Inventory On The Rise In the Beach Cities and South Bay!

It’s taken a while but inventory is finally steadily increasing with 4 straight months of rising number of homes for sale.  July saw the number active homes on the MLS at 583 which is the highest since September of 2012 which was a vastly different market.  The chart below shows the past 2 years of active listings (light green column) pending home sales (red line) and sold homes (teal column).  According to Manhattan Beach real estate agent Keith Kyle, “the rising number of homes for sale should be good news for buyers but there is still incredible demand which will continue to translate into higher home prices”.  The cities included in the chart below are Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, Torrance, El Segundo and the communities of Palos Verdes

The number of pending home sales in July 2013 was the highest since March of 2012 with 400 pending sales, and the number of sold homes in July was 411, which was the highest month in over 5 years.  To view the home sales in the individual cities in the South Bay click here.

Gated community of Fusion South Bay

Finally some inventory in Fusion South Bay

We’ve finally seen a slight increase in active Fusion townhomes for sale with 3 townhomes now for sale.  It’s been a while since we’ve seen any type of inventory on the market and we’ll see if this starts easing pricing pressures a bit.  What is a bit unusual is that 2 of the 3 current homes for sale are 3 bedrooms which are fairly rare.  The other unit is the smaller 2 bedroom A Floorplan currently priced at $485,000.  Fusion is located in the Hollyglen neighborhood of Hawthorne and is a great option for buyers priced out of neighboring Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach.

View the current homes for sale in Fusion South Bay

Fusion townhomes show just how the market has changed

Often when we look at the broader world of the real estate market it’s hard to notice just how dramatic a shift can be. It’s equally amazing just how quickly we forget the market we just left…as if we’ll never be back. I focus much of my attention in terms of marketing, selling and blogging about a small gated community in the Hollyglen known as Fusion South Bay. It’s just a pocket of newer townhomes in the South Bay but nowhere have I seen a more drastic turnaround and the implications it has had. I sold a few units at the height of the market and have struggled with the fact that values went down so dramatically and so quickly. As they were constructed in 2005-2007 almost every buyer was truly buying at the peak of the market. The result was a % of short sales and foreclosures not seen anywhere else in the area. Less than a year ago almost 75% of the closed sales were short sales and values plummeted. I showed most of them and, at the time, I almost felt as though you couldn’t give them away….no buyer motivation, no sense of urgency and most of those buyers are probably now kicking themselves. It was truly a buyers market.

Just a year later and oh how the real estate world has changed. Units that had been in the low $300,000s are now in the mid to high $400,000s and buyers are lining up for the next owner that decides to sell.   At the moment the one 2 bedroom home for sale, the smallest floor plan in Fusion, is listed at the same price that a 3 bedroom sold for just a year earlier.  Those clients that had bought a few years back are once again looking good and those that didn’t purchase at the bottom when they had the chance are certainly wishing they had. In one short year this micro market has gone from barely being able to give away these townhomes, to having buyers and agents eagerly searching off market for the chance to own one.

My how quickly things change and how quickly we forget where we just were.

 

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Hermosa Beach Pending Home Sales Reach 5 Year High

Hermosa Beach has long been one of the more sought after coastal communities with demand for homes in the small beach community always high.  Recent market conditions have created an even greater demand as inventory of active home listings has continued to decline while the few homes available quickly go into escrow.  The 31 homes in escrow or “pending” in June of 2013 is the highest number since 2007 and is helping drive prices up as demand continues to soar.

June saw 37 active MLS listings and homes for sale, 31 pending home sales and 18 closed escrows or sold homes. Visit our home sales page to see the homes sold in June 2013 and prices for the sold homes.  According to long time Hermosa Beach resident and top real estate agent Keith Kyle with South Bay Brokers, “This is an almost ideal climate for sellers with the usual summer demand in full effect due to buyers looking for homes in the Hermosa Beach school district, low inventory, historically low interest rates and prices continuing to rise.

June 2013 Home Sales in the South Bay

The June home sales numbers are in and once again it was a very big month for home prices as many areas reached multi year highs once again.  The beach cities saw very high median home prices as many luxury properties sold at prices unseen in the past.  Click on the links below to view the home sales for various South Bay cities.

June 2013 Home Sales
El Segundo
Gardena
Hawthorne
Hermosa Beach
Hollyglen
Hollywood Riviera
Lawndale
Manhattan Beach
Palos Verdes Estates
Rancho Palos Verdes
North Redondo Beach
South Redondo Beach
San Pedro
Southwood, West & South Torrance

Redondo Beach Pocket Listings

So What’s All the Fuss about Pocket Listings in Redondo Beach

Understanding off market and pocket listings

With the extremely tight inventory of homes for sale in the South Bay, many buyers approach me looking for off market, or pocket listings.  Pocket listings and exclusive listings are the hot trend at the moment as eager buyers clamor for a chance to purchase a home without all of the competition.    In this market knowing about it first may not ultimately make a difference, but it certainly helps.  Many agents seem to be trying to keep listings private as well in the hopes that perhaps they can represent both buyer and seller, which is much easier if fewer agents know that the home is for sale.  So what do the terms actually mean?  A pocket listing can be anything from a realtor simply knowing about a home that a seller might consider selling and not having a listing agreement, to something coming to the market but not yet on the MLS, to the intentional withholding of the listing from the MLS.

But is it beneficial to the seller? 

In terms of price, exposure, etc. the answer is generally no.  The more exposure the home gets, the more potential buyers see it, and the likelihood that it will sell for a better price and with more favorable terms for the seller.  Eliminate that competition and generally speaking the chances of such favorable terms decrease.

There are very legitimate reasons for exclusive or “pocket” listings and for keeping the property off the market…..work being completed, tenant issues, or simply a seller who doesn’t want the world touring their home.  Seller’s just need to be sure that the reasons for keeping a home off of the South Bay MLS are beneficial to them….and not just to the listing agents.

Whether keeping a listing from the MLS is good or bad for the seller ultimately depends on the situation and whose best interest is the primary reason, but working with a top local realtor who has the network and knowledge to seek out these possible opportunities is certainly key for the buyer.

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Vista Sotheby’s International Realty is one of the top real estate brokerages in the South Bay and Southern California with offices in Redondo Beach and throughout the South Bay

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