Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA

This Homebuyer TaxCredit of $6,500 (married couple) is available as of November 6, 2009 for couples with combined adjusted gross incomes that do not exceed $225,000 (for singles a $3,250 credit and adjusted gross income not exceeding $125,000). You must be in contract on a new home by April 30, 2010, and must close escrow by June 30, 2010.

The homeowner must have owned the prior residence for a consecutive 5 out of the last 8 years. The new house cannot cost more than $800,000 and must become your main residence as of the date of close of escrow. You do not have to sell your current home (you may rent it out).

As noted in my November 6th article, "...credit will help sellers of Palos Verdes real estate as they increase the pool of buyers for their properties with "trickle up" activity for Palos Verdes buyers who have sold their homes" to buyers taking advantage of this credit. To date in 2009, Palos Verdes Peninsula has had 44 single family homes and 112 townhomes/condos sell for $800,000 or less. That is 11% for single family residences and 96.5% of the total townhome/condo market.

This is a great time to buy - Interest rates are at historic lows and until April 30th you can get a tax credit. Kenneth R. Harney in a Los Angeles Times articles writes, "do not assume that Congress will provide another extension. All the political and budgetary signs point the other way, and some of the primary authors of the credit insist that this is it - no more extensions next year. Take them at their word."

How can you find the best buys in any market? Sometimes they stand out like a sore thumb and other times they are sleepers concealed by neglect, atrocious decorating and deferred maintenance. Often buyers simply never see them. If Fido is yelping in the backyard and there is no lockbox on the front door (or nearby) it soon becomes classified as difficult to show. Even if it is an outstanding buy for one reason or another many prospective buyers may never see it. There are too many obstacles between you and the interior.

It all begins with price. Everyone has a budget. However, do not shop entirely by price. Price is one of the easiest things to change through artful and intelligent negotiating if it is out of line with current market values or the condition warrants a discount.

The pretty ones are popular. Agents like to show the in-crowd listings. They show beautifully, they are staged to sell and often they are easy to show. Don't be swayed by too much gloss and cosmetic glow if you are looking for a deal. You're shopping for a diamond in the rough you can polish to your heart's content, and the hard work you're willing to do should be reflected in the price.

Shop outside the box. Most prospective buyers have a first choice neighborhood and a list of "I wants" when they begin their search for a home. Often the two collide with the price they can afford. Stepping over your original boundaries may open up new neighborhoods with new opportunities.

Happy house hunting. If you would like an experienced guide it would be a pleasure to act as your agent on your big adventure.

Statistics for the month of October 2009 for Palos Verdes real estate are now available and they again indicate stability in our market. The Active number of homes for sale in Palos Verdes have continued to decrease to an all time low (in the last 15 months) of 292 homes currently available for sale. 66 homes Sold/closed escrow in October and 76 homes have Pending Sales which is twice as many as October 2008 yet consistent with the prior five months of 2009. Our sales have been holding.

The average price for all homes (including townhomes/condos) that sold in October was $1,140,000 and average price per square foot was $471 which is about average for the prior 6 months. Average Days on Market in October spiked to 110 days from 73 in September. Months of Inventory (months it would take to sell existing inventory at the current rate of sale) for October was 4.4 months down from 14 months for October 2008 and consistent with the prior three months. Entire charts can be accessed by clicking here

Currently, there are 273 homes for sale on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Additionally 64 homes have pending sales, 59 homes are in escrow accepting backup offers and 23 homes have sold/closed escrow in the first 13 days of November.

There were 18 homes on the November 10, 2009, Palos Verdes real estate Broker's Tour. We currently have 230 active single family homes for sale in Palos ranging in price from $750,000 in Rancho Palos Verdes to $14,900,000 in Rolling Hills (the low in Eastview is $625,000). There are 51 townhomes/condos for sale priced between $250,000 and $1,500,000. My favorites were:

Laurie Hurley's 7400 Alida Place, Rancho Palos Verdes, (above left) is a 4 bedroom, 4 bath, 3,851 square foot home for $1,998,500. This West PalosVerdes home features a state of the art kitchen, large master suite and ocean views. Les Fishman's 2637 Via Valdez, Palos Verdes Estates, (above right) is a 5 bedroom, 4 bath, 2,781 square foot home for $1,299,000. This Margate home has ocean views, a pool and a huge bonus room.

Gabrielle Herendeen's 26864 Eastvale Road, Palos Verdes Peninsula, (above left) is a 4 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,037 square foot home for $999,000. This Westfield home has vaulted ceilings, a master suite w/fireplace, and is on a 23,920 square foot equestrian lot. Jessica Kim's 27926 Ridgecove Court, Rancho Palos Verdes, (above right) is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath, 1,159 square foot townhouse for $511,000. This bright and airy Ridgegate townhome has a private patio leading to a detached two car garage.

Photos courtesy of MRMLS

Last week, I heard the City Managers from all 4 cities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula speak at the Palos Verdes Peninsula Association of Realtors meeting. Here is a synopsis of their update:

Joseph Hoefgen, City Manager of Palos Verdes Estates, told us that the PV Dr West stabilization near Bluff Cove begins in a couple of weeks and should be complete in January 2010. The Golf Club has a shorter wait list (now 160 down from 200). Both the Tennis Club and Stables have vacancies and the Beach Club has "many years" wait list. Two sewer pump stations in Lunada Bay will be replaced. The city is redoing their website. 54% of the city budget comes from property taxes.

Tony Dahlerbruch, City Manager of Rolling Hills, spoke of lessons learned from the recent fire. Residents need a plan for evacuation for themselves and their horses and decide what to do if they can't get back into the city in an emergency situation (Rolling Hills closed all 3 gates during the recent fire). As Rolling Hills is in a "very high severity fire zone", residents must have a 200 foot clearance ar0und their homes and must clear their own canyons. The city is also looking at a low pressure sewer system (presently 99% of city is on septic).

Sam Weiss, Assistant Manager for Rolling Hills Estates, told us there is a draft Environmental Impact Report for the Chandler Quarry (to be filled in and 100-200 houses built)/Rolling Hills Country Club (building moved) project. All commercial property must be landscaped during the interim planning submission period and not left with the green fencing. 29,000 square foot medical office condo project was approved at Silver Spur and Beachgate. A 5 foot bike lane (on both sides of the street) will be installed on Palos Verdes Drive North from Crenshaw west to the city border. The Festival of Lights will be on December 5, 2009.

Carolyn Lehr, City Manager of Rancho Palos Verdes, announced that 160 acres of land had been purchased from York/Long Point and included into the Land Conservancy area. The Annenberg Foundation will pay for parking lot improvements at Point Vicente Interpretive Center and has proposed an adjoining Educational Facility. Trader Joes is building an 11,000 square foot store at Golden Cove scheduled to be open in February 2010. Grading should begin in November 2010 on the 34-unit Affordable Housing Complex (62 years and older) at Crestridge and Crenshaw.