South Bay home sales posted their fourth consecutive year-over-year increase in May, with 173 homes changing hands in the combined cities of El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach. This is an increase of 4.8 percent compared to 165 sales during the same month a year ago. The median sales price jumped 14.3 percent to an even $1 million, compared to $875,000 May 2006, while the average price climbed 6.4 percent to $1.246 million compared to $1.171 million a year ago.
Homes were selling faster as well, with the typical home spending 41 days on the market last month, the lowest that figure has been since last September. At current sale rates, the inventory of homes available for sale in the four beach cities fell to 3 months, down from 3.8 months reported in May 2006.
Asking prices continued to climb in the beach cities, with the average home offered at $1.49 million, a 14.7 percent increase over this past year. Last May the average asking price was $1.3 million. Prices were mixed elsewhere in the region, with asking prices higher in Hawthorne, Lawndale and Torrance. Median sales prices rose by 25 percent in Inglewood, 4.6 percent in Hawthorne and by 26.5 percent in Palos Verdes Estates. Homes in those areas generally spent less time on the market last month as well, except in Palos Verdes Estates. Time on the market in PVE jumped 60 percent over a year ago.
There were 113 homes in escrow in May the four beach cities, compared to 171 a year earlier. This figure was also significantly lower in other areas, with only Palos Verdes Estates showing a year-over-year increase of 35.7 percent. Arnold Goldstein and Larry Wolf, co-owners of Shorewood, said that results for May were in line with broader trends seen county-wide. “Reports generally show that prices in higher priced, more affluent areas are continuing to rise, although unlike other markets, the South Bay is not only showing price strength, but sales are improving as well,” they said. “This supports what we’ve always said about this market being stronger and more insulated against trends and results we’re seeing in other markets elsewhere.”
The most active price category in the four beach cities during May was homes priced from $750,000 to $1 million, with 135 offered for sale in that range and 46 sold. Another 122 homes were offered between $1 million and $1.5 million, with 48 sold in that range, while 99 were offered at $2 million or more, with 20 selling in that price range.
The Shorewood Report is compiled from data supplied by TrendGraphix, and Shorewood was reported as number one for all 18 South Bay cities with a 16.5 percent market share for the month of May. Shorewood captured 33.3 percent of all closed sales in terms of dollar volume for El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach and was also the leader in three of the four cities individually, including 27.6 percent in Hermosa Beach, 50 percent in Manhattan Beach, 29.9 percent in El Segundo and 15 percent in Redondo Beach. SBRE

“Follow the inventory,” Leslie Appleton-Young said three years ago, during her annual January address to Shorewood Realtors agents.
Despite popular belief in 2004 that real estate was a bubble ready to burst, the California Association of Realtor’s chief economist predicted prices would continue to rise in 2005 because demand was greater than supply.
At the start of 2006, following another year of double digit appreciation in 2005, Appleton-Young assured Shorewood agents that the only real estate bubble was “in articles about the bubble.”
Her opinion put her in the minority. Last year at this time most financial observers were certain real estate was a bubble waiting to burst. They pointed to four years of double digit appreciation – 19 percent in 2002, 21 percent in 2003, 25 percent in 2004 and 16 percent in 2005.
Appleton-Young agreed the rate of appreciation was unsustainable. But she was still bearish. She predicted another 12 percent appreciation in 2006, based on a continuing shortage in inventory.
Her prediction proved a little optimistic though not as far off the mark as the doomsayers. Median home prices in Southern California appreciated a healthy seven percent in 2006.
Last week Appleton-Young returned to Manhattan Beach to present her annual forecast to Shorewood agents.
Her advice was the same as in previous years — follow the inventory.
Only this time, she noted, inventory isn’t pointing to continued appreciation.
She described Southern California as a “Goldilocks” market – not too hot, and not too cold, but just right. Supply and demand are approaching equilibrium.
“From 2000 to 2005 people couldn’t afford not to buy because the [double digit] return was so high,” she said.
But in the fourth quarter of 2005, the market reached a tipping point. Consumer confidence was battered by Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq war, a spike in energy costs, and rising mortgage rates, she said.
Appreciation in Dec. 2006 was just two to three percent over Dec. 2005.
The market’s not “falling off the cliff,” she said. “But it does require adjustment in the expectation of sellers [holding out for double digit appreciation] and buyers wanting a fire sale.”
In 20007, she predicted California median home prices will drop two percent, from $560,000 to $550,000.
She attributed the decline to an over supply of homes and a drop in the affordability index.
Southern California homes in July 2005 were on the market a median time of 25.5 days. In July 2006 it took 47.1 days to sell. During the same period unsold inventory jumped from 2.8 months to 8.3 months.
In the first quarter of 2003, 50 percent of California families could afford a median priced home. In the third quarter of 2006 fewer than 25 percent of families could afford a median priced home. (In Los Angeles, just 15 percent could afford a median price home in 2006, according to Sunday’s Los Angles Times.
Appleton-Young’s advice to her audience: “There’s good new for buyers. And sellers need to be realistic. If a seller is over market and won’t budge, don’t waste your time. It will cost you money.”
She added that lower appreciation does not mean home sales will stop.
“Other parts of the country have had two to three percent appreciation for decades and still have had a lot of transactions,” she said. ER

