Anne's Land

2011 Year in Review - Hancock Park real estate

The three most important words in real estate have always been location, location, location.  In the current market, local insights are far more important and meaningful than national, state and county trends.  In 2011, only 131 homes were sold in our neighbohood of approximately 4,500 homes.  2010 there were 123 sales.  Prices are holding fairly well, on average, and the time on market seems to be hovering around 2 months. Of course there are always exceptions.  The chart below segments sales volume and prices by specific neighborhood in 2011 that represents the majority of sales.

The Hancock Park area continues to be a desirable place to live based on its central location, neighborhood benefits, fabulous architecture and value relative to other alternatives in the city.  Demand is strong especially among first time home buyers and those trading up to accommodate growing families and needs.  Mortgage interest rates are at historic lows.  However, buyers continue to be very discerning and specific. Sellers can dramatically improve their odds of selling for the highest prices in the shortest amount of time by preparing their “product” for sale and pricing properly.    First impressions are very important and this is where the guidance of an experienced agent can be invaluable.

450 S Lucerne was highest Windsor Sqaure sale in 2011

Sales over $2MM are especially strong.  In 2011, there were only 31 sales versus 41 last year. On average prices were up about 5% or 1% on an average price per square foot basis due to an imbalance of supply and demand.  In 2011, the mix of houses was far superior to 2010 in terms of style, condition and location which also influenced prices.  It does take longer to find a buyer for the higher end properties. Average time on market has increased 15% to 166 days. The highest sale in Hancock Park was 336 S Hudson at $6,075,000.  In Windsor Square the highest was  450 S Lucerne at $3,600,000.

First time home buyers: You can borrow more at lower prices!

Monday afternoon Congress agreed to increase the size of mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) through December 31, 2013. 

This move to restore conforming loan limits to $729,750 from $625,500 will help borrowers purchase homes with less money down in Los Angeles.  This is especially favorable news to first time homebuyers and Sellers in Larchmont Village and Hancock Park adjacent.

The House will vote today.  Stay tuned to hear when the program will begin! 

 

Articles this week:

Hill bargainers agree to boost size of FHA-backed mortgage from the Washington Post

The Housing Lobby Strickes Again from the WSJ

Happy Halloween!

Curbed LA picked up Hancock Park as one of the 5 best LA neighborhoods forTrick oTreating so expect lots of kiddos - large and small tonight!

I did a drive around the neighborhood and I must say that Windsor Square appears to be the most spirited in their decorations. For a real treat, take your goons to Van Ness and Norton between Beverly and 3rd Streets.  Then head toward Hancock Park Rimpau between 4th and 6th streets and wrap up on June Street at Rosewood.

Here are some of the highlights:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hancock Park: A Bigger Bird’s-eye View

 

A week does not go by when I am not defining the boundaries of Hancock Park. This topic arises at most Sunday open houses, social engagements across town or out of state. I usually start by saying that we are located between Downtown Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, south of Hollywood. Most of us use the moniker 'Hancock Park' loosely to encompass the entire group of individual neighborhoods in the area, that reach from Melrose to Olympic and Highland to almost Western. It's even become hip to just call the area"The HP."

The overall neighborhood is comprised of approximately 3,100 single family homes, a few condominium complexes and a fewer than 400 two to four unit buildings. Most properties were constructed in the early 1920s when the economy was thriving and master craftsmen built homes. The quality of construction is fanstistic. Many homes are architecturally significant and in 2005 the city designated Windsor Square and Hancock Park Historical Preservation Overlay Zones. Windsor Village just garnered HPOZ status in 2010, following in the footsteps of its neighbor to the east, Wilshire Park.

If you want to get specific, within this 2 square mile radius, the neighborhood is segmented as follows:

• Hancock Park: Melrose Ave on the north to Wilshire Blvd on the south, from Highland Ave on the west, to Rossmore Ave on the east.
• Windsor Square: Beverly Blvd on the north to Wilshire Blvd on the south, from Arden Blvd on the west, to Van Ness Ave on the east.
• Larchmont Village: Melrose Ave on the north to Beverly Blvd on the south, from Arden Blvd on the west, to Ridgewood Pl on the east.
• Fremont Place: Wilshire Blvd on the north to Olympic Blvd on the south at Rossmore behind guard gates. Arden Blvd is on the east and Muirfield Rd is to the west.
• Brookside: Wilshire Blvd on the north to Olympic Blvd on the south. Higland on the west and Muirfield on the east.
• Windsor Village: Wilshire Blvd on the north to Olympic Blvd on the south. Lucerne Blvd on the west and Lorraine Bl on the east.

