Category: Real Estate News

Written by: Samantha Guarderas

            Over the past 5 years, many homeowners have been downsizing. However, homeowners may be finding themselves “upsizing”. What is the main reason for this change? Expanding families and a need for more living space is what will ultimately drive this alteration.

            Current buyers are concentrating on proficient ways to utilize the space in their homes. In a survey conducted by national homebuilder PulteGroup, eighty-four percent of homeowners between the ages of 18-59 confirmed that they did not plan to downsize. This is surprising, but also many people have been unable to sell their large homes because of the drop in home prices over the past couple of years.

            From 2010 to 2011, the average size of a new home went up 3.7%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (http://ht.ly/gajAo). Since 2007, this was the first time that there was any hint of homebuilders seeking and commanding bigger space. On top of this shift, homeowners are making it a point to upsize to their current homes. With 35% of architects reporting enhancements in additions and alterations to homes last year, this number has gone up significantly to 58% this past year.

            What else is driving this increase? Energy efficiency and the want to support larger families are carrying these gains. The values of these larger homes, which have been referred to as “McMansions” (between 3,000-5,000 sq ft), are beginning to gain back their value, which had been forgotten about during the housing crash.

            As the year is coming to a close, Eklipse Real Estate has taken note of the wonderful accomplishments over the past year. With over $5 million in sales in our last quarter of the year, we are excited to see what the New Year will bring. Please make sure to follow us on twitter and like us on facebook.

Written by: Samantha Guarderas

     With the housing recovery in progress, taking away a major tax break could prevent future home buying plans. The mortgage deduction is extremely popular with homeowners, real-estate agents, and homebuilders; however, the government is losing billions in potential tax revenue, which may eliminate the mortgage deduction.

 If this were to be eliminated it would cut consumer spending. CNBC mentions that the greatest results of eliminating or cutting the mortgage deduction would include homes becoming less affordable, lowers demands and prices, lowers home improvement spending and affects homeowners in high tax and high property value states. Tanya Marchiol, TEAM Investors Founder and President, has made some great points. We are developing into a renter nation. First time homeowners used to make up 40% of our buyers but are now down to 31%.  If you take this deduction away, the current buyers who are already hesitant in this market will experience more fear, and there will be less money in our economy.

     If you have any questions or need help finding a home please contact us. The Eklipse Real Estate team is dedicated to putting our clients first. 

Written by: Samantha Guarderas

Many foreign investors feel more confident investing in places outside of their home country, as a potential safe haven against any turmoil in their homeland. This creates a rush of foreign investors that have contributed to the purchase of American real estate. This has been extremely helpful to the market and assisted the progress of the housing recovery. The top markets that foreign investors seek are in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami. The main attractions to these destinations include favorable weather conditions, major metropolitan population centers, and noticeable price decreases. However, these foreign investors may not be contributing to the housing recovery for much longer.

Recently, the demand to rent single-family homes has risen in recent years. Real-estate firm CoreLogic reported that rental demand has jumped by more than 25% in the past year. This is said to be a result of families whose homes have been lost to foreclosure or mortgage issues. According to CNBC, apartments will not pose as competition. The competition will be found in foreclosed homes, which have been taken on by individual investors that have placed them back on the market for rent. A large portion of these rental homes has attracted investors whose goals are to build, “scattered-site property management infrastructure for an asset class that has long been the domain of mom-and-pop owners and smaller investors.” These investors show no sign of backing down anytime soon. According to CoreLogic, the leasing activity has risen 7% in the past year. Currently, single-family homes take up over half of all rental units in the United States.

Although home prices have risen 2% since last year and just by 1% so far this year, rental growth takes time to catch up to home price growth by about a year. Therefore, it is estimated that later this year and for the rest of 2013, rent growth will increase. The main appeal of these homes is the comfort that comes with having a yard, garage, privacy and all the above. All of these factors are what is ultimately leading to a high demand in single-family rental housing, and 2013 is only assumed to continue down this same path of high demand.

Our listing located on 1411 S. Main Street, Venice, CA 90291 has 100% occupancy. The 6-unit contemporary style condo building is listed for sale. Each unit includes 3 levels of living space, common area roof deck, private patios, and private garages. Make sure to check it out! The listing agent is Phillip Braunstein.

With the presidential election today, many issues are being brought to the surface regarding taxes and investments. Regardless of who will become the next president, it is likely that an investment surtax will begin on New Year’s Day and will affect thousands of real-estate investors. These real-estate investors are referred to as “passive investors” due to their involvement being mainly part-time. However, they have continued to contribute to real estate and the housing recovery. The ultimate goal for the tax is to pay for the law through raising funds. According to WSJ, those that are said to be affected the most are, “High-paid professionals…a group that includes many doctors, lawyers, dentists and those who work in finance—make up a large percentage of those expected to get snagged under the new law”.