Shorewood Realtors
November median home sale prices fell 4.5 percent in the South Bay. Most of the declines centered in the beach communities while prices in some more affordable areas actually increased over the same month a year earlier, according to the monthly Shorewood Report.
The number of homes sold also declined throughout the region, although at lower levels than in recent months. The 143 sales reported for the cities of El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach were 21 percent lower year-over-year, but the largest number since August. For all 18 cities in the survey combined, 624 homes changed hands last month, compared to 719 a year ago.
The median sales price in the four beach cities was $819,000 last month, down 11.4 percent from $925,000 a year earlier. Region-wide, the median fell to $572,000 from $599,000. These figures compare to a median sales price of $550,000 for all of Los Angeles County in November.
South Bay communities that saw price increases in November included Torrance (1.6 percent), Hawthorne (5.7 percent), Lawndale (20.7 percent)and Palos Verdes Estates (39.3 percent). The number of homes sold increased in Inglewood and Hawthorne but fell in other communities.
“Given the region’s strong underlying economic fundamentals — unemployment reached an all-time low in the county last month — we remain cautiously optimistic that prices will stabilize further as we move into the new year, and that homes that are priced and marketed correctly will still sell well,” Shorewood Realtors co-owners Arnold Goldstein and Larry Wolf said.
The most active price category in the four beach cities during November was homes priced from $750,000 to $1 million, with 201 offered for sale in that range and 41 sales. Another 158 homes were offered between $1 million and $1.5 million, with 29 sold in that range, while 135 were offered between $500,000 and $750,000 and 49 sold. The number of homes priced higher fell slightly during the month, with 89 homes priced at $2 million or higher and 11 selling in that price range.
With 164 transactions last month, Shorewood continued to outperform the competition, with 36.9 percent of all closed sales in terms of dollar volume for El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach, according to Trendgraphix. The company was the leader in all four cities individually, including 30 percent in Hermosa Beach, 47.5 percent in Manhattan Beach, 50.7 percent in El Segundo and 28.2 percent in Redondo Beach.
For the 12 months ended Nov. 30, Shorewood reported a total of 1,784 transactions worth a total of $1.94 billion (representing 14.1 percent of all closed sales during the period for the entire region), for an average per-transaction value of $1.09 million. ER

Indicating there is still plenty of life left in the South Bay home market, the average sale price increased in August by 16.4 percent compared to the same month a year ago, while the median priced climbed 6.2 percent, according to the monthly Shorewood Report.
The region outperformed Los Angeles County as a whole, where the median price for August was up a more modest 4.7 percent. Transaction volume was down, however, with 182 homes selling last month in the four cities of El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach, compared to 214 the same month a year earlier, a drop of 15.4 percent. Again, L.A. County did not fare as well, with a year-over-year sales decline of 21.1 percent for the month.
For the entire 18-city South Bay region, inventory climbed for the eighth straight month to a new high of 3,566 homes for sale, up 14 percent from last August. A total of 726 homes were sold last month, up from 673 the previous month but 15.3 percent lower than the 837 sold in August 2005.
The average sale price in the four primary cities covered by the report was $1.173 million, compared to $1.008 million a year ago, while the median price rose to $900,000 compared to $847,000. Median prices also grew in other South Bay cities, including Palos Verdes Estates (30.8 percent) and Lawndale (11.2 percent), although the median fell six percent in Torrance.
Buyers in the four cities had 752 homes to choose from last month, up 132.7 percent from 317 available for sale in August 2005. The average asking price was $1.28 million, down 2.1 percent from $1.31 million a year earlier. There were a total of 106 sales pending (in escrow) during August, down from 185 a year earlier.
The average time a typical home spends on the market continued to increase, standing at 42 days compared to 27 days last August. There was 4.2 months worth of inventory based on closed sales for the month vs. 1.5 months a year earlier.
Last month’s figures show that the South Bay is still a strong and very active market compared to the Southland as a whole, with many homes selling at or very near their asking prices, said Arnold Goldstein and Larry Wolf, co-owners of Shorewood. It’s also important to remember that underlying economic fundamentals, including job growth and mortgage rates, remain very positive. We believe South Bay homes will continue to hold much of the value they’ve gained in recent years, and will increase in value over the longer term.
The most active price category in the four beach cities during August continued to be homes priced from $750,000 to $1 million, with 233 offered for sale in that range and 53 sold. Another 166 homes were offered between $1 million and $1.5 million, with 34 sold in that range, while 161 were offered between $500,000 and $750,000 and 42 sold. The number of homes priced higher rose again, with 85 offered between $1.5 million and $2 million and a record 92 homes priced at $2 million or higher, with 17 and 24 selling in those price ranges, respectively. ER