The LA Times project "Mapping LA" is also a wealth of information and statistics about neighborhoods in LA ( their boundaries were defined by residents and historical data researched by the Times.)

To find out more about the neighborhood, the Windsor Square-Hancock Park Historical Society offers some great insight into the area's early days. Click on this link to the WSHPHS website to learn more!

Rising Treasury Rates Trigger Higher Mortgage Rates

With interest rates on the rise, now is the time to buy, or to refinance.

From the Los Angeles Times: Tom Petruno, February 7, 2011

The US Treasury bond market faces a big test this week, with market interest
rates on long-term government securities now at their highest level since
last spring. Last week set off alarms in the bond market because Treasury
yields broke out of the trading range they'd been in since mid- December.
The 10- year T-note yield jumped to 3.64% on Friday, up from 3.32% a week
earlier and the highest since May. The steep rebound in bond yields since
October has in large part reflected the economy's surprising strength. The
rising Treasury rates matter for more than just that market, they also
influence the mortgage rates. Interest rates are rising as some investors
bet that we're getting close to the point where the Federal Reserve will
begin to tighten credit.

A Style for Today with Things from the Past...

Windsor Square resident and New Orleans native Suzanne Rheinstein published "At Home" before Thanksgiving.  I received this fabulous coffee table book for Christmas and must admit that it continues to be one of my favorite gifts.  It is a great read and beatifully photographed.  Each time I pick it up I'm inspired with a fresh perspective on how to use the anitiques I've acquired along the way.

Suzanne feels "that how you live your life each day is much more important than getting your house together for a special occasion".  I could not agree more.  I always want my environment to be pleasing and interesting to the eye but NEVER as the expense of comfort.

 

This photo of Suzanne's entry hall is one of my favorite execusion of something "old" applied in a new way. I adore the millwork of this Georgian Revival the way the scarlet grosgrain ribbon trim puncuates the details.  Very clever!

 

 

I also love the creative ways she uses fresh cut flowers and greens from her garden around the house.

To learn more about Suzanne, visit her store in West Hollywood near the Pacific Design Center or check out her web site at  Hollyhock . Congratulations on a job well done!  I do miss the old store on Larchmont Boulevard!

Dickens at the Los Angeles Tennis Club

Last night was the annual Christmas party at my beloved tennis club.  We just celebrated our 90th anniversary so I was admittedly a bit reluctant to attend yet another event with so much shopping to do before my departure Saturday morning.

Friends and fellow members, Jill & John Bauman, made a point of telling me that this was not a night to miss and boy were they right.

David Melville recreated the experience of Charles Dickens by giving a wonderfully dramatic performance of "A Christmas Carol".  If you are looking for a way to get in the spirit of the season, this is fabulous.

A Christmas Carol With Charles Dickens
The ISC holiday favorite returns for its seventh year.  It's an evening of wry humor, ghostly intervention, romance, and redemption.

December 16 - 19
Thursday and Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 3 and 8 pm, and Sunday at 2 and 7 pm

The Elephant Theater
6322 Santa Monica Boulevard
Los Angeles, 90038

Contact Box Office (818) 710-6306 or email boxoffice@iscla.org.

For years the Bauman's have been passionate about the Independent Shakespeare Company and each summer the ISC performs Shakespeare free of charge in  Griffith Park.  Sorry it took me so long to pay attention!  Now I know what I'm doing June - August of 2011.

Thanks again Jill & John for sharing with us!  Merry Christmas to all!

'Tis the Season in Larchmont Village

This afternoon the Larchmont Boulevard Association hosted its annual "Holiday Open House".  It was a great opportunity to see neighbors, colleagues and make new friends.

 

 
Few things get me in the spirit faster than live music...

 

Download Christmas video

I enjoyed meeting Jeff who is new to the area and promoting for his new Awe Spa  located at 578 N Lacrhmont between next to The Rotary's Christmas tree lot south of Melrose.  The massages are under $50.  I'm looking forward to checking out the Thai and shiatsu massage after I do more Christmas shopping!

 
 
A finally Hudson ....you were the best dressed!  Thank you for showering me with kisses!

 

What a fantastic time of year!

Get your 5-a-day delivered Hancock Park

We've often said that Hancock Park offers the best of LA - a small town feel at the center of a world class city.  The arts, businesses, restaurants, schools, medicine, airports, etc are all at your finger tips within minutes. 

