Timely Real Estate News……………………………………………………………………….15 May 2012
***************************************************************************************************************
Los Angeles County Museum of Art –a treasure in your own backyard
It wasn’t always so. LACMA, as it is popularly known today around the world, has until recently been referred to as the “step sister” of museums — a nice, local museum where the family could spend a few hours wandering the exhibits, have lunch, and see the nearby La Brea Tar Pits. But things have dramatically changed. While LACMA is the largest encyclopedic museum west of Chicago and attracts over 1 million visitors annually, it has literally taken the art and museum world by storm — in both deeds, exhibits, and quality of its collections and architecture.
Originally LACMA was part of the Los Angeles Museum of History, Science and Art, and founded over 102 years ago in Exposition Park. In 1965, the Museum moved to its new Wilshire Boulevard complex as an independent, art-focused institution — the largest new museum to be built in the United States after the National Gallery of Art.
***************************************************************************************************************
World -class art…world-class architecture
Through multi-million dollar donations from many of the community’s leading philanthropists such as Robert O. Anderson, Eli and Edythe Broad, Bernard and Edith Lewin, and Lynda and Stewart Resnick, LACMA has grown its exhibition space to now include one of the world’s most impressive line-ups of collections in modern and contemporary art, American and Latin American art, and Asian art. Its permanent collection continues to expand with additions of world-renown sculptures, paintings, tapestries, and most recently, LACMA made world news with the installation of the “Levitated Mass” by artist Michael Helzer — a 340-ton boulder, measuring 21.5 feet wide and 21.5 feet in height, which came to the museum, criss-crossing Southern California from its Riverside County quarry to find its final destination atop a 456-foot-long trench that one can walk under.
It is not the first most eye- and media-catching event ever held at LACMA. Perhaps the most famous of its exhibition was the highly controversial “Back Seat Dodge ’38” sculpture (1964) by Edward Kienholz, who portrayed a couple engaging in sexual activity in the back seat of a truncated 1938 Dodge automobile chassis. An interesting side note: The museum agreed to keep the door closed, and it could only be opened by a museum patron who was over 18. This exhibit has been one of many record setting exhibits that has followed through the years.
With the leadership of its forward-looking Directors over the past decade along with a very influential Board, and the combined generosity of a ‘Who’s Who Donor” list, LACMA is a “must-see” attraction today. The incredible permanent and touring exhibits, the character and feel of the museum grounds and iconic new pavilions are truly world class. The museum has shown its forward-looking vision by selecting some of the world’s most renowned architects to create and design pavilions worthy of the art they hold. Truly, LACMA is the place to spend some quality time. During the summer months, they have wonderful jazz concerts every week.
Of note, the Docent council just celebrated its 50th anniversary, and my mother was just honored for serving as a docent since 1968. Congratulations, Mom!
******************************************************************************************************************
La Brea Tar Pits — it’s real. It’s not animatronics
No, this is not on the Jungle Cruise….it’s not a new attraction from Universal Studios or Disney…it’s Mother Nature’s Real Thing — the La Brea Tar Pits. This is the “home” to a few unfortunate souls (animals of all shapes, sizes) who wandered centuries ago into these unsuspecting pits of what is called asphaltum or heavy oil. These pits consist of crude oil that seep up along the 6th Street Fault from the Salt Lake Oil Field, which underlies much of the Fairfax District north of Hancock Park. But these pits have been forming for tens of thousands of years, and from time to time, asphalt would form a deposit thick enough to trap animals and when they entered the pits they were unable to free themselves.
The Tar Pits exhibits, which is adjacent to LACMA, are being excavated and studied — and has produced dramatic large mammal 
bones that are remains of saber-toothed cat, dire wolves, bison, horses, giant ground sloth, turtles, snakes, clams, fish, gophers and an American lion. The park is known for producing myriad mammal fossils dating from the last glacial period…..and you can witness archeologists working at the Page Museum where the specimens are displayed. George C. Page was a well-known Los Angeles philanthropist who felt from his early teen years that there should be an exhibit/museum and research center located next to the pits…and he contributed the funds to house the exhibits as it is today.