Speculation begins over
Mangurian properties
The death on Sunday of Peter Mangurian, a retired medical doctor who owned Scotty’s restaurant on the Hermosa Strand and nearly all of the south side of 11th St., west of Hermosa Ave., is certain to resurrect talk about redevelopment of Hermosa’s downtown.
Scotty’s restaurant occupies four oceanfront parcels totaling nearly 12,000 square feet. The underdeveloped 11th St. properties consists of seven parcels totaling nearly 17,000 square feet. Almost half of the property is vacant and the rest is occupied by pre World War II, single story buildings.
The city is thought to favor a unified development of the properties, perhaps including parts of the adjacent Greenwald family holdings and the city-owned parking lot behind Scotty’s.
But others favor more diversified development.
“I’m generally opposed to unified themes. Theming follows the current fashion, and fashions come and go. With a more eclectic approach, individual buildings can be recycled over time without there having to be the huge remodels that shopping malls are going through now,” architect Dean Nota told Easy Reader two years ago for an article about the downtown. Nota helped orchestra the R/UDAT team that inspired the renewal of Pier Plaza in the mid-90s.
Realtor and former Hermosa councilman Gary Brutsch envisions commercial/retail mixed used for the 11th St. properties, which would serve as a buffer between the Pier Plaza bars and the adjacent residential neighborhood.
But he cautioned that he doesn’t see the property being developed anytime soon. Some of the properties are thought to be in the name of Mangurian’s long dead mother. Other family members also appear on the titles of some parcels. (See related story page 12.)

Parking preview
A preview on how the city will handle parking requirements for development of the Mangurian properties may take place in the coming months when the Hermosa City council’s considers proposals for rebuilding Baja Sharkeez on Pier Plaza. If the once popular bar is found to have been more than 51 percent destroyed by last summer’s fire, the city could require the new construction to meet current parking requirements. Which would be practically impossible.

Kincaid’s sets the hook
Kinkaid’s, the popular Redondo pier fish restaurant was the site last Sunday of Merit Real Estate’s Barbara Small’s marriage to “longtime sweetie” Steve Carlton. SBRE

The P.S. I Love You Foundation, created by Shorewood Realtors agent Patricia Jones, held its 6th annual Celebrity Red, Black and White Casino Night on June 17 at the Westin L.A. Airport Hotel’s grand ballroom. As the organization’s primary fundraiser, the event generated funds to empower and inspire at-risk children through educational outreach programs and events.
This year’s event was hosted by Mario Lopez. Highlights included an open wine bar, hors d’oeuvres, live music and casino gambling, along with guest appearances by BoyzIIMen; A.J. McLean of the Backstreet Boys; Bryan Datillo, Kyle Brandt and Farah Fath from Days of Our Lives; Kellita Smith from The Bernie Mac Show; Brando Roderick from Starsky and Hutch; Dorien Gregory from Charmed; professional boxer Mia St. John, and many others.
PSILY also recently hosted a group of children from Roosevelt Elementary School in Compton for a day at Dockweiler Beach as part of its KidsExcel Sports program.
Special guests included motivational talks by world champion and Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter Maurice Greene and two-time Guinness Book of World Records holder Ron Sarchian. The event was co-sponsored by the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals (AVP), which has also held volleyball clinics in conjunction with PSILY.
KidsExcel Sports offers after-school classes and activities designed to teach the importance of positive attitudes, team spirit, self esteem, confidence and respect. The sessions are offered at South Bay elementary schools.
For more information, or to learn more about opportunities to volunteer with PSILY, contact Jones at (310) 420-4717. ER

An $11 million renovation of the 161-room Portofino Hotel and Yacht Club in King Harbor is scheduled for completion by the end of summer. Renovation of the Portofino Marina boat slips began in January and is scheduled for completion in spring 2007.
Five ocean-facing, ultra-luxe suites come appointed with fireplaces, iron, four-post beds and plasma TVs are among the improvements.
“We’re giving the hotel a present-day maritime look to enhance its appeal to Portofino’s up-market clientele,” said Marcie De La Rosa, principal designer of De La Rosa Studio in charge of the project. “Guests come here because of the hotel’s relationship to the ocean and the outdoor recreational options that come with it.”
This winter the hotel’s restaurant will change its name from Breakwater – Steak, Jazz and Seafood to BALEENlosangeles, one of the critically acclaimed brands of Noble House Hotels & Resorts, owner and manager of the Portofino. The dockside restaurant will welcome guests with a grand circular driveway and custom water feature. A new outdoor lounge with a fire pit will overlook the marina. Inside, Baleen will incorporate the brand’s signature monkey motif with a whimsical flair. Dark wood flooring and finishes throughout will create the elegant ambience for which Baleen is known.
The renovation is the third in the iconic South Bay hotel’s 44-year history. The first renovation occurred in 1986, when Noble House Hotels & Resorts purchased it. The second came only two years later after a major storm destroyed a portion of the hotel. The hotel was built by former racecar driver Mary Davis, who made it a hangout for racers including Peter Revson, an F1 Grand Prix Winner, who had a room at the hotel.
In the early 1970s, the Portofino was the destination for the Cannonball Rally, an underground race from New York to Los Angeles. Competitors rang a bell on the check-in desk to signal their completion of the race. The hotel is featured in the movie based on the race, Cannonball Run, starring Burt Reynolds and Sammy Davis Jr.
More than half of the 161 guest rooms face the waterfront and the remaining rooms offer views of King Harbor. The Portofino Hotel & Yacht Club offers more than 8,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, including a freestanding meeting pavilion, with an array of creative, productive and flexible environments to suit all business needs. For more information visit www.hotelportofino.com.

