Long Beach California is home to the West Coasts most affordable beach real estate.  Set in sunny Southern California we enjoy moderate temperatures year round, sweet ocean breezes and a resort atmosphere.  With our purchase prices so reasonable is it any wonder snowbirds are flocking here?  Palm Desert, 2 hours inland, is fantastic, but nothing compares to luxury oceanfront property and the beach is just more fun!

Long Beach has an endless array of entertainment to suit any lifestyle or age from water-sports to nightlife, theater and fine dining.  This is the perfect place to do everything, do nothing or to just go fly a kite!

Yes we have golf courses!  Long Beach is centrally located making access to all Southern California golf courses just a short drive.

Long Beach is conveniently located just 20 minutes south of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), 20 minutes north of John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Irvine, and home to our own Long Beach Airport – which we love.  We are also just a 20 minute drive into Downtown Los Angeles – in case you were thinking about catching a Lakers game; attending a concert at the fabulous Staples Center or a performance at our beautiful Music Center.  Fantabulous and incomparable, 8 time Grammy award winner, Tina Turner
is performing at the Staples Center as I write this, had I known that ahead of time I would be there tonight singing along……..What’s love got to do with it? La la la… Gotta love that woman!

Did I say we were centrally located?  A 2 hour drive north will find you in beautiful Santa Barbara.  Head north just a little further and enjoy a day, or a romantic weekend, in wine country.  A leisurely drive south will take you into lovely San Diego.  Catch a Padres game or spend a day at the San Diego Zoo or perhaps SeaWorld with the family then head into the Downtown San Diego gaslight district for a delicious dinner and some relaxing down time.

Surfer? 10 minutes to surf city – Huntington Beach, where you will catch some of the finest waves on the west coast.

Long Beach is slated to become the new home of the largest movie studio in California.  A deal has been struck to take over the Boeing facility near the Long Beach airport. This will infuse new life into Long Beach and will certainly attract celebrities to our lovely waterfront homes and high rise condominiums.  How could they resist?  You never know who your new neighbor may be!

Did you know that Hollywood got its start in Long Beach?  Long Beach was known as the motion picture capital of the world until post World War I when Hollywood developed around the glitz of the era.  With its perfect Southern California climate, Long Beach afforded the perfect setting for the industry.  There were eight film houses, two stock companies,  roller-coasters and bath houses at the historic Pike, along the shore of Downtown Long Beach.  This was the home of the Balboa Amusement Production Company, the  world’s most prolific silent-film studio.  W. C. Fields and other stars lived in beautiful mansions in the Bluff Park neighborhood along Ocean Boulevard and First Street, many of which remain in the families to this day.

Speaking of historic districts, Long Beach has 17 of them, California Heights being the largest.  We love our historic homes here.  You can find out more about the history of Long Beach here as well.

Redevelopment in Alamitos Beach and the bustling Downtown Long Beach communities has birthed fabulous luxury high rise condominiums with endless ocean views, Manhattan style lofts and many fabulous new dining opportunities.

The luxury home market is generally a cash market.  Brian Brady’s 2009 Real Estate Market outlook predicts that disappearing jobs and financing will likely drive the price of luxury properties down in our waterfront and higher end communities.  While that is tragic for the owners of these Long Beach properties it is an incredible opportunity to purchase the Long Beach home, condo or vacation property you, the buyer has been waiting for.

The Long Beach real estate market has gone through several tumultuous years, this winter is certain to be a difficult time for sellers of Long Beach luxury homes, condos and income properties.  FHA loan limits, currently capping at $729,750 for single family home purchases are slated to be decreased to around $625,000 on January 1, 2009.  Decreasing buyer purchasing power is certain to affect prices in the mid-market range of $700,000 to about $1,000,000.

What does this mean for sellers?  If you are planning on selling, you should plan on closing your escrow before the end of the year and should price it to do so. It would be our pleasure to provide a home value assessment.

What does this mean for buyers?  This is an incredible opportunity to purchase your new home at an incredible price.

International buyers are flocking to the United States to purchase real estate at our current depressed prices, there is limited financing for foreign nationals, most are purchasing with all cash.  Long Beach prices have become very attractive to these buyers. You can start your search for Long Beach homes here.  VIP service is provided with the ability to set up custom searches with an automatic email alert system.

If you are interested in purchasing a Long Beach luxury oceanfront home or a high rise luxury waterfront condominium, this winter is the time to make that purchase. It would be our pleasure to assist you.

