Friday, July 4, 2008

Beck Is Flipping Out in Hancock Park

SELLER: Beck (Campbell) and Marissa Ribisi
LOCATION: S. Hudson Avenue, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $9,000,000
SIZE: 5,718 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: On a beautifully manicured corner lot setting w/ huge mature trees, this handsome estate offers large scale public rooms. Large living room, library, formal din rm plus huge kit/fam rm measures 53' x 26' which serves as lifestyle center of the home. Grand master suite has his & hers baths & walk-in closets. Five family bedrooms w/ en suite baths. Professional recording studio and rehearsal room in guest house, grassy back yard, swim lane pool, privacy & security make this a rare find.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Your Mama just lurvs it like crazy when we get celebrity real estate tips from the children and yesterday we were lucky enough to hear from Tina Tonguewagger who pointed our bleary eyes towards a house in Hancock Park that was recently put on the market with an impressive $9,000,000 asking price. There ain't many nine million dollar listings in Hancock Park so this one will surely garner some attention from all the real estate gossips, not to mention that it is being flipped by maverick musician Beck (Campbell) and his ack-turus turned fashion designer wifey Marissa Ribisi who is, of course, Giovanni's twin sister.

Prop records reveal that Mister and Missus Beck only purchased the recently rehabbed 5,718 square foot corner residence in June of 2007. That's right children, June of 2007. A few quick flicks of the beads on Your Mama's bejeweled abacus indicates that the proud Scientologists are asking an astounding $2,250,000 more than the $6,750,000 records show they paid for the place just one year ago. Now that, my puppies, takes some serious real estate cajones, partick in a sagging real estate market in an area where not a lot of houses sell for anywhere near nine million clams.

Then again, the house does occupy one of the better corners in the hoity toity neighborhood with Bruce Rabin's 14,071 square foot Tudor across the street, the Japanese consulate catty corner and across the street to the north sits a proper estate with swimming pool and tennis court that recently and quietly transferred for $8,950,000. Just a few doors up S. Hudson Avenue is the 9,676 square foot place that was scooped up by Emmy winning boob toob producer John Wells in August of 2007 for $10,400,000, and let's not forget Mister David Schwimmer who rattles around in his beautifully maintained 11,336 square foot, 10 bedroom and 9 bathroom behemoth across the street from Mister Wells. So maybe, just maybe, nine million big ones isn't so much to ask after all. Hmm.

Listing information indicates that in addition to formal living and dining rooms, the house features a library, dual baths and walk in closets in the master suite, and a colossal kitchen/family room that measures in at nearly 1,400 square feet. Out back is a swim lane pool, large grassy areas on which the kiddies can play and the pooches can piddle, and the guest house has been converted into a recording studio and rehearsal room, a feature that Your Mama is quite sure musicians will salivate over and for which non-musicians will want to tear out immediately.

From the looks of the listing photographs, Your Mama thinks it's probably safe to assume that Mister and Missus Beck did not bother to consult or hire a nice gay decorator to do up their day-core. And while it's refreshing to see a house that has not been wrecked by an over processed high-celebrity day-core, they really should have called one of Your Mama's nice gay decorator pals because let's be honest children, there's really little to love when it comes to the furniture choices and placement. The large entrance hall would be better off if the round table was removed, and do we even want to know about that white lady standing in the corner? Good lawhd children that thing would scare the buhjeezis right out of Your Mama peering out of the corner some dark night when we came a-sneakin' down to the kitchen for an after midnight Popsicle.

The living room is lacking in any sort of warmth (a nice rug would be a good place to start cozying things up) and the dining room the table is pathetically small for the generously sized room. Unfortunately, the addition of the rug and two slipper chairs to fill one end of the dining room only enhances the lack of decorative vision. We do, however, appreciate the cluster of thrift store portraits in mismatched frames. That's working just fine.

Upstairs in the master bedroom, everything looks like it was put in the correct place, but why does it all look so curiously small? Your Mama is not so bothered by televisions sitting above fireplaces in family room, but it would have been so dman easy to hide the television in a cabinet in this room. So easy in fact that it seems sorta silly not to. It's fine when you're watching it, but what about when you're not? It's a little troublesome to think of that big black screen staring out at you while you're trying to read a dee-lishus Richard Yates novel.

Undoubtedly the kitchen and family room is where this young family of four spends most of their time. We're thrilled–and not surprised–to see a wall chock full of books. We may not appreciate Beck and Marissa's decorating sensibilities, but the fact that the couple has actual books in their house in a room they actually use makes up for a lot of interior design crimes. The books absolutely do not make up for that upsetting white lady in the entrance hall, but they do soften us to the notion that Mister and Missus may have simply not gotten around to selecting a rug for the living room or purchased a properly sized dining room table.

