Burbank Real Estate Blog: California: Burbank

Burbank single family home values are seeing an uptrend according to the latest data.  (see chart below)

Average selling price has rebounded to$562,068,  up 14% from December 2011 prices.  Days on market were down from 89 to 84 days in the same period.

Overall the sweet spot right now continues to be in the $425-$525,000 range where most of the buyers seem to be concentrated.

Inventory is increasing somewhat, which is normal for this time of year, but overall levels are low.

Next week we will have a host of numbers out, including Housing Starts, Existing Home Sales, Producer Price Index and Consumer Price Index.

Burbank: Sales September 2011 - January 2012

Month Sale Price, Average Days to Sell, Average

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Burbank single family homes sold in September(see chart below) reflected an average selling price of $573, 014, up 13% from August 2011 prices. Days on market were down from 71 to 65 days in the same period.

Overall the sweet spot right now continues to be in the $400-$525,000 range where most of the buyers seem to be concentrated.

Next week we will have a host of numbers out, including Housing Starts, Existing Home Sales, Producer Price Index and Consumer Price Index.

Burbank: September 2011

All real estate is local and nothing illustrates that point better than the S&P Case Shiller Home Price Index that came out last week.  It reported that the average home price for March in the 10 city composite was down .6%(non seasonally adjusted) and the 20 city composite was down .2%.  Actually if you read the report, the overall data was not that bad, but obviously showed a downtrend in prices.  18 out of the 20 areas did show a downtrend when you look at the unadjusted three month average.

In case you are curious the S&P Case Shiller Home Price Index tracks monthly changes in home prices in 20 metropolitan areas and comes out monthly.  The report focuses on single family homes and excludes condos and new construction.  Please note that this data was for March, so it does have a two month lag.

Los Angeles County home prices dipped roughly 1.7% for the first quarter of 2011.

With that in mind, let's look at the average home prices for Burbank single family homes over the last 12 months:

Information is Believed To Be Accurate But Not Guaranteed   CRMLS

There are several ways to parse the data.

There was a spike in the fourth quarter of last year and we are down 8% from the spike, however, year over year we went from $538,773 in May 2010 to $557,000 in May of 2011, an increase of 4%.  From January of 2011 to May 2011 we saw an increase of 11% , as we rose from $505,809 to present levels.

Overall, Burbank home prices are showing strength, and there is no doubt that the current amount of short sales and foreclosures will continue to put pressure on prices.......but the picture here is not as dire as in other parts of the country.  I know it's a pipe dream but it would be nice if local media were to comment on our numbers as well as the national numbers.

The Rancho Equestrian Neighborhood or "The Rancho" as it's commonly referred to, is bordered by Griffith Park to the south, Victory Blvd. to the east, Olive Avenue to the west and Alameda Ave. to the north.  What makes this community so popular is that it's zoned for horses and it boasts beautiful winding, tree lined streets!

There are roughly 785 single family homes and many of those have stables.  The community is represented by the Burbank Rancho Homeowners, a group formed in 1963 to represent the interests of the residents.

Rancho real estate is very sought after and tends to sell at a premium.  In addition to the equestrian zoning, other amenities include it's adjacency to the Los Angeles Equestrian Center, connection to riding trails in Griffith Park and numerous parks.

It's common to see people on horseback along Riverside Drive, it's main thoroughfare.  This scenic street is lined with Sycamore and Oak trees, some more than 70 years old.  The Rancho, coincidentally, was the home to T.V. star and talking horse "Mr. Ed" along with Ava Gardner, Ronald Reagan and Tab Hunter as well as Bette Davis in the adjoining Glendale Rancho area.

The rancho is very desired for it's parks and open space. This includes Mountain View Park, Johnny Carson Park, Los Angeles' Griffith Park and Equestrain Center, Bette Davis Park (in the adjoining Glendale Rancho) and the neighborhood's Polliwog area, which extends along Disney Studios' animation building is used by local residents to exercise their horses.

It's been a favorite neighborhood of mine for many years and I highly recommend a look if you are exploring Burbank real estate.

One of City of Burbank's jewels is the DeBell Golf Course.

This venue offers a regulation eighteen hole course and a par 3 course. The layout of the Regulation Course is very tight and hilly, but enjoyable for beginners. Its ideal for the family to play. The women often play from two sets of tees on this course, while the men play from the same tees.

The 18-hole course at the DeBell Golf Club facility in Burbank, California features 5,633 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 71 . The course rating is 68.8 and it has a slope rating of 114 on Kikuyu grass.

The course was opened in 1959 and designed by William F. Bell, Richard Bigler and William H. Johnson.  William F. Bell was a prolific designer and is best known for the design of Torrey Pines(with William P. Bell), Bermuda Dunes Country Club, the sandpiper and Industry Hills golf clubs.

If you want some good eats after your round of golf, check out the Clubhouse Grill.  Open 7 days a week it offers cocktails and a great menu.

Bob Hope Airport, to me, represents one of the cool things about living in Burbank.  There is a nostalgic feel to the airport, not just in some of the historical and architectural elements but the fact that it's one of the few airports where you board the plane from the tarmac.  Maybe it's the kid in me, but I love that!

The airport was opened on Memorial Day weekend in 1930, so I thought it would be appropriate to write a bit about it's history.   Built by United Airports Company of California (hence it's original name of United Airport), it became the primary airport for the Los Angeles region.  The airport was frequented by famous aviators such as Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergha and early aviation heroes connected to Lockheed Aviation.

