Beverly Hills is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together entirely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles. The area's "Platinum Triangle" of affluent neighborhoods is formed by Beverly Hills and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Bel Air and Holmby Hills. The population was 33,784 as of the 2000 census. Beverly Hills is one of the most affluent cities in the world, and is home to Hollywood celebrities, many corporate executives and numerous other wealthy individuals and families. Beverly Hills is bordered on the north west by Bel-Air and the Santa Monica Mountains, on the east by West Hollywood, the Carthay neighborhood of Los Angeles, and the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, and on the south by the Beve... 02/19/2011

While my clients from NYC seemed to have brought the inclimate east coast winter weather with them (just kidding, guys), the rain didn't dampen another Rich Kids closing celebration yesterday! As I have mentioned before, a RK closing isn't just your average every day "your deed has just been recorded with the county, congrats!" type of scenario. It is always a call for a true celebration tailored to each particular clients' interests, always involving a bottle or two of the closing beverage of choice, Vueve, which is a RK tradition (well, until we meet somebody who doesn't drink in which case a Vueve label might be slapped on a bottle on sparkling cider - luckily that hasn't happened yet). We had a huge closing celebration at Katusya where no topic of conversation was off limits, follow... 02/19/2011

I remember when I first came to Los Angeles many years ago, going to the Friars Club in Beverly Hills and seeing the likes of Milton Berle, Suzanne Pleshette, and numerous other personalities wandering around. The buffet at the Friars Club was amazing. More food than you could ever think of eating. It was old Hollywood personified. This piece of Beverly Hills real estate is no more. The Friars Club Beverly Hills, a branch of the famed New York establishment of the same name opened in 1947. In 2007, after losing a lawsuit to its New York namesake, it changed its name to Club 9900 and closed shortly after. The Friars Club has lost another battle waged by the Los Angeles Conservancy Group to include its 1960's modernist design in the California Register of Historical Resources. The archit... 01/31/2011

I have been saying this alot, but 2011 is looking quite promising both personally and professionally for everyone that I have spoken to. It's been a while since my last blog. My tradition for the last two years has been to spend the holidays in my other favorite city, London. It was an amazing time and I can tell you that my new year certainly did start out with a bang in every sense of the term! I hope everyone had as a good a holiday season! Just Sold - 7320 Hawthorn Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90046 - 1br/1ba, 760 sq ft: List $335,000, Sale: $325,000, Appraised Amount: Roughly $367,000. This was probably one of the smoothest short sales I have ever dealt with. Just to give you an overview, the Hollywood Regis is located just steps away from Runyan Canyon at 7320 Hawthorn Blvd. The buildin... 01/24/2011

Weekly Beverly Hills Market Watch -- 1/21/2011     The following listings are "new to the market" within the last 7 days: 917 N Crescent Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 1141 Shadow Hill Way Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 628 N Alta Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 1060 Woodland Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 700 North Arden Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 510 Palm Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 630 Foothill Rd. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 221 S La Peer Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90211 3037 Franklin Canyon Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 2011 Benedict Canyon Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90210 467 S Peck Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90212 344 S Clark Dr. Beverly Hills, CA. 90211 Here is a snapshot of the current Beverly Hills market: 199 Active SFR. (Single Family Residence) listings. 72 Condo/Co-op listings. 11 Income Properties. 2... 01/21/2011

This morning in the wee hours (5AM), I drove to Los Angeles for an early morning appointment (7am).  Traffic was "Friday -lite" .The 79 miles flew by. I got there early enough to stop and stock up on bagels at our favorite place in Beverly Hills, St Urbain, where they bake the bagel in special brick ovens instead of boiling them.  As a result they are light and fluffy tasting.  One of the people I met is a non-fiction author whose books I have always enjoyed because of his uncanny sense of humor, and his unorthodox view of the world at large.  He just wrote a novel, and another non-fiction book on the subject of health to be released in June.  We talked about the self-publishing trend. Although, he has an agent and a publishing house, he has opted out for self publishing. We shared ide... 01/21/2011