Although records show that Mister and Missus Beck also own a modest house in the Point Dume area of Malee-boo, Your Mama can't imagine why this couple would bother to buy and move into this house only to turn around a sell it just a year later. But if we've said it once, we've said it a thousand times, who are we to make sense of the crazy real estate ways of the rich and famous?

Now then children...Happy freaking Fourth of Joo-lie. Go watch some fireworks and leave Your Mama and the Dr. Cooter to sip some juicy gin and tonics in peace.

87 comments:

Alessandra said...

I agree that the furniture is oddly not to scale in many of the rooms. Also, while I appreciate a home that mixes the old with the new, I don't get any real sense of cohesion with this decor. The zebra rug against the oriental carpet is just one example.

Seeing beyond all that, since it won't exist when they move, the bones are decent and the house appears to be gracious. Is it $9mm worth of gracious? Well, maybe if they made a ton of upgrades, it is. Otherwise, we'll have to see what the buyers in that price range think.

StPaulSnowman said...

Hey Mama.........maybe they need the money. If they don't get their 2.5 million payday they can just stay put.

so_chic_darling said...

It seems like a whole lot of money for not much of anything,even empty of the awful furnishings. The outside looks like an apartment building.

StPaulSnowman said...

Talk about Alessandra's comment regarding lack of cohesion..........the stair rail and ballustrade seem to have been lifted out of a period home and dropped, unwillingly, into this modern space.........the clash with the "Let's impressum" floor is painful.

Anonymous said...

once upon a time, all musicians homes had a piano. There must be a keyboard out in the studio.

Anonymous said...

I HATE it. And for 9 million. Forget it. That's a husk, not a home.

lil' gay boy said...

The hallway and rear façade do have a dormitory feel to them, and I understand from past comments that the police response time is less than ideal (although spectacular in terms of wealthy enclaves in my neck of the woods).

$9M? Ummm, not so much. Especially for the cachet (or lack thereof) of Hancock Park.

Looks like the family has been camping out in the kitchen/family room, the only "lived in" portion of the house. Perhaps they meant to flip it all along?

Anonymous said...

I'd guess yes, that it was bought with the intention of flipping. Big stuffed giraffe aside, it doesn't look like they ever lived there. Or perhaps they did but have thoroughly denuded it of all telltale signs.

Anonymous said...

I have a feeling that this sale is gonna take a while.

Anonymous said...

Another nutcase estate agent.

Alessandra said...

LGB, Hancock Park does have a certain cachet and many major stars live there or have lived there. It has a true "old money" feel, and the architecture is superb. It got a bad rap during the riots in the early 1990s because it was "close" to the upset. By close, I mean that it was one or two or five neighborhoods away from trouble.

I do agree that for non-Angelenos, Hancock Park means nothing. It does not carry the global name recognition of Beverly Hills or Bel Air.

Anonymous said...

I thought the $6,750,000 Beck paid for this place a year ago was steep, and the housing market has only gotten worse since then. Now he's asking $9,000,000? Why? Because Beck lived there? Please.

Anonymous said...

Beck bought this property right after it had been newly renovated, and as far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything else to it. His asking price a year later is typical rich man's greed: for suckers only.

lil' gay boy said...

I've heard about Hancock Park's history; it seems to me to be a lovely old-world type neighborhood, but a lot of posters have repeatedly harped on the police response time.

Gatsby Country here is in the rolling hills of the peninsulas jutting into the Sound, with only one or two main roads leading in and out; the more affluent the community, the farther from the main roads and the longer the response time.

But the greater the beauty, privacy and isolation, for those who truly seek anonymity.

Why is response time such a big deal there? It's not usually a question that comes up in my neck of the woods.

Anonymous said...

Maybe there is oil under neath or a gold mine, that would justify the 9MM asking price

then again did paul okenfold or moby unload their places yet ???

I think not

the celebrity has lost it's aura, they are now considered normal and their estates are worth no more than lets say a lawyer or a doctors estate

It is worth 2MM tops so they will have to keep it for 20 years to get 9MM for it.

If it was in beverly hills or bel air maybe they could get 9MM

Anonymous said...

Hmmm.. I don't know Mama. Perusing through old real estate records, I found that the fully refurbished home originally listed for $7.2 million, and was later slashed to $6.995 million, before Beck bought it for $6.75 million. As someone noted, the market hasn't improved any in the past year, so I tend to agree with the majority here that Beck is dreaming if he thinks he's going to get anywhere near $9 million.

Anonymous said...

