Silver Lake - Echo Park Market Round-Up: May 2009

Fifteen single family homes closed in Silver Lake / Echo Park in May 2009 with a median sale price of $499,000. A third of these sales were REOs or short sales.

Sales activity and median price have fallen since May 2008 when 26 homes sold with a median sale price of $755,000. (Yes, that’s a big drop in median sale price – 34%.)

During May 2008, eight sales were over $1 million and the lowest priced sale was $349,000. In May 2009, there was one sale over $1 million and the lowest sale price was $186,000. The drop in median sale price should not be equated with a 34% drop in values. The properties now selling are dominated by REOs and short sales, which have a lower price point.

Because of these low prices, competition is intense. The median days on market is an astonishingly low sixteen. (Five months of inventory – 150 days – is considered a balanced market)

First-time buyers and investors are stepping in and closing deals. In the past eight months, the percentage of properties in Silver Lake / Echo Park in contract has doubled. Sales are brisk and the inventory is getting burned off quickly.

Multiple offer scenarios are common. Unlike yesteryear, when there were bidding wars at the million dollar mark – now it gets competitive at $200K.
The most expensive sale was 2327 Hidalgo Avenue, which sold for $1,015,000 ($70,000 over asking price), after sixteen days on the market. This 1957 home has 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, walls of glass, and faces the Silver Lake Reservoir.

1339 Angelus Avenue, a short sale, sold for $650,000 after 196 days on the market. Reward goes to those who are patient: this 1,700 sq ft Spanish house on a 6,250 sq ft lot sold for $916,000 in February 2007. Buy in 2009 -- avoid a year negotiating with the bank -- and get 30% off!!!