We lowered the price on 126 N Rossmore to 5,399,000 and the owners are ready to sell! The best part of 126 Rossmore, besides the charming Hancock Park Brick English Curb Appeal and the multitude of deep windows throughout, is the 20,000 square foot flat lot with a huge park-like backyard with new sprinklers and fresh newly sprouted bright green grass. There’s a newer pool with a spa and a charming one bedroom casita with a kitchen in the yard too. The house will be fabulous with some TLC. It has a center hall plan with living and dining on each side of the foyer, a large kitchen with center island, and a massive family room with two sets of doors to the yard. Upstairs there are 4 beds, 3 baths, a large office, and a spacious landing at the top of the stairs. The yard is surprisingly quiet because it’s buffered by the handsome house that separates it from the street. When all 4 fireplaces are restored, and the house is brought back to its days of glory, it will not only make a sweet spot to a live, but it will also be an incredible investment vehicle that will appreciate significantly over time!
I’m excited for our new lease listing at 1161 S Hayworth. We just leased the downstairs to a fabulous new tenant and now we’re on the hunt for a great new neighbor upstairs! The building is a quaint character emotional Spanish with ornate arches, millwork, built-ins, and mature landscaping. The yard is unusually incredible for a duplex with a large expansive grassy lawn with a pergola all the way back for outdoor living. There are two private porches off the upstairs unit, one off the dining and breakfast rooms facing the front inner courtyard and the other off the primary bedroom facing the grassy backyard. The living room is grand with high ceilings and a statement fireplace and the dining room is generous and filled with sunshine. The kitchen is remodeled in retro black and white with an antique stove and SS appliances including a dishwasher. There is a great big built-in countertop over the washer and dryer underneath it. With 2 large bedrooms (each with extra deep windows), 1 original pristine bathroom, hardwood floors and central AC, the space is the perfect blend of new and old. Located in a friendly central neighborhood on a quiet tree lined street, this place is great all around. We can’t wait to find and meet the new tenants!
I’m excited for our new lease listing at 222 S Mansfield. The owners bought the property and then took it entirely down to the studs so the interiors are now completely brand new. The space is open concept with the living room, dining room, and kitchen all opening to each other. The room off the kitchen/laundry room can be used as either an office or breakfast room and it’s completely surrounded by windows. There are 2 bedrooms, a den that opens with double doors to the large backyard, and 2.5 bathrooms. The available unit is downstairs and it comes with one covered and one uncovered parking space; the uncovered parking space has an EV car charger. There’s a massive backyard with both grass and hardscape, unusually large outdoor space for a duplex. There’s central AC, new flooring throughout, and lots of natural light. The location is great on Mansfield between Second and Third. We are excited to show it!
We listed 341 N Orange for lease for $7750/mt and we received multiple applications immediately. It was hard to choose between the applicants. All of the people who applied had solid proof of funds, good credit, stellar references, eagerness to sign a multi year lease term, and history/familiarity of living in the immediate neighborhood. The owners ultimately chose tenants who shared at our in person meeting that they never wear shoes inside and they wish there was a built-in microwave because they love to live with uncluttered counters. The benefits of high interest rates holding some people back from buying is a rich pool of dream-worthy attractive tenants who are looking to rent.
We had a listing that closed last week for cash; the buyer borrowed the money from her mom at a 2% interest rate. We have a listing that’s closing this week for cash; the parents are buying a place for their grown daughter. We’re working with clients who are looking to buy and sell; the plan is to buy with a loan but then to repay the loan very quickly in cash when they sell so that the payments at the current interest rates are temporary and just for the sake of effectively buying and selling at the same time. Buyers who are borrowing money to buy are often opting for an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) where the rate is fixed for a term (3, 5, 7, 10 years) with the plan to refinance into a fixed rate product when interest rates go down to a rate that it makes sense to lock in for 30 years.
Sellers who are older all talk about how rates were in the teens when they bought their first house and those houses that they bought at high interest rates appreciated significantly over time and were very worthwhile, lucrative investments even though they were purchased at a high interest rate. In our world, the most impactful consequence of higher interest rates is the limited supply of houses available for sale. Buyers can navigate their way around the higher interest rates by paying cash, borrowing from a source other than a commercial lender, or choosing an adjustable product with a lower initial rate locked in until rates eventually go down. Sellers have no way to hold on to their low current interest rates (that feel exceptionally valuable right now) other than holding on to their properties that are attached to their low rates, which means that some sellers aren’t selling and there’s less supply for buyers to buy. It will take rates adjusting downwards to motivate sellers who have a choice to hold or sell to choose to sell vs hold; both to agree to giving up their current low interest rates and also to make it palatable to take on a new mortgage on a replacement property at a rate not so hugely different from the rate they had on the house they chose to sell.
My niece, Aliza Klein, got married Thursday night in Baltimore and I’m excited for my younger brother, Reuven, to continue to get to know his lovely, sweet, refined new son-in-law! We spent the weekend with family celebrating post wedding and of course it was the world’s biggest treat to be with our grandchildren! On Friday morning (predictably) we visited the Maryland Zoo and Friday afternoon we had a high energy baby dance party on Grandma’s hotel bed! On Saturday morning, 2 year old Eliyahu picked up the hotel room landline, pressed some buttons, reached Guest Services, and told the operator at the other end that he’d like to play with his Grandma. As Grandpa was strapping Eliyahu into his car seat to drive back home to New Jersey from Baltimore on Saturday night, Eliyahu said next time he’ll take a plane to come visit Grandma and Grandpa. I cry every time we say goodbye … .The best part of spending time together is first all the cuddles + cheeks squished together and second all the teaching moments, showing uber curious precocious toddler Eliyahu all the things he doesn’t yet know about the world and how it works. I’m counting the seconds until the next time we get to be together!
Wishing all an awesome week ahead!
Xoxoxoxo,
Sheri