Did you know that the Tax Deadline has been extended? For some of the procrastinators, who like to file in the last minute? This year instead of the mad rush to the post office on April 15th 2011, you can take your time and drop the Tax Return in the mail on Monday, April 18th, 2011. This great news of the additional three days comes due to the fact that Emancipation Day, which is a Washington, D.C. holiday that celebrates the freeing of the slaves in the District Columbia will be observed on Friday, April 15th, hence the IRS pushed the filing deadline to Monday, April 18th. The holiday is on Saturday April 16th but since it is observed on Friday, the Tax Code states that filing deadlines cannot fall on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays hence the extra three days. If you need additional ti... 01/11/2011

Are you thinking of buying or selling a Beverly Hills home? Wondering how the market is? You should not be waiting to sell your Beverly Hills home. The single family home market has move to a balanced one. Six months inventory is balanced. Over six months is a buyers' market and under six months a sellers' market. You can see from the one month column that now is the time to sell your Beverly Hills home. If you price it right, you could end up with multiple offers and a sales price over asking. Beverly Hills home buyers are looking, and in certain price ranges there is not enough inventory.   The Beverly Hills real estate condo market, is edging towards a more balanced one, but now favors the Beverly Hills home buyer. However, if you price your condo right, don't be afraid to sell. Beve... 01/10/2011

Beverly Hills Condos - Market Report for Decemebr 2010: () November  / October figures Number of Units Sold: 5 (7/7) Average Days on the Market: 142 (122/17) Median Price: $750,000 ($850,000/$845,000) Average List Price: $862,000 ($1,091,000/$905,000) Average Selling Price: $806,000 ($1,022,000/$838,000) Lowest Price Condo Sold: $426,000 ($429,000/$692,000) Highest Price Condo Sold: $1,575,000 ($2,200,000/$900,000) Total Sold in Dollars: $4,031,000 ($7,159,000/$5,800,000) Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos & lofts in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Hollywood Hiils, the Sunset Strip and throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Information obtained from The MLS is deemed accurate but not guaranteed. 01/07/2011

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Spend the day exploring The Banning Residence Museum in Beverly Hills, California! This beautiful national historical landmark was built in 1864 by Phineas Banning. The Banning Residence is a 23-room home that remains an example of Greek architecture in Southern California. The house has been restored to its original Victorian beauty! There are 18 rooms that are opened to the public. The house sits on 20 acres of land that is owned by the City of Los Angeles since 1927. For more information regarding the Banning Residence please visit the link below: http://www.banningmuseum.org/ What a wonderful way to spend the day! CHEERS 12/13/2010

The Rich Kids of 2010 With our last Broker's Open of  the year wrapping up this Tuesday and resuming the second week in January, we are now officially heading into the holiday season! This year has gone by so incredibly fast! When I reflect back on last year to today writing this, I have no idea where the time has gone! Like the old adage says, time flies by when you are having fun. This definitely applies to 2010. Rich Kids experienced a tremendous amount of growth this year. What started out as a concept/vision in late 2008 has become a thriving business now concluding it's second year. None of this would have been possible without all the support from my extremely loyal clients now friends, friends, family, and even fellow agents. It means more to me than you would ever know! I am e... 12/10/2010

Rich Kids Real Estate Sold - 8337 Kirkwood - $595,000 I don't know if you will find this a as fascinating as I do, but it was really interesting to see how the condo market faired against the single family home division and the very different numbers that came from the same neighborhoods. Where Beverly Hills struggled in the condo sector, it definitely surpassed all the other areas we are examining in the sale price of homes. Most surprising to me was the decline of housing prices in the Sunset Strip/Hollywood Hills area (did not include in condo wrap up as this area is primarily dominated by houses) from 2009 to 2010. Another trend that I am noticing is that West Hollywood seems to remain the most consistent when it comes to both houses and condos making it a very safe bet when thinki... 12/08/2010

Rich Kids Real Estate Slick Architectural Sale - $875,00 - The Penthouse - 7917 Willoughby What I am noticing is that there is a common theme between the market activity at The Rob Clark (which I reported on yesterday) and that of the West Hollywood/Beverly Hills areas. After putting together a quantitative analysis of 2009 vs. 2010, the following themes have remained constant across the board: higher sales volume in 2010, smaller gap between list vs. sale (meaning sellers are starting to price per what the market is dictating), and a slight dip in actual sales price this year compared to last of roughly a few percent. Why I like doing these end of the year comparisons is that it really provides a complete snapshot of market trends and allows one to objectively compare the two years si... 12/08/2010

