We listed 308 N Sycamore #108 as a new listing at a new price of $1,625,000. The condo is elegant and beautiful. It has a true center hall plan with majestic wood floors, spacious rooms, character moldings, and designer finishes throughout. The Faubourg St. Denis building is a stately historical icon in the area. The location on Sycamore and Beverly is central and close to everything. It is truly an opportunity to buy a beautifully appointed space that’s just about 2000 square feet for 1.625 in our area. Great features of the space include high end designer appliances (including a floor to ceiling wine fridge) in a remodeled kitchen, a generous primary suite with a lovely sitting area + marble bath + abundant closet space, two additional spacious bedrooms, and beautiful spacious formal living and dining rooms. The last two owners were from the loveliest people on the planet so we know that the next owner will be too, and we’re excited to meet them!
We lowered the price on 147 N Fuller to $2,199,000. The highlight of this offering is all the space!!! Per the city assessor, the main house is 2541 square feet. There’s a permitted bonus structure in the backyard that measures at 365 square feet. The garage is an additional 373 square feet. Permitted living space is over 2900 square feet on an 8229 square foot lot. The Brick English Tudor Curb Appeal is attractive and the grand living room with leaded glass picture window to the street, statement fireplace, and high beamed ceiling is striking. The location is amazing in Miracle Mile HPOZ on a central tree lined street. The owner is absolutely lovely and a complete honor to represent.
We lowered the price at 430 N Highland to $3,399,000. The house is about 6000 pristine all new square feet on a 9251 expansive square foot lot. It’s unusual to have the opportunity to purchase a grand 3 story house, with a deep basement with high ceilings, 8 beds and 7.5 baths, in our area. Replacement cost to build a house of this size and quality in our location would be significantly higher than paying this purchase price for the beautifully finished home. Every inch of this house was done to the nines, from the huge well appointed gourmet kitchen to the thoughtfully designed bathrooms to all the systems like the new 400 amps electric panel, all new double paned wood clad windows, multi zone new AC system (controlled by app on phone or tablet), plumbing in place for pool equipment, drainage systems that go to the rain garden, low voltage (including wired high speed internet access and alarm.) This house is an amazing opportunity and someone smart will capitalize on it.
We have an escrow right now, representing the seller, that’s a roller coaster ride. We opened escrow, the buyer wired their initial deposit, they did a general inspection, and then they emailed instructions to escrow to cancel. They then decided not to cancel and we resumed the escrow. A few days later the buyer sent a signed cancellation and the seller signed too. Everyone regretted that cancellation and so we circulated an amendment from escrow to rescind the cancellation and we’re back in the deal again. Talking to fellow agents, we’re seeing versions of this scenario in the market today. I’m grateful to work with a seller who is smart, and a thought partner in strategizing the best path forward to close the deal that serves the seller’s interests best. It’s an honor to navigate complicated deals with smart sellers.
Interest rates officially hit 8%, the highest they’ve been in 30 years. During Covid we saw record low interest rates (never before seen in history) during the time of the “stay at home” order; both combined together motivated buyers to buy a new house at an extraordinary low rate and during a time when houses were everything, which made for multiple offers and a resulting increase in prices and home values. Homeowners who are now holding a record low interest rate mostly don’t want to sell because it would mean giving up their 3% interest rate in exchange for an 8% rate on a new purchase. Buyers are hitting an affordability issue with a combination of all time high interest rates and all time high property values; the combination of both means monthly payments higher than many can (or choose to) pay.
On listing appointments the largest category of sellers are those who inherited property and want to cash out on their inheritance. Second is people with a second home in California who no longer need that space. Third is people relocating to a different area. Buyers are doctors recruited from out of state by Cedars Sinai, young couples who want to buy a house first and start a family second, and people wanting to live near family (parents near kids or kids near parents.) We’re starting to get calls from sellers who bought their house with an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage); they had a long run of extremely low payments but as their loans adjust upward to align with current interest rates, it gives them thought to unload the property and rent at a lower monthly cost.
These times call for us to dive deep and figure out how to soothe our soul. I vote for soothing our souls with love and connection. Seth, Esti and I went to Oxnard for Shabbat; we relished watching the sunset and sunrise over the water, singing songs together, and connecting over long walks on the sand. I loved doing Gavriel’s bedtime routine in Israel over Facetime from LA, reading books and singing songs as if we were together. Last night we watched step by step over Facetime as Chassi made a masterpiece birthday cake for her nephew, and we marveled in awe at her artistic finished product. Love feels powerful because it drives, navigates, directs, and makes our existence meaningful. Hate invites loneliness, whereas love denies it. Hate ruins personality, whereas love opens it up. Hate results in acts of violence, whereas love leads to amazing acts of kindness. Those of us who choose to love are now charged with the task of overwhelming the world with kindness and generosity so that goodness prevails. In my mind, it’s definitely love that makes the world go around.
Xoxoxoxo,
Sheri
