Exciting news for Malibu!

Despite concerns by residents and controversy the planned Trancas Market has been given the green light by Malibu City Council.

The Trancas Market is to be located at the intersection of Trancas Canyon Road and Pacific Coast Highway. However the requirements the council demanded for the project include mandatory 24-hour security, the storage of a container on the premises that holds various tools to aid in case of a disaster, and the addition of an easement bordering the highway on the west end of the shopping center that would serve as an emergency access way.

The project will add 25,728 square feet of commercial space to the existing 27,695 square foot shopping center; a new parking lot north of the gas station; a new public parking lot north of HOW?S supermarket and an on-site alternative wastewater treatment system according to the Malibu Times.
The approval by Malibu City Council also includes conditional use permits for two new restaurants, La Spiagga, an Italian restaurant run by the same restaurateur who operates Tra di Noi, and Malibu Diner. The project application also includes a proposal to enhance Trancas Creek by replanting native vegetation along its banks – which is definitely welcome news.

Malibu really is a community on the grow, a city that is always changing and improving.

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Mortgage rates are low and applications and prices are up! – More excitingly here in the Southern California Mortgage Market is the great news that the number of Mortgage Defaults in California has dropped 24.3% over the last quarter!

The number of homes which enter the first state of foreclosure (defaulting on their mortgage) fell in the forth quarter. In 2009, 190,360 California homes were lost to foreclosure, down 19.42% from 2008, when foreclosures topped 236,000.  The decline in the default number is significant because any new wave of foreclosures, which could swamp the housing market’s recovery, would be preceded by a surge in defaults.The Obama administration’s $75-billion program to help troubled borrowers hold on to their homes appears to be keeping more California families out of foreclosure as thousands of California borrowers have had their mortgages modified through the “Making Home Affordable” program.

However there is a concern about those homeowners who are “underwater” – that is, owe more on their home than it is worth.Banks have been negotiating with distressed borrowers to keep them in their homes and increasingly turning to “short sales”.

Watch this space over the next few months and we will report back on what is occurring!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Tax, Tax and more tax! Not the most exciting topic we know…but all is not lost! – We all know that details on the $8000 first time homebuyer tax credit were readily available. But information on the $6,500 was always hard to come by.

However, now the IRS has issued official guidance – several months after President Obama signed the legislation creating the program.

The IRS posted its revised Form 5405 on its website on Jan. 15, six weeks after the agency warned taxpayers not to file claims for the $6,500 credit without using the revised form and new instructions. Homeowners who have occupied the same property as a principal residence for any five consecutive years during the previous eight years may now be able to claim a tax credit on a purchase of another home they intend to use as a principal residence.

The maximum purchase price on homes eligible for the credit is $800,000. Buyers are not required to sell their previous home, but they must be able to demonstrate that the replacement home they buy is or will be their principal residence. The credit is for as much as 10% of the price of the replacement home, capped at $6,500. The purchase contract must be dated from Nov. 7, 2009, to April 30, 2010, and the closing must occur no later than June 30. Members of the armed forces and federal diplomatic and intelligence personnel stationed overseas get an extra year to claim the credit. Note that taxpayers who sell their homes within a 36-month period after purchase or use the property for rental or business have to repay the credit.

The new IRS guidance also spells out the revised income limits for home buyers claiming credits: Your modified adjusted gross income must be $125,000 or less if you are single, or $225,000 or less if you are married filing jointly. Above these limits, the allowable credit amount begins to phase down in increments, and it is eliminated once incomes reach $145,000 for singles and $245,000 for married joint filers.

So there you have it, you have 14 weeks to sign a contract and then 5 months to close! The time to buy that Malibu home is now!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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When it comes to home repairs, we all know that procrastination is the name of the game!

These days with foreclosures and short sales many repairs are not carried out, so by spending a little money on the smaller jobs can reap rewards in making your home stand out when it comes to selling!

Here in Malibu homeowners are well aware that looking after your home is common sense, however knowing what repairs and odd jobs to focus on if you are selling is not so obvious! Realty Times has published a great article explaining more!

