Summer is closing in and this tends to be the busiest selling season of the year. It is the most convienent for families because their children aren’t in school. The general consensus among realtors about the market right now is that things are picking up. There is a lack of inventory and the inventory that is priced well or is top quality is selling quickly with multiple offers. Interest rates went down even lower, which I still can’t believe and affordability from the lower price points in the market are allowing many buyers to jump in.

Fiserv is predicting average U.S. home prices will rise ~4% annually over the next 5 years. Signs are pointing to a stabilizing market with foreclosures dramatically decreasing working off the distressed inventory. Home prices are reported to have risen 0.6% from February to March which is the first month-over-month increase since July. And half of the 146 metro areas surveyed by the National Association of Realtors are reporting price increases.

The National Association of Realtors reported signed contracts have risen 4.1% which is the highest level since April of 2010. The European debt crises may lead foreign money to come over to the US as we must be looking like a better and better investment

Address 308 N Sycamore Ave

French was popular during the revival period in Los Angeles, Architecture ranging from the 1920’s through the 1930’s. Luxury home owners love French- it is very much in favor to this day. Faubaurg St Denis is an excellent example of Chateauesque-French Norman Revival style architecture.

Front Facade

Built in 1928, the building was originally apartments with one apartment of each floor. Faubaurg St Denis was designed by architect James N. Conway. In 1930, Conway was also architect for two Mission-style garden apartments in Westwood that are now historic Cultural Monuments (Historic-Cultural Monument #446/447). The building was called the Beverly Sycamore.

The developer imagined building three similar buildings on each corner of Beverly Sycamore intersection, but those plans never came about.

Five-stories with steel frame construction, Faubaurg St Denis is H-shaped  which results in no common walls for the units.

In1987, the building was converted to condos. There are 22 total units. 4 units on each floor and two town house units in the rear of the property by N Orange Dr (Units #110 and #109).

The two buildings behind the pool are the townhouse units

Every Facades of the building is beautiful with slight variations on each side. Each façade is balanced symmetrically around a vertical centerline.

From Beverly

Quoin stones line the corners, slate tiles roof with louvered dormers and pinnacles, chimneys, wrought iron finials, balconies with balustrades, and decorative corbels

The entry gate is massive with triumphal-style arch, capped by a denticulated cornice. Ornate wrought iron gates enclose the courtyard.

The lobby has giant beamed ceilings, with crown molding. Marble fireplace and delft-style tile flooring.

Penthouse units on the fifth floor have Huge 18ft Vaulted  ceilings and entryway skylights, and great views

3Br /2.5ba

Approx 2,000sqft units

HOA $1000 month

Amenities

Pool, the pool is excellent

Gym – not much to write home about but adequate

Subterraine gated parking, garage entrance on Beverly. 2 parking spaces/ unit. There is no elevator in the garage and it is seperate from the building. So to get out of your car, you must come up the steps from the parking level, across the walkway and into the building then to the elevator. This can be a bit of a walk but nothing to complain about.

Stairway to Subterranean Garage

A leaseback is when the seller of the property needs to rent back from the new owner. This can be because they haven’t found a new place to live, or sold more quickly than they anticipated. For a buyer it is rarely to your benefit to do a leaseback. The amount of rent you collect on the small number of days isn’t worth the hassel and unless you don’t plan on moving quickly, it will be an inconvenience to you. It is done to be nice usually.

Leaseback rarely occurs in deals because it can be quite sticky. You don’t collect any security deposit from the seller (they just sold you their house !) so if they damage the place while they are there (could be just on accident) you don’t have any coverage for that. If you are paying to live somewhere else, each day that you can’t move in will be costing you your daily living expense. Usually the seller leasing back will say they will pay your PITI- mortgage payment + taxes + insurance. This doesn’t factor in your living cost per day.

If the seller decides to stick around a little longer, you may end up with an eviction process, which seems quite ridiculous.

The good news is the leaseback amount is withheld from the seller proceeds in escrow, so that you don’t have to collect a rent check from the seller.

In all tenancy situations, I recommend a move in and move out inspection. Before the sellers leave go through the property with them if you spot a problem you can resolve it.

Harry Gesner

Harry Gesner is adventure. His internationally renowned architecture is bold, and contemporary. One Gesner design- the Wave House (1957), inspired The Sydney Opera.

