Long Beach Real Estate-Long Beach Condos

FREEDOM FOR ALL

If freedom is denied to some then none of us are free!

 

Over 3,000 people gathered at the intersection of Redondo and Broadway in Long Beach California last night to protest the passing of Proposition 8 in our recent election.  They marched into Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach where they heard speeches by local officials and were then disbursed by the local authorities.  Many were members of our large gay community, many were straight people who understand the value of freedom. 

 

Our ancestors came to the country for many reasons; to be free of fascist governments, socialism, tyranny, to worship within their religious beliefs without fear and to live in the state of freedom.  They came here to create a New World, to re-craft centuries of what was just plain wrong and to create a country where the people could live without fear and be free. 

 

While one group may not think that what another group is doing is right, or approve of the way they live their lives, everybody needs to understand the the loss of, or the repression of, freedom is not in the spirit of the foundation that our great country was built on.  When freedom is denied or removed from one group it leaves the chanel open to remove other liberties 

 

To those of you who voted yes on Proposition 8 I have a couple of questions for you to ask yourself.

What are you going to do when a freedom that you hold precious is either removed or denied? 

Does it only become a big deal when it affects you?

One of the commentors on the LB Post article today commented that "there are over 1,100 rights bestowed upon married couples that we as gay couples do not share";  why limit this to just gay marriage?  Single and divorced people do not share in those benefits either; more people are choosing to remain single every day.  Everybody should share the same benefits. 

 

This is not going to be over until we as Americans share in the same benefits as each other.  That is true equality; until we reach that none of us are experiencing freedom. 

 

http://www.longbeachrealestatehome.com/0060B9

Downtown Long Beach Home Sales 2008 Statistical Analysis for Sellers

 

October 11, 2008

 

 

A must read for Sellers of Downtown Long Beach Homes

If you are a Downtown Long Beach Homeowner and are thinking about selling your home these statistics should interest you greatly.  So far this year only 7 Downtown Long Beach Homes have closed escrow; 5 of those were bank owned foreclosures and 2 were conventional sales. These sales ranged in price from $118,000 to $400,000; 3 of them were under $200,000.  

 

Dismal, huh?

There are 5 homes in Downtown currently in escrow; 2 of these are short sales which may or may not actually close escrow and 3 are bank owned foreclosures.   These range in price from $144,900 to $381,800, 2 of these are under $200,000. 

Of the 21 Downtown Long Beach Homes currently on the market 14 are conventional sales, 6 are short sales and 1 is bank owned. Several of these homes are landmark historic beauties, a few either already qualify or will qualify for Mills Act Tax savings once the temporarily suspended Mills Act programs are reinstated.  These timeless and distinctive homes have always been in high demand and would command top dollar.  Today, they are not moving. 

The Long Beach Office of Historic Preservation has temporarily suspended granting Mills Act status until sometime in late 2009 while they re-organize; at which time a small non-refundable fee will be implemented to assist in covering costs.  For further information contact:  Jan Ostashay at the Long Beach Historic Preservation Services (562) 570-6864

 

Pretty depressing numbers, huh?  

By now you are wondering if it is even possible to sell your Downtown Long Beach home and if it is worth the hassle of putting it on the market.  If you are currently in trouble these numbers have probably left you feeling helpless and terrified.  Well, Bank of America who recently took over Countrywide just announced an $8.5 billion dollar Homeowner Retention Program designed to assist 400,000 nationwide customers.  If your loan is through Countrywide you should read the press releases I have linked to here and contact your bank in an attempt to work out a program that could help you keep your home.  Hopefully other banks will follow suit shortly and get us all out of this mess. 

 

Read:

• Bank of America Announces Nationwide Homeownership Retention Program for Countrywide Customers-Long Beach Real Estate

I looked closely at the Downtown Long Beach homes currently available on the market.  Several of them have been on the market for some time now and still don't have photos on the MLS.  The MLS pushes the listings out online to other sites.  Photos sell listings.  When buyers search for homes on the Internet, they are looking for photos, slide shows, virtual tours and video of these homes.  When photos are missing they just assume the place is a disaster and don't even consider it, we Realtors make the same assumption and usually don't even consider the home when picking out homes to show to our buyers.  Others are just not priced correctly for today's market; some are just overpriced based on their condition and location. Most are nowhere to be found online; others have photos but are not easily found on the Internet where the buyer is shopping. 