Since Beck strikes me as someone who wouldn't need to sell for lack of money, perhaps there is something wrong with the neighborhood to make him sell so quick? I'm an east coaster, so I don't know all the particualrs about HP, but it seems a nice enough neighborhood to me, but it seems like very few properties are able to scratch the upper 7 or low 8 figures range, and even them, I don't see a particular rhyme or reason...seems to me, this neighborhood the prices can vary widely based on the tase and preferences of the buyer...the kind of neighborhood where people see a house that looks like the house of their dreams, pounce on it, and uiltimately fall in love with the 'hood or find they miss the privacy of their gates and long driveways in the hills and sell out quickly...I'll take bets though that he doesn't get near $9-million for it, I though the place was terribly bland for $7-million when it first hit the market...though I did like the house across the street that Mama notes recently sold for $8.75-million, and if I remember correctly, that sold pretty quick...ok, 'nuff rambling for now...;-)

Anonymous said...

bigdaddyj, you make a good point in comparing this property to other very expensive nearby properties. Beck's house just dosen't measure up to the others which have gone for extreme prices. There's nothing architecturally significant or compelling about it, there's precious little grassy backyard area, and it's public exposure on 2 sides as a consequence of it's corner lot location isn't exactly a plus in this particular instance either.

Anonymous said...

Beck's property is basically new construction. Had you seen the house back when they had it apart you would know what I mean.

The Vodhanel estate across 4th st that sold for just under 9M is one of the nicer houses in HP.

Beck's house isn't worth half that.

Scientology + Celebrity = GREED

Fuck that clown.

Anonymous said...

Fun thing to do at the corner of 4th & Hudson.

Walk by the Bel-Air patrol car (that is usually parked there) and whack the 1/4 panel.

The guard is usually fast asleep in the car.

luke220 said...

Sean Hayes' house in Hancock Park has dropped from $8,950,000 to $7,450,000. This one has a way to go.

Parker said...

$9MM is too steep for it; I predict it will go closer to $7MM. As for average joe's prediction of it selling for $2MM, that's laughable. My neighbor in HP just sold their 2000 sq ft house for $2MM in one week. Beck's house is much larger and upgraded, whereas my neighbor's house needs a lot of work. No comparison. I do know that Beck's wife's sister and her roommates are the nanny and assistants, and that they do work our of Beck's home so yes, Beck and family do live there. I'd guess they're going to stay relatively close because the sister & roommates recently signed a lease in the neighborhood.

Anonymous said...

Bigdaddyj, I don't think it's the neighborhood. Beck buys and sells houses pretty frequently. I think it's a moneymaking venture myself....But he must not want to sell too badly if he's asking that price.

Anonymous said...

The house is just awkward. Whoever did the renovation design work really doesn't have a good sense of space - for example, the way the kitchen is laid out totally misses the mark, the placement of the too-small french doors in the dining room, etc. And the decorating, or lack thereof, doesn't do the awkward architecture any favors. Someone with a really good eye, and budget, could really warm the place up and make a huge improvement in how this house presents - play up the good points and minimize the awkward. If they want to maximize the resale value of this puppy, they'd better get some design pros in there with rented staging furniture, art and accessories.
Love the books and the giraffe, though!

Anonymous said...

is it inside the guard gated area of hancock park or on the outside ?

and of those of you who do not know HP is a few blocks away from the GHETTO's

there is a high rate of crime in that area, I have friends who live down there in the mansions and they all have registered fire arms and so far no problems although they have been challenged quite a few times in their drive ways but once they flash the gun they are left alone.

I wonder if they would still be around without the guns ???

whereas BH Bel air ???

literally crime free and miles away from the GHETTO's

You can walk around BH Bel air at 3am in the morning like I do sometimes for a breath of fresh air and no one bothers you.

Anonymous said...

Waste of money - you can have 2260 Sunset PLaza for that amount.

Anonymous said...

Now that the boom is about over when the prices come down I am sure that HP will come back down to 2MM for estates and 200k for homes.

I have a friend that bought a castle like estate in hancock park, it is in the guard gated area 11,000 sqft, night club, bar,

he only paid 1MM for it in the 90's.

Parker said...

Once again, av. joe is full of sh--. I was born and raised in Hancock Park and I feel perfectly safe here. No, it's not right next to the ghetto. It is close to some less desirable neighborhoods (Hollywood, Koreatown, etc.) but far, far from the ghetto. And keep dreaming about the prices dropping here.

luke220 said...

Hancock Park is beautiful. Unlike some LA areas, it doesn't scream "I made a zillion dollars yesterday". Many beautiful homes and a lot of architectural interest.

That said, this particular house does seem overpriced.

Anonymous said...

parker

you just mentioned areas that are the ghetto and are heavily ridden with crime.

hancock was the BH in the 1920's and up until this fraudulent real estate boom it was always known that if you wanted to fake it and act like you are one of the super rich hancock park was the place to live estates used to sell for pennies on the dollar because yes

it is next to korea town, downtown, lower part of hollywood

btw did you hear last night ???

it is all over TMZ a young kid was shot in front of a club in hollywood at 2:30 in the morning

real safe

BH, Bel Air, Sunset Plaza area, outside of the small amount of robberies committed by the domestic helps immediate family, which we all know were inside jobs, are still some of the safest areas in a metropolitan city area.