Long Beach California City and Relocation Resource Guide

Long Beach Own Your Own (OYO) Owners Are Organizing for Condo Conversion.  Back in May the Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog published an article on OYO’s.  So many buyers were inquiring about this form of ownership it made sense to publish an article, explaining this form of ownership, to be found on the Internet.  Well it has been found, by several thousand Long Beach and potential Long Beach residents who have indeed read it, including many frustrated Long Beach OYO owners.  Several days ago I was contacted by the lovely Deb Dobias, a Long Beach OYO owner who is a major contributing force in the quest to organize OYO owners to push state and local officials to loosen the reigns and convert the last of the existing Long Beach OYO’s to condos.  Deb went on to explain what these owners have been up against and the efforts they have put forth.  We invited her to write an article here and are very pleased that she accepted our offer. 

It is our sincere hope that the District Weekly, Curbed LA, the Grunion and Downtown Gazettes, the Press Telegram, the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register will also pick up this article or will contact Deb and assist in this noble effort with an article of their own to help these troubled OYO owners. It is our further hope that both California state and local officials will get out of the box and make this happen. 

Please understand that many of these owners are in deep trouble.  They cannot sell their Own Your Own (OYO) homes because there is little or no financing available.  Due to the problems plaguing this form of ownership many owners have rented their units out and have moved on.  In doing so they have decreased the level of owner occupied units in the remaining OYOs which has eliminated any chance for a Long Beach buyer to obtain financing to purchase. 

In July 2008 the Long Beach Real Estate Blog offered the communities of Long Beach a place to be published.  This is another in a series of articles by Long Beach residents.  Do You Want to be Published?

OYO
Conversions – An
untapped resource for Affordable Housing

Author:  Deb Dobias

The City of
Long Beach Housing is under-served in providing affordable housing to
“first-time home buyers” and seniors on fixed incomes. “While Long Beach Housing Trust” continues to
build new projects for affordable housing, low income or fixed income buyers
are still unable to have enough funding to pay the down payment. Building costs
keep the price of these “Affordable” Long Beach homes high.

Purchasing Own
Your Own Apartments (OYO) in Long Beach is a means to becoming stakeholders and being
able to afford to buy apartment homes for reasonable sums.  OYOs were the pre-cursors to Condos, usually
built before the 1960s.  Long Beach has a large number of these
charming, well-kept, usually small buildings. 
Most Long Beach OYOs, even after Condo Conversion, would sell for less than newer
“Affordable Housing”; this could
significantly add to the City’s Affordable Housing.  Best of all, making it possible for people to
buy these affordable Long Beach homes would leave the Housing Trust funds for more
housing in Long Beach.

Little Problem…

Someone
who wants to buy a Long Beach OYO usually cannot get financing like Condos can.  When a bank does offer loans, it usually
requires a high owner-occupancy in the OYO complex.  For the past few years, only Long Beach investors could
cough up the cash to buy these places, so owner-occupancy is often low.

Which causes more problems…

• One lady in our building got sick and
  couldn’t work for a while.  Our building, a Long Beach OYO,
  had some serious maintenance issues so we had to levy some special assessments,
  which she couldn’t pay.  The City of Long Beach has Rehab Loans for low-income owners of houses or Condos, but not for
  OYOs.  This poor lady wound up having to sell
  her OYO home for a very low price and move in with family.  Had we been able to convert, she could have kept
  her home.

• Many Long Beach OYO owners are elderly.  Reverse mortgages are not available to OYOs in Long Beach.

• No home equity loans are available to
  OYOs.  This often causes owners to vote
  against maintenance assessments or to avoid maintaining their own units.  These are older buildings, so this affects
  Long Beach neighborhoods and tenants as well as owners.

• A lady who lived in her OYO home told me that she wanted to take out an
  equity loan so she could invest in another property.   Renting that property would help her to pay
  bills when she retires.  She has
  excellent credit and owes nothing on her OYO.  
  She cannot do this simply because her OYO complex can’t prove who lived
  there in 1982! 

Why can’t OYOs just convert to Condominiums?

California has an outdated law that prevents many OYOs
from converting.  This law requires that
an OYO complex prove that they were at least 75% owner-occupied in 1982. 

