We (Laura and I are sisters) have lived in the Hollywood Riviera since 1999 as adults. We both went to South High School - the public school right down the street. We lived in the neighborhood adjacent to the Riviera then, often called the Seaside Ranchos; so we are pretty local. Our favorite part of living here is the way of life that the Hollywood Riviera affords you. The Riviera surrounds one of the finest beaches in Southern California - it is clean, open, aboundeded by cliffs and offers a wonderful bike path that you could ride all the way up to Santa Monica on….the end of the bike path is here at Torrance Beach. 
We have the Riviera Village at our doorstep offering fine restaurants, quaint shopping, spa experiences, art dealers, Trader Joes and plenty of coffee shops. We have an excellent elementary school, Riviera Elementary which has a 920 API Score. (We both feel proud to send our children there.) The people - this is the most important aspect of our wonderful neighborhood. The people here are so friendly and happy to be here. You see people out taking walks and they are often with their neighbors. We see people helping other people and volunteering at the schools. A lot of the people that live here are “original owners.” They moved here in the 1950’s when this neighborhood was just getting off its feet. Nowhere better to go once you’ve lived here.
The Views here are amazing
…about 60% of the homes here have some sort of view - ranging from panoramic (city, ocean/beaches, mountains, to just some city or just ocean - believe me, none of it’s bad.) It’s really a wonderful place to call HOME!
With all the media attention on the “declining” real estate market I decided to do a little digging into what has happened in my own neighborhood, the Hollywood Riviera. Hollywood Riviera is a small section of South Torrance (a lot of it has a Redondo Beach P.O. Box - thus many of us say we live in Redondo Beach. That is another story.) Homes in the Hollywood Riviera had an average price in the year 2000 of $648,000. In 2006 that price almost doubled and averaged $1,115,486. That is a 72% gain in 6 years - not bad! Since 2007 just ended, we show the average price of a home in the Hollywood Riviera actually increased 2.5% to $1,143,959. 
Now the interesting part also has to do with the number of units sold. Back in 2000, 143 houses were sold in the Riviera - that’s a lot. There are about 3100 homes in the entire area. In 2006, that number dropped to 88 homes sold. Yet in 2007, 90 homes sold - so at least there was more activity. 
The last quarter of 2007 showed 8 homes in escrow - that is a lot of activity for that slower time of year. As those sales post to the SOLD category, we will be off to a good start in 2008!
To “Stage” or not to “Stage?” This has become a more recognized question these days in real estate. It wasn’t that long ago that people here in the South Bay didn’t even know what “Staging” meant. Laura and I became “ASP” (Accredited Staging Professionals) back in 2002 before anyone knew what it meant. I’d say most Realtors do some sort of “staging” of their clients’ homes prior to putting them on the market, but real “staging” is a whole other ball game. It can be a very hard discussion with some sellers who really love the way their home looks. Maybe they did the “remodel” in the 70’s and are still fond of every choice they made - completely unaware of the fact that their “remodel” is now a “gut job.” We typically “stage” most of the houses we put on the market, but sometimes when it is really hard to get the client to understand what it really means to stage their home…..it can still go awry. This is when it’s a good idea to bring in a “professional stager.” They can be the “bad guy.” We have a great “stager” and she just makes it look so easy. The name of her company is “Staged Right”. She really knows how to “Stage” a home to get it SOLD! Ideally we like to get her to do the job, but sometimes we take it upon ourselves to do the “staging.” An example of having it go awry - told a client that we wanted him to put “mulch” in the front where there was a lot of dirt. He said he wanted to do it himself and we let him. Oh what a mistake that was…..we show up the next day and he’s put in mulch alright…but it was “gro-mulch” which is enhanced by manure. Exactly what not to - lay fresh manure the week the house goes on the market. Can you imagine? We had a good laugh anyway!
We have the Riviera Village at our doorstep offering fine restaurants, quaint shopping, spa experiences, art dealers, Trader Joes and plenty of coffee shops. We have an excellent elementary school, Riviera Elementary which has a 920 API Score. (We both feel proud to send our children there.) The people - this is the most important aspect of our wonderful neighborhood. The people here are so friendly and happy to be here. You see people out taking walks and they are often with their neighbors. We see people helping other people and volunteering at the schools. A lot of the people that live here are “original owners.” They moved here in the 1950’s when this neighborhood was just getting off its feet. Nowhere better to go once you’ve lived here. 
…about 60% of the homes here have some sort of view - ranging from panoramic (city, ocean/beaches, mountains, to just some city or just ocean - believe me, none of it’s bad.) It’s really a wonderful place to call HOME!
Now the interesting part also has to do with the number of units sold. Back in 2000, 143 houses were sold in the Riviera - that’s a lot. There are about 3100 homes in the entire area. In 2006, that number dropped to 88 homes sold. Yet in 2007, 90 homes sold - so at least there was more activity. 
The last quarter of 2007 showed 8 homes in escrow - that is a lot of activity for that slower time of year. As those sales post to the SOLD category, we will be off to a good start in 2008! 