You can keep your hancock park, it is BH, Bel Air, for me.

I do not even go down to hancock park unless I am going to a movie party behind the gates that have the 24 hour guards and contrary to popular belief, they are never asleep and they check your driver license before letting you through, so I would not even think about crashing one.

Btw if Becks place is worth 9MM then my friends place is worth 30MM

I just looked up his sqft his place is more like 15k sqft and it is immaculate.

you really have to chalk up the hype to the agents trying to save a sinking ship when some of them did in fact blew holes in the side of it and forgot to tell everyone about it.

I wonder how long it will be until that property is taken off the market ?

We still have not even hit the tip of the iceberg of what is to come.

Right the RE market is at a stalemate with a lot of very pissed off players.

Anonymous said...

Avg Joe.

I grew up in Hancock Park also.

There is NO guard gated section.

That would be Fremont Place.

H.P is not where people bought who wanted to "pretend" to be rich.

It's where the non-flashy people with money used to live.

Now there are far more "Hollywood types" as they are called.

30 years ago a Realtor would have been blacklisted if they sold to a "Hollywood Type"...and that has nothing to do with the old Nat King Cole escapade.

Anywhoo...

Beck bought at the absolute peak as far as I am concerned and would be surprised if he even got 6M when you consider that the old Coppola house on June is 5.8MM or so and it's on the golf course.

I'd put his house in the 5MM range.

Sissy boy Jack over on Rimpau should be in the 4.5MM range.

Am I right? Who knows, who cares.

You are correct about Hancock Park being too close for comfort to the undesirable areas as they do seem to make their way into H.P. quite frequently. And as the recession comes hitting hard it will get worse. I remember HP in the early 70's. Do you? Does anybody on this blog?

Anonymous said...

Parker.

You are correct that Avg Joe is dreaming if he thinks that Becks house will go for 2MM.

However...


There have been no 2000 sf "fixers" that sold for 2MM recently.

None. Zero Zilch Zip Nada.

The only fixer that sold for 2MM recently was the house on McCadden between 4th and 6th on the west side of the street and that was closer to 4k sf.

The house that sold on Citrus (2300sf for 1.8+/-) was not a fixer.

Anonymous said...

what is membership at the golfclub?

Mike Cook said...

I, too, am facinated by the amount of po-po repsonse time talk by many LA-based posters. I've never called the police. Ever. And I live in New York. What gives?

Anonymous said...

Bentley it is the gangs, addicts and the homeless my friend

have you heard ???

LA is the gang capital of the US and maybe the world

The areas near HP are riddled with gangs, homeless and drug addicts ironically some of the addicts I did know were very successful, super rich and now they are downtown doing crack every day.

very sad indeed

When RE went up 1500 percent the last 5 years naturally HP went up as well, there were talks of mass gentrification/re building, and now that RE is going back down I suspect that HP will go down 90% and Fremont place is known as the gated area of Hancock park and that is by far the best area of HP will go down as well.

Inside fremont place it is very safe but once you go out those gates at 4AM well lets just say keep a lookout because at that time even god cannot protect you from a car jacking.

If another riot occurs ????

all bets are off.

Anonymous said...

Anon 12:49 there are 24 hour guards that do check your DL before they let you in, it is right off of wilshire right near rimpau I have been there many times in the last 10 years

Years ago during the day a person ahead of me argued with the guards because the owner was not home, they would not let him through so he smashed through the gate and the guards shot his tires out, then the police showed up and arrested the guy, this happened within 10 minutes.

Of course it never hit the papers.

My guess is that some powerful heavy players still live there.

Anonymous said...

I just looked up estates in HP on zillow.

Surprise surprise

the price for a 10 sqft mansion is still 1.5 MM

So either zillow is outdated or the sellers here need to stop smoking the crack and get down to brass tax.

Parker your friend that sold her place for 2MM got very very very lucky.

Parker said...

I'm still laughing about av joe's Fremont Place story. First, it's at Rossmore, not Rimpau. Second, whenever I've visited my friends in Fremont Place, the guards have NEVER checked my id. Not once, not ever, and I'm there too frequently for my taste. I can't stand the ostentatious attitude of Fremont Place. Maybe the rumors about you and your cardboard box are true, and if so, then perhaps you should leave your box behind when you try to enter the gates. Try using a smile and a friendly wave; that's all it takes when you tell the guard where you're going.

anon1:01, I misspoke when I said the house sold. It's currently in escrow, scheduled to close this week.

Anonymous said...