Why? 
Since OYOs are already individually owned, there is a section of laws
that allows OYOs to convert in a different way than rental buildings.  Part of this law was written to prevent
developers from owning OYOs, then converting them to condo for profit more
cheaply and easily than converting a rental building.  They figured this 1982 owner-occupancy
requirement would close that loophole. 
Twenty-six years later, this law not only doesn’t serve its intent but
very few people can come up with that kind of proof because no one keeps
records that long.

We
tried to fix it. 

Long story short -
the City of Long Beach won’t grant exceptions to this because it’s a California State Law.  We couldn’t get the California State Law corrected via
an Omnibus Bill sponsored by Senator Lowenthal because a Tenants Rights group
objected.  The next step is to try to get
separate bill sponsored by a legislator.

Wait.  Why would a Tenants Rights group object?

Understandably,
they worry about the large number of rental buildings that have been converted
to Condos in Long Beach.  When they do that, it boots
people out of their Long Beach homes and makes fewer rental apartments available so the
rents are higher.  When it comes to OYOs,
though, it’s a matter of converting units that have already been individually
owned for 50 years.  Who owns these
places won’t change with conversion. 
Some OYO owners may sell their unit/s after conversion; many of those would sell
whether they are converted or not.

Conversion
helps tenants, too!

Rental Availability 

OYO’s in Long Beach provide an
approach for “Mom & Pop” owners to enter into the investment/rental market
which can continue or increase the availability of rental units.   Once loans are made available, these new
rental unit owners will be motivated to maintain and upgrade their units.

Maintenance 

Of course,
maintenance isn’t a tenant’s job since they are paying rent.   Because there is no financing available to
OYO buildings, owners have less money available to them for maintenance and
upgrades.  It lowers the quality of life
for everyone.

Owning your own  

There’s a guy in my OYO building who has
rented his unit for 23 years through 3 changes of ownership.  He wants very badly to buy his place, and
could afford it now, but there is no financing available. 
His landlord charges as much rent as the market will bear, which is
typical.  His housing costs would
increase at a much slower rate if he could own his home.

The new legislation would ease the condo conversion issues so
that there are loans available for these “self owned
apartments”.   There are great loan
programs out there for first-time home buyers in Long Beach, some with no down payment.  The new proposed legislation will help these
kinds of Long Beach properties get the financing needed to make them available to those of
us who need affordable housing. 

For more info on
this law and our efforts to correct it, visit our website. 

www.OwnYourOwnCondo.org

Contact us with
your comments, questions, or if you can help us to change this law.  We are gathering a list of OYO buildings for
the sole purpose of helping change the law. 
If you own an OYO home, please add your building to the list!

Deb Dobias

Deb@OwnYourOwnCondo.org

We
have supporters from the following OYO complexes,
as well as Realtors and HOA Property Managers.

Our list is growing. This list only partially covers
the Long Beach area but we are expanding our search. 
Please contact us to add your name to our list of
supporters or if you can help us change this law.

700 E 1st St

Ocean View Apts or Ocean Gardens.
1311 E 1st

2225 E 2nd street

The Montclair
1250 E 3rd

1250 E 4Th St

1280 E 4Th St

Clarendon OYO Apartments
1739 Appleton

Palm Garden Apts.  
617 Cedar

354 Chestnut Ave

Welles Apartment HOA
325 Elm Ave

Princess Apartments
82 Lime Ave

Lime Ave OYO
 337 Lime Ave

Villa Aqua
1101 E Ocean Blvd

*Disclaimer:  The opinions and statements in this article are not necessarily the sentiments or opinions of the Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog, its author’s, owner, or any affiliated persons or entities and we accept no liability for them.*

Related Posts:

• Long Beach Own Your Owns-OYO-OYOs-Condo Conversions-Income Properties in Long Beach
• Downtown Long Beach Stock Co-operatives

Buying Fixer Upper Homes in Long Beach

Many buyers who are searching for homes in Long Beach express interest in purchasing a “fixer upper”.  It is always interesting to hear what their idea of a “fixer upper” is.  There are so many levels of fixer upper it is necessary to clarify what the buyer has in mind.

Quite a few buyers of Long Beach Real Estate think a home that requires paint and carpet is a fixer upper.  These are cosmetic fixers and while they do cost a fair amount of money to update, it is very common to need paint and replace flooring when purchasing Long Beach homes.  This could be called a cosmetic fixer, but then many homes that require extensive work in the kitchen and bath – or even replacement – are often referred to as cosmetic fixers as well.  Costs can start to add up and the buyer isn’t going to be thinking “cosmetic fixer” as the price tag begins to reach the stratosphere. 