George C. Page Museum exhibit
*****************************************************************************************************************
Malibu is market on the rise….and it’s about time!
Malib, the fabled beachside community on the edge of the Pacific, is like other Westside communities: it reflects the same 
oddities and challenges of the recessionary-market we’ve been living with since the late 2007s. Malibu, like many other communities in West Los Angeles, has suffered in the residential market as well. And regardless of how ‘famous’ it might be, fame can’t alone move real estate. So it was good news to hear that Malibu is on the rise — real estate is moving at last. Coldwell Banker provides us with weekly updates on various Westside markets — and Malibu is one of my communities that I focus on.
So, here’s the good news: From the manager of our CB Malibu office as of 5 May 2012, the office is “extremely busy with offers and closings, especially on large high-end sales, on and off the beach. Escrow closed on three beach houses last week in the $5+ million range, and one house off the beach went for over $10 million.” In April, it was reported that sales are up 28.44%, and this doesn’t count several sales that closed after the report was generated.
Unlike many other areas, Malibu has had such a large amount of unsold inventory where prices were not in a competitive range. The report indicates that inventory numbers are coming down without having a panic about needing inventory. That being said, most of the many beach houses that were sitting on the market over the last two years have gone into escrow or have sold….so, according to our CB manager, that’s great news, and “we’ll be needing good-quality beach inventory soon.” Did you know that there are at least 12 wineries in Malibu?
Sales volume continues ahead of 2011 pace….a far cry from a year ago
I wasn’t particularly impressed that our sales volume for the four communities I report on — Beverly Hills, Beverly Hills Post Office, Bel-Air, and Brentwood — was only $24 million ahead of 2011 figures — or $624 million for this year vs. $600 million for last year. On the face of it, that’s only a 4% increase over the previous year, but then I went back to the 15 May 2011 SchifferLine and discovered that for last year at this time, we were more than 10% behind the previous 2010 performance in sales volume. So while we have slowed down a bit in our trending of upward sales volumes, we’re significantly ahead of where we were last year — demonstrating our market is still relatively strong.
What we have seen this past April, for example, shows that Beverly Hills is having a good year –. Average sales price year to date is $5.223,090 vs. $7.031,266 last year .In April ’11 there were 10 sales over $3,000,000 including one at 10,675, another at 12,000,000, another at 12,500, and another at 15,700 vs. 9 this past month, but the highest sale was $9,150. In Beverly Hills Post Office the average sales price for April ’11 was $3,251,363 vs. $2,582,564 again with 4 sales over $3,000,000 with the highest sale at $11,725,000 vs. 6 over $3,000,0000 this year and the highest sale came in at 9.1. In Bel Air, the average sales price was $5,101,271 in April ’11 vs. $4,638,446 in ’12. The big difference was obviously impacted by the one sale in April ’11 of a
whopping $40,000,000 which was among the 7 sales over $3,000,000 vs. 4 in April of this year with the highest sale at $25,500,000. In Brentwood, in April ’11, the average sales price was $3,131,954 vs. $3,035,625. In April ’11 there were 10 sales over $3,000,000 with the highest one coming in at $8.2 vs. 10 in April ’12 with the highest sale at $12,000,000. I have always regarded median sales prices on a year-to-date basis as the only relative reliable # to gauge our market performance.
A tale of two markets……pricing is everything in today’s world
How you price your home for sale can either make you a hero or a bum. It’s that simple. In today’s real estate world, there are two markets — #1 — if the home is appropriately priced for what it is; and #2 — if the home is improperly priced. These homes (#2) “linger” and sell for much less had they been properly priced in the first place.
While the economy and the real estate market ebbs and flows, pricing is as always everything — and I see the effects of how improperly priced homes fare on the market: The picture is not that pretty….
