The Malibu Real Estate Blog

On Monday mornings we have our office meeting to discuss various aspects of the Malibu real estate market. One question we always throw around is, “What was the best thing on caravan?” About half the agents, including me, thought the new listing on Birdview was the nicest house for sale. The home has a distinctly Asian feel with the kiln-fired and blue glazed tile roof, an Indonesian/Bali feel with the tropical landscape, and a zen/Craftsman interior that smartly leaves the Japanese feel at the door. The shared feeling by many agents was “what a pleasant surprise” and “this house has a great feel.” The house, in fact, was so unique and special, that the $11m asking price seemed to be a side note. This is the type of home someone will walk into and just “want it” because of the emotional connection.
From the MLS “SEASIDE BLUFFTOP ESTATE- PRIVATE PATH LEADS TO SANDY SHORELINE- ROMANTIC AND PRIVATE SETTING- LUSH LANDSCAPING ENVELOPES YOU IN A TROPICAL PARADISE- INCREDIBLE OCEAN VIEWS SPAN THE PRISTINE COASTLINE- OPEN & FREE FLOWING FLOOR PLAN 6 BEDROOMS- MEDIA ROOM, OFFICE, GOURMET KITCHEN AND EXQUISITE MASTER BATH- SEPARATE GUEST HOUSE BY LAGOON POOL WITH ADDITIONAL BEDROOM, BATH AND GYM- SPACIOUS PATIOS WITH OCEAN VIEW DINING AND ENTERTAINING SPACE- NO NEED TO VACATION ON A TROPICAL ISLE, HERE, YOU HAVE YOUR OWN FANTASY RETREAT.”
Listed with Chris Cortazzo and Bobette Halverson

Listed with Chris Cortazzo and Bobette Halverson

Update! Just saw this house hours ago and it has a 4th bedroom. It’s a great place and has a lot of potential to be built out.

A new listing on Point Dume hit the Malibu real estate market yesterday. The remodeled ranch home is located at 6847 Wildlife and is close enough to the beach that  you should be able to walk to the water in under 2 minutes and hear the waves at night. The property is on nearly an acre of land with the home being around 1900 sq.ft. having three bedrooms. The current house is nice enough  to live in and kept as is, but the property will likely find a buyer who will build something much larger. The home for sale  is listed at  $3,450,000 and my bet is that it will sell fast! Call to see it before it’s too late. 310 699 8428

Listed with Ellen Francisco / CB

Seeing that there were over 1000 page views on the blog today I’m going to break a story that I was trying to hold off on. I’ve got a new listing in Malibu, maybe, one of the nicest homes ever to be offered on the market. I’m working on the website now but will show a pic below. Here’s the news…The listing was given to myself and David Findley of Partners Trust because we absolutely understand, no, live, breathe, eat, and preach the real estate marketing revolution that is taking place online. We have 20-30 “new school” ideas, web marketing methods, and social media tools that separate us from the Realtorsaurus types mentioned here. One tool is Twitter. Not going to reveal too much here but if you want to watch what we will be doing, I’m going to invite you right now to follow the listing @villacascata. Watch, learn, and understand how Twitter is more than just a few words about what kind of coffee you are drinking.

The Los Angeles Times has mentioned the Malibu Real Estate Blog in the online addition and will be in print this weekend. The article is about how the high-end market has shifted and why sellers need to rethink the way their homes are priced. I look at the positive side of this article in that buyers can pick up some great deals that a few years ago were out of reach.
I was referenced in a section about “chasing the market”. The article says it’s when a seller continually lowers the price of a home until a buyer is found. It is that but more. Chasing the market is when a seller has the price a little to high while the market is falling and when they lower the price it’s always a bit to late. The cycle repeats. Often, offers they said no to, end up being more than  to what they lowered the price to. I have seen this happen numerous times in this market when the tides started to turn. Check out the link here.
For the “Low Down on the High End” in Malibu subscribe via the RSS feed button on the right or here.
For seriously straight talk about actually buying a home and living in Malibu, call me on my cell at 310 699 8428.

There’s a skit on SNL/Hulu that we watch called “What Up With Dat”. It’s silly and doesn’t make a ton of sense but the catch phrase get’s so stuck in your head you to will be saying it to your spouse like I do. My wife will say, “The dog just jumped on the bed with dirty feet!” and I’ll reply, Continue Reading »

Check out this brilliant, funny, and painfully honest sales approach to mobile homes. This is not how we roll in Malibu but I’d sure like to see this guy move some units in the Point Dume Club or Paradise Cove!