Beverly Hills Condos - Market Report for November 2010: () October's figures for comparison Number of Units Sold: 7 (7) Average Days on the Market: 122 (17) Median Price: $850,000 ($845,000) Average List Price: $1,091,000 ($905,000) Average Selling Price: $1,022,000 ($838,000) Lowest Price Condo Sold: $429,000 ($692,000) Highest Price Condo Sold: $2,200,000 ($900,000) Total Sold in Dollars: $7,159,000 ($5,800,000) Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos & lofts in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Hollywood Hiils, the Sunset Strip and throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Information obtained from The MLS is deemed accurate but not guaranteed. 12/07/2010

  So you want to be treated like a celebrity! Why not spend the weekend at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. The Beverly Hills Hotel was opened on May 12, 1912 by Margaret J. Anderson and Her son Stanley. At the Beverly Hills Hotel you can indulge yourself in a luxury you have only dreamed of, until now! There are rooms, suites and bungalows for all of your luxurious needs! The hotel is located to many famous tourists attractions for you entertainment. Plus, you never know what celebrity you will run into there! For more information regarding the Beverly Hills Hotel please visit the link below: http://www.beverlyhillshotel.com/ What more could you ask for in a hotel! CHEERS 12/02/2010

The Broker's Open at 221 South Gale Dr. Unit 305, Beverly Hills,CA The After Action Report! If you missed it I am sorry, because you did not get to have a free lunch. As some of you who know me, when I hold an Open House for Brokers I always have lunch served. We chat have fun and then when you bring your client you remember what a great home you have seen and had lunch there as well. http://www.specialtys.com    made the cookies & the sandwiches. BTW everyone loved the food. We had a small turn out, even though we had a Full Page Advertisement in the Multiple Listing Service's Caravan Express. There were about twenty agents, a couple of potential buyers. Yes, these are the serious ones, they did not wait for the "Public Open House" which will be on Sunday. Interestingly we had about fo... 11/18/2010

Located in Beverly Hills, California this amazing Tudor-style mansion was designed by architect Gordon Kaufman and was built in 1928. The Greystone Mansion also known as “Doheny Mansion” was a gift from the oil tycoon Edward L. Doheny to his son Edward “Ned” Doheny Jr. and his family. The City of Beverly Hills purchased the Greystone Mansion in 1965. The property has been utilized as a park since 1971. This remarkable mansion became a historical landmark in 1976 and has been featured in many films as well as television. For more information regarding the Greystone Mansion please visit the link below: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greystone_Mansion What a historical treasure! CHEERS 11/12/2010

The Beverly Hills Courier reports that "The Beverly Hilton Hotel has been listed for sale with global commercial real estate brokers Cushman & Wakefield for the purpose of exploring the market. A sale price has yet to be determined". In 1955, Conrad Hilton opened The Beverly Hilton at the world-famous intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards. The hotel was owned by Merv Griffin from 1987 to 2003. Oasis West Realty LLC purchased the 570-room hotel in 2003 for $130 Million and immediately embarked on a $80 million renovation. There are currently plans to expand The Beverly Hilton with an additional 170 rooms. 11/08/2010

Market Observations for the week of November 8th, 2010, as you know I do not often comment on this subject, since there is a great deal of daily volatility in the Stock Market and consequently in the mortgage rates as well. Last Wednesday, the Fed announced that, to help boost the economy, it will purchase an additional $600 billion in Treasury securities by the end of the second quarter of 2011. The expectation is to purchase about $75 billion per month to reach its goal. The good news is this will help Real Estate sales, since the Dollar will remain weak and foreign buyers will continue to see US Real Estate as a great opportunity. There will be a lot more Luxury home buyers from Europe, Asia as well as North America, i.e.: Canada.  In addition the added demand for Treasury securities... 11/08/2010