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    South Bay Home Deals to Get Your Wheels Spinning in 2021

    January 22, 2021

    By: Richard Haynes
    South Bay Home Deals to Get Your Wheels Spinning in 2021

    We are fully into 2021 and it is time to start gearing up for the spring selling season! The inventory is still at a slow trickle, but believe me, it will come.

    In future weeks I plan to write more of my standard blog posts that break down individual sub-markets and micro-markets throughout Palos Verdes and the Beach Cities.

    However, for this week’s post, I want to go over some MLS listings that debuted in the last week that look to be deals. Even amidst the low inventory, you can still find value if you know how to look. That said, it is getting harder and harder to identify a good deal unless it is your full-time job, so I am going to break down a few of them to help get your head right for 2021.

    Like I said, there will be more deals, perhaps better or worse, but for now these are solid options to start the new year.

    Below, I will be sharing a single-family home deal in Palos Verdes, a townhome opportunity by the beach, and an income property in Torrance.

    Let’s dive in…

    Ultra-Low Fixer in Palos Verdes Estates

    The pick for a single-family home option this week is this fresh new listing in Palos Verdes Estates.

    • 2217 Via Fernandez, Palos Verdes Estates
      • 4 beds, 2 baths, 1,864 sq. ft., 7,467 sq. ft. lot
      • Asking Price: $1,350,000

    It is tough, if not impossible, to find a single-family home at this price point in Palos Verdes Estates. What’s more, it is a four bedroom home with fabulous backyard space in the prestigious Montemalaga sub-market.

    The median home price for Montemalaga in 2020 was around $2.2 million, with the occasional $10 million home sale ever few years in this wealthy enclave. A price like $1.35 million for this size home is something you will see in more entry-level Palos Verdes areas like Lunada Bay and Valmonte, but the low asking price is correct considering the street and condition of the home.

    This is the classic play of buy the cheapest house on the block and see your upside pay off in the long run. In this case, that would be this $1.35 million home amidst a $2.2 to $10 million dollar priced neighborhood.

    Buy this home with plans to bring it back to life with a full remodel and landscaped backyard, and you are looking at a value that will push into the very high $1 millions, if not $2 million, with a little luck.

    Big Value in Hermosa Beach

    The next pick is a fantastic move-in ready townhome in Hermosa Beach.

    • 623 1st Place, Hermosa Beach
      • 4 beds, 3.5 baths, 2,371 sq. ft.
      • Asking Price: $1,600,000

    This new listing offers loads of space, is walking distance to the beach and Hermosa Pier, and has ocean views from the rooftop deck. At a $1.6 million asking price, this one has tons of value for a buyer looking for a ready-to-go beach home.

    To give you an example of the deep value here, this 4-bed unit is asking $674 per square foot. When compared to all 4-bed townhome sales last year west of PCH, the median sale landed about $950 a square foot. Every sale but one was over $800 a square and most 4-bedroom options sell above $2 million.

    Again, this one is priced correctly due to its location near busy 2nd street and a local automotive repair shop (you can hear the shop during the day), but you are going to be hard pressed to find a better move-in ready value in Hermosa west of PCH.

    I believe this is an excellent buy where you can own it confidently through the long term and you will look back on your shrewd purchase ten years from now and smile.

    Savvy Buyer Special in Torrance

    The pick for an income property is a duplex opportunity in lovely Walteria.

    • 24442 Ward Street, Torrance
      • Duplex, 5 beds (3-bed and 2-bed units), 2,993 sq. ft.
      • Asking Price: $1,399,000

    For the savvy owner-occupied buyer that wants to have a tenant supplement their mortgage, this one is it. The 3-bedroom unit will be delivered vacant and you can see the potential in this charming 3-bed bungalow with its front yard.

    The 2-bedroom unit currently pays $1,745/month, which effectively supports a $300,000 to $400,000 mortgage based on today’s rates. That rent is under market and can be increased over time as well.

    While the price still might be a little rich, this offering, for the right buyer, can provide a single-family home experience that is affordable to buyers with budgets below $1 million thanks to the rental income.

    Not only that, the better part of home sales in Walteria are beginning to go strongly above $1 million. A duplex is in this charming neighborhood will benefit from that single-family growth handsomely.

    Secure this duplex with low owner-occupied, long-term fixed mortgage for an affordable South Bay investment. When you are ready to move-up or move away, you can keep it and hopefully cash flow to keep a great property that could be a retirement plan in and of itself over the next couple of decades.

    Happy hunting!

    I will see you next week.


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