Wave House in Malibu

Gesner is a SoCal native Surf Spicoli. He’s surfed his entire life and that connection with the beach/ocean influences his designs. (Wave House’s first sketch was on the back of his surfboard)

Gesner on beach with his three sons. From Left: Zen, Jake, Gesner and Stepson Dolan

STORY

At 17, Gesner was recruited into the US Army 10^th Mountain Ski Division because he could ski. Gesner was taught Skiing by his Norwegian uncle growing up. Gesner survived the invasion of Normandy during WWII. Gesner was blasted by a tank and his legs were badly damaged. The doctors recommended surgery and amputation but he refused, instead choosing to rub olive oil on his legs, and he recovered completely.

After the war, Gesner spent six months in South America as an archeologist/treasure hunter. He sold the loot from the Inca expedition to museums and collectors and used the proceeds to pursue architecture.

Gesner audited an architecture class at Yale. Frank Lloyd Wright was impressed by Gesner’s drawings and invited him to Taliesin West. Gesner, ever the rebel, refused- he had no intention of becoming a Frank Lloyd Wright Jr. and dedicated himself to self-educate.

EARLY CAREER

Gesner began by working as a laborer on construction sites alongside skilled Journeymen. He quickly learned all the various trades. Within 10 years he was very busy designing/buildings homes. In 1954, he built his parent’s house in Tarzana, with his signature slanted stone adobe.

He quickly received a reputation for challenging projects and taking on all comers. He built spectacular dream homes on what were considered unbuildable lots.

Gesner designed a home for playboy swimwear tycoon Fred Cole that had bamboo bead curtains that clattered when one of Cole’s countless model girlfriends passed in and out.

He built a home in 1966 for the inventor J.R. Scantlin with a lap pool that had an underwater entrance to the master bathroom—a feature architect Richard Meier, a later tenant, sealed up when a transient plunged through the opening, attired himself in Meier’s clothing, and was found smoking a cigar in the living room.

Gesner designed a little over one hundred homes- a number that is relatively low (compare with Frank Lloyd Wright who designed over 400). This is because Gesner was very hands on during construction.

Sandcastle 

Sandcastle, Gesner’s primary residence, situated next store to wave house, was made with reclaimed wood. Gesner built Sandcastle for his wife. “I wanted to design something that [she] and my son would be happy in, that we would all be happy in, and a circular house has a great feeling of peace and livability.”

Driving Mulholland you may notice five vacant 4,000 sqft contemporary homes that line Woodstock Road in Laurel Canyon.

2505 - 2529 Woodstock Road

The homes have been vacant for years now and are boarded up. What an eyesore! Especially for the unfortunate residents of Thames directly below.

The story of how this came to be begins in the 1980’s when Developer Yehuda Arviv purchased 21 legal lots on Leicester Drive and Woodstock Road. Eight years later Arviv Enterprizes received approval from the city to build 21 private residences. Nothing happened for 10 years.

Finally in 1998, Arviv started construction (the five homes that are there today). By 2000, four houses were finished and a fifth was 80% done.

Photoshop MLS Listing

Unfortunately for Yehuda, neighbors began complaining and rallied against it. The community demanded a full environmental review.

Yehuda tried to sue the city twice to get around the environmental review process but lost both cases. He eventually was foreclosed on.

The five houses that were built are not habitable because they have no water, power, sewer or public street access. The portion of Woodstock Road that services the houses is dirt road.

Neighbors had good reason to protest. The steep slope of the hill required massive 50 feet high and 300 feet wide retaining walls to be built, and the slope was known to be unstable. Mount Olympus residents did not want Woodstock to connect with Mt Olympus Dr. therefore allow Laurel Canyon commuters to take it as a short cut.

In 2007 abrahams+eyster architecture jumped on board. They had just completed their contemporary house on 2540 Thames

2540 Thames

and envisioned a new “environmentally intelligent” design concept for the community entitled “New Leaf”. The Project met with the same intense oppositions and was abandoned.

New Leaf Artist Rendering

Visitor Permits

In addition to annual permits, each residence may also get two guest parking permits. The Guest permit is good for 4 months and costs $22.50 per permit.

A permit allows the vehicle to park anywhere within the district.