The idea that Hancock Park (or Fremont Place which is actually a separate neighborhood) needs gentrification is almost as funny as the idea that Average Joe has quoted Zillow as gospel for the 2nd time in a week.

Wonder what Zillows say his cardboard box is worth?

Anonymous said...

Parker

zillow

1.5 MM average for a 10,000 sqft estate on fremont place

now you are going to tell me that they are full of shit ???

I think zillow is more like a crystal ball of where RE prices are going.

Some friends of mine lost 12 MM in the stock market today, they are just like you in their linear thinking always positive refusing to see that we have gotten it in the Ass by the man.

I am sure tomorrow they are going to start thinking 4 years ahead instead of what is happening today.

Now they have 200 MM in the market so it is all virtual money anyway but to lose 12 MM in one day ???? that has got to hurt

esp if this is the start of the downward decline for wall street.

Then again who knows maybe the dow will go up 400 points tomorrow ??

Anonymous said...

and mansions in HP will sell for 5MM 6MM and 9MM in 2008, 2009, 2010.

Anonymous said...

Parker.

I suspect you are a realtor.

Easily googleable too.

Once again. No 2000 sf fixer went pending for 2 Million.

Unless you have been rounding up by a few hundred thousand dollars on that Wilcox golf-course house. (Hardly a fixer)

Anonymous said...

Avg Joe.

I'll call Parker out on being F.O.S. and I'll call you out too.

Zillow is F.O.S.

Not every house is the same in HP. Some Zillow too high and some Zillow to low. Their algorithm also has a tough time w/ prop 13.

If you want to find yourself an area where zillow can help you find your house, may I suggest a homogeneous housing tract out in Valencia or something like that where they were all built at the same time, sold at the same time and are the same size, style and cheap build quality.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who thinks Zillow accurately reflects real estate values doesn't know what they're talking about, plain & simple...

Anonymous said...

I still think that when the dow gets down to

"shit"

I just took a look at it, I thought it was still in the 14,000 range

it is now down 11,220 ????

okay so the dow was at around 8000 in the mid 1990's so when it drops another 3000 points down to 8000, 9000 area then the housing will sell as follows for starter prices in the LA area

outside of LA ? 20 miles away south.

30k for homes

300k for mansions, estates

inside LA near the ghettos ?

100k for homes

600k for mansions

in the gated areas 1 MM for mansions

inside LA BH, Bel Air, Malibu Sunset Plaza area ?

200k for homes 2MM for mansions

the top prices in the highend areas will be at around 10 MM

the top prices in the areas near the ghetto will be 2 MM

it will be just like 1996 all over again.

Loans will be hard to get and you will have to pay cash.

welcome to la la land or should I say la la USA.

Anonymous said...

Av. Joe,

I think I finally figured you out...you're just being antagonistic in order to get people's goats. I don't think you actually believe what you're saying at all, not one bit. You just enjoy seeing the (negative) attentions your rather bizarre and inflammatory statements make.

So as long as people complain about you and call you names you'll just keep making not particularly intelligent commentary using specious logic and unsupportable figures because you enjoy the attention.

Have fun. Now that I "get you" I don't need to be bothered by what you say.

Rock on Av. Joe.

Anonymous said...

TrudyI

I believe and know everything I am saying and now our high officials are starting to say the same thing

we are in a

BIG FUCKING MESS

btw my friends now lost 4MM today

I think they are going to pull out their 200 MM this week of the stocks and put it into T bills.

At least T Bills stay the same.

Anonymous said...

You may be right that things are a mess on the economic front...and we have Mister Bush and his friends to thank for much of that.

However, much as you might think Hancock Park is a pit of lawlessness where residents are car jacked and mugged daily is a fallacy. And, just so you know 10,000 sq. ft. mansions do not sell for $1.5M.

1. 376 S. Hudson sold April 11 for $8.95M (7,535 SF)

2. 454 S. Rossmore sold May 8 for $3.65m (5,075 SF)

3. 523 S. Lucerne sold Mar 17 for $3.1M (3,966 SF)

Those are recent sales. I'm sure you think the buyers are insane, but you know what? What you think it irrelevant.

Anonymous said...

Trudy are you a RE agent ? are you in the RE industry ??

You sure sound like one

you are talking about sales from over a month ago, I did not say everyday there is a killing or a mugging but I would not be out late at night driving around in that area for to long, why do you think housing was so cheap in that area ???

again HP went up on the false RE Boom end of story

watch how quickly it falls now and how it will last.

btw parker I hope you are not collecting your pension anytime soon

"Pension plans suffer huge losses
Report says weak markets, credit crunch have drained $280 billion from plans of largest U.S. companies"

Thank got I never fell for that scam.

Anonymous said...

Av Joe,

No, I'm not in the real estate business, but what dif. would it make if I was?

Those are sales that show on trulia.com. I didn't make them up, they're actual sales, where people went to the bank and took mortgages.

