Foreclosure in Santa Monica: Bubble and bust on Dewey Street
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Dr. Housing Bubble has a good one today, a 15-year story of bust, boom, bubble and bust again, all told through the life of a single foreclosed house in Santa Monica.
The house is 2376 Dewey St. -- right on the border between Santa Monica and Los Angeles, on a busy street close to the Santa Monica Municipal Airport. Here’s the agent’s description:
Bank owned foreclosure. 3bed/2bath home! ... Attached garage. Great area. Light & Bright! **Buyers bring your best offers!**
And here’s the sales history:
Sold, 5/93: $290,000
Sold, 9/01: $417,500
Sold, 9/02: $476,000
Sold, 10/04: $696,000
Sold, 11/06: $1.1 million
Foreclosed 5/08
Listed 10/08: $709,500.
From these numbers and this house, Dr. Housing Bubble weaves the story of the bubble, punctuating each chapter, and each sale, with newspaper headlines of that day. (My personal favorite headline is this one from June 2004: ‘No sign of a Housing Bubble, Study says.’)
Nope, no housing bubble here.
Two cents: This house is in a crummy location, as is often the case with Westside foreclosures. Houses in move-in condition on nice blocks are holding their value much better. But remember: the house highlighted here has always been in a crummy location, and, yet, 23 months ago, it sold for $1.1 million. The bubble is bursting in Santa Monica, as the good doctor reports.
— Peter Viles
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