We have to be realistic about what a home is actually worth on today's real estate market, what a buyer will pay for it, the value an appraiser will attribute to it and the value an underwriter will accept on behalf of the lending bank. Buyers are looking for deals, many are finding them too.  Banks are releasing foreclosed homes onto the active market from their inventory on a regular basis and more are coming.  Conventional sales do have to compete with these sales regarding price and appraisers are using these sales to attribute value to your home sale. 

 

Appraisers are working with sets of guidelines issued to them by the lendors they represent.  Prices are changing so rapidly they usually will not accept comparable sales older than 2 months when determining value on your home.  If you priced your home 4, 5 or 6 months ago and have not aggressively reduced your price in time with the market then there is a strong possibility that you could have an appraisal problem if you do receive an offer.

 

Read: 

• Chasing the Market Down - Are You Guilty?
• My Long Beach Home Won't Sell-Are YOU Chasing the Market Down?

So what is it going to take to sell your Downtown Long Beach Homes if you have to sell? 

 

It's going to take a comprehensive online marketing package designed to place your beautiful historic home in front of buyers eyes where they are shopping - on the search engines, by a Realtor® who has the sites and the ability to achieve that on your behalf.  It's going to take a marketing expert to weave the right mix to place your home front and center where it needs to be. There is more to this than meets the eye, it takes expertise, knowledge of SEO (search engine optimization) and it takes several powerful sites. 

I have been selling Downtown Long Beach historic homes for many years, many of them several times, often representing both the seller and the buyer in the transaction.  I know Downtown Long Beach and I know these homes.  Many of you will remember the glossy postcards with the blue ocean that you used to receive from me several times a month, i'll bet that some of you still have a stack of them somewhere.  That was an intense marketing program that moved a lot of Downtown homes, condos and income properties at a time when few others were selling.  The cards were very expensive to send out and they stopped working when the consumer moved to the Internet.  I moved there with them. 

 

The last 2 years have been spent building an incredible online presence, the sites that were built are at the top of the search engines, outranking even the largest of sites in most cases.  These sites provide an opportunity to place your Downtown Long Beach homes directly in the path of buyers shopping online.  Today's buyers are technologically adept, they are not interested in newspapers, magazine ads or postcards; they don't go to open houses on somebody else's schedule.  They shop online, locate homes they are interested in viewing then call their agent to make an appointment to view the home on their time schedule. 

 

Newspapers, magazine ads and postcards were very limiting, they would only reach small targeted niche areas; the Internet has an unlimited reach.  On the Internet, we have the ability to reach Long Beach buyers from a wide geographic area including the buyer who is relocating to Long Beach from across the country. They are researching the area they are moving to or are being relocated to online for area information as well as homes. A buyer who is looking for a Long Beach home or a high rise waterfront condo, with an endless ocean view to use as a vacation home, can search online and arrange a series of appointments prior to flying in to view them, already possessing a very good idea of what they look like because they were able to view them clearly from the photos, slide-shows and videos provided online. 

 

This is a priceless opportunity to place your Downtown Long Beach homes where they need to be to provide yourselves with the highest possibility of selling.  Over 80% of all home buyers are shopping and finding their homes online.

 

If you are considering selling your Long Beach Home and are reading this then you too found me online; something to think about, isn't it?  If you would like to know more contact me at your convenience, it would be my pleasure to show you how this is accomplished.  

Nothing will sell your home if you are overpriced, in Long Beach or anywhere else. 

 

 

Read also:

• Selling YOUR Long Beach California Homes and Condos
• The 7 Dangers of Overpricing Your Long Beach Homes and Condos
• Long Beach Real Estate Sales - Market Report - Statistics - 2008
• Long Beach - Best Neighborhood for Walking
• Parking Solutions for Downtown Long Beach
• Downtown Long Beach-Belmont Shore-Parking Solutions-Long Beach California
• Buying Your Long Beach Homes - Long Beach Real Estate
• Buying Fixer Upper Homes in Long Beach - Long Beach Real Estate

 

