Malibu Caravans; Good Food & Gorgeous Homes

As the summer real estate scene goes into full throttle, the competitive real estate market continues to heat up. For those of you that don't know, a caravan is when brokers and agents open their new listings for other agents to tour and see if it could be something their clients are interested in. What appears to just be focusing on seeing new listings, has actually become a thrill of finding the yummy foods agents are serving. This is what makes Malibu's Thursday caravans so beautiful. In order to bring in the potential buyers, you first need to lure in the areas selling agents, and what a better way to bring in agents than by offering them delectable treats. On today's caravan, I walked into a beautiful Broad Beach ocean front estate to smell tacos cooking on the lower level. Now at the time, I wasn't sure what was more incredible, the smell of those tacos or the gorgeous ocean view from the estate listed at $57 million. Later, we visited another home nearby to walk in and be treated with a Lily's burrito. What a great way to spend this Thursdays caravan- with Mexican food and incredible Malibu homes. No city does a caravan like Malibu does!

Polo Estate of Montecito

Polo, a Lifestyle

Polo is often referred to as "The Sport of Kings" and for centuries has brought successful industry and business leaders onto its field. However, polo engages more than just a competition between players, it embraces a lifestyle. Due to Polo's increasing popularity, grand property developments have become interested in catering to this affluent lifestyle. While there are several destinations that offer Polo estates with optimum playing fields, The Polo Estate of Montecito is unique due to ideal year-round weather conditions and the estate's prime location overlooking scenic ocean views. This polo estate accommodates real polo patrons and presents a luxurious and comfortable living situation for both the players and their guests.

The Polo Estate of Montecito

Offered at $250,000 / month, the Polo Estate of Montecito was built for a "King", boasting nearly 12,000 sqft of living space. This incredible Renaissance inspired home has all of the luxury amenities including two outdoor spas, 128 ft pool, and a pool house with kitchen and multiple areas of entertainment space. On this unique estate, you'll find a secret garden with a soaking tub and a large pond stocked with bass and catfish. This property includes a putting green with sand traps and a driving range. For guests, there is a detached suite with a living room. In addition, the home is equipped with a state of the art gym installed with flat screen TV's.

Security

For high profile renters, this secluded property was designed double gated with 36 cameras surrounding the property.

Offered at $250,000 / month 

7 Bedroom / 9 Bath

Furnished and ready for move in!

For more information on this property visit Polo Estate of Montecito

To schedule a showing contact:

Prudential Malibu Realty

John & Sheryl Snyder

310.459.8163

JohnS@prumalibu.com

SherylS@prumalibu.com

European Charm and Pacific Ocean Breezes

The Destination

When searching for your perfect home, location is a driving factor in ultimately making your decision. Situated less than a block from California's famous Pacific Coast Highway lies this recently finished designer home offering many top of the line amenities. Away from the tourist packed beaches, but only a short drive to Malibu and Santa Monica, this Pacific Palisades home is not only perfectly located but offers private decks with luxurious ocean views.

The Luxuries

As you enter the unique front gate, there is a fountain sculpture and deck that over looks the pacific. The kitchen is equipped with Viking, Miele, and sub-zero appliances and custom Van Goah granite counter tops. This home was designed with glass collapsible doors that fully open to expose the dining, living, family, and master bedroom to unobstructed views and Pacific Ocean breezes. 

The Community

A charming seaside community that resembles a nook in the Italian coast, with European-style estates and small winding streets. This home is adjacent to the Getty Villa, where the arts and cultures of the ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria can be seen.

Listed at $2,725,000

For more information on this property visit www.palisadesoceanviews.com
To schedule a showing contact John & Sheryl Snyder
310.270.7463

Foreign Buyers – FIRPTA

Take good care of your foreign buyers. As real-estate agents, we have a fiduciary responsibility to inform our international clientele of the US tax implications when buying or selling real estate here in Malibu.

Keep your clients informed about the FIRPTA (Foreign Investment in Real Property Taxes Act) rules, which require the buyer to withhold 10% of the gross proceeds when the property is sold.  If the property is rented out, the rental income will be subject to Federal income tax. The gross rent will be taxed at 30%, without any deductions. Also important not to forget the state tax position if the property is rented out or when it is sold.

