.

Instead, rely on a qualified real estate professional who knows and understands the micromarket, the underlying factors, the prevailing trends, and how to have peace of mind dealing with them all. -David

Upscale Treehouses - WSJ.com

Think your home has everything?  Not without one of these upscale treehouses! And if you live in the Tree Section of Manhattan Beach, you really must get one. - David

What's the (Manhattan Beach) Tree Section?

by David White

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.

Home Pricing Analysis: An Example

[A telling story of home pricing, retold in this blog due to its continuing relevance]

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. - David