Downtown Long Beach CA Homes - All Sales Activity

January 1, 2008 through October 10, 2008

RES	Status	Address	Status	Bd	B t/f	Sty	Gar	Sq Ft	Yr Blt	Price	DOM	CDOM
1	A	542 Magnolia Ave	Short Sale	1	1/0	1	0	492	1906	$198,000	342	342
2	A	636 E 7th St	Conventional Sale	3	1/	1	0	1,050	1913	$215,000	248	494
3	A	817 E 10th St	Short Sale	2	1/1	1	1	1,128	1913	$230,000	234	234
4	A	1130 Lewis Ave	Conventional Sale	4	2/1	1	1	1,282	1921	$259,900	45	45
5	A	912 CHESTNUT	Approved Short Sale	2	1/1	1	0	952	1912	$260,000	2	2
6	A	1174 N Loma Vista Dr	Short Sale	3	2/2	1	2	960	1907	$275,000	16	16
7	A	1075 Martin Luther King Jr Ave	Bank Owned	2	1/1	1	0	1,507	1923	$299,900	140	492
8	A	551 W 8th St	Conventional Sale	3	2/	2	0	1,338	1906	$299,999	315	315
9	A	235 W 12th St	Conventional Sale, No Pix, Substandard Cond	5	2/2	2	0	2,701	1905	$314,500	23	23
10	A	755 Alamitos Ave	Short Sale	3	2/2	1	0	1,130	1903	$335,000	66	66
11	A	725 W 4th St	Conventional Sale, Tenant Occ	4	1/1	1	1	1,100	1950	$339,000	57	117
12	A	320 Lime Ave	Conventional Sale	3	2/1	2	2	1,498	2000	$340,000	10	192
13	A	732 N Washington Pl	Conventional Sale	2	1/1	1	2 D	1,064	1905	$364,000	310	310
14	A	625 E E 11th St	Conventional Sale	2	1/1	1	0	788	1909	$425,000	212	212
15	A	901 Elm Ave	Short Sale	4	3/2	2	2 A	2,293	1918	$499,000	263	386
16	A	419 Daisy Ave	Conventional Sale *	4	3/1	2	2 D	2,018	1904	$595,000	68	68
17	A	453 Cedar Ave	Conventional Sale, Tenant Occ.  *	4	3/2	2	0	2,363	1905	$639,000	312	312
18	A	701 Cedar Ave	Conventional Sale, Tenan Occ.	7	3/3	2	0	2,666	1911	$650,000	127	127
19	A	419 Olive Ave	Conventional Sale	4	3/1	2	0	1,871	1914	$699,900	3	3
20	A	1163 Magnolia Ave	Conventional Sale, 2 on lot	6	6/5	2	2 D	4,083	1923	$800,000	149	149
21	A	435 Cedar Ave	Conventional Sale *	6	7/	2	2	4,414	1906	$1,300,000	259	259
22	P	1077 N Loma Vista Dr	Bank Owned	2	2/1	1	0	900	1940	$144,900	8	8
23	P	1085 N Minerva Park	Short Sale	2	1/1	1	1	997	1922	$190,000	123	123
24	P	336 Magnolia Ave	Bank Owned	3	2/2	1	0	1,350	1902	$275,500	53	53
25	P	935 E Martin Luther King Jr Ave	Approved Short Sale	4	4/3	2	2 A	2,092	2005	$350,000	318	341
26	P	347 W 7th St	Bank Owned-Major Repairs	4	3/1	2	0	1,764	1907	$381,800	97	97
27	S	718 Elm Ave	Bank Owned	2	1/1	1	0	986	1917	$118,000	6	114
28	S	712 E Alta Way	Bank Owned	1	1/	1	0	720	1906	$184,000	7	198
29	S	708 E Alta Way	Bank Owned	1	1/1	1	0	688	1914	$189,900	6	6
30	S	226 W 6th St	Bank Owned	2	1/1	1	0	772	1903	$227,000	105	363
31	S	122 W 8th St	Bank Owned	3	3/2	2	2 A	1,338	2000	$330,000	13	13
32	S	774 N Loma Vista Dr	Conventional Sale, Tenant Occ	2	1/	1	0	760	1918	$355,000	5	5
33	S	326 Daisy Ave	Conventional Sale-City Violations	4	5/4	1	2	3,748	1913	$400,000	110	110
			* Eligible for the Mills Act

• A = Active on the Market
• P = Pending in Escrow
• S = Closed Sale - Sold
• DOM = Days on Market
• CDOM = Combined Days on Market

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Real Estate Sales-Market Update

Homes, Condos and Income Properties - 2008 - Through September 29, 2008

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale

• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $500000 and up
• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $300000 to $500000
• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale Under $300,000

 

http://www.longbeachrealestatehome.com/00605E

Downtown Long Beach Real Estate Sales-Market Update

 

Homes, Condos, Coops, OYOs, Income Properties

 

Updated:  September 29, 2008

 

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Homes

 

 

There are 21 Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale ranging in price from $215,000 to $1,300,000.