Woody gets benched
Shorewood agents and the family and friends of agent Elwood “Woody” McCain, who died in 2003, gathered recently at The Lakes at El Segundo Golf Course for the dedication of a bench named in Woody’s honor. Woody exemplified all that is good in a man, a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a citizen and a great Realtor, said Shorewood General Manager Mike Collins. A plaque with the words “Gone Fishing” was placed on the bench, reflecting Woody’s other favorite pastime besides golf.
“Everybody who knew Woody thought he or she was Woody’s best friend, which says a great deal about the kind of person he was,” Collins said. Attending the ceremony were McCain’s wife Sharon and sons Mark and Scott.

Fusion design pushes the
architectural envelope
Fusion is an innovative new home neighborhood in the heart of the South Bay that combines proven ideas with contemporary design. The LA/Ventura Division of Centex Homes is developing the 280 condominiums with an eye towards allowing residents the opportunity to enjoy nearby recreation and shopping while also being close to work and public transportation.
Contemporary condominiums by Centex Homes have been marked by tremendous success with each of its phases selling out.
In addition to its convenient South Bay location, the homes at Fusion feature distinctive architecture and comfortable living areas. Fusion’s unique spaces offer up to three bedrooms, two and one-half baths and up to 1,790 square feet.
The homes at Fusion have a broad appeal. “With nine different floor plans, the designs are well-situated to interest a wide range of homebuyers,” said Amanda Larson, Marketing Manager of the LA/Ventura Division of Centex Homes. “Since the opening of the Sales Gallery we have experienced first hand the remarkable desire buyers have to call Fusion home. And now, as our first homebuyers prepare to move-in, the community has really come together.”
In order to provide new homebuyers with an authentic South Bay style the architect McLarand Vasquez Emsiek & Partners, Inc., designed the homes with attractive, contemporary lines, forms and colors. Current homes in the area tend to fall into traditional Craftsman, Mediterranean or Spanish architectural styles. Centex Homes approached Fusion as an opportunity to bring a smart-looking, distinctive style to the South Bay.
According to Ernie Vasquez, Founding Partner of McLarand Vasquez Emsiek & Partners, Inc., “We pushed the envelope by combining traditional thinking with ‘out of the box’ design, resulting in a neighborhood that exudes character and flair. Those who buy homes at Fusion will truly be making a Statement in Living.”
Along with many others, Hawthorne Mayor Larry Guidi has praised Fusion. “We are very pleased that Centex Homes is making a significant investment in our city. Fusion will provide much-needed housing for our current residents and will attract new people to Hawthorne.” SBRE

Shorewood Realtors
In a virtual re-run of results reported in March, the number of single family, condominiums and townhomes being put on the market throughout the South Bay rose sharply again in April compared to the same month last year, while sale prices showed continued strength, according to the monthly Shorewood Report.
A total of 536 homes were available for sale in the El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach during April, up 126 percent from the 237 homes on the market during April 2005.
Prices also continued to rise in April, with an average sale price in the four beach cities of $1.165 million, up 17.7 percent from the average of $990,000 million in April 2005. The average asking price fell slightly last month to $1.324 million, compared to $1.403 million the same month a year ago.
A total of 172 homes changed hands in the four cities in April, down 15.3 percent from the 203 sales reported in April 2005.
“It’s becoming somewhat more challenging each month to determine exactly the direction in which local real estate markets are headed based on the month-to-month results we’re seeing, but clearly South Bay homes are still enjoying healthy price appreciation,” said Arnold Goldstein and Larry Wolf, co-owners of Shorewood. “It’s too soon to know if it will become a trend, but last month’s slight down-tick in asking prices may mean more opportunities for buyers as we head into the summer months. There are certainly many more homes on the market now for buyers to choose from,” they added.
The number of days the typical home spent on the market in the four beach cities was 36 days during April, compared to 28 days in April 2005. Pending sales – homes in escrow – declined nearly 21% last month to 164 compared to 207 last April.
Once again, the most active price category in April was homes priced from $750,000 to $1 million, with 180 offered for sale in that range and 52 sold in the four primary cities covered by the report. Another 126 homes were offered between $1 million and $1.5 million, with 41 sold. The number of homes priced higher also rose again, with 59 offered between $1.5 million and $2 million, and 75 homes priced at $2 million or higher, with 16 and 18 selling in those price ranges, respectively.
The Shorewood Report is compiled from data supplied by TrendGraphix, Shorewood’s overall market share led all other brokerages with 30.2 percent of all closed sales in terms of dollar volume for El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach combined during April.
For the 12 months ended April 30, Shorewood reported a total of 1,927 transactions worth a total of $2.03 billion, for an average per-transaction value of $1.053 million.
For more information, contact Shorewood at (310) 376-8021 or any of its local offices in El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach and Palos Verdes Estates. ER

Prices up, volume down in
January – Shorewood Report
Coming off the traditionally slow holiday sales period, El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach recorded 103 homes sold in January, a 12-month low, according to the monthly Shorewood Report. Last January’s figure was 125 homes sold.
At the same time, the number of homes listed for sale increased nearly 67 percent from the same month last year, with 394 on the market last month compared to 236 in January 2005.
Both asking and selling prices showed continued strength, however, with the average price of homes for sale in the four cities rising 7.3 percent to $1.36 million from last January, and average sale prices jumping more than 25 percent to $1.19 million. Median selling prices were up nearly 31 percent year-over-year.
The number of days the typical home spent on the market was also higher in January, at 47 days (a 12-month high), compared to 38 last January.
“January 2005 was not a particularly strong month, but the pace began picking up in February and March and we’re hopeful the same pattern will occur this year as we move into spring,” said Arnold Goldstein and Larry Wolf, co-owners of Shorewood. “All the fundamentals remain in place for the South Bay to continue being an active market, including healthy price appreciation.”
For more information, contact Shorewood at (310) 376-8021. ER

