This coming Tuesday we are ending the year with a big bang and not a whimper! Two exceptional vocal groups – Barley (doing a rare acoustic set), and the talented women from JAKL! They are very different musical groups and styles, but equally cool! Perfect for a rocking cool Yule night of reckless abandon! I’ll be playing a set of mostly new songs and even a holiday song from a few years back!
Jodi Siegel
Jodi Siegel, originally from Chicago, IL, is a singer, songwriter and guitarist. Over the years Jodi has opened for and or shared the stage with many respected musicians including: Albert King, Robben Ford, Robert Cray, J.D. Souther, David Lindley, Fred Tacket and Paul Barrere (Little Feat) and countless others. Her songs have been recorded by Maria Muldaur, Marcia Ball, Tommy Ridgley and Teresa James.
Barley
Since 2010, Barley has been an unstoppable musical force in South Bay Los Angeles.
You may have seen Barley opening for such acts as Toad the Wet Sprocket, Colin Hay, Vertical Horizon, Iron Butterfly, Robbie Krieger of the Doors, or many, many others.
Barley can also be found performing at some of Southern California’s largest festivals, including Beach Life, KAABOO, Concerts on the Beach, Music on the Meadows, Fiesta Hermosa, and hundreds of other stages big and small.
Jakl
JaKL, (Jaynee Thorne, Karen Tobin, Leslie Barker) The Los Angeles-based singer/songwriters with numerous recording credits, have joined forces, talents, songs, and harmonies to create a compelling vocal blend. Their sound is acoustic, organic, and unique. Their well-crafted original songs, as well as choice selections from other esteemed writers, involve the listener in their meticulous arrangements and this labor of love…
On the heels of an encouraging October real estate market, November saw the South Bay market plummet into the red. Compared to last month the number of homes sold fell by nearly 30%, while the median price collapsed at the Beach and on the Hill. At the same time, the Inland and Harbor areas showed modest growth in median price, posting a 2% gain in both areas.
This was a surprising downturn following across the board sales growth in the October market, accompanied by generally positive price appreciation.
Looking at year over year, same month sales provides a slightly more positive result. Both the Beach and the Hill show the number of homes sold down by 3% and 13% respectively. The Harbor area maintained sales growth of 2% while the Inland area increased by 4%. Both areas were off substantially from the 20-30% increases of October.
Year over year median prices were equally depressed. The Beach and the Hill, the high end of the South Bay market, both lost ground in the single digits. The Harbor and Inland areas, which make up the bulk of sales in the South Bay, grew at 4% and 5% respectively.
It’s too early to attribute this shift to the election results because most of the transactions closing escrow in November would have been negotiated in October. If anything, the decline reflects nervous anticipation leading up to the election. December sales will provide a much more definitive indication of how the public has reacted to the election results.
For right now we know that current sales volumes are running about 10% below December of 2023. And, we know that December last year was lower than December 2019 by 30%. Back at the end of October conditions seemed to be improving, but today it would seem we are still trying to climb out of the Covid trough.
Beach: Sales Off 35% for November
The number of homes sold in the Beach Cities dropped from 127 in October to 83 in November showing a 35% decline for the month. At the same time the median sales price dropped from $1.9M in October to $1.65M in November for a loss of 13%.
On an annual basis sales volume was off by 3% compared to last November, while the median price was flat.
Year to date, 1,059 Beach homes have been sold compared to 1007 during the first 11 months of 2023. This is a 5% increase in the number of homes sold. The median price rose 7% from $1,675,000 last year to $1,787,500 year to date.
Harbor: Sales Fall 26% in November
Harbor area home sales plunged 26% from October, dropping to 256 units from 345 sold last month. At the same time the median price climbed 2%, to $787,500 from $775,000.
On the flip side, same month, last year sales moved the opposite direction, rising 2% this year compared to 252 homes sold in November of 2023. The median price this November was up 4% over the $760,500 recorded in November of last year.
With only one month remaining in the year, the Harbor area displays modest increases in both the number of homes sold so far this year and the median price of those homes. Annual sales have reached 3,160 to date, 3% higher than last year’s 3,076. Median prices for the year have climbed from $740,000 last year to $780,000 this year.