Interestingly your air conditioning unit is an area to focus on! In particular with regards to air filters, experts say that 60% of service calls are caused due to dirty filter related issues – therefore, by changing your filters regularly ensures that you keep your unit maintenance costs under control! It can also save you money as when your unit is maintained properly it works at its maximum efficiency! With estimated savings of around $100 per year just by changing your air filters, its not chump change! – A great reminder to check your filters is when you get your bill!

Also leaking faucets and bad caulk are other areas which buyers focus on. As we have written before a leak can cause many more problems!

So, in short – It is all about appearances, if your home looks maintained then buyers will feel it is worth purchasing, if there are leaky faucets, broken or cracked tiles and caulking as well as a air conditioning unit that limps along then they may thing the home is in need of serious repairs!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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THIS IS DEFINITELY EXCITING NEWS!

According to the Los Angeles Times the housing market has strengthened!

December usually is a slow month for home sales, over the holidays the last thing on anyones mind is buying a home. However, not December 2009 for Southern California, where the median sale price rises 4% over the same period a year earlier, and sales jumped 12.1%! The best since 2006! (See our related post – Malibu Pending Home Sales Rise Again!)

The median price paid for a Southland home rose 4% to $289,000 last month from December 2008. Rebounding home prices could help the Southern California economy recover from its slump, as a stronger housing market could lead to hiring on construction sites and in real estate sales, title and escrow offices.

People are starting to realize that now is the time to move – rates are low and prices are right – if you are outgrowing your existing home or are downsizing, now is the time to make that move! For some, the spring homebuying season may have come early!

Naturally, one factor driving sales is the April 30 expiration of tax credits for home buyers. The role of the federal government in the housing market remains key.

Also excitingly for the luxury market that is Malibu, the percentage of Southern California homes that sold for more than $500,000 rose to 20.2% of all sales in December from 16.5% a year earlier. The market is starting to move significantly, in some cases with multiple offers on properties.

So if you are thinking about a move to Malibu – now is the chance to take advantage of the market and get going!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Ah, the beach, who wouldn’t want to live on the beach!

Beach living is all about rest and relaxation. These days the trend is also about “beach living” in an environmentally friendly way – conserving water and lowering your carbon footprint. As we have said before. However here in Malibu we have some of the most expensive beach real estate in the country and the world!

So what to do? Well, as we mentioned previously, beach leases for the summer are a great way of getting the taste of the beach lifestyle, and as we said last year: “beach homes in the ‘bu have come a long way since when they first started to become popular! They are no longer full of coral mirrors, sea shell frames and fish-shaped place mats.”

This year the Summer 2010 beach leases are starting to come up for grabs, but so much for that huge $150,000 per month lease we wrote about before in 2008, oh no, this year is different – this year we see the $200,000 per month lease!

This property being offered is located on Carbon Beach and is new to the summer rental market.The home features 80 feet of prime beach frontage, an ocean-side pool, expansive decks, sleek modern design, and room to park many cars.

The MLS Lists the home as “one of the great estates of Carbon Beach” featuring white water views thanks to its beach frontage. Inside the property features hardwood floors, huge master bathroom, 35mm projection room, pool on beach deck and naturally, plenty of entertaining space! – The rent is a modest $150,000 for June 2010, $200,000 for July and $200,000 for August!

If you are interested in a beach lease in Malibu – perhaps not as high as this! Then please contact Judy Kunisaki for more information.

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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When it comes to any relocation, selecting a home is half of the battle, the other half, if you have children is researching the local schools.

Well, we are proud to say that Malibu has some excellent schools as well as at a higher education level, a great College (Pepperdine).

Now there is some exciting news for Malibu school as they are competing for some new Federal funding;

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education voted unanimously to apply for federal funding from the US Department of Education to improve education standards in eligible states.“Race to the Top” is a grant program that will distribute money to each state designed to improve educational performance nationwide.

California will receive anywhere from $350 to $750 million from the pool of $4.35 billion available to states and Malibu’s schools are clamouring for a piece of the pie! Funding will be divided among districts, with 50 percent for Title I schools and the rest going to all other schools. Title I schools contain a high percentage of low-income students. The “Race to the Top” one-time funding will be distributed during a four-year period.