• Paint interior and exterior
  
• Carpet or sanding/replacing hardwood or tile flooring.
  
• Kitchen Remodel or refacing
  
• Bath full or partial remodel

There are many items your home inspector will look at that can add to this already hefty amount of necessary repairs and/or upgrades.  Electric and plumbing replacements can get pricey if added to the already climbing total of necessary upgrades. Here are a few important items to inquire about:

• Has the electric been upgraded – at least partially? When?
• Is the plumbing copper? When was it installed?
  
• Are the upgrades nearing the end of their useful life? 
• Will you need to replace them at some point in the near future?

Lets not forget the roof.  There are many types of roofs, made out of many materials, but roofs do have a life expectancy. Find out how long ago the roof was installed and if the homeowner purchased a 30 year roof.  It will give you an idea of when (not if) you will need to upgrade it once again.  Roof replacements come in several forms.

• Adding an additional layer of shingle. (moderately expensive)
  
• Adding an additional layer of shingle and replacing the wood underneath it. (more expensive)
  
• Entire roof replacement including roof frame and ridge-board.  (quite pricey)

Most roofs are supposed to be able to handle the weight of about 3 layers of shingle.  3 layers makes for a very heavy roof and can bow the ridge board creating a rather expensive repair.  Check the roof to see how many layers of shingle are currently on it.  1 is best, 2 is OK, 3 means that it will eventually have to be removed to replace it with another layer, adding to the cost of your roof replacement. 

Termites, left to their own devices, can cause tremendous damage over time.  While most Long Beach homes require a moderate amount of termite work done during the escrow process, occasionally a home will have a tremendous amount of damage and the costs can skyrocket.  Termite work is usually the responsibility of the seller contractually.  Sometimes the seller will place a financial cap on how much work they are willing to do, if the buyer accepts this during the negotiation process they will be contractually obligated to complete the work themselves. Smart homeowners have annual contracts with a pest control company to keep the little buggers under control. 

Many bank owned properties are refusing to do termite inspections and work.  It is advisable to have a termite inspection during your contingency period to assure yourself that the home is sound and the work will not have astronomical costs attached to it after purchase. 

Foundation issues are usually deal breakers.  If an entire foundation needs to be replaced the estimated costs are usually so high the seller will refuse and the buyer will decline.   If you discover foundation problems, you absolutely should get 3 estimates for the work.  You may be shocked at how far apart the estimates can be.  Some years ago I saw 3 estimates for the same foundation replacement come in at about $20k, $35k and $52k, it can be confusing and it can make people very angry.   Most buyers are not equipped to handle this level of problem. 

Some cracks in foundations are easily repaired with a liquid epoxy.  The problems are not always major.  Foundation problems can sometimes be detected by a noticeable tilt of the floors. Large cracks can be an indicator of stress to a particular area of the foundation.

A sagging in a particular area of the home could indicate that a post needs to be replaced under the home.  This is not as major of a job as one would think, and is fairly reasonable to correct. 

Heaters must work, most lenders will not fund a loan without an operating heating system. 

I recently showed a very nice home to a buyer client.  The home was in very good condition and showed really well.  The seller happened to be home and was very forthcoming with information about the house.  She has lived in it for 25 years, having purchased it from a very handy gentleman years before.  The prior owner added on a large master bedroom and bath, the work was quality.  It seems that he also delivered the house with a new roof and 15 year old plumbing.  The electric had not been a problem, so it had not been upgraded.  The kitchen, while nice, was in need of a remodel.

Having informed us that she had lived in the home for 25 years repair free, we now knew that just about everything in the home was nearing the end of its useful life and would need to be replaced over the next few years.  As nice as the home was, the potential investment in it over the first few years was too high, even at a reduced selling price. 

There is much to consider when purchasing a home.  Most buyers in today’s real estate market do not have the money to handle expensive upgrades and/or repairs after purchase.  Smart sellers are putting their homes into tip top condition prior to listing their Long Beach homes on today’s real estate market.  These homes are experiencing multiple offers and are selling very fast.  There just are not very many of them available.  Other Long Beach homes continue to sit on the real estate market because the buyers know they will not be able to do the work after purchase. 