Hill: Market Drops 39% for the Month
Home sales on the Palos Verde Peninsula dove down 39% from October to November, wiping out all but 1% of last month’s gain. As mentioned in the October issue, during the last quarter of 2023 mortgage interest rates were hitting around 8%, which drove the South Bay market to a standstill. The fact 2024 sales volume is falling below 2023 is a concerning matter. Interest rates are once again pushing up against 8%, which has been an impenetrable barrier in recent years. While the number of homes sold dropped precipitously, the median price came in with only a 6% decline, falling from $1,914,500,in October to $1,805,000 in November.
Comparing November of 2023 to November this year turned up a steep fall again. This year brought a sales volume decrease of 13% accompanied by another 7% drop in the median price.
As 2024 heads for closure, the dramatic swings of earlier in the year are mellowing out. Through November, the 597 sales on the Hill have settled in at just 1% above last year. Similarly, the median price, which has ranged from an increase of 26% to a decrease of 15% throughout the year, is coming in at 3%, or $1,927,500.
Inland: Home Sales Collapse by 22%
November sales of 111 homes in the Inland area totaled a 22% drop from the 143 sold in October, rounding out a total decline of 28% for South Bay real estate this month versus last month. Despite the fall in month to month sales volume, the Inland area enjoyed a 2% increase in median price over October.
Same month last year sales increased by 4%, moving up from 107 units in 2023. At $895,000, the median price for November Inland area homes was up by 5% over the $851,000 of last year.
Looking at year to date sales volume of 1,313 shows a mere 1% increase over January-November of 2023 when 1,302 homes sold. Median price fared higher, with a 3% jump from $867,500 to $895,000 this year.
Beach=Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, El Segundo Harbor=Carson, Long Beach, San Pedro, Wilmington, Harbor City PV Hill=Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates Inland=Torrance, Lomita, Gardena
Gift giving often comes with a lot of waste. A significant amount of this is the wrapping paper or gift bags, but the gifts themselves can also generate a lot of waste. Fortunately, there are ways to mitigate this without making your gift any less meaningful.
Your gift doesn’t have to be a physical object at all. Consider gifting an “experience” instead: for example, a day out at the theater to a show you know they’ll love, a pass for a museum, or dance lessons. Or, simply take time off work to be with them, or offer to help them so they can use their added free time as they wish.
For those who appreciate practicality or aren’t big on surprises, there are some additional options. Talk to your loved ones. Ask them what they want or need. It won’t be a surprise when they get it, but you’ll know it’s something they truly want. Plus, you don’t need to wrap it if they already know what it is. If your friends or family have bills piling up or a debt they’d like to be able to settle, just offer to pay it for them. But just in case they still like the gift giving nature of the holidays, try to purchase more sustainably. A good way to do this is to buy used or secondhand items. The stigma around secondhand items or regifting doesn’t really need to exist, especially if it’s something that you know the person who’s receiving it will appreciate.
Though much of California doesn’t experience temperatures below freezing, winter is noticeably cooler than the rest of the year even in the most temperate areas of the state. So regardless of where you live, you may want to conserve heat in the cooler months. The easiest and fastest way to do this is by turning on the heater, but it’s most certainly not the most energy efficient way. It’s also easy to combine multiple methods.
There are a couple of cheap and relatively easy options. One is to reseal your doors and windows. Over time, the caulk and weatherstripping around doors and windows may begin to degrade. This may seem like a minor issue, but even small cracks or holes can result in heat loss. Make sure to replace damaged weatherstripping or recaulk. The other is to purchase thermal curtains. Thermal curtains are not particularly expensive, and are effective at trapping heat inside. This is especially the case if you don’t have dual-pane windows.
Some options cost nothing at all. An option that many people never think of is to change the direction of ceiling fans. Many people with ceiling fans are aware that they can go both directions, but most don’t realize that a low-speed clockwise rotation will push warm air down from the ceiling to which it has naturally risen. Closing the doors in rooms that aren’t in use also helps, by reducing the space in which warm air is distributed. However, this is more effective if you are already using a heating system. The last option is passive solar heating. This refers to opening curtains during the day, when the sun is shining into the home and raising the ambient temperature, and closing them at night to trap the heat inside. Thermal curtains can certainly help with this, but any curtains will do.