Listen, you have something to say, but this isn't the forum for you...you don't add anything here and that's the bottom line.

It doesn't matter because you'll continue to post, but you clearly like being the pariah, so that's good. Everyone needs a role to play.

Anonymous said...

Trudy you are an agent, listen get another job for now not that there are that many jobs out there

btw you blame bush for this mess ??????????

Wall Street caused this mess, they created a fabricated market that never existed using money that did exist and has since vanished.

If you had any real intelligence you would know this.

Because you don't wait for a few months, it will call come out and many hedge fund managers, brokers, bankers will get a slap on the wrist and then it will be back to business.

These sales were from months ago, only in the last month or 2 has the hammer started to fall, lets see where sales are really at in August September.

I have been in the RE game for 20 years and I have seen it all and only a real pro would know that most of those sales are not real sales but owners hiding their assets or getting refi's under a friends name, or they are reselling the properties to themselves for tax purposes or to keep the values up, I have seen it time and time again and although unethical it is still not illegal.

Watch what happens when a mansion over there sells for 1.5 MM watch how quickly the pie in the sky prices drop.

Case in point a friend in the export business from Asia did buy a mansion in Encino for 1.5 MM last month.

The listing price ?????

5 MM

He paid 1.5 MM cash

Anonymous said...

Avg Joe,

You reveal your ignorance and lies by announcing proudly how you "didn't realize the DOW was down to 11,220" until today...if you truly had any money, you would know where the DOW was pretty much on a daily basis, as I (and anyone with serious money) do...

Next time you want to ponficate on the state of the economy, try not putting your foot in your mouth and revealing your stupidity and amateurity during the argument, LOL...;-)

Anonymous said...

Av. Joe,

I am not an agent, but I don't mind if you think I am...it's of no importance.

Good for your friend in Encino. I'm sure there are any number of short sale and foreclosure situations around town, but are you brave enough to share the actual property records to prove he paid $1.5M on a $5M listing? Otherwise it's all talk that's as meaningless as me saying I have a friend who just paid 20+ million for a house...which I do, but do you believe me?

Anonymous said...

"you're just being antagonistic in order to get people's goats."

Trudy, you hit the nail on the idiot's head. Average Joe is a classic Internet Troll. He doesn't know anyone with $20 much less 200 million. He is just here to annoy people. He thrives on the attention. If you go back to old topics, he has disparaged Zillow. Now he acts like it is the holy f*king grail. If you said the sky was green, he would say it is pink.

I REALLY hope Mama does something about him before he kills off her blog (and her hopes of a tv show with it). I've been here since the beginning and I'm losing interest.

Anonymous said...

anon you have been after me since day one, I wonder how weird and eccentric you are in the real world ???

BD I was kidding about the DOW, of course I watch it every day I have been invested in the market since the 80's
Now on T-Bills we all know they are the best investments out there for short term.

Quote:

"Investors consider U.S. Treasury bills (T-bills) to be the safest short-term financial instrument because these debt obligations are perceived to have no default risk. Moreover, because T-bills mature in less than one year--most mature in several months--they do not have a large interest rate risk component, either."

BD you might want to stick to your interior decorating comments, that is what you seem to be best at.

Leave the investing to the pro's.

Anonymous said...

"I wonder how weird and eccentric you are in the real world ???"

None of us come close to being as weird and f*cking crazy as you are.

"Leave the investing to the pro's."

That leaves you out.

Anonymous said...

Joe.

Those houses that Trudy posted actually did sell. They were not "refinances" or "people selling the houses to themselves to keep the value high".

Yes, Many people are asking dream prices for their homes. Look at anything on Rimpau currently or the godawful house on the corner of Rossmore & 3rd and you'll see what I mean. Those houses need a 30% price chop to sell IMHO.

I'm not sure why the house on June (on the golf course) hasn't had any nibbles even though it was a flip. It's nicer than pretty much every other house on the market in HP and priced far more reasonably than most of the others.

Anonymous said...

Actually I can't give out any property records.

Trulia is for the public

Guest MLS is for the public

I have memberships to private sites (MLS PRO, United Title) that you cannot get unless you are a RE PRO / broker.

If you have membership to those two sites and do the research you will agree with what I have been saying.

I am part of a far bigger organization and in the real world I say and act as most of you do on here.

On here however I have my alter ego "average joe

So back to the crystal ball of average joe....

On the flippers and the RE market in general, it really has not been going into a tailspin until the 2 weeks.

This month of July 2008 will surely go down in the history books as the turning point for both the RE market and the Stock market.

Anonymous said...

I have access to the MLS Pro and I looked for all houses sold in 2008 for between 1.4 and 1.7 million in Encino.