Let me give you a couple of examples: A property recently came on the market near the Brentwood Polo Fields — it was a nice little house, in need of repairs that was a potential short sale, but extremely well priced, and it generated 35 offers! While it 
hasn’t closed escrow, and I cannot give you the final sale price, we do know that the final sale price was over the asking price and it sold within days of coming on the market, and given the speculation of what the final sales price is will most likely not be a short sale. And another example is a listing I took in January in Mountaingate — a lovely home, good condition, perhaps some updating was needed (but not much), a beautiful city views; 3 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths, but has some freeway noise. We had a fair amount of showings….but we realized that we needed to adjust the price — and we lowered the price by $100,000. Within days, we had two offers and we just opened escrow with one of them.
The point is this: What is clear is that we are short on inventory on the Westside — the buyers are out there, and while sales volumes are still ahead of 2011, we’re not satisfied — and the biggest concern we have now is that we cannot provide our clients with the level of quality inventory and choices that we have seen in the “old boon times” of four and five years ago. Warning: Do you research….and hire an experienced real estate agent who knows the neighborhood and can guide you through this competitive maze.
What is quality inventory? Positive vs. negative energy
I have talked about ‘quality inventory’ a great deal in the past, because, I suppose, that is the category of homes most
buyers are seeking. Quality inventory means that it is 1) well-priced for where and what it is; and 2) condition is prime in terms of look, feel, and quality that comes through in all facets of the home’s interior and exterior. It’s bright, sunny, and inviting — quality is felt and seen wherever you are inside and outside the home. The home has its own “positive energy”.
Negative energy is easy to feel and see: Buyers will walk into a property with their “cash-register mentality”. As a general rule, buyers will look for deficiencies where they can knock down the price — carpets are worn or dirty; wood floors are worn – needing to be fixed or replaced; counters are worn or damaged; painting inadequate; appliances are old; kitchens and bathrooms need updating; and the yard and landscaping are below par. So unless the property is being marketed as a “fixer” — then it’s a whole different kettle of fish. This means that if something would cost $10,000 to replace — the buyers are going to factor in a $20,000 expense — to give them that “edge” or cushion. And after inspecting a house with a lot of negative energy, the $$ add up quickly.
So, seller beware! Buyers are sophisticated and demanding. They don’t like being on the losing end. . In these short-inventory markets, there are a lot of competitors out there to snap up the best homes, quickly and aggressively.
***********************************************************************************************
Connecting Kids With Nature
Some of the fondest memories of childhood are of my grand-father and I fishing. Just him and I a couple of fishing rods and the deep blue sea. We used to go every week on the commercial boats off of Santa Monica Pier (I hated cleaning the fish we caught!) 
If we didn’t catch a fish, it wasn’t a problem. Those trips were adventures for me and I believe helped cultivate my awe of nature.
They are also among my earliest memories of being concerned about pollution, in the form of trash that would be along the ocean and beaches. It’s a shame that so many children today don’t get these learning opportunities and most of their nature education occurs via a screen.
TV documentaries can be great thing for many age groups – for example, Sir David Attenborough’s various series over the last few decades where he lets the animals and stunning camera work do most of the talking. .For children too young to venture out, TV can certainly be a positive influence environmentally speaking.
Unfortunately, nature documentaries and such these days are too often focused on computer animations and the “whoa!” factor – more fluff than substance. Regardless of programming quality; the best way to learn about nature is hands-on; whether it’s in a local park, or out the back of beyond.
It’s more than just allowing kids to explore the great outdoors though – it’s how it’s done that counts too. While getting kids to properly connect with nature doesn’t mean they should be forced to undertake a vow of silence, don burlap sacks and sleep under the stars using rocks as pillows, it shouldn’t involve excessive noise and destruction, nor be heavily dependent on technology. It should be an engaging experience, one that forces the senses and body to be used in a way they often aren’t in our lives.
If the next generation only sees nature as something cool on a very fleeting and shallow level; as something easily trumped
by or viewed via a noisy internal combustion engine or gadgets; then the planet is in even bigger trouble than we realize.
You must be logged in to post a comment.