With inventory continuing to decline the condo and townhome markets in the Hollyglen communities of 360 South Bay and Fusion South Bay have continued their torrid pace. Both complexes are located along Aviation Blvd in the area of Hawthorne known as Hollyglen. Fusion South Bay was completed in 2007 and 360 South Bay began releasing units in the past 2 years, so both offer a very affordable way of getting new or newer construction in the area which is very rare in the South Bay. According to Manhattan Beach realtor Keith Kyle “many home buyers in the area often start their search looking for homes in Redondo Beach and find that in the mid $400K -$550K range what they can afford is much older and smaller. Fusion and 360 offer a similar location, great schools and a much lower price point. Simply put you get much more for your money.”
The market has been very active with 8 resale units currently in escrow. 360 is still currently releasing new construction units and most are not on the MLS so there are a number of additional sales not noted below. As of March 13th there are no active condos or townhomes for sale in Fusion but click below for the latest list of homes for sale as it’s continually updated.
If you’re like many South Bay home buyers, you’re probably experiencing the frustration that so many others are….there are no homes to buy. With this incredibly low inventory the few homes that do come on the market don’t last more than a few days and often sell for prices that would have been a major challenge just a few months ago. It might be temporary, but back are the days of multiple offers, conditions favorable to the sellers, offers over the list price and a number of cash buyers to compete with. Inventory just keeps going down with fewer and fewer available homes to by. If it’s hard to picture just what’s happening the chart below couldn’t be clearer. The light green bar shows the number of active homes for sale in the cities of El Segundo, Gardena, Harbor City, Hawthorne, Hermosa Beach, Lawndale, Lomita, Manhattan Beach, Palos Verdes Estates, Palos Verdes Peninsula, Rancho Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, San Pedro, Torrance. The teal columns show sold homes and the red bar shows the pending home sales.
October 2012 South Bay Median Home Prices and Sold Homes
Keep informed on the price of Redondo Beach homes and know what direction the real estate market is heading. See below for the median price of South Bay Homes in October and see the change in average home price from 2011. Average home prices based on one month of information can vary quite a bit based on a number of factors but the information can show an overall housing market trend in Redondo Beach.
Year over year median home prices increased in most South Bay cities for September 2012. 12 of the 18 cities we track saw increases in median prices from September of the previous year. Manhattan Beach real estate along with Hermosa and Torrance saw double digit increases while Redondo Beach had an increase in home values of only 1%.
October saw some strong indicators in the local South Bay real estate market with low inventory and continued price increases. Click any South Bay city below to see the homes sold in October 2012 or see our market trends pages for information on the real estate market in Redondo Beach. October 2012 Home Sales
While much of the South Bay has been somewhat immune to the wave of foreclosures and short sales that have been so prevalent in much of Southern California, unfortunately the townhomes of Fusion South Bay haven’t been so lucky. Of the 6 homes that are on the market, or currently in escrow, 5 are either short sales or bank owned which is an unheard of ratio in the area.
ML#
Status
Address
Price
Br/Ba
Year
Sqft
Type
P831850
Active
5403
149TH PL #3
$ 364,900
2/3.00
2007/ASR
1410
REO
V12041598
Pending
5412
149th PL #7
$ 345,000
2/2.00
2007/ASR
800
Short Pay
V12063595
Pending
5511
149th PL #7
$ 348,100
2/2.00
2006/ASR
800
Short Pay
S12090059
Pending
5506
149th PL #8
$ 385,000
2/2.00
2007/ASR
1067
Short Pay
S12055041
Pending
5404
149th PL #12
$ 499,900
3/3.00
2008/BLD
1790
Standard
So why is Fusion impacted so much more than surrounding areas. Unfortunately it’s the perfect storm for foreclosures and is due to a number of factors.
Timing – The project was built in 2005 and 2006 so the original home buyers bought at the very peak of the market, and just before the bubble burst.
Owners – Most of the units were purchased by two types of buyers. Many units were purchased by first time home buyers with access to loose lending and somewhat risky loans. In addition many buyers purchased in Fusion as a “stepping stone” with no intention of remaining there for long. The other primary buyers at the time were investors thinking they would make good rentals (which they have) but as they were second or even third homes they were also more susceptible to the downturn.
Self fulfilling prophecy – Just as the specter of the “shadow inventory” has many buyers and sellers concerned, this actually is the reality in Fusion. As there have been so many short sales and foreclosures, it has driven the price down considerably leading to additional short sales and foreclosure. Prices have dropped considerably and until the wave of distressed sales is resolved there is no clear turn around in sight.
Litigation – for all of 2011 there was pending litigation due to what the HOA considered builder defects. While the issue was being resolved there was no lending available which limited any sales to cash buyers only which hammered prices even further.
Fusion is a great option for buyers looking to be near the beach, with good schools, in a gated community and very new construction for the area. Prices are now favoring buyers looking to get in at the right time. Unfortunately there are 2 sides to every issue and as I’ve sold numerous Fusion condos to some wonderful people, the “great deal” that Fusion has now become isn’t so great for everyone.