Shorewood agents present
Record $44,000 to students
Over $44,000 in scholarships to graduating South Bay high school seniors were presented by Shorewood Realtors agents and employees of its affiliated companies during the company’s annual awards luncheon last week.
Shorewood co-owner of Larry Wolf Shorewood said this year’s amount is the most the company has donated in one year since the program began in 1995. Over the past 11 years Shorewood agents have contributed a total of $227,000 in scholarships.
“The number-one reason people move here is the quality of our schools, and we want to do everything we can to help keep them strong and providing quality education,” Wolf said.
Wolf presented checks for $12,840 to Mira Costa High School, $18,940 to Redondo Union High School, $6,100 to schools in the Torrance Unified School District, and $2,700 to El Segundo High School.
School officials on hand at the luncheon to acknowledge the awards included Bruce Auld, Superintendent, El Segundo Unified School District and Jim Garza, Principal, El Segundo High School; Dr. Gwen Gross, Superintendent and Julie Ruzinga, Principal, Mira Costa High School; Dr. George Mannon, Superintendent, and Terry Ragins, Board President, Torrance Unified School District; Robert Olson, Superintendent, Redondo Union School District; and Goy Casillas and Mary Little, co-Principals, Redondo Union High School.
The scholarship funds come from Shorewood agents and employees of several of the firm’s affiliates, including Brighton Escrow, Fidelity Title Co. and Lawyer’s Title Co., who donate a percentage of their sales commissions.
In addition to scholarships, Shorewood agents also support local schools in many other ways, including grants to specific programs and making company facilities available for school phone banks and meetings. Many are also involved in local reading programs, teacher assistance, parent-teacher associations, and local educational foundations.
Founded in 1969, Shorewood Realtors is the largest independently-owned real estate brokerage in Los Angeles County and among the largest nationwide, with eight offices and more than 400 agents covering the South Bay and other coastal and beach cities. The firm reported closed transactions worth a total of $2.29 billion for the 12 months ended December 2005.

Internet users speeding
home sales, says expert
More home buyers use the internet to begin their search than use traditional methods, California Association of Realtors Leslie Appleton-Young told Shorewood Realtors’ agents at the company’s annual awards breakfast last month.
Last year, 62 percent used the Internet while 38 percent used traditional methods, CAR’s chief economist said. Internet buyers spent an average of nearly 4.72 weeks looking for a home before contacting an agent, versus 1.64 weeks for traditional buyers, and spent only two weeks looking at homes with their agents before purchasing, versus seven weeks traditional shoppers spent with their agents. Over half of first-time home buyers found their agents on the Internet, Appleton-Young said.
Shorewood general manager Mike Collins noted that www.shorewood.co receives over one million hits a month.

McSweeney recognized
by fellow agents
Re/Max Palos Verdes agent Jack McSweeney has been voted one of the Top 3 Most Referred Real Estate Agents in Rancho Palos Verdes. The recognition comes from the Most Preferred Real Estate Agents, a network of over 5,000 Realtors throughout the U.S. and Canada. SBRE

Back in the USSR
Latvian real estate agents are “energetic, optimistic…and have a good capital system set up. They’re attracting both domestic and foreign investment, and they’re renovating and rebuilding a lot of buildings that had been put up under the Soviets,” said Shorewood Realtors agent Mickey Knickerbocker, following a visit to two former USSR states.
In the Ukraine, by contrast, “There’s no multiple listing service… buyers and sellers have to run around and talk to as many agents as possible and then list with all of them… [The agents] don’t like the idea of sharing their listings with others,” Knickerbocker found.
She said Ukranians are resistant to licensing and regulation because of their experience with government interference under Soviet rule.
Knickerbocker visited Latvia and the Ukraine as part of a National Association of Realtors delegation, which hoped to convince the former Soviet Union real estate agents to join NAR’s international network.

Whiff’s of Prop 13
The federal government’s $350 billion deficit has Congress reviewing the Mortgage Interest Deduction, a key real estate stimulator, Leslie Appleton-Young told Shorewood Realtors agents two weeks ago at the company’s annual awards breakfast at the Trump National golf course.
Eliminating second home deductions and replacing the deduction on primary residences with a 15 percent tax credit, with a cap tied to 125 percent of the FHA limit of $227,000 to $412,000, are two of the ideas under discussion, the California Association of Realtors economist said.
“I don’t think there’s much support for tinkering with the mortgage deduction, but it’s something to keep an eye on. It could become a political litmus test in the future,” she added.

Underground resistance
Opponents of undergrounding utilities in Manhattan Beach have received nearly $10,000 in unsolicited contributions, according to a group suing to block undergrounding in districts 2 and 6. District 2 stretches from Ardmore Ave. to Poinsettia Ave., and Second St. to Eighth St. District 6 encompasses The Strand to Highland Ave., and 15th St. to Marine Ave.
A majority of residents voted for the undergrounding in November. But since then costs, ranging from $6,700 to $58,000, have spawned resistance. The council plans to form a five-resident sub committee to study the issue.

