Real estate and homes for sale in the South Bay
Keith Kyle Realtor - Vista Sotheby's International Realty
Just sold in Redondo Beach!
We wanted to congratulate our wonderful clients Jay and Zeke (he’s the one with the pillow) on the closing of their new home in North Redondo. This was an off market sale and we’re so excited to be a part of it. We can’t thank them (mostly Jay) enough for once again putting their trust in us.
One thing that justifiably concerns both home buyers and sellers are contingencies. Contingencies are basically just conditions that have to be met in order for the purchase of the home to be finalized. The most prominent contingencies are inspection, appraisal and loan. The
boilerplate timeframes on the CAR (California Association of Realtors) purchase agreement, or the standard offer, are 17 day contingencies for inspections/investigations, 17 day for appraisal and 21 days for loan. These are negotiable during the offer and counter but those are the standard timeframes.
So what do they mean?
Every situation may be different so we’ll stick with a normal situation. What it means is that you have that amount of time to get those tasks accomplished. For instance you have 17 days (again if that’s the timeframe negotiated) to have any an all investigations, inspections, etc. to completely satisfy your concerns. On day 17 the sellers would expect you to remove, in writing, that contingency. California is an active contingency state so contingencies don’t automatically expire on a certain day….they must be removed in writing. Once contingencies are removed it becomes more difficult to get your initial deposit back (usually 3% of purchase price in our area) unless there is some type of breach of contract by the other party or unless the other party agrees.
Worried about meeting your transaction contingencies in order to have a smooth home sale? I’m here to help! Send me a message with your questions.
Welcome to Redondo Beach real estate trends and market statistics for this wonderful coastal community in the South Bay. We hope that 
the information below is helpful, whether you are considering buying a home in Redondo, or selling your property in North or South Redondo.
Click here to see detailed reports for:
Active Homes on the Market, Pending Escrows, and Sold Redondo Beach Homes – Top
See also the current homes for sale in Redondo Beach
Average Price Per Square Foot- Top
Median Home Prices (all types) – Top
Months of Inventory based on closed sales – Top
Whether you are considering buying a home in Manhattan Beach, selling your home or just interested in keeping up with the market, 
information is critical. We have helpful information and charts to show you what the market is doing and whether it’s a buyer’s market, seller’s market or somewhere in between the two.
View the current homes for sale in Manhattan Beach
See the information to see how many homes are on the market and selling compared with past months, how close sales prices are to list prices, the average days on market and more. As of 11/21/19 – October 2019 is a neutral market
Home For Sale in October 2019: 101 units.
| • | Down 22.9% compared to last month |
| • | Down 4.7% compared to last year |
Home Closed in October 2019: 23 units.
| • | Up 4.5% compared to last month |
| • | Down 32.4% compared to last year |
Home Placed under Contract in October 2019: 51 units.
| • | Up 88.9% compared to last month |
| • | Up 75.9% compared to last year |
*Buyer’s market: more than 6 months of inventory based on closed sales
Seller’s market: less than 3 months of inventory based on closed sales
Neutral market: 3 – 6 months of inventory based on closed sales
About the For Sale vs. Sold Report
What Does For Sale vs. Sold Report Do?
How to Use For Sale vs. Sold Report?
You Should Know
One of the more treacherous parts of an escrow is the home inspection and request for repairs. Often times the buyer thinks that the home inspection is a “checklist” of what needs to be fixed while the seller either thinks their home is perfect or “it was just fine for us so why does the buyer need things that work fine upgraded or repaired”. Finding middle ground isn’t always easy but a good realtor can help address some of the challenges before they even come up and help manage expectations as how to get through a very challenging situation.
As the chart below shows, 80% of home inspection reports show at least something needing to be fixed. In our opinion that’s even on the low side….in our experience there are always issues. We always recommend to both our buyers and sellers to be reasonable. On the buyer side stick to actual problems or repairs. If it’s an issue that the buyer will have to immediately pay for to have repaired…it’s a reasonable request. The biggest challenge items are either those called out as not up to “current “code, or items towards the end of their service life. Buyers need to understand that the statement “not up to current building code” does not mean it’s necessarily problematic. Codes change all of the time and unless it’s a clear safety issue, it’s usually best to stick with actual repairs. Items at the end of their service life really depend on the item, the cost and how extensive the rest of the repair list. We’ve found that asking for everything usually ends with the seller dismissing any repairs….even the reasonable ones.
Keith Kyle is a top producing realtor and Torrance real estate specialist with Vista Sotheby’s International Realty in the South Bay. Contact Keith for more information on how the home inspection and escrow process works in Torrance real estate.
Whether you’re buying an older home or new construction in the South Bay, a home inspection is an absolute necessity. A home
inspection will assess the building code conformity as well as all the systems and structural components that make up the building, such as:
When you’ve decided upon the South Bay home you want to buy and you’re about to sign the residential purchase agreement (the offer), make sure there is an inspection contingency in that contract allowing you to get your own professional Home Inspection. “Pre-Selling” or “Pre-Listing” inspections are not common, however, in some cases, a savvy seller may have had their own structural inspection done which they usually will provide to a prospective home buyer. If they are wise, they will have arranged to have any discovered problems corrected. However, I still insist that my buyer clients have his or her own independent inspection done. Normally, upon acceptance of the offer, you will have 17 days to have the inspection completed, analyze the report and respond to the seller. We will be your eyes and ears at the structural inspection should it not be possible for you to be present yourself.
In the event that hidden problems are revealed through the structural inspection process, you may do one of two things:
1) If the inspection reveals conditions that change your desire to buy the home, you may terminate the purchase agreement by notifying the seller in writing and provide a copy of the inspection report disclosing the problems.
2) You may submit a list of the problems discovered in the inspection report, known as a request for repair, to the seller and request that the seller make the necessary corrections and repairs before the deal is closed, or adjust the price accordingly.
When you interview a home inspector, ask him what type of report format he provides. There are several types of reports used by inspectors, such as computer generated reports, the checklist format and the narrative style report. Some reports are completed and generated on site and some may take up to a week to complete. There are good and bad points to all of these formats.
Make sure that the inspector will take pictures that explain their descriptions and potential problems.
Hire an inspector that gives detailed descriptions of the home and potential problems instead of vauge and easily missinterpreted descriptions.
“Bathroom Shower Enclosure: Condition – Minor wear, heavy wear, damaged, rust stains, or chips in enamel finish. Recommend sealing drain and pan at base of tile.”
As you can see, this narrative description includes a recommendation for repair. Narrative reports without recommendations for repairing deficient items may be difficult to interpret, should your knowledge of construction be limited.
Make sure, if you do not understand something, that you ask questions. Items in the inspection report that are not serious quite often can be interpreted by a nonprofessional to be a major factor. A good home inspector should be able to put things into perspective and answer all your questions. If for some reason a question cannot be answered at the time of the inspection, the inspector should research the question and obtain the answer for you.
Take the time to become familiar with your home inspection report. If the report has a legend, key, symbols or icons, read and understand them thoroughly. The more information provided to you about the property, the easier it will be to understand the overall condition. If possible, try to be present when the inspector is doing the inspection. You do not have to be there during the entire process, but if you can walk through with the inspector at the end so he can show you the findings of the structural inspection, you will learn a great deal about the home you are about to purchase.