 

Written by: Samantha Guarderas

According to the National Association of Realtors, there are not enough homes currently offered to purchase. The blame is being placed on home sales dropping in areas that had once been desirable. The housing market has been recovering largely in part due to investors. Investors overran places like Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Sacramento during the foreclosure crisis. When these home prices fell investors saw this as a chance to use this for future profit. These distressed sales were 24% of the total home sales in September.

So who is buying? Currently 32% of the market is made up of first-time homebuyers, which are down from the average 45% normally seen. The main issue faced, according to CNBC, is, “…regular home sellers are not putting their homes on the market at a high enough rate to offset the drop in distressed volumes.” Now, some analysts are beginning to expect even further sales drops in the coming months due to the drops in sales on the West. This drop is affecting the market because it has been controlling much of the gain. So while the numbers may show that sales of higher priced homes are up from 2011, we cannot ignore the market as a whole and understand that it is a small portion of its entirety.

According to The Wall Street Journal, regardless of the uncertainty for the future of the housing market, the numbers show us that home sales remain steady. Recently, our home located at 7561 Clinton Street, right off of the world-famous Melrose Avenue district, went into escrow after only 4 days of being on the market! Make sure to follow us on twitter and like us on facebook to be kept up to date with the latest information on real estate and our properties.

The listing agent on this property is Phillip Braunstein.

Last week we closed escrow on two of our properties, marking our first official sales!

Just this past Sunday, October 7th, we had our first open house at our new listing located at 7561 Clinton Street, Los Angeles, CA 90036. The home is a beautifully remodeled and redesigned 2-bedroom/1.75-bath home just south of Melrose Avenue. The highest quality of finishes was used throughout. The floor plan was redesigned to satisfy today’s living style, while also preserving and enhancing the Spanish style of the home. Make sure to visit the open house this Sunday, October 14th!

Written by: Samantha Guarderas

Los Angeles is famous for the entertainment industry. Thousands of people flock to the city every month in pursuit of their dreams. Shows like Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place highlighted and dramatized the luxurious lives of Los Angeles’ elite. These two locations are known for their high-end shopping, lavish culture, exquisite dining, and success driven residents, making the areas sought-after living locations.

Currently, Eklipse Real Estate has a 2 bedroom/2 bath single family residence development nearing completion, located at 7561 Clinton Street, in the heart of the world-famous Melrose Avenue district. It will be listing the house for sale in the upcoming week. The house has been entirely remodeled and redesigned by Eklipse Real Estate, which managed the construction and redesign of the home. The house was taken down to the studs, walls were opened and expanded to renew this beautiful Spanish-style home.

The choices made for the home have turned it into something truly exceptional. The house has all new electric wiring, a new panel, new copper plumbing, energy saving title 24 lights, a new central air and heating system, a new roof, tank less water heater, and a whole new feel and design. The kitchen area was opened up to include the dining area that was once cloistered up, and a pass through with a bar countertop was added to provide access to the living area by creating a tastefully done arch way opening between the two rooms. When entering the living area it is impossible to not take notice of the updated electric fireplace with a stunning mosaic tile finish, made of Elysium diamond.

To allow the new owner the option to dine inside or al fresco, a new French door was added in the dining room area, making the backyard accessible. Another addition was a laundry closet with stackable washer and dryer in the hallway. In addition to these structural improvements and layout redesign, all new Milgard Tuscan windows and 3/8 core wood doors were installed. A new smooth stucco finish is going on next.

Much thought was put into the finishes of this home, so that it would remain within the Spanish aesthetic of the home, but feel completely modern and updated. The finishes include high end Provenza Heirloom Ashford Siberian Oak floor in the living room and bedrooms. The kitchen floor is finished with rough white marble, in a Versailles pattern, which complements the Emperador marble countertops. All of the appliances are stainless steel and enhance the new custom designed cabinets that are a must see! The Hans Grohe kitchen faucet puts the finishing touch on the kitchen for a clean and polished look.  

Finally, the bathrooms have been restored to complete elegance. The bathroom floors and counter tops are Carerra white marble, also completed with all new custom cabinetry. Moen faucets and fixtures in polished chrome update the traditional look, while the Mosaic shower liner adds a touch of old world feel to the appearance.

Eklipse is nearing its completion of its development on the home, and we are thrilled to see everything come together. Watching the transformation of this home has been rewarding, and the location can’t be beat. This home has the whole package.

Eklipse Real Estate, Inc is listing it for sale very shortly, and Phillip Braunstein is the listing agent. The first open house is scheduled for October 7^th. Make sure to drop by to see it for yourself! Pictures of the home will be uploaded next week so make sure to check back.