Funny scam email.

Occasionally I still get an email scammer sniffing about my real estate site. Most of the time they are the typical Nigerian Prince scam or some variation thereof and I delete without a thought. Sometimes the messages are hilarious here's one I got today:

"Dear Agent of SkyMinor, Greetings, I would like to purchase (Address Omitted in Blog) 

for my husband Mr. Zac Efron, or, Prince Zac. Freeman Interiors of Philadelphia will refurbish and luxuriously decorate the entire home. Urban Plantscapes will do the landscape and gardening. Usedcars.com will send 2 fully loaded and fully insured vehicles with license plates and registration to the home. MY AGENTS WILL TRANSFER PAYMENT."

NELA market update

The first quarter of 2014 is done and prices in Eagle Rock, NELA and Los Angeles in General continue to climb as inventory decreases. This is economics 101, supply and demand. Right now there are many buyers competing over limited inventory so almost everything is getting multiple offers and selling over the asking price. The median single family home prices are over $600,000 in most areas of NELA, this is nearly back to the peak price level seen in 2007. Year over year NELA is up 34%. 

Many people ask me if this is another Real Estate Bubble. The major difference between that market and this one is that now about 1/3 of the properties are bought with all cash and lenders are very tight with underwriting guidelines demanding buyers show proof of income and have down payments. The previous bubble was largely influenced by easy credit-nearly anyone could get a no money down loan without having to prove their income. This time around the buyers can actually afford the houses they are overbidding on. The increasing prices are supported by strong demand from fundamentally stronger buyers.

The numbers for all of Los Angeles County confirm the boom:

In my neighborhood of Eagle Rock, the Median sales price is now back over $627,000.

The market is hot and appears to only get more competitive. Right now I have half a dozen buyers who cannot get an offer accepted because they keep getting beat by other desperate buyers. It's a jungle out there, dress accordingly. 

Real Estate Porn - Sowden House

Being a Realtor in Los Angeles is a great job if you are an architecture aficionado. LA has a rare combination of wealth and eccentricity and there are more strikingly original homes and structures here than any other place I've seen. There is no shortage of characters in this town with unconventional dreams and the financing to bring them to reality. The Sowden house in Los Feliz is a prime example of this phenomena. It was built in 1926 for John Sowden a Hollywood Lensman by Lloyd Wright. Sowden wanted a Mayan influenced theme and Wright delivered. 

The home has thousands of hand cast earth tone concrete blocks emblazoned with images water, clouds, the harvest, the heavens and the sun stacked on each other in homage to the ancient Mayan civilization.

 The courtyard is a overt reference to Mayan architecture, reminiscent of the temple at Sayil on the Yucutan. 

Complete with torches, elaborate gates and foliage the home looks like something Indiana Jones would adventure into. 

Over the years the house has been famous and infamous. It has been in dozens of Movies and TV shows including The Aviator and Americas Next Top Model. There have been some notable residents  Dr. George Hodel, LA playboy and believed to be the Black Dahlia Murderer once lived there. An excellent detailed history of the house is here. 

The house is currently on the market for $4.8m If you'd like to schedule a showing contact Sky Minor