Del Mar Beach Retreat

by | Oct 15, 2019 | Del Mar, Jim's Take on the Market, Oceanfront | 1 comment

There have been home sales of $22 million and $23 million on the Del Mar oceanfront in the last 60 days. Hat tip to Richard and ‘just some guy’ for sending this in (the next Coastal Commission meeting is tomorrow):

Del Mar is gearing up for a tussle with the California Coastal Commission over the best way to adapt to rising sea levels, an issue with statewide implications.

The city has taken the position that one of the Coastal Commission’s basic strategies, called “managed retreat” or sometimes “planned retreat,” will not work in Del Mar.

“We have a plan, and we stand by our plan,” Del Mar Councilman Dwight Worden said Friday.

The City Council is scheduled to review its sea-level rise adaptation plan tonight (Oct 7) in preparation for a Coastal Commission hearing on Oct. 16. The commission’s staff has recommended its board reject Del Mar’s plan unless the city agrees to a list of 25 modifications that Worden said could be a “back door” to managed retreat.

(more…)

Leucadia Bluff Appeal

by | Sep 23, 2019 | Encinitas, Jim's Take on the Market, Leucadia, Oceanfront | 0 comments

For those who are thinking of building a home on the bluff, you may want to consider this recent case seen at Encinitas Undercover – hat tip WC!

The property owners purchased a vacant lot in 2012 for $1,700,000, and it appears this approval process has been underway ever since.

In 2013, the City of Encinitas planning commission approved the homeowners’ plan to build a two-story 3,553 square foot home with a 1,855 square foot underground basement and a 950 square foot garage. The seaward side of the structure would be set back 40 feet from the edge of the bluff.

Shortly thereafter, the geotechnical engineers revised their required report which recalculated the math but came to the same conclusion – a 40-ft setback from the edge of the bluff would work and comply with the generally-accepted rate of 30 feet of erosion over the next 75 years.

But then two commissioners from the Coastal Commission filed an appeal, so the homeowners hired a different engineering firm to complete a second geotechnical report.  When the appeal was heard, the Coastal Commission rejected the second report and approved the project with a 60 to 62-foot setback from the edge of the bluff.

The Commission explained that the building footprint resulting from a 60 to 62-foot setback from the bluff edge would still allow the Lindstroms to construct a 3500 square foot home, not including a basement, and that if the Lindstroms obtained a variance from the City reducing the frontyard setback, the building footprint would be even larger.

The homeowners took the Coastal Commission decision to the 4th Appealate District Court of Appeal, who rejected their 40-ft argument but approved the project with no seawall, and a 60-62-ft setback.

WC included this review with links to the actual court documents:

http://calapp.blogspot.com/2019/09/lindstrom-v-coastal-commission-cal-ct.html

P.S. The homeowners also own the house next door.

Razor House Sold Again

by | Aug 28, 2019 | Flips, Jim's Take on the Market, La Jolla, Oceanfront | 3 comments

Josh came down from Beverly Hills to round-trip the Razor house, which had sold for $14,097,000 in 2011. It closed yesterday for $20,800,000.

The previous sale did have some hair on it:

Public documents show what the new owner paid is lower than liens on the home, which totaled about $22.7 million. Burns, who expressed interest in the home about seven months ago, initially offered more than $16 million but in October dropped it to $13.9 million. He won out with his new bid after negotiations that resulted in concessions from some of the lienholders.

Here’s a sample of Burns’ negotiating skills in an Oct. 20 letter addressing Leslie Gladstone, the trustee in the Cooksey bankruptcy case:

“This new offer is lower than my first offer because the lack of other qualified buyer offers over the last months of heavy advertising proved that my past offer was above the Fair Market Value of the property,” he said.

Burns continued to say: “The First Mortgage Holder (Bank of America) will need to ultimately decide if it wishes to own this property, or if they would like to achieve their maximum recovery now and be free of the expense and liability of owning a property that has been the white elephant for four years.”

A court record dated Dec. 7 shows Gladstone agreed with Burns’ argument on the distressed home.

“This immediate relief is appropriate because Bank of America will foreclose on the Property if the sale does not close prior to December 31, 2011,” said Jeffry A. Davis, attorney for Gladstone.

The property, the work of renowned San Diego architectural designer Wallace E. Cunningham, is unfinished and has never been occupied. The new owner plans to work with Cunningham to complete the design.

The seller did install a kitchen, and staged it nicely – and included the photo above which helped disclose a possible annoyance with the property/location – you get the paragliders flying by:

Here is the Visa commercial that featured the home:

Pin It on Pinterest