Michael & Heather Gardner

<!--StartFragment-->

Luxury Home Insurance

Just as elite and expensive cars require special insurance, so too do the luxury homes of Malibu. From an insurer's point of view, however, a house isn't a luxury home just because it came with a high price or an enormous amount of square footage. Instead, a luxury home must have one or more of the following features: fine architectural detailing or uncommon construction details, high-quality construction, significant age, and contents that include fine art, collectibles or antiques. If your home meets this description, you should be shopping for a luxury home policy.

While all luxury home policies still cover all of the same perils and conditions as basic homeowners insurance policies, albeit at higher limits and values, there are certain things you must discuss with an agent up-front. Specifically, they are:

· Contents: Be sure that your policy will give you enough to replace, not just your home, but also its contents, including valuable collectibles, antiques, and art. Go over each type of personal property and ask how the policy valuation clause works. Just last week I walked it to a Malibu Beach home with an impressive Warhol collection of Art.

· You want a policy with guaranteed replacement cost on the structure itself with no limit, and replacement cost on the contents without limits like "actual cash value" on antiques. You will need to pay special attention to the limits on sub-classes of contents, like furs, jewelry, and silver, as well. Go in with an itemized list, if possible, and keep your list current as annual renewal dates roll around.

· Age: With antique homes, it is imperative that you make sure your policy will pay to upgrade the construction to meet current building codes after a loss. This includes upgrades in undamaged portions of the house, if local building authorities so mandate.

· Appraisal: While many insurance companies use a copy of the real estate appraisal done when you built or bought your house, with a luxury or antique home you may be better served if the insurer sends an appraiser of their own out to assess your property, and document not just the value, but also the construction details of your home. This will go a long way toward expediting your settlement if a loss occurs and you must make a claim. It will also insure that your coverage is really enough to replace your home in the event of a total loss.

Luxury home policies will cover every normal peril named on a standard homeowners insurance policy, but one thing they do not generally include is coverage for mudslides. Mudslides and landslides are considered flood-related perils, and are usually only covered within flood insurance policies, something you should consider adding to your insurance portfolio, especially if your home is in a flood zone.

Finding cheap insurance on a luxury home and its special contents, is more difficult than insuring the average single family home in a suburban subdivision, but this is because both the structure and the items inside cost more to replace. By being an active participant in the process, you will ensure that your home insurance meets your needs.

<!--EndFragment-->

It looks like Villa Malibu is looking for some exciting new ways to market their property. They already have a strong presence in local print media, are ranked high on Google's search engine for "Malibu Real Estate", and throw boozie parties with killer food at least once a month for real estate agents to get the word out. But something was missing.....hum.... let me think.....oh yeah...girls in bikini's! These two ladies were hired to sunbathe on lounge chairs on PCH and to pass out flyers about rentals at Villa Malibu. In the 5 minutes I was there several people pulled up to get flyers and numerous construction workers drove by real slow either giving a thumbs up or a salutory honk of the horn. Here is the link to the website http://www.villamalibuliving.com/ if you need a luxury apartment or a sunbathing job.

On March 8th I posted an article on my free Wordpress.com blog about a new record price being set for a monthly rental in Malibu. (click here to read it)The L.A. Times read it and called me to do an article on leases in Malibu and ran it on March 24th on the front page. (article)On May 7 Le Figaro, a major French newspaper, ran an article about Malibu being the St. Tropez of California and quoted me again! The funny part was I never said an of that! I did say that Malibu was resilient to economic downturns in the real estate market but the rest is creative writting! (article)

By The Malibu Real Estate Blog

Themaliburealestateblog.com

The gilded age continues! For $150,000 per month, with a two month minimum, you can rent the ultimate get away house. The home, located on Cliffside Drive on Point Dume, has 4 bedrooms and 8 baths with enough interior space to park a few Gulf Stream V's. There is a direct trail to the beach and you can run around the property naked if you please because you will have total privacy. You are going to have to cough up a nice security deposit of $300,000 which means you'd better be ready to cut a check for $450,000 to move in for the first month. Let's work with smaller numbers ya'll can grasp. It's only $200 per hour or $5000 per day. Considering that the Presidential Suite at Shutters in Santa Monica is $3500 per night, renting this for a mere $1500 more makes sense, right?. Why rent a room in a hotel when you can rent a Mansion? The only downside to staying here is that you can't walk outside and buy fake sunglasses or watch guys in Dolphin shorts skating on the Boardwalk. Oh well.

The home is listed with Chris Cortazzo of Coldwell Banker

By The Malibu Real Estate Blog

Themaliburealestateblog.com

Is there anything affordable in Malibu you ask? Yes. You want to roll big because....well, that's how you roll, right? You just want to say "I live in Malibu..right above the beach". Not much cash? OK! Here's your answer...Mobile homes. Big ones with ocean views, the sound of waves to put you to sleep, and a tricked out golf cart with surfboard racks and a 2 inch lift.

The price may sound high but you'll be watching the same sunset over the water that several celebs watch from their $15,000,000 homes on the same bluff just a block away.

