Seven Ways...
To Pinpoint Your Home Market Value
Trying to get a grip on the current housing market can prove futile even for some of the most astute, computative individuals. Is the market up? Is it suffering from the throes of an infrigidate downturn? If you look at our current market, you might sense a bit of stagnation. Properties are no longer flying off the shelf at outrageous prices. Buyers are no longer competing against ten other offers, three of them all cash (although, that is still sometimes the case with a hot property).
Don’t judge a market by a month of action. Real Estate has always been a long-play; a way to see your money grow over a period of time. Sure, you can cash in on some quick flips when the market is right. But, we tend to look at growth over a period of months and even years.
I took a look at SEVEN specific markets in the South Bay, and their overall increased market value since 2017: El Segundo, Holly Glen/Del Aire, North Redondo, South Redondo, West Torrance, South Lawndale and North Inglewood. Which one do you think had the greatest % increase? Here are the results, from smallest to largest gain*:
West Torrance (5.5%) - One of our areas most sought-after zip codes saw a modest gain in property values over the last year or so. One of the reasons for its lower performance could be the area had a nearly $100K leap in market value from ‘16-’17, and is now adjusting. Regardless of the polemic, a nearly 6% growth is still nothing to shake a stick at! Fun fact: Torrance’s RAT Beach has many myths about the origin of its name. Some claim it’s an acronym for “Right After Torrance”; but local watermen of Haggerty’s Club attribute it to 60’s shredder Rick Irons that once dominated the spot in the 60’s - and his pet rat he kept on the beach!
South Lawndale (7%) - This little pocket just east of Redondo Beach also saw (relatively) modest market gains in the last year. This makes Lawndale still a very viable option for income property, as rents in this area remain strong. But, if you are interested in income property, be sure to vote no on Prop. 10. Fun fact: Lawndale gets its name from Real Estate developer Charles Hopper who named it after a Chicago suburb hoping to draw settlers from the east.
Holly Glen/Del Aire (7.8%) - These A+ neighborhoods of Hawthorne are buoyed by the new Wiseburn High School on Douglas. This area remains a great option for buyers suddenly priced out of some of the more desirable beach neighborhoods. Fun Fact: Four massive lots can be found on 138th and Glasgow, and were purposely developed at the highest point in town for the Grand View builders’ own homes.
North Redondo Beach (13.9%) - This area saw a surge of activity in the last year. We saw saw really nice listings come and go in the TRW Tract, an area dominated by single-family homes, winding streets, and great curb appeal. Fun fact: This part of Redondo was once cheekily dubbed “Felon’s Row” due to the number of biker gangs that could be found there.
North Inglewood (16.5%) - This resurgent bailiwick can thank investments made by the NFL, as well as aerospace and tech companies that have moved into the general environs. This area, first inhabited by Native Americans for the natural springs that are now Edward Vincent Jr. Park, is no longer a secret spec buy. Fun fact: Inglewood was nicknamed “The City of Champions” in 1932 when three locals would become Olympic winners: Hector Dyer, track; Frank Booth, water polo; and George Jefferson, pole vault.
El Segundo (20.6%) - The Second City has seen a meteoric rise in the last few years, owing to a forward-thinking and business-friendly ethos, small town vibe, and emerging amenities. It is quite clearly, one of the hottest markets in California. Fun fact: The El Segundo Trisonic Wind Tunnel or North American Trisonic Wind Tunnel (NATWT) was a wind tunnel that was located in El Segundo, California. It was built by North American Aviation in the 1950s. The tunnel had a maximum testing speed of Mach 3.5.
South Redondo (24.6%) - This whopping market increase is the highest of the seven highlighted communities. Several factors have led to this boom, including the resurgence of the Riviera Village, and newer, high end construction. Other factors could be the pricing in neighboring enclaves (Manhattan Beach/Hermosa Beach) has simply propelled the money into this area. Fun fact: in the 1800’s, Redondo Beach was a popular destination for harvesting moonstones that would wash upon the shore. In honor of this, the city named several of the east/west beach streets after the gimcracks - Agate, Beryl, Carnelian, Diamond, Emerald, Garnet, Jasper, Opal, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, and Topaz.
Bonus - for those willing to gamble, Las Vegas has shown the largest market gain of 2018 (47.3%) according to a report by CNN.
* Data sourcce: Infosparks