While the milk man may be a distant memory in our neighborhood, a group health conscious and civic mind individuals are organizing a way for organic produce and vegtables to come directly to you!

To Sign Up for Local Vegetable Delivery

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is coming to Hancock Park. Once we get 30 sign ups, CSA California will deliver fresh, organic produce from local farms to the neighborhood every week. You can pick up at the Ebell Club (there is ample free parking) on Wednesday afternoon, 4:30 pm. - 5:00 p.m. The cost for a weekly bag of fresh/local/sustainable/organic, produce is $25 and will consist of seasonal fruits and vegetables. 

 

If you are interested, you can sign up for a 4 week trial. You will have the option to participate every week or every other week. If you are unable to make it one week they offer the option of skipping as long as you give us 48 hours notice. New orders must be placed the day before by 5 PM. You can pay online using a credit card or pay pal for your first month and after that you will have the option to pay on site with a check or cash. 

To sign up for local vegatable delivery, please visit the CSA web site at https://csacalifornia.org/-.html. The neighbors need a minimum of 30 subscribers to make it work. Once you sign up you will be notified when you can start picking your vegetables!

Hancock Park resident and owner of Landis Gifts & Stationery, Edie Frère, sent this to us today.  Thanks for spreading the word Edie!

Home prices rise in California for 11th straight month

Real estate is a LOCAL business and the broader state context is important to consider.  Price segments of the market also vary widely.

Sales down, prices rise in California

Inman News, Monday, October 25, 2010

Sales of existing single-family homes in California fell in September compared to the same period a year ago, according to a report by the California Association of Realtors.

The seasonally adjusted annualized rate for sales was 466,580 last month -- a 12.2 percent drop from September 2009, which had a revised 531,180 sales rate. Meanwhile, last month's sales rose 3.8 percent from August's revised rate of 449,290. The association's figures are based on closed escrow sales.

"We've seen a gradual improvement in the market over the past few months as we moved away from the influence of the tax credits, which pulled sales forward to the first part of the year," said Steve Goddard, CAR's president, in a statement.

"Additionally, the current mortgage moratoria, which weren't announced until the end of September, wouldn't have affected September sales."

September also marked the 11th straight month of year-over-year sales price gains. The median price of an existing single-family home was up 4.5 percent compared to September 2009, to $309,900. The median fell 2.7 percent from August.

"The inventory of homes priced under $500,000 continues to be lean, which is driving moderate or significant price appreciation in this price category," said Leslie Appleton-Young, CAR's vice president and chief economist, in a statement.

"Conversely, the inventory of homes priced $1 million and higher is more than double the inventory of the under-$500,000 range, which is contributing to weaker prices at the high end."

The Santa Barbara South Coast region experienced the greatest year-over-year price increase in September, 17.3 percent, to a median price of $879,750. Sales in the region fell 12.9 percent year-over-year. The San Luis Obispo region saw the sharpest year-over-year price drop in the state, 8.9 percent, to a median $354,880. Sales there fell 9 percent year-over-year.

All but two regions in the state experienced year-over-year decreases in sales. In Northern California (which CAR separates from the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento regions), sales rose 1 percent, and in Ventura, sales rose 5.6 percent. The High Desert saw the largest drop in sales, down 33.1 percent.

Inventory is rising: the association's Unsold Inventory Index indicated that it would take 6.2 months to sell every home on the market at the September sales pace, up from 6.1 months in August and 4.5 months in September 2009. The index's increase may be partially attributed to a rise in the median number of days a single-family home spends on the market: 52.5 days last month compared with 33.5 days in September 2009.

A six-month supply is generally considered to indicate a rough equilibrium between a buyer's market and a seller's market.

Interest rates for a 30-year fixed mortgage are down significantly from last year: from an average of 4.35 percent in September to 5.06 percent in September 2009, the association said, citing figures from Fannie Mae.

Foreclosed properties accounted for 35.8 percent of the existing homes sold last month, up from a revised 35.7 percent in August and down from 41.7 percent in September 2009, according to a separate report from real estate information company MDA DataQuick. The state experienced the highest share of foreclosed properties in February 2009 at 58.5 percent, the report said.

According to DataQuick, September sales of new homes, condos and existing single-family homes were down 3.1 percent from August and 17.5 percent from September 2009, to an estimated 33,176 homes. The median sales price was $265,000, up 1.9 percent from August, and up 5.6 percent from September a year ago, according to the report.