• 0 homes are for sale under $200,000
• 7 homes are for sale between $200,000 and $300,000
• 4 homes are for sale between $300,000 and $400,000
• 3 homes are for sale between $400,000 and $500,000
• 2 homes are for sale between $600,000 and $700,000
• 1 home is for sale at $800,000
• 1 home is for sale at $1,300,000

• Average Price:  $435,795  up slightly from last months $432,110
• Average Days on Market:  160 up a bit from last months 140

Downtown Long Beach and Alamitos Beach Homes for sale:

 

 

There are 4 Downtown Long Beach Homes pending in escrow

• 1 @ $144,900
• 1 @ $189,900
• 1 @ $275,500
• 1 @ $350,000

 

• Average Price:  $240,075 down slightly from last months $247,250
• Average Days on Market:  96 up from last months 53

 

 

There are 3 Downtown Long Beach Homes in escrow accepting back up offers.

• 1 @ $190,000, 997 sq ft
  
• 1 @ $219,000, 772 sq ft
  
• 1 @ $381,800, 1,764 sq ft

• 
  
• Average Price:  $263,600
• Average Days on Market:  108

 

 

5 Downtown Long Beach Homes have closed escrow in 2008.

• 1 @ $118,000
• 1 @ $184,000
• 1 @ $330,000
• 1 @ $355,000
• 1 @ $400,000

• Average Price:  $277,400 down a bit from last months $289,666
• Average Days on Market:  28 up from last months 8

 

 

 

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Condos, Coops and OYOs

There are 166 Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale ranging in price from $75,000 to $2,699,999.

• Average Price:  $408,136 down slightly from last months $410,332
• Average Days on Market:  99 the same as last months 99

 

Downtown Long Beach and Alamitos Beach Condos and Townhouses for sale:

 

 

There are 14 Downtown Long Beach Condos in escrow accepting Back-Up offers.

• Average Price:  $261,644 down from last months $288,750
• Average Days on Market:  118 up from last months 79

There are 28 Downtown Long Beach Condos Pending in escrow. 

• Average Price:  $253,123 down slightly from last months $255,854
• Average Days on Market:  95 same as last months 95

112 Downtown Long Beach Condos have sold (closed escrow) in 2008.

• Average Price:  $300,035 down substantially from last months $325,239
• Average Days on Market:  90 about the same as last months 88

 

 

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Lofts

There at 30 Downtown Long Beach Lofts For Sale ranging in price from $90,000 to $798,000.

• Average Price:  $524,713 down a bit from last months $548,656
• Average Days on Market:  173 up slightly from last months 168

There are 3 Downtown Long Beach Lofts in escrow at this time (there were none in escrow last month).

 

• Accepting Back Up Offers
• 1 @ $875,000

• 
  
• Pending
  
• 1 @ $275,000
• 1 @ $505,000

 

8 Downtown Long Beach Lofts have sold (closed escrow) in 2008 (No change from last month). 

• 
  
• Average Price:  $559,812
• Average Days on Market:  139

 

 

 

 

Downtown Long Beach Income Properties

There are 43 Downtown Long Beach Income Properties For Sale ranging in price from $239,900 (duplex) to $3,150,000 (25 units). 

• Average Price:  $798,018 up from last months $735,611
• Average Days on Market:  124 up a bit from last months 119
• 
  

Downtown Long Beach and Alamitos Beach Income Properties for sale:

 

 

3 Downtown Long Beach Income Properties are Pending in escrow.

• Average Price:  $334,800 down substantially from last months $506,940
• Average Days on Market:  46 down substantially from last months 62

2 Downtown Long Beach Income Properties are in escrow accepting back up offers.  (There were no income properties accepting back up offers in Downtown last month).

 

• Average Price:  $262,400
• Average Days on Market:  12

18 Downtown Long Beach Income Properties have sold (closed escrow) in 2008.

• Average Price:  $669,200 down substantially from last months $741,706
• Average Days on Market:  99 down a bit from last months 111

 

 

 

 

Call Laurie to view Downtown Long Beach Properties

Laurie knows Downtown!

http://www.longbeachrealestatehome.com/006045

Alamitos Beach Condos Market Update

Ocean Boulevard Corridor Condo Sales

2008 Long Beach Real Estate Sales

 

January 1, 2008 - September 29, 2008

 

Active

 

There are currently 57 Ocean Blvd Corridor Condos For Sale in Alamitos Beach, many with fantastic waterfront views, some with city lights views.

