Tuesday, October 20, 2009

"Million Dollar Listing"

Any of you watch the Bravo reality show "Million Dollar Listing", featuring three young real estate agents Josh Flagg, Madison Hildebrand, and Chad Rogers?

A major theme of its new season 3 has been how even our Westside market has tanked as these agents "struggle to ink their million dollar deals during this economic downturn" "in the most exclusive neighborhoods – Hollywood, Malibu and Beverly Hills."

Episode 2 last night featured the sale of a Malibu house at 32% off original asking price; a Marina del Rey house with no buyer interest, and a listing cancelled by a flipper/seller who didn't want to reduce her price.

Like some specifics about these properties? They weren't hard to find, between the show, the agents' websites (linked above), and Google.

Madison's "Hamptons in Malibu" house at 6311 Gayton Place (top photo; click any to enlarge) was listed 8/25/08 for $4,400K. It's a 6 bed / 7.5 bath, 6,053 SF house on a 60,548 SF lot less than a mile northwest of PCH and Kanan Dume road.

Its original listing price got no interest. We saw it reduced 14% last night to $3,795K and the seller then accept an offer of $3M even without even a counter-offer (32% off). It closed 2/11/09.

Which also brackets the shooting period of the show and the real estate downturn it describes as beginning in the summer of 2008.

Second is this Marina del Rey "Golden Triangle" (southwest of Lincoln and Washington) 3 bed / 2.5 bath 2,304 SF house on a small 4,922 SF lot at 819 Dickson St. co-listed by Chad on 3/18/09 for $1,739K.

Where we watched the two co-listing agents sit with no visitors during their first public open house. But the seller expressed that she couldn't reduce the price. From the MLS we find (spoiler alert?) that this listing expired 182 days later, but was relisted 10/11/09 as a Short Sale for $1,350K.

Finally was Madison's 3 bed / 3 bath 2,269 SF flip on a 7,187 SF lot at 18436 Wakecrest Dr. in Malibu (the area on the hill above PCH just west of Pacific Palisades and the Getty Villa). It was listed 8/4/08 for $2,996K, priced as the seller's numerologist advised.

Continuing the theme, its flipper-owner didn't want to reduce the price to match other comps - because of all she'd put into it - and we saw her last night take it off the market rather than reduce it to $2,150K as Madison advised.

We find from the MLS that it was reduced (in a future episode?) to $2,150K, but still expired after 253 DOM (last April). It was also offered for lease at $8,500/month.

Added: See also Curbed LA's episode summary.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I enjoy watching the show...Josh seems to be one getting the deals done.

dwr said...

I liked Josh's grandma's advice to "buy raw land because you need cash and no one has it", and he somehow interprets that as "get listings for land" and then he realizes that there are no buyers for land, after spending a bunch of money on advertising. What a genius.

I didn't watch the show last season, but this season is already chock full of schadenfreude and I am hooked.

Anonymous said...

I'm going to have to watch this, this is close to home.

Great stuff Westside.

Anonymous said...

I caught it by chance for the first time last week. I had a blast. So it's on Tuesdays? Those kids really have it coming. They are going to learn a few things. I want them to be my agents when they get to be 45.

Anonymous said...

Best part was the scumbag client going all "Indecent Proposal" on the prospective lessee's girlfriend (full disclosure, used to be neighbors and she is exceptionally attractive, but this was way over the top, the guy deserved to be punched out).

Anonymous said...

"the guy deserved to be punched out"

Agreed; however she has the wrong boyfriend to doing any punching out of anyone.

Anonymous said...

These guys are so full of themselves, but it makes good entertainment.

Anonymous said...

I never realized how much Malibu home values are tanking!

speedingpullet said...

Thanks for the tip guys!
I used to watch a couple of years ago, when Scotty Brown was still on.

Never forget seeing an episode that was just the epitome of the Housing Bubble mentality distilled: some lady had bought an older Malibu house, sat on it for a year or two, then declared she couldn't possibly accept less than $1,990k for it, despite not having done much in the way of renovation and upgrades.
Scotty dutifully listed it, where it sat for the next two years at full listing price....I actually tracked it down on ZipRealty ad saved it - I only lost track of it when my old laptop imploded and took all my data with it.

So, looking forward to the new season.
For all I know, it could still be on the MLS....

Anonymous said...

Anyone see the episode last night with Mar Vista? Anyone know where that 950 sq ft house was that had a rat in it and sold for $717k?

Anonymous said...

can't wait for last night's douchebags update!