Buying Long Beach homes requires a great deal of investigation and knowledge.  It is easy to overlook potentially expensive repairs that are just a short way down the road.  This is one of the many reasons it pays to hire a knowledgeable “Long Beach Realtor®” to protect your interests when you are shopping for “Long Beach Real Estate”.

Contact Laurie to begin the search for your new home

Granite Countertops are one of the top selling points for homes and condos.  In a recent article “Words that Sell Homes”, it was disclosed that the word Granite was one of the 7 top words that help sell a home. When thinking about a Long Beach Home Kitchen Remodel, it is the Granite counter-top that is the finishing touch.  Will you go dark or light?  A lot of texture or more sedate? Domestic or Imported? Almost everybody loves granite countertops. 

Recently the NY Times published an article raising questions regarding harmful levels of radon gases being emited by the breadown of uranium in the many varieties of granite countertops.  Radon is a radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer.

Having read through many of the articles available on the internet most suggest that the countertops emitting the highest levels of radiation seem to be those imported from Brazil and Namibia.

The Marble Institute of America has said such claims are “ludicrous” because although granite is known to contain uranium and other radioactive materials like thorium and potassium, the amounts in countertops are not enough to pose a health threat.

If you have granite countertops and are concerned whether radon or radiation is a problem you can:

1. Contact the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (aarst.org). Testing costs between $100 and $300.
2. Find a certified technician at the Environmental Protection Agency’s Web site at epa.gov/radon, as well as from state or regional indoor air environment offices, which can be found at epa.gov/iaq/whereyoulive.html.
3. Radon test kits are available from the National Safety Council  (or call 1-800-SOS-RADON).  Some home improvement stores sell test kits.  To find a qualified testing or mitigation contractor, contact your state radon office or either of the national private radon programs.

Articles on the subject you might be interested in reading: 

• What’s Lurking in Your Countertop? – NY Times
  
• Granite Countertops A Health Threat? – CBS News
  
• Radon in Granite
• Could your granite countertops be leaking radon gas?
• Granite Countertops & Radon Gas

One of the most appealing draws to living in Long Beach CA is the walkability of many of our local neighborhoods. Well, somebody finally decided to start ranking walkable neighborhoods across the country. Walk Score has ranked 2,508 neighborhoods in 40 of the largest US cities to help buyers find walkable communities to live in.

Long Beach California has been ranked as the 8th Most Walkable Neighborhood!

1. San Francisco
2. New York
3. Boston
4. Chicago
5. Philadelphia
6. Seattle
7. Washington D.C.
8. Long Beach
9. Los Angeles
10. Portland
11. Denver
12. Baltimore

see the rest here…

Long Beach Neighborhood Walk Scores:

52% of Long Beach has a Walk Score of 70 or above.

85% of Long Beach has a Walk Score of at least 50.

15% of Long Beach lives in a Car Dependent Neighborhood.

What do these scores mean?

Here are some general guidelines to how these rankings work:

• 90-100 = Walkers’ Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
• 70-89 = Very Walkable: It’s possible to get by without owning a car.
• 50-69 = Somewhat Walkable: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
• 25-49 = Car-Dependent: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
• 0-24 = Car-Dependent (Driving Only): Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!

How It Doesn’t Work: Known Issues with Walk Score

Walk Score admits that Walk Score is just an approximation of walkability. There are a number of important factors that contribute to walkability which are not part of their algorithm:

• Public transit: Good public transit is important for walkable neighborhoods.
• Street width and block length: Narrow streets slow down traffic. Short blocks provide more routes to the same destination and make it easier to take a direct route.
• Street design: Sidewalks and safe crossings are essential to walkability. Appropriate automobile speeds, trees, and other features also help.
• Safety from crime and crashes: How much crime is in the neighborhood? How many traffic accidents are there? Are streets well-lit?
• Pedestrian-friendly community design: Are buildings close to the sidewalk with parking in back? Are destinations clustered together?
• Topography: Hills can make walking difficult, especially if you’re carrying groceries.
• Freeways and bodies of water: Freeways can divide neighborhoods. Swimming is harder than walking.
• Weather: In some places it’s just too hot or cold to walk regularly.

More information on how the walk score is determined can be found here.

When seeking walkable Long Beach neighborhoods nobody knows the areas better than your Long Beach Realtor. Search Long Beach Homes for sale and consult your Realtor to find out which Long Beach neighborhoods best suit your specific needs.