Temporary Permits

In addition to Guest Permits, each residence may also purchase a one-day temporary permit for large events. You may purchase up to 25 one-day permits. They are $2.50 each.
Return to Permit Parking article

In LA: Before you park, read the signs carefully!

Permit parking zones scatter Los Angeles. Property owners pay for sidewalk and street maintenance. Permit Parking Zones protect homeowner’s right to park in the street in front of their houses.

Parking Zones are commonly found close to high density apartment buildings or commercial/retail destinations where visitors and local employees park regularly, for long periods of time, occupy all available spaces for street parking.

Annual permit cost $34 per permit. Each household is allowed up to three annual permits. Attach Annual permit to the left back bumper of your vehicle:

To purchase an annual permit visit one of four city office locations:

Downtown

312 W 2nd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Mid-Wilshire

3333 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 3337
Los Angeles, CA 90010

West Los Angeles

9911 W. Pico Blvd. Suite B-201
Los Angeles, CA 90035

Van Nuys

6309 Van Nuys Blvd. Room 103
Van Nuys, CA 91401

In order to purchase an annual permit, you must provide the following information:

1. Current vehicle registration (or if leased, a copy of the lease, or if registering a company vehicle, a letter from the employer confirming the license number of the vehicle and the name of the employee applicant.) The vehicle must be in the resident’s name and registered to the address within the district.
2. Two additional proofs of residency. The following may be used for this purpose:
1. Driver’s license
2. Property Tax Bill or rental/lease agreement
3. Utility Bill (Cable TV, Telephone landline only, Gas, Water, or Electric)

^* you must pay all outstanding parking fines before you can buy a parking permit.

Need More parking?

See Visitor Pass

See Guest Pass

Questions?

Call the Permit Hotline number: (310) 843-5936

Search Cahuenga Tennis Club for sale

Nestled  in the canyons of Cahuenga Pass, Hollywood Hills-  Cahuenga Tennis Club is a conveniently located affordable condominium complex with great amenities. The property has wonderful pine trees all around that remind me of Northern California.

Cahuenga Tennis Club has 173 units and rests on  15  acres of land.    The complex  was built    in  1975.   Units originally sold for   $28,000  for  one  bedrooms,  $38,000  for  two bedrooms,  and  $48,000  for  three  bedrooms.

Now adays prices range from $250,000 to $400,000. All units have balconies. Located nearby to Universal Studios and citywalk, the Hollywood Bowl, and easy access to Hollywood and Valley. The building has three tennis courts with lighting. The property has  lovely outdoor pool area with Jacuzzi, and a dog park.

The complex is made up of 4 seperate buildings.

Building 1 (20) units

Building 2 (51) units

Building 3 (30) units

Building 4 (72) units

Each building is 3 stories- and has a different unit mix. Units range in size from 700sqft to 1,500sqft and HOAs range from $250-$350/mo.

Here are some Random interiors

and the view

Located within Griffith Park atop Mt. Lee, the Hollywood sign has become an internationally recognized symbol for Los Angeles. Tourists often travel to Beachwood Canyon to snap photos.

Early History

The Hollywood sign was constructed in 1923 by Harry Chandler, owner of the LA Times, to advertise his new real estate development “Hollywoodland” at a cost of $21,000.

Hollywoodland Realty Office

Mules Hauled telegraph poles, sheet metal, and other materials to Mt. Lee to construct the Hollywoodland Sign

The sign was a billboard advertising the development and was intended to be removed after eighteen months. 4,000 blinking light bulbs decorated the Hollywood sign and lit up at night, making quite a spectacle. The sign  flashed in segments, first Holly, then wood, then land, before lighting up completely. A searchlight below it lighted up for emphasis, like an exclamation point. Hollywoodland!  Albert Kothe was caretaker for the sign. His job was to replace the burnt-out light bulbs.

Hollywoodland Sign Lit up at night, 1923

Hollywood Sign Falls into disrepair

The original Hollywoodland sign was made of wood and had to be repaired and restored periodically. In the early 1940s the sign fell into disrepair- letters were destroyed, and all the bulbs had been stolen.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and the City of Los Angeles Parks Department joined together to bring the Hollywood Sign back to life. During this renovation, in 1949 “Land” was removed to reflect the Hollywood district as a whole and not just the housing development.