Guess what Joe, there were three:

1. Encino Ave: Sale Price: $1.646, Original List Price: $1.975

2. Genesta Ave: Sale Price $1.55, Original List Price: $1.699

3. Falling Leaf Dr: Sale Price: $1.58, Original List Price: $1.649

Three sales is not exactly the picture of a great market, but none were sold at firesale prices either. And none are your friend's place you claim was listed at $5M that he bought for $1.5.

I suppose you'll say now that your friends deal was a private deal and so not on the MLS...once again leaving you with no proof of what you're saying. But you CAN'T prove it, that's the point...it didn't happen. You're just running at the mouth like you always do.

Perhaps it's YOU who is the disgruntled real estate agent who hasn't made a sale in a year.

Anonymous said...

His sale is with United title, look it up, it should be there.

I have been to the mansion, it is around 7k sqft I was as surprised as you all are, then again he did pay cash.

as for me being a disgruntled agent ???

actually I have been a broker for 18 years

I have more agents than I can count working for us.

It has been a bad year for agents but still a great year for brokers.

Anonymous said...

Also genius it takes 3-6 months for sales to become public

Check the MLS PRO in 3 months I am sure you will see many firesales on record.

I guess you are a 1st or 2nd year agent ???

Get 10 years experience and then lets talk.

Anonymous said...

It does not take 3-6 months for sales to become public. It takes weeks, sometimes just days...six weeks or less usually. And title records are even faster.

Just look at any of the "public" sites like redfin and trulia...they have sales publicly posted as recent as mid to late June. June 2008. The post shortly after the sale is recorded with the Assessor. If you are really a broker with 18 years experience, you'd know that.

But whatever. You just say what you want like you know what you're talking about. What's interesting is that you don't back up what you're saying with facts and no one believes anything you say, but you just keep saying it anyway.

IF your friend paid 1.5 for a 5m house, that's not normal even in this declining great market. My guess is if it happened it was a distressed sale...facing foreclosure etc. It happens. It happens in good and bad markets, but to hold that one sale up as the standard for what's happening is short sighted, ignorant and foolish. How about all the OTHER sales where people are not buying $5M houses for 1.5? what about all those?

And P.S., Why does your friend's transaction not show in the MLS as a sold property?

Anonymous said...

Give it some time I am sure it will show up.

For what it is worth I am on my way to Ibiza

I will not be on the internet for some time.

good luck to all of you

I will be back in Sept and it will be interesting to see where these pie in the sky prices will be at then.

oh and a final note, have you noticed that the top 30 homes on sunset plaza area on the MLS have not moved since they have been put up for sale ?????

time to chop chop chop !!!!!

your prices are way way way to high

ciao bello !!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Average Joe is completely full of shit. There is no reason he couldn't post the address of the house that supposedly sold if it existed. Although that wouldn't prove the low sale price he claims, it would at least prove the house was on the market. And it would have to have been on the market to had a "listing price" as he claimed yesterday.

He has also claimed in the past to NOT be a broker. Now he claims to have been a broker for 18 years.

He has claimed he doesn't own because he is waiting for prices to drop but he also claims in the Ellen comments that he has a gated compound.

Whenever backed into a corner by people asking for FACTS, he either posts completely unrelated links or suddenly has to "travel" and says he won't be posting for a while. Then "Ed" or one of his other aliases shows up spouting the same shit.

Anonymous said...

He did go to Ibiza, this one -

http://ibizatanla.com/

Anonymous said...

anon do you see how you look to us ?

you are quite scary, it is like you are ready to blow

time for your meds don't you think ?

Anonymous said...

You kinda sound like this guy

http://tinyurl.com/5vn3gk

Anonymous said...

And now Average Joe is back as Debby Downer. Quick trip to Ibiza, wasn't it Joe?

You aren't fooling anyone but yourself.

Anonymous said...

okay then

well I think I have made my point

Anonymous said...

This just in to the TMZ newsroom.

Average Joe has been exposed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iGQXV79jcc

Anonymous said...

anon/levin/joe/downer

you are all really sick people

I pray that you have real life lessons taught to you in the real world

if you were to get hit by a car, train a bus that would be a good start.

Anonymous said...

THAT'S AVERAGE JOE ????

I SEE HIM SELLING ENERGY DRINKS OUT OF A COOLER ON VENICE BEACH ALL THE TIME. THEY TASTE LIKE CRAP.

Anonymous said...

Hmm, how many different nicknames is average Joe going to come up with for himself...let's see, average joe, debbie downer, anonymous, bishop terino....LOL

Anonymous said...

Bishop Terino,

Don't you have some choirboys to tend to?

Anonymous said...

Yes this is me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iGQXV79jcc

I will make millions from my energy drink and then I will own Russ Weiner's 2260 Sunset Plaza! We were supposed to be partners. He stole my formula and got his rich dad to finance Rock Star. I will take him down and be richer than he ever imagined! I have my army of sales people to sell my drink. It is laced with crack to make you Crave more! I will rule the beverage industry and I will OWN Ibiza!

