Malibu housing market surges in 2012
The Malibu Real Estate Report / By Rick Wallace
It is just three weeks, a mere hiccup in the scheme of the past few years, but the hills of Malibu are springing more than just new wildflowers. Home sales are blossoming also. From $600,000 to $21 million, the entire spectrum of price tiers have seen boosts in energy unlike any in years.
Eighteen homes reported sold in the 90265 ZIP code in just the first 20 days of spring. It was not that long ago that six homes sold in a month, but the new reality-at least for the moment-is six homes per week. And it was not just lower-priced homes that characterized the final half of 2011: Half the transactions topped $3 million. Incredibly, seven homes were on the beach or bluff, a complete turnaround from the early-year trends.
A significant detail about these sales is that they landed in early spring but they are mostly the result of January-February activity. The year 2012 began with a bang that was unexpected and unmeasurable until now. It turns out the market was voting early and often. Heavy tallies of current escrows hint at continued momentum.
Here’s a toast to the 18 sales, perhaps ushering in a new period of price stability, supply/demand equality and increased volume for the local real estate industry. A look at most of what has just sold:
A $3 million sale of a 2007 rebuild in contemporary style in the lower part of Rambla Pacifico gives value credibility to the new access road for lower Rambla residents. The home has a chef’s kitchen, very tall ceilings, zebra wood cabinetry and full-length picture windows to the stunning views. Sale price was $3.2 million. It is vehicle-friendly also, with a large garage and huge motor court.
An ultra-luxurious beach house at Corral Beach sold for just over $4 million. The home features three bedroom suites and four baths on two stories, with Brazilian walnut floors. The living room has wrap-around glass with views in three directions.
La Costa Beach has been red-hot with two recent sales (and two others reported in escrow). One was a four-bedroom home that traded for $5,750,000. It is a Cape Cod-style home that was originally built in 1950 and has a large second floor master bedroom with a deck. Another celebrity-owned home that is European Villa in style with a large walled-entry courtyard sold for just under $8 million.The property had been on the market at various times since 2006, when it was first listed at $14 million.
Another beach sale occurred nearby on Carbon Beach, for exactly $10 million. With 40 feet of beach, the four-plus-four is a contemporary style with a granite-countertop kitchen. The most recent asking price was the same as the original asking price of one year ago: $13,750,000.
A stunning Mediterranean estate in the Kanan area has sold for $2.6 million. Featuring more than 6,000 square feet, the newer (1997) home is surrounded by landscaping, pools, ponds and waterfalls. The house has five bedrooms and is in exquisite condition, on a gated street.
The Malibu West neighborhood has seen a surge of three sales already this spring season. They include a four-bedroom home with a pool in the backyard and a white picket fence out front, as well as a unique elevated canyon home with panoramic views and a huge entertaining patio. Lastly, a standout home in the neighborhood with two stories, seven bedrooms and a massive 5,000-square-foot interior sold also relatively quickly in REO status.Sale prices, respectively: just over $1 million, $1.2 million and just over $1.3 million.
At the low end of the spectrum was a sale for $650,000 on a short sale in the Malibu Highlands, near Kanan. The two-story tract-style home has five bedrooms. The home had last sold in 2006 for more than $1.4 million.
Then there is the other end of the scale: A Point Dume bluff estate has sold for $21 million. The property, located adjacent to the Headlands park, features more than 10,000 square feet of ultra-modern living space on more than an acre of land, including 180 feet of bluff frontage. Highly acclaimed architects, decorators and landscapers participated in the design, which is distinctly green-sensitive and boasts seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms. A 50-foot pool borders one side of the home.
Only 45 days was needed from listing to close for a house in the Trancas Highlands that sold for $1,225,000. The Mediterranean home has four bedrooms and a stunning, unobstructed ocean view. The home also sold last at the height of the market, in 2005 for more than $1.6 million.
Another quick sale has transpired on Point Dume, for about $2.4 million. The one-story ranch house has wood floors, ceilings and walls throughout, with a large flat grassy back yard and guesthouse. The one-acre property went from listing to sold in less than two months.