Asides from being exciting, the schools have to go through a rigorous qualification process to show they comply with certain standard – which they already meet, being such high achieving institutions as they are!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Beach access can be a contentious issue – particularly if you have a property on a beach. In an area like Malibu there are alot of homes on the beach or with beach access.

Right now there is a debate that has been sparked over access to Lechuza Beach in Malibu.

There has been an inpasse for 8 years between a state agency and a homeowners association over a public access enhancement project proposed for a state owned section of Lechuza Beach. However, in a new twist it may occur that the Coastal Commission may step in.

The battle is to do with residents wanting to restrict access and the new project, proposed by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, which comprises several additions intended to improve public access to Lechuza Beach through three gates, which are located at the entrances of East Sea Level and West Sea Level drives, and across the street from Bunny Lane off Broad Beach Road. The Malibu-Encinal Homeowners Association owns the first two gates, while the latter gate is the property of the MRCA.

However, despite ownership of the land, the Malibu-Encinal Homeowners Association says the state agency is not legally entitled to do so because the project interferes with easement rights. Project aside, the homeowners association states that it has voluntarily provided public access to Lechuza Beach for years.

Keep checking back and we will update you on the progress of this project…

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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New FEMA Flood Maps may not sound the most exciting news story – however they are of utmost importance to all areas of real estate.

Yes the climate here in Malibu and southern California itself does not usually lend itself to flooding, the federal government is now requiring tens of thousands of residential and commercial property owners in the region to purchase flood insurance due to new maps that claim they are located in high-risk flood zones.

The new flood maps are part of a nationwide initiative started by the Federal Emergency Management Agency seven years ago to pinpoint lands likely to flood in a “100 Year Storm” which has a 1% chance of occuring each year. In developing the maps, FEMA conducts a Flood Insurance Study to calculate a community?s flood risk, the agency states on its Web site. The study includes statistical data for river flow, storm tides, hydrologic and hydraulic analyses, and rainfall and topographic surveys.

The revised Flood Maps have largely missed Maliubu – which is good news for Homeowners and those looking to relocate here as Flood Insurance can be expensive. According to FEMA on its website, it says that the West Coast rainy season usually lasts from November to April and it is during this time that flooding is a concern. Particularly with wildfires which plague the region.

All flood-risk maps that indicate whether a property is located in a high-risk flood zone are available online at www.fema.gov or www.floodsmart.gov – Check your home today!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Well, 2010 looks like many changes are ahead for Malibu and southern California.

With the real estate market turning around, lawmakers have been busy making improvements to codes and tidying up general legislation to ensure better control over the real estate industry – but the changes are not just there!

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed 696 bills into law last year, 73% of the legislation that reached his desk. Some have already taken effect and others are coming soon.

Of course, much of lawmakers’ time in 2009 was spent dealing with budget issues but there were some great pieces of legislation to come out of the year, including a conservation mandate that will not take effect until next month. It requires city water retailers to develop plans by next year that would reduce urban water consumption by 10% by 2015 and by 20% a decade later.

Laws which pertain particularly to real estate include a new regulation change for the mortgage business – creating a new offense, “mortgage fraud,” punishable by up to a year in prison. Such crimes are defined as those in which someone makes “any misstatement, misrepresentation or omission during the mortgage lending process with the intention that it be relied on by a mortgage lender, borrower, or any other party to the mortgage lending process.”

Also with regards to fire safety there is a new regulation on fire prevention requiring government officials to improve guidelines for protecting property from wildfires, including larger brush-clearance zones and better access roads in regions vulnerable to such fires.

Something also dear to Malibu is a new regulation for Papparazzi which allows celebrities and others to sue for up to $50,000 when someone takes and sells their pictures without permission while they are engaging in “personal or familial activity,” such as taking their children to school.

Don’t forget of course on a Federal level we have the federal tax credits ending in several weeks time and more FHA changes coming!

If you are interested in purchasing a property or selling a property in Malibu, Pacific Palisades or the surrounding Beverly Hills/southern California area then please contact Judy Kunisaki for professional real estate advice in the Westside Los Angeles area, on 310-317-8396 or via her online contact form on her website.

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Judy Kunisaki – CA DRE license 00963582