Economist Leslie Appleton-Young went straight to the “B” word during her annual address at the Shorewood Realtors awards breakfast at Trump National Golf Course last Wednesday.
“Everybody’s talking about it. I first talked about it three and a half years ago at a Goldman Sachs panel discussion,” the chief economist for the California Associations of Realtors said.
“There is a real estate bubble – in articles about the bubble,” she said. “But I’m not worried about a bubble in home sales, at least not in Southern California.”
A bubble, she said, is what took place in the technology driven NASDAQ, which skyrocketed from 2000 to nearly 5,000 in the 12 months between January, 1999 and January 2000, and then dropped to below 2000 over the next 12 months.
But economics 101, she said, teaches that a bubble requires “too much inventory and not enough buyers.” In the mid 1990s, growing unemployment in the South Bay due to the aerospace crash led to more people wanting to sell than buy, leading to a collapse in the real estate market, interrupting two decades of steady appreciation.
Today, despite rapid home appreciation, the demand for homes is still outpacing the supply, she said.
The demand, Appleton-Young said, is being generated by low mortgage rates, the 78 million baby boomers who are in their prime earning years, and money leaving the stock market for the real estate market.
She minimized the impact of speculation, particularly at the beach, because beach property is too expensive for the kind of spec building taking place in Las Vegas and California’s central valley.
On the supply side, she noted, the median time homes were on the market last year was under four weeks. By contrast, in 1992, when real estate collapsed, the median time it took to sell a home was 13 weeks.
Though she dismissed the likelihood of a real estate crash, Appleton-Young did say the market is headed for a “soft landing.”
“I’ve been saying for two years that this rate of appreciation is not sustainable,” she said.
Southern California homes appreciated approximately 19 percent in 2002, 21 percent in 2003, 25 percent in 2004 and 15 percent last year.
Her prediction for Southern California homes in 2006 is six to 12 percent appreciation.
Appleton-Young noted that the nationwide median price next year for a detached, single family home will be approximately $220,000.
“When was the last time you sold a single family home for $220,000?” she asked, eliciting laughter from the audience. The median price in California last year exceeded $500,000 and in the beach cities was approximately $1 million. ER

The ‘second home indicator’
Real Estate West Broker Robert Schumann has identified what he calls a “ringing endorsement” for the current values assigned to homes in the beach cities.
He calls it “the second home indicator” — the multi million dollar prices being paid for second homes at the beach.
“These sales are to people who can afford homes in Malibu, Newport, Beverly Hills, or anywhere else. Many of these second home sales are all cash,” Schumann noted.
A corollary to the “second home indicator,” Schumann said, is the decision by many of these buyers, to subsequently make their beach home their primary residence.
But the high values are a mixed blessing for long time residents. Even assuming an average household income of over $100,000 in the beach cities, most residents would be unable to buy their own home at today’s prices, Schumann said.
Another measure of the area’s desirability, he added, is the increasing number of high end beach rentals, a market previously only seen in areas such as Malibu and Newport.

Prices up, sales down,
says Shorewood Reports
The average single family home sale price in the three Beach Cities and El Segundo was $1.2 million in October, up 33.5 percent from October 2004, when the average sale price was $842,000, according to the most recent Shorewood Realtors Report.
The average asking price in the three Beach Cities and El Segundo also rose significantly, to $1.35 million, up from $1.09 million, or nearly 24 percent over the previous October’s figure.
Sales of single family homes fell 14 percent in October, compared to October 2004, according to the report. The number of homes for sale in October in the four beach cities was 375, down from 385 in the previous October. A total of 153 homes were sold, down 14 percent from the 178 in October 2004.
The time it took for homes to sell was largely unchanged. A year ago, homes averaged 31 days on the market. This October the sales period was 31 days, according to the report.

Knickerbocker to lead
Residential Specialists
Shorewood Realtors agent Mickey Knickerbocker was sworn in recently as president of the Southern California chapter of the Council of Residential Specialists. Only three percent of the nation’s real estate agents have earned Council of Residential Specialists (CRS) recognition, which requires extensive coursework.
Knickerbocker said her plan is to increase the number and variety of locally offered courses. For more information about the new courses, contact Knickerbocker at (310) 546-7561, ext. 441 or at mknickerbocker@shorewood.com. ER

Shorewood provides the beat
for Holiday Parade bands
The Shorewood Realtors office in Malaga Cove Plaza will sponsor all eight marching band entries in the upcoming Seventh Annual Peninsula Holiday Parade in Rolling Hills Estates.
This year’s “Parade of Lights” will start at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Silver Spur Road and Deep Valley Drive and conclude at 8 p.m. with an awards ceremony between The Avenue of the Peninsula and Peninsula Center on Crossfield Drive.
According to Shorewood agent John Defterios, “All the bands looked so outstanding we couldn’t decide which one to sponsor, so we decided to sponsor the entire category. Shorewood’s $1,550 sponsorship will help underwrite the bands entry fees as well as trophy presentations to the winners.
Bands from Palos Verdes High School and South High School, along with others from local high schools and middle school bands will participate
Awards will be given for Sweepstakes/Musical, Sweepstakes/Equestrian and the Mayor’s Trophy for the best local entry. The judging will be conducted by representatives of the Southern California School Band and Orchestra Association and a professional equestrian judge.
In addition to the bands, the parade will include floats, equestrian entries, drill teams, community organizations and civic leaders. L.A. County Supervisor Don Knabe who will serve as Grand Marshal. Cable TV system Cox Communications will broadcast the parade live and re-air it throughout the holiday season.
For more information about Shorewood’s Malaga Cove Plaza office or its sponsorship of this year’s “Parade of Lights,” contact John Defterios, event co-chair Dave Long or office manager Steve Rosemary at (310) 698-1555. The office is located at 16 Malaga Cove Plaza in Palos Verdes Estates.