Always recommend your clients to talk to their tax advisors before purchasing or selling.

By
John Snyder, Realtor at Prudential Malibu Realty 310-459-8163

Foreign buyers in Malibu

By John Snyder

Published:

Wednesday, August 29, 2012 10:29 AM PDT

This year, as many of my real estate colleagues are saying, “the light switch is back on” in Malibu. We are seeing that not all buyers are from the U.S. anymore. Most of the buyers today are from places like Asia, Canada, Europe and Latin America.

According to The Wall Street Journal and a survey by the National Association of Realtors, international buyers accounted for $82.5 billion, or 8.9%, of the $928 billion spent on residential real estate in the 12-month period that ended in March. That’s up 24% from $66.4 billion in the previous year period.

The survey showed that about 55% of all international buyers came from five countries: Canada, China, Mexico, India and the United Kingdom. Five states, meanwhile, accounted for around 55% of all sales to international buyers: Florida, California, Texas, Arizona and New York. The survey found that 62% of international buyers paid in cash.

In our experience this year, we have seen an influx of Russian and Chinese buyers purchasing lots of local land and distressed homes.

John Snyder is a Realtor at Prudential Malibu Realty, 310.459.8163

For renters, buying a home pays off after three years on average

Real estate website Zillow says the 'break-even horizon' for potential home buyers varies widely depending on location.

 

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

August 2, 2012, 5:00 a.m.

Real estate website Zillow has a provocative data point for every renter thinking about buying these days: That move pays off after just three years on average nationwide.

The company, which lists for-sale and for-rent information on its site, has released a new analysis of what it calls the "break-even horizon," comparing what it would cost to buy or rent the same home in a number of U.S. markets over time.

The rent-or-buy calculus varies widely depending on where you live.

In the combined Los Angeles and Orange counties, the magic number is 4.3 years, assuming the buyer has made a 20% down payment. Buying wins out after only 1.6 year in the desert community of Banning. But Newport Beach residents must wait 14 years for buying to make more financial sense than renting.

The analysis takes into account a host of factors potential buyers should think about when considering the leap, including the down payment, mortgage and rental payments, buying and selling costs, property taxes, utilities, maintenance costs and tax deductions. The analysis adjusts for inflation and forecasts home value and rental price appreciation.

Zillow senior economist Svenja Gudell said the data should help homeowners get a rough and immediate sense of whether buying makes sense in a particular area in relation to their financial situation.

"For a home buyer out there, it is really tough to get a good grip on the buy-versus-rent decision," Gudell said. Although buying a home is a deeply personal decision, she said, the analysis gives consumers "a sense for 'Am I ready to make this decision?'"

The new take on the classic rent-versus-buy debate comes at a tenuous moment for the housing market. Many analysts believe that a housing bottom has been reached but don't expect a return to the heady days of the real estate bubble. There is already some concern about the strength of the recovery, with home sales slowing in June as inventory remained tight and buyers paid higher prices.

At the same time, rents are rising, housing affordability is at record levels, and mortgage interest rates remain very low. These factors are prompting many renters to consider homeownership.

Stuart Gabriel, director of UCLA's Ziman Center for Real Estate, noted that the main lesson from the subprime mortgage debacle and the housing bust was that homeownership shouldn't be pushed at all costs. Federal policy has been adjusted to support this new point of view.

"One of the things we have learned in recent years is, obviously, house prices don't always go up, and even over the very long term in certain markets homeownership may only offer a minimal return," Gabriel said.

"What we have all learned is to treat homeownership as a bit of a dangerous animal. You know it's not always good, and it's not good for everyone."

Things to consider when buying, particularly in an slowly appreciating market, include how mobile will you be, your financial situation, marital status, career goals and personality, Gabriel said.

Richard Green, director of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, added that in many regions buying has become increasingly attractive compared with renting. There are also non-financial reasons for buying.

"I can enjoy living in this house for the rest of my life, and nobody can throw me out of it," he said. "You are consuming something, and you have control over it, and control has some value."

Zillow's analysis, which covered more than 200 metropolitan areas and 7,500 U.S. cities, found that buying is a better financial decision than renting in the Riverside-San Bernardino area if you live in the home for at least two years. That rises to 3.2 years in the area including Oxnard, Thousand Oaks and Ventura.