Malibu has two mobile home parks. One at Paradise Cove and the other, known as The Point Dume Club, on Point Dume. Between the two parks there are currently 5 mobile homes for sale above $1,000,000! The highest comes in at $1,395,000 and you will still need to pay space rent once you buy the mobile home. Space rents run from $1000 to $3000 depending on location, size of the lot, and views. Since the mobile homes might only be worth a few hundred thousand what you are really paying for is the right to be there on the rented land. That right gives you ocean views, an affordable alternative to the high priced mansions in Malibu, and your own beach to use within a few minutes walk away.

Here are the Top 5 with descriptions from the MLS.

1) $1,395,000 for a 2 bedroom 2 bath in Paradise Cove

LOCATION! LOCATION! THIS UNIT SITS ON THE BLUFF TOP OF THE PARK OFFERING SWEEPING OCEAN VIEWS. IT FEATURES A BEAUTIFUL WRAP AROUND DECK WITH A GRASSY BACKYARD THAT IS PERFECT FOR ENTERTAINING. THE HOME IS IN PRISTINE CONDITION AND HAS BEEN NEWLY PAINTED, HARDWOOD FLOORS THROUGHOUT AND NEW GRANITE COUNTERS IN KITCHEN AND BATHROOMS. THE UNIT IS LOCATED IN ONE OF THE BEST SPOTS IN THE PARK.

Listed with Shirley Sherman of Westside Estate Agency

2) $1,395,000 for a 2 bedroom 2 bath in Paradise Cove

PARADISE COVE BLUFF LOCATION. OUTSTANDING SANTA MONICA BAY OCEAN VIEWS. BEAUTIFUL, CUSTOM " MEXICAN HACIENDA" STYLE HOME. UPGRADED WITH THE UTMOST QUALITY AND STYLE; AS ' FEATURED ON THE TRAVEL CHANNEL, CBS NEWS AND LA TIMES '. LEADED GLASS WINDOWS, CENTER ISLAND TILE KITCHEN, TILE BATHROOMS, SKYLIGHTS, FIREPLACE, AND RECESSED LIGHTING. FRENCH DOORS OPEN FROM EVERY ROOM ONTO LARGE STONE DECK. ENTER A TROPICAL PARADISE OF LUSH LANDSCAPING, PRIVACY AND SPA TUB. BONUS ROOM CAN BE 3RD BEDROOM.

Listed with David Carter of Pritchett-Rapf Malibu

3) $1,385,000 for a 2 bedroom 2 bath in Paradise Cove

UNOBSTRUCTED, AWESOME, WHITE WATER OCEAN VIEWS OF PARADISE COVE AND SANTA MONICA BAY. COMPLETE UPSCALE REMODEL WITH WALNUT HARDWOOD FLOORS, BUILT-IN BANQUETTE, STONE FIREPLACE, CUSTOM CABINETS, TILE BATHROOMS WITH GRANITE COUNTERS, AND STUNNING KITCHEN WITH CENTER ISLAND. GREAT FLOOR PLAN, HUGE CUSTOM SLIDERS TO LARGE WRAP AROUND ENTERTAINMENT DECK, WITH TILED OUTSIDE BBQ & FRIDGE. HILLSIDE BLUFF LOCATION, QUIET STREET, GOOD PARKING.

Listed with David Carter of Pritchett-Rapf Malibu

4)$1,250,000 for a 4 bedroom 3 bath in the Point Dume Club

JOIN THE ENTERTAINMENT ELITE IN THIS EXCLUSIVE GUARD GATED MALIBU BEACH-SIDE COMMUNITY WHERE THE HOLLYWOOD HIP HIDE OUT FROM THE PAPARAZZI AND HANG OUT IN FABULOUS HOMES FOR A STEAL – LIKE THIS ONE AT ONLY $1.25 MILLION. THIS FANTASY HOME HAS BREEZY OCEAN VIEWS, 4 BEDROOMS, 3 LUXE BATHS, ANTIQUE CABINETRY, CHEF’

S KITCHEN & PVT PATH TO LEGENDARY ZUMA BEACH. THE NEIGHBORS ALONE ARE WORTH THE PRICE!

Listed with Carol Bird of of Westside Estate Agency

5) $1,149,000 for a 3 bedroom 2 bath in Paradise Cove

BEACH PARADISE IN THE OCEANFRONT COMMUNITY OF PARADISE COVE. GREAT UPPER LEVEL LOCATION WITH OCEAN VIEW.OPEN FLOOR PLAN AND UNIQUE PROPERTY WITH GREAT POTENTIAL. SURROUNDED BY BEAUTIFULLY RENOVATED HOMES. OPEN AND SECLUDED OUTDOOR DECK WITH UNOBSTRUCTED VIEW OF THE OCEAN, SURF, MOUNTAIN AND SUNSET. WALK TO SURF AND BEACH FROM YOUR FRONT DOOR. KIDS PLAYGROUND, REC ROOM, TENNIS AND BASKETBALL COURTS.

Listed with Chelsea Bulte of Coldwell Banker Malibu