Flamenco guitarists and
Dancers to perform at
RB Sister City dinner
The Redondo Beach Sister Cities Committee will hold its Fifth Annual Holiday Fiesta Fundraiser this Sunday at Delzano’s by the Sea in Redondo Beach from 6. to 10 p.m.
The public is invited for food, music and dancing. The Max Mendoza Duo will perform Classical Spanish Guitar, and also perform with the Flamenco Dance Team. A Mexican Holiday Dinner will be serve and there will be a silent auction and raffle.
The Sister Cities of Redondo Beach are Ensenada and La Paz, Mexico. Proceeds from this annual fundraiser will benefit the Redondo Beach Sister City Youth Exchange Program with Redondo’s sister Cities, Ensenada and La Paz. Tickets available at the door $20
For more information contact Bayside Properties Realtor Jeannie Penner at 259-6570 or Smith Properties Realtor Gentil Smith at 944-3940.

Remodeled Morgan Jeweler’s
offers designer boutiques
Morgan’s Jewelers will hold celebrate the remodel of its Torrance store with a holiday sale beginning Sunday, Dec. 4 and continuing through Saturday, Dec. 11. The remodel doubled the retail space to provide room for designer boutiques within the store for prominent manufacturers such as Chopard. Morgan’s Torrance store is located at 22200 Hawthorne Blvd. For more information phone (310) 375-4471. Morgan Jeweler’s Palos Verdes Store at 50-C Peninsula Center will also participate in the sale. Its number is 541-2052

Campbell joins City
National Bank team
Hermosa Beach native and Manhattan Beach resident Kevin Campbell has joined City National Bank as senior vice president and manager of the bank’s Commercial and Private Banking Services for Long Beach and the South Bay.
Most recently, Campbell spent five years as senior vice president and regional manger for Citibank’s Long Beach and South Bay commercial banking group. From 1992 to 2000, Campbell managed the business banking group and worked in commercial banking for Bank of America. He began his career in 1984 with Lloyd’s Bank. ER

Hermosa’s first mixed use development in decades is under construction in the south end of Hermosa, on the east side of Hermosa Ave. Across the street, at 2nd and Hermosa Ave., its second mixed use project is about to break ground.
Mixed use has attracted increasing interest at the beach because the residential element helps developers justify the high price of beach property while the commercial element satisfies the desire of cities to hold down density and maintain sales tax revenue.
The property in the 00 block of Hermosa Ave. consists of three residential condos and three commercial condos designed by former Hermosa councilwoman Julie Oakes and her husband Lee of Oakes and Associates for Manhattan Corners, LLC. The contemporary design incorporates green materials and technology, including windows and other specialty treatments. Each of the units is approximately 1,900 square feet. The site was formerly occupied by a child day care center and a retail store.
Julie Oakes said she expects the project to be completed by spring.
Architect Pat Killen is the owner and developer of the three story mixed use project on the site of what was most recently known as the Second Street Cafe and, previously, as Pete and RePete’s Cafe. Killen plans to relocate his current downtown Hermosa Beach office to the new project’s 1,100 square foot, ground floor commercial condo. Upstairs will be a 2,700 square-foot residential condo.
In contrast to the Oakes’ project, where the design clearly delineates the residential and commercial areas, Killen said he deliberately blurred the lines between the two uses. An iPod-like architectural element that runs the length of the project provides decks and open space for both units.
Killen said he hopes to break ground on the project in February. ER

Metlox ready for holidays
After seven years of planning and construction, the downtown Manhattan Beach Metlox shopping center will open in time for the holidays with a ribbon cutting on Thursday, Dec. 1 at 4 p.m. The Mira Costa Orchestra and chorale group will perform.
Many of the center’s tenants, including Design Within Reach furniture, Papyrus paper products and the Shade Hotel are already open.
Places to eat in the center include Le Pain Quotidian bakery, Junior DeliBoys, Petros’ Greek Cuisine and Lounge, and Cold Stone Creamery.
Retailers include True Religion Jeans, Fresh Produce clothing, Petros’ Vintage clothing, O’My Sole footwear, 23rd Street Jewelers, Look Eyewear, and Buster and Sullivan, a pet boutique.
Other businesses include Salon Brit hair salon, Curves gym, Chefmakers Cooking Academy, Trilogy Spa Boutique, and Color Me Mine, a paint-your-own-ceramics studio.
Professional services will be offered by Anne Norris-Ozer, DDS and Steven W. Ozer DDS, dentistry; Janelle Holden, DDS, pediatric dentistry for children from infants to teens with special needs; and Coldwell Banker Realtors.
Metlox is located at the corner of Manhattan Beach Boulevard and Valley/Ardmore in downtown Manhattan Beach. Metered parking is available in the 460-space subterranean parking structure, with entrances on Morningside and Valley drives. The 64,000 square-foot center was developed through a public/private partnership between the City of Manhattan Beach and Tolkin Group. ER

Nota to address ECC’s
future architects
The El Camino College department of architecture will sponsor a presentation from Hermosa Beach architect Dean Nota at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 18 in the campus cafeteria.
Nota is known for his distinctly contemporary-style houses and has taught at the Southern California Institute of Architecture. The architect will present “Five California houses,” a discussion of five houses he desighed that chronicle his design philosophy.
Nota’s presentation is part of the architecture department’s speaker series. The next event is scheduled for Dec. 8 and will feature El Camino College architecture instructor Mike Stallings, who will discuss the upcoming El Camino College architecture, study abroad experience to Italy. For more information, call 310-660-3626.