In 1940 Lockheed purchased the airport, expanded it's operations for World War II and changed the airport's name to Lockheed Air Terminal.  While it continued to operate as a commercial airport, thousands of B-17s, Hudson bombers, and P-38 fighters rolled off the Lockheed assembly lines and onto the runways to join the war effort.

After WWII, LAX took over as the region's primary airport.  In the 1960's the airport went through a transition and airline service returned to Burbank, when jet airliners capable of using Burbank's short runways came into being.  The airport's name was again changed to Hollywood-Burbank Airport, and the airport quickly became a hub for quick flights along the West Coast.

1978 marked the year that Lockheed sold the airport to an airport authority created by Burbank, Glendale and Pasadena, who soon renamed it the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport.

In December, 2003 the airport, was again, renamed in honor of  the legendary Bob Hope.  The airport serves 5 million passengers a year, and it is certainly not without it's controversies.

For many years the Airport Authority and local residents have been trying to get the FAA to impose a mandatory 10pm-7am curfew as opposed to the voluntary one that is now in place.  To it's credit the Authority has been aggressive in it's efforts to curb noise by mandating quieter Stage 3 jets in 1987, long before the national noise policy guidelines, imposing the voluntary curfew(followed by more than 95% of airline flights) and aggressively lobbying for federal funds to insulate schools and homes located inside of the noise impact area.

For those who are interested in more information, the airport does issue a quarterly report with the results of their noise monitoring and flight contour map.  This is an important report, especially if you are thinking about buying a home that is in the flight path.   Many of the homes have received the updated insulation and windows and it makes a huge difference!

The full history, amazing early pictures and much more information is available on the Bob Hope Airport website. 

So, before I attempt to answer that question,  what is shadow inventory?

Shadow inventory refers to the housing supply that the banks have foreclosed on ( banked owned properties-REO’s) and are getting ready to foreclose on. According to First American Core Logic, as of September 2009 there was a 1.7 million supply of these homes nationally, as compared to 1.1 million a year earlier.

The important thing to note about this statistic is that it includes properties that are at least 90 days delinquent and have not been foreclosed on, so technically we do not know exactly when the bank will foreclose and where these properties are. This pending supply has been much talked about for the last couple of  year as many have been expecting a flood of homes to hit the market.

While it is true that this pending supply will impact our market, it will most likely happen over the next few years, not in a single event as some have been anticipating. If that is how it plays out, the housing market will continue to stabilize and prices will remain level for some time, possibly increase in some areas.

The other thing to think about is that some of these homes will receive modifications or be sold through the short sale process.  Currently roughly 25% of our active inventory are short sales, this is down from last year where we were seeing 50-60% on average.  So it is encouraging, however I do know there are lots of people who are struggling or are delinquent and they have not listed their homes for sale.

So the answer is that while the supply of shadow inventory seems to be declining, I think our true outlook is closely tied to jobs and the economy.  We seem to be in a period of stabilization and will continue to see some ups and downs, however it does appear that we are headed in the right direction.

Did you know, that City of Burbank has a composting program?

The program started back in 1989 and through this program Burbank has been able to keep 50% of it's waste from making it to the landfills!

Composting is the process where living organisms turn organic waste and yard waste into a rich amendment that you can use in your yard to naturally fertilize your soil.

What's great is that residents are eligible to receive free composting instruction through workshops and a free composter!

The workshops cover topics ranging from how and what to compost to Xeriscape(minimal water usuage) landscaping!  Trust me I did not know what the meaning of Xeriscape was either!

I attended a free class that lasted about an hour and then received a free compost bin.  I started the process in February and in a few more months I should have lots of great rich soil to add to my garden.

If you are interested in getting started, please call City of Burbank Recycle Center at 818-238-3900.

A selection of 36 different craft beers(ipa's and non ipa's), wine, and great vegan and non-vegan sausages are just a few of the things that make this dive bar turned craft beer hub absolutely amazing!

For the uninitiated they have a great website, Tony'sDA.com, that will guide you through the different styles of beer with much detail.  Everything from amber to witbier!

One of the things that makes this place unique is their focus on being a bottle free, low waste bar/restaurant.  All of the beer, wine and sodas are served on a draught system, minimizing their environmental impact.

The goal is to have a zero waste bar and an almost zero waste kitchen. Additionally, all beer, wine, breads etc. come from local or California producers.  When available, all produce is sourced within California. The vegan sausages are imported from Oregon and Washington.  The more local, the better.

The place is busy most of the time and features tables, a pool table and long bar with very friendly bartenders who are more than happy to chat with you about the different selections.

Go check them out, they are located at 1710 Magnolia Blvd., in Burbank Ca!

National Fire Service Day is this Saturday, May 14th!

Every year on the second Saturday of May, we celebrate our dedicated firefighters by having a day where the fire house is open to the public.  Kids and adults alike can come meet our firefighters, ask questions, check out the amazing fire engines and participate in fun activities.

It's a very informative event and provides great access to a very interesting venue.

There will be public tours, life saving demonstrations, a great obstacle course for the kids and plenty of swag. 

The pancake breakfast starts at 7am, Santoro Subs at 9am and the event closes at 2pm.

Come visit the City of Burbank's Police and Fire Headquarters on Orange Grove and Third, next to City Hall!  For more information, click here.