The San Francisco metropolitan area's break-even score of 5.9 years encompasses a range from two years to 24.3 years.

Julie Andrews' Brentwood house isn't going for a song

The home Andrews owned with her late husband, director and screenwriter Blake Edwards, is listed for $2.649 million. It's already in escrow less than a month after going on the market.

 

Singer and actress Julie Andrews has listed the Brentwood house she owned with her late husband, director and screenwriter Blake Edwards, for $2.649 million. Less than a month after coming on the market, the tidy white home with gray shutters is already in escrow.
The traditional-style house features a family room and living room with French doors opening to a fanciful garden that appears to be "practically perfect in every way" to borrow a phrase from "Mary Poppins." The formal dining room has a cathedral ceiling and glass walls. An artist's studio with a bathroom sits above the garage for a total of four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
The less than quarter-acre lot is surrounded by tall hedges and is gated — no doubt discouraging neighbors from nipping over to borrow a spoonful of sugar. There is a swimming pool and spa.
Andrews, 76, starred in musicals including "My Fair Lady" and "Camelot." She won a lead actress Oscar for "Mary Poppins" (1964) and starred in "The Sound of Music" (1965), "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (1967) and the "Princess Diaries" films in 2001 and 2004. More recently she voiced Gru's mom in "Despicable Me" (2010) and the queen in "Shrek Forever After" (2010). Last year she received a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement.
Edwards, who died in 2010 at 88, received an honorary Oscar in 2004 for his work including such films as "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (1961), "The Great Race" (1965) and the "Pink Panther" films.
Public records show the property was purchased in 1989 for $1.2 million.
Gary Glass of Prudential California Realty in Brentwood is the listing agent, according to the Multiple Listing Service.
Studio has been sound checked
A former home of Andrews' also is up for sale. Film producer Stacey Sher and musician Kerry Brown have listed the house in the Beverly Crest area at $5.795 million.
Originally designed by Wallace Neff, the 1948 house was later remodeled. The 1.61-acre site includes a 7,800-square-foot main house, a 2,480-square-foot guesthouse, a separate building with a bathroom, a tennis court, a basketball court, a swimming pool and waterfalls.
The living space features beamed ceilings, stained-glass windows, brick, stonework, mahogany doors and six fireplaces. There are five bedrooms, five bathrooms, a screening room, a den and a gym in the main house. The four-bedroom, three-bathroom guesthouse contains living and dining rooms, a kitchen, a den, an office and recording studio space.
Among artists who have recorded at the studio are Courtney Love, Ziggy Marley and the Strawberry Alarm Clock. It has also been the site of music recorded for the films "P.S. I Love You" (2007) and "Death to Smoochy" (2002).
Sher, 49, is in New Orleans working on Quentin Tarantino's upcoming movie, "Django Unchained." Her production credits include "Pulp Fiction" (1994), "Erin Brockovich" (2000) — for which she shared an Oscar nomination — and the series "Reno 911!" (2004-09).
Kerry, 48, has played drums with the groups Catherine, the Smashing Pumpkins and Spirits in the Sky. His music editor and production credits include "Along Came Polly" (2004) and the series "Jessica Simpson: The Price of Beauty" (2010).
Rick Chimienti of Prudential's Beverly Hills office is the listing agent.
Another spin for Dorothy's place
Her Kansas home in "The Wizard of Oz" flew through the air. Now a Bel-Air house that was home to a young Judy Garland has flipped, selling for the second time since last year for $6,772,669.
The Wallace Neff-designed house sold in 2011 for $5.2 million and was then updated and renovated.
The two-story traditional, built in 1938, sits on about 2.5 acres. The 5,513-square-foot house features dormer and bay windows, white columns, French doors, five bedrooms and 61/2 bathrooms. Outdoor amenities include a swimming pool and a detached studio.
Garland, who played Dorothy in the 1939 classic, died in 1969 at 47. The actress and singer received an honorary Oscar in 1940 for her performances in "Oz" and "Babes in Arms" and was later nominated for her work in "A Star Is Born" (1955) and "Judgment at Nuremberg" (1961).