The Hollywood Sign Rebuilt

During the late 70’s, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce decided that the Hollywood sign needed a complete restoration. The project cost was around $250,000. Hugh Hefner held a fundraiser for the Hollywood sign in 1978 at the Playboy Mansion. Each of the letters of the sign were put up for “adoption” at $27,700 each.

“W” was funded by crooner Andy Williams, rock artist Alice Cooper “adopted” one of the O’s, while Gene Autry financed an L’s reconstruction. With the funding in place the old sign that stood for over half a century was demolished.

Hugh Hefner and donors save Hollywood Sign 1978

Hollywood sign in Modern times

The old wood sign was replaced by 45 foot tall letters made of sturdier corrugated steel. The sign is 450 feet wide.

Today the Hollywood sign sign overlooks the residential neighborhood of Hollywood Hills East, Beachwood Canyon, Bronson Canyon, and Hollywood Dell. These communities have narrow winding roads that are common in hillside homes. On New Year’s Eve of 1999, the Hollywood Sign was rigged up with lights for a Millennial fireworks show. People clogged Beachwood Canyon by the thousands, trapping Canyon residents and blocking emergency fire lanes. This night had a lasting effect on local residents, who I am sure will fight any proposals to light the Hollywood sign in the future.

Hollywood Sign in Jeopardy

Howard Hughes bought the caheunga peak property adjacent to the sign in 1940.

Howard Hughes intended to build a mansion for himself and his then girlfriend Ginger Rogers.

Howard Hughes and Ginger Rogers at movie premier

Howard’s relationship with Ginger ended before he broke ground on the mansion and the parcel remained vacant until his death in 1976, at which time, ownership of the parcel was transferred to the Howard Hughes Trust. In 2002 the Hughes estate put the 138 acre parcel up for sale and it was purchased by a group of Real Estate Investors from Chicago. Through the efforts of the non profit savehollywoodland.org and a generous $900,000 donation at the end from Hugh Hefner – the land was purchased and put into a conservatorship, preserving the vista surrounding the sign. Hugh Hefner explains “It’s [Hollywood Sign] become something iconic and represents not only the town but represents Hollywood dreams, and I think that’s something worth preserving.”

There is a firetrail that leads to the top of Mt Lee Drive, directly to the Hollywood sign, from behind. However the sign is fenced off from the public. It is actually illegal to go near the Sign. The Sign is set well back behind restricting gates and is monitored by security cameras and Park Rangers. It’s a great hike and a wonderful view.

View of Hollywood Sign from Firetrail behind fence

Mt Lee Antenna

Many times you will hear that a property listed for sale has an “accepted offer”. Accepted offer means that buyer and seller have reached an agreement on the terms of sale and have signed a legally binding contract (in most cases a residential purchase agreement).

The status of a listing with an accepted offer can still be active in the MLS if the agent hasn’t updated the listing yet. Once a property has an accepted offer, the mls status will change to pending or looking for backup.

Be careful! If an agent representing the other side tells you verbally that you have acceptance, don’t take their word for it. Until you have received a copy of the complete contract with both parties signatures, in your possession- you do not have acceptance.

Acceptance is synonymous with signed contract in your hands.

An agent might tell you that the sellers told them they will accept your offer, and you as the buyer’s agent go and tell your client the good news, just to find out after a day and a half with no communication from the selling side, that they accepted a cash offer that appeared at the eleventh hour.

Remember: UNTIL YOU HAVE SIGNED CONTRACT WITH OWNERS AND BUYERS Signature – YOU DON’T HAVE *&%$…

Great buyer’s agents will hound listing agents to send them the completed contract.

 
Docusign digital signatures is becoming a very popular way to execute contracts today. However the way the system works is that only the sender of the document will receive the completed copy. Often times, this copy sits in their inbox because they have not forwarded yet. With Docusign documents same rule applies- get the completed contract.

As an aside, don’t spend any money on the property without acceptance. This might sound simple, but until you have the signed contract in your hand, don’t be buying furniture and decorations, don’t be planning movers, and spending money on reports or construction bids, don’t be liquidating stock market positions to free the capital for downpayment, don’t buy the plane ticket… You are basically crossing your fingers hoping that everything will go smoothly. At least wait for the signed contract before taking on any expenses