Local Realtors Report Moderate Housing Recovery

The President of the California Association of Realtors (CAR), LeFrancis Arnold told more than 150 Realtors in Malibu recently that a complete turnaround of the real estate industry is several years away.

Arnold was in Malibu this month for the annual Realtor summer party at LaCosta Beach. Over 150 Realtors and their families enjoyed a warm summer night out at the beach complete with a barbecue dinner.

After traveling the entire state for the past year as the leader of the association’s trade group, Arnold said the state is in a moderate recovery and it could take up to four years for a complete turnaround to a stabilized industry.

“It’s business as usual for many property buyers throughout the state. People are buying new homes and selling to buy other homes," Arnold said. 

Bobby Lehmkuhl, president of the , was optimistic about the future of real estate locally. 

“Malibu is on sale now, don’t miss it,” Lehmkuhl said with enthusiasm.

Jay Rubenstein, manager of the , was equally positive about the real estate market and reported a recent sale for $21 million on Point Dume. 

“We have an estate listing, La Villa Contenta a premier property represented by Chris Cortazzo for $54 million, which was on at time listed for $75 million,” Rubenstein said.

He contrasted the high end listings in his office to a condo listed at the Malibu Gardens for $320,000. This condo was listed on July 2 and went into escrow by July 5 on a short sale. Rubenstein added the property “is now waiting on the bank’s approval.”

Michael Novotny, manager of the , reported that his firm “is seeing a mix of transactions, with the majority of activity in standard sales, then short sales and the smallest amount of sales are actually foreclosures."

Another trend he noticed within his office was the brisk leasing market, with an increase of 30 percent in leases over last year.

Beverly Taki is a California-licensed real estate broker who has represented clients in Malibu for 22 years. She is a Malibu resident and president/broker of Seabreeze Estates Realty. Beverly has earned a certificate in dispute resolution from Pepperdine University, specializing in mediation. Taki can be reached at beverly@beverlytaki.com or 310-456-4843. Her website is beverlytaki.com.