Anonymous said...

Beck's house is worth 6-7 million.

The Guard that parks on that corner is actually guarding the Japanese Counsel generals house, not Beck's residence.

Is there a Security issue in Hancock Park/Windsor Square? 2-3 months ago, about 50 residents brought in a new armed patrol service manned by off-duty and retired cops. They were brought in as a more pro-active/agressive alternative to Bel-Air patrol. Their subscribers are paying over $150 per month, as opposed to Bel-Air's $50 per month charge.

How many people do you know that would pay $150 per month for patrol and another $30-50 to your alarm company. That's some heavy duty security and one has to ask, why are Hancock Park/Windsor Square residents doing that, if their are no security issues?

P.S. Still love living there.....

Anonymous said...

All security patrol companies employ off duty or retired police officers and sheriff's deputies. Even Bel-Air Patrol.

Security companies aren't like utilities. They don't have an exclusive for a neighborhood.

Hancock Park can have as many patrol companies as residents are willing to find that will cover the area.

Hancock Park/Windsor Square is City of Los Angeles. LAPD is stretched thin.

Owners in all parts of Los Angeles employ alarm companies and security patrols. Nothing special security wise about Hancock Park.

Anonymous said...

>>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iGQXV79jcc<<

There is something truly disturbing that there really is an "Average Joe's Army", which is a multilevel marketing scheme selling an energy drink called Crave that competes with Rockstar drinks.

Could this be "Average Joe's" claim to having millions? Or the reason for his fixation on that pile of crap at 2260? He wants to BE Russ Weiner?

Scary shit.

Anonymous said...

The DebbieDowner part of him wants Russ' wiener in his cake hole.

Anonymous said...

The point I was making about the new security patrol that just started in Hancock/Windsor Square is as follows....

The new patrol is using off-duty and recently retired POLICE officers. Not patrol officers who wanted to be Police Officers, but did not get hired by a Police Department.

Most of the alarm/patrol companies that operate in Los Angeles/Southern California pay their officers $12-16 per hour.

The new company in Hancock Park is charging big $$$, so they can actually pay for patrol officers who are or have been cops.(not wannabe's).

Anonymous said...

"The new patrol is using off-duty and recently retired POLICE officers."

Which is EXACTLY what I said. ALL patrol companies hire off duty and retired POLICE officers. Your point was??

"Most of the alarm/patrol companies that operate in Los Angeles/Southern California pay their officers $12-16 per hour."

I suspect your limited mentality is confusing ARMED PATROL OFFICERS with SECURITY GUARDS. Two different careers.

Just go away Joe. You really have no f*cking idea what you are talking about..EVER.

Anonymous said...

If you want to believe that your alarm/patrol response Armed Security Officers are retired cops or Off-Duty Police officer....then go ahead and believe it. Most off-duty cops or retired cops don't work for $12 bucks per hour, unless they were terminated from their Police employment for dishonest conduct etc....

If you want security by off-duty officers or recently retired officers, you need to pay them $25-40 per hour, the going rate.

Ask your alarm company/armed response security officer what he or she is getting paid and what their qualifications are. That's my point.

Anonymous said...

My neighborhood is no different than Hancock Park. Most everyone has some type of security system and there are two armed patrol companies that are the most popular.

One service has more contracts than the other because a) the neighborhood association recommends them, and b) a top executive of the security company lives in the neighborhood so many assume we are getting better service.

The lead officer for the area is a retired LAPD Lieutenant. Most of the patrol officers under him are current LAPD. Not a single $12 rent-a-cop in the bunch.

But as usual, you will talk out your ass telling me about *my neighborhood* when you HAVE NO IDEA WHERE I LIVE.

Average Joe, you are a dumb ass regardless of what name you choose to use to post under. Your ignorance always exposes you.

Anonymous said...

My building only employees former Secret Service Agents. Police officers can be bribed.

Anonymous said...

Anon, sounds like you live in the Palisades Riviera section of Los Angeles. It also sounds like you are paying for the top of the line patrol service, which does use off-duty and retired cops. This is the same company that is trying to get established in Hancock Park.

My point was that there is a major difference between the armed patrol/response offered by Alarm Companies, and a service like you describe(with off-duty highly paid cops).

You get what you pay for....and most of the residents of the upscale neighborhoods of L.A., are not willing to pay $100-$200 per month for private patrol service.
The vast majority will pay $50-65, for their alarm company patrol.

Not Average Joe

Anonymous said...

"Not Average Joe"

Riiight...whatever you say.

I pay $84.60 a month

Anonymous said...

I pay a homeless man named Joe $4 a day not to poop on my lawn.