Campbell joins City
National Bank team
Hermosa Beach native and Manhattan Beach resident Kevin Campbell has joined City National Bank as senior vice president and manager of the bank’s Commercial and Private Banking Services for Long Beach and the South Bay.
Most recently, Campbell spent five years as senior vice president and regional manger for Citibank’s Long Beach and South Bay commercial banking group. From 1992 to 2000, Campbell managed the business banking group and worked in commercial banking for Bank of America. He began his career in 1984 with Lloyd’s Bank.

South Bay mobile unit
to aid hurricane victims
Manhattan Beach’s All City Computers, in conjunction with the South Bay Work Investment Board, has sent its mobile training vehicle known as the CompuBus to an employment training camp outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Two All City Computers workers and the self-contained, 30-foot mobile training and command center will assist in providing computer training to evacuees seeking employment in the Gulf Coast. All City Computers is located at 3001 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Manhattan Beach. For more information call 546-2467. ER

Prices up, inventory down,
says new Shorewood Report
Home sale prices in the three beach cities and El Segundo averaged $1.17 million in September, according to the September Shorewood Realtor’s Report. The prices reflect an 18 percent increase over September 2004 prices. The number of homes sold was also up, from 108 in September 2004 to 193 this September. But the number of homes on the market in September was down 13 percent, from 408 homes in September 2004 to 356 this September.
The average asking price was $1.31 million, up 23 percent, according to the report.
The report also notes that Shorewood’s 29.2 percent market share in September in the three beach cities and El Segundo was the largest of any real estate company. The firm was also the September market leader in Palos Verdes, where its Malaga Cove office celebrated its first anniversary last week.

New Balance opens largest
US location in South Bay
New Balance South Bay, the largest New Balance store in the country opens tomorrow in the old Pier One location at 20611 Hawthorne Blvd., just south of Del Amo Blvd. and north of Torrance Blvd.
Longtime South Bay resident and owner Paul Tordella says the store will offer everything footwear-related for the runner, tennis player, basketball player and hiker. Shoe sizes will range from infant to adult 16E, and AA to 6E.
To celebrate the opening the store will offer 20 percent discounts on selected items through November 13.

‘Party Patrol’ will pay bills
at Galleria 20th anniversary
The South Bay Galleria celebrates its 20th Anniversary tomorrow with a “party patrol” that will intercept randomly selected shoppers at the register and pay for their purchases. The party patrol will also randomly give away $20 gift cards.
Flautist Gordon Halligan will perform a free concert from noon to 4 p.m. Balloon artists and stilt walkers will entertain and free refreshments will be offered from 4 to 6 p.m. Shoppers will also be invited to participate in games, dance lessons, musical chairs, and hula hoop and a bubble blowing contests.
“This is our way of saying thank you to the community. It’s also a great time to get a head start on holiday shopping,” said Linda Banh, the Galleria’s director of marketing.
For more information call guest services at (310) 371-7546.

RPV mayor replaces Aldinger
on State Coastal Commission
Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor Larry Clark has been named to the California Coastal Commission, filling a seat vacated by Manhattan Beach Councilman Jim Aldinger.
Clark is a Democrat and serves on the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy Capital Campaign. He will represent 13 million residents in 19 Los Angeles and Orange County coastal cities. Among his first duties will be addressing several major developments in his own city, including the Long Point Resort Hotel, the Trump National Golf Course and Oceanfront Estates.
Aldinger resigned under pressure after it was disclosed that on his Coastal Commission application, he failed to mention a public intoxication arrest and a restraining order filed against him by a former girlfriend. Aldinger denied any wrongdoing, and said he resigned because of the legal cost required to defend his seat.

Construction begins on coastal day spa
Construction has begun on the Glen Ivy Day Spa in the Hermosa Pavilion at 1601 Pacific Coast Hwy. The new spa’s parent company is Glen Ivy Hot Springs Spa in Corona. The 15,000-square-foot facility will include 13 massage areas, five facial suites, men’s and women’s locker rooms, men’s and women’s spas, two steam rooms, manicure and pedicure stations and The Grotto — Glen Ivy’s signature body moisturizing treatment. Paula Walters Productions, the Palm Springs, California-based firm credited with the spa’s design, has selected a pallet of natural wood, stone and tile finishes to replicate the unpretentious natural design of the original Corona-based Glen Ivy Hot Springs Spa.
The general contractor is R.D. Olson Construction, whose other clients have included Marriott, Hilton, The Historic Mission Inn, Morton’s Restaurant Group, The Ojai Valley Inn & Spa Resort and Benihana. ER