• 22 condos are priced under $500,000
• 23 condos are priced between $500,000 and $1,000,000
• 11 condos are priced at between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000
• 1 condo is priced at $2,399,0000
  

 

• Average Price:  $732,822 down from 9/29/2008's  $788,490
• Average Days on Market:  remains at 100 days since our last update on 9/29/08

 

Long Beach CA Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale

 

 

Pending

 

9 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd. are pending in escrow.

• 2 One Bedrooms Condos: 1 @ $229,000, 626 sq ft; 1 @ $357,000, 732 sq ft
• 3 Two Bedrooms Condos:  1 @ $299,900, 1,104 sq ft; 1@ $549,000; 1 @ $979,000, 1,550 sq ft
• 4 Three Bedroom Condos: 1 @ $549,900, 1,542 sq ft; 1 @ $629,900, 1,282 sq ft; 1 @ $799,000, 1,330 sq ft; 1 @ $1,649,000, 1800 sq ft

 

• Average Price:  $671,300 well up from last months $382,225
• Average Days on Market:79 which is well down from last months 153 

 

Back Up Offers

 

3 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd. are in escrow accepting back up offers:

• 1 bedroom, 1 bath,706 square feet; $230,000
• 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 700 square feet; $245,000
• 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 814 square feet; $499,999

 

• Average Price:  $324,999 well down from last months $797,999
• Average Days on Market:  100 well up from last months 62

 

Closed Sales:

 

40 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd.  have closed escrow this year (2008) to date:

 

• 25 Under $500,000
• 13 Between $500,000 and $1,000,000
• 2 over $1,000,000

 

• Average Price:  $535,878 which is about the same as last months average $532,077
• Average Days on Market:  77 up slightly from last months 69

 

Cancelled

40 - Alamitos Beach Condos listed for sale on the Ocean Blvd. corridor were taken off of the market. Average Days on Market: 144

Expired

51 - Alamitos Beach Condos on the Ocean Blvd. corridor, listed for sale, expired in 2008, Average Days on Market: 159

 

Hold

4 Alamitos Beach Condo Owners have placed the sale of their homes on hold.

Leased

5 Alamitos Beach Condos have been leased.

• 1 bedroom, 880 sq ft, $2,500
• 2 bedroom, 1,542 sq ft, $2,800
  
• 2 bedroom,1,368, $2,750
  
• 2 bedroom, 2,245, $4,900
  
• 3 bedroom, 1,400, $3,500

 

• Long Beach CA Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale

• Alamitos Beach Luxury High Rise Condos Market Report-Ocean Boulevard Corridor-90802-January-December 2007
  

 

Long Beach Relocation Resource Guide

 

• Relocating to Long Beach California-Resource Guide

 

 

Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach Condos and High Rise Condos For Sale

 

• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $400000 to $500000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $500000 to $600000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $600000 to $800000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $800000 to $1000000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $1000000 and more
• Alamitos Beach-Downtown Long Beach-Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Downtown Long Beach-Alamitos Beach-Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale
• Emerald Villas Condos-555 Maine Ave-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale
• Sunset Pointe Condominiums-640 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale
• Golden Gate Square Condos-730 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale
• Ocean Gate Square Condos-720 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale

 

 

Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale

• Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $500000 and up
• Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $300000 to $500000
• Alamitos Beach and Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale Under $300,000

 

 

Prefer Luxury Waterfront Long Beach Homes with room for a boat?

Try Spinnaker Bay.

 

Or perhaps the Belmont Shore and Naples areas:

• Belmont Shore and Naples Condos For Sale
• Belmont Shore Naples Homes For Sale in Long Beach CA $2000000 and up
• Belmont Shore CA Homes for sale under $1000000
• Belmont Shore-Naples Homes For Sale in Long Beach California $1000000 to $2000000
• Marina Pacifica Condos for Sale Long Beach CA
• Bay Harbour Homes For Sale Long Beach California

 

 

http://www.longbeachrealestatehome.com/00601E

Breaking Long Beach Real Estate News:

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 ty