There are two homes now on Point Dume that are heading in to a price range that most people would say is a good price. Both of these Malibu homes for sale have beach keys to Little Dume beach. These are deeded beach rights which make the homes more valuable than the ones that don’t have the rights. The first one has been nicely remodeled and has a guest house studio in back on expansive lawns no ocean view. It is listed at $2.575m. The second home needs a remodel but has good ocean views and is for sale at $2.495m.  Email Me for more information about Malibu Real Estate. Call for showings 310 6998428. If you are “tech”, sign up for the RSS feed!

Listed with Matt  Rapf

Listed with   Louis Jacobs

The Carbon Mesa home for sale mentioned a week ago on this blog had offers on it right away and is listed as ” Backup” status on the MLS. The Malibu home for sale was once listed as high as $2,950,000 and hit the market at $1,141,000. Had you been signed up for my Listing Book program you would have had an early morning email the day it came on the market. Email Me if you like to be this program. In the email tell me what your price range is and what you are looking for.

Heading out on caravan right now. I’ll be posting thoughts on some of the Malibu homes for sale that I see. There are a few beach homes on Las Tunas and Carbon Beach that should be interesting. The blue box to the right is the live feed where you can follow me on Twitter.

Just got my both my regular flu shot and the H1N1 Swine flu shot from Dr. Drew in Malibu. Didn’t feel a thing! The new needles are so small I was still waiting for the shot when he said “Your Done!” I can also report that there was no side affects and after the shot I just went on about my daily business.
Dr. Drew is our family doctor located on Point Dume in the offices located on the corner of PCH and Portshead. If you’d like a doctor who is easily accessible, is a local community member, and often can get you in his office faster than it would take to drive in to town, then give him a call. His office number is 310 457 3777 and here’s a link to his website www.malibumed.com Call sooner than later, he only has a certain amount of vaccines alloted to him.

Here are some signs that your agent is from another epoch.
-Tries to photograph your listing with a film camera
-Does not text message
-Doesn’t use sign riders with domain names or text messaging codes for mobile devices
-Still believes that a full page print ad is a “big time” marketing campaign
-Thinks a bowl of stale peanuts will get other agents to come to the broker’s open
-Does not use or understand social media Continue Reading »

Another video I just made after shooting a house on Broad Beach. Some of the feedback was that the first one was too fast and the resolution was low. I’ve slowed down the transitions and used a higher def format. Feedback is welcome!

Don’t forget about tomorrows costume throw down at Surfrider.It should be pure mayhem!  Link Here to article

I saw a few things this week that made me pick up the phone and call clients telling them about some great opportunities within the Malibu real estate market. Yesterday on caravan, I was wowed by a home for sale located on Ramirez Mesa. This is a gated development of roughly 20 homes that sits above Paradise Cove and has great ocean views. The home for sale is almost 6000 sq.ft., nicely remodeled in a Tuscan/Mediterranean style, had 5 bedrooms ,a pool, and a three car garage. The home had views of all on Santa Monica Bay and has room for a vineyard. It’s current asking price is $3,950,000, which in my view makes it one of the largest, and nicest, homes available under $4m. I even think there is some room on the price! Call 310 699 8428 for an appointment to view it.

Listed with Chris Cortazzo

The other great deals in general are showing up in the condo market. I think we may see some condos closing at $350k or less in the next few months. There is one listed at the Malibu Gardens for $389,000! At that price it makes a great rental for Pepperdine students or just a weekend crash pad to enjoy the beach.

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Want daily emails showing price reductions in Malibu? Email me asking for ” Listing Book” for access to he MLS Malibu agents use.
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Terra may very well be the best restaurant in Malibu…period. I ate there a few nights ago and was blown away by a 6 course sampler that Chris had prepared for my wife and I. We started with a Crab fritter just to get the taste buds primed. Next came a seared cajun albacore appetizer with a miso wasabi dressing on mixed greens. Then we were presented with a mixed variety micro green baby beet salad with a shaved,   hard, goat-milk cheese and roasted pecans. Going for the fall flavors we next feasted on a wild mushroom risotto with truffle oil. Earthy, organic, and sweet with the unusual tingle in the palette from the truffle oil. The main course was a pounded filet mignon with a balsamic reduction and melted butter with blue cheese accompanied by some large wedge garlic fries. That steak has to be Malibu’s best kept secret! I have never had anything like and woke up the next morning thinking about it and every bite I had the night before. The texture  was divine if you love sashimi or very rare meat.  For dessert we finished the night with a blueberry tart with fresh whipped cream. Not to sweet with small ripe blueberries on top of a fresh crust.
Call ahead for reservations! Terra Malibu