FHA to lower cost of mortgage insurance

 My website:www.sandralew.com

Relief is on its way for those borrowers who are subject to FHA mortgage premiums as costs decrease. This should increase the purchasing power for borrowers. That is welcome news.

 FHA to lower cost of mortgage insurance 

 

By Chris Isidore   @CNNMoney January 7, 2015: 3:39 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

In an effort to make owning a home more affordable, the Federal Housing Administration will dramatically cut the costs associated with the mortgages it backs.

Premiums for FHA mortgage insurance, which is designed to protect the agency in case a borrower defaults on a loan, will be cut from 1.35% of a loan's value to about 0.85%, the White House said in a statement Thursday.

As a result, a typical first-time homebuyer will save $900 a year on their mortgage payments. Existing homeowners who refinance into an FHA loan will see similar savings.

"Too many creditworthy families who can afford -- and want to purchase -- a home are shut out of homeownership opportunities due to today's tight lending market," the White House said.
The White House estimates that the lower premiums will enable up to 250,000 new buyers to purchase a home.

In the wake of the financial meltdown and ensuing foreclosure crisis, FHA raised its mortgage insurance premiums to shore up its finances. But now home values are on the rise, the jobs picture is improving and foreclosures have fallen to their lowest level since 2006.

Last March, the FHA announced it would not need another bailout due to improving financial conditions. The White House said that even after lowering premiums, reserves in the fund are projected to grow by $7 billion to $10 billion annually.


FHA loans have been an important lifeline for low-income and higher risk borrowers in the wake of the financial crisis. As private lenders tightened their lending standards, FHA-backed loans became the only mortgages available to many of those buyers, given their tiny down-payment requirements and easier credit-score hurdles.

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2015/01/07/real_estate/fha-mortgage-insurance/index.html

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By the end of 2015, millennial buyers may represent the largest group of home buyers, taking over from Generation X. They prefer smaller units closer to the urban core.  For years millennial buyers preferred renting over homeownership but this may change next year. Prices have returned to a normalcy with a growth rate of around 3 percent predicted for next year rather than the 6 percent seen recently. This affords buyers the time to choose more wisely & be picky with less urgency. People with regular jobs and 20% down finally will have a chance to get into the housing market. Baby boomers continue to downsize as well selling their larger homes to be closer to family which allows for more inventory. This is great news as the housing markets continues to recover.

What Real Estate Trends to Expect in 2015

By Susan Johnston 2 hours ago

 

As housing recovers, prices in many markets across the U.S. have shot up. In fact, RealtyTrac reported that the median sale price of U.S. single-family homes and condos in October had reached its highest level since September 2008. Price appreciation and the lure of foreclosures created a feeding frenzy for real estate investors willing to pay cash and made it harder for traditional buyers to compete. 

But experts say that 2015 will be marked by a return to normalcy and balance for real estate markets across the country. Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow.com, predicts that home value growth will slow to around 3 percent per year instead of the 6 percent seen recently, and that will make real estate less attractive to many investors. "It's been a tough market for buyers," he says. "I think it's going to get easier in 2015. Negotiating power will move back to buyers and away from sellers. It will be a much more balanced market." (Too many buyers and too little inventory, or the opposite, contribute to an unbalanced market.) 

Redfin.com's chief economist Nela Richardson agrees. "It's been a clear pattern that the investor activity has been shrinking over time," she says. "Investors like to go in where they can buy low and sell high. Price growth is starting to slow dramatically, so they can't sell much higher than what they buy. Investment property is less compelling in 2014 going into 2015." 

More inventory and less competition from investors means even traditional buyers are becoming "more picky, and they're willing to let a home go if they don't think it's a good fit for them," 

Richardson adds. "Buyers are less worried that they'll miss out on something. Houses are more like buses now. If you miss one, another one will come along." Whereas buyers might waive contingencies in the recent past to make their offer more attractive to sellers, they're now more likely to insist on contingencies for financing and inspections. 

That said, foreign investors may still find high-end American real estate appealing because of economic turbulence in their home countries. For instance, the U.K. is toying with a so-called "mansion tax" that would apply to those who own properties worth more than 2 million British pounds (or over $3 million), and China has placed restrictions on homebuying in large cities. Some foreign investors also worry about currency fluctuations devaluing money they hold in their home countries. "That section of the market is still all cash -- people buying up these huge places because it's safer here than in their own countries," says Herman Chan, real estate broker with Bay Sotheby's International Realty in San Francisco. 

Buyers from outside the U.S. may use their properties as a rental, a pied-à-terre (a secondary residence used for travel) or a residence for children studying at American colleges. But for buyers looking for more moderately priced homes, 2015 could offer a respite from bidding wars and all-cash offers. "People who've been on the fence about selling are finally going to pull the trigger, which is great for buyers [because it creates more inventory]," Chan says. "Now people with regular jobs and 20 percent down finally have a chance to get into the market." 

For years, many millennials have postponed homeownership in favor of renting, but that may also change next year as a growing number of Gen Yers start families and seek more stability. "By the end of 2015, millennial buyers will represent the largest group of homebuyers, taking over from Generation X," Humphries says. "They prefer smaller units closer to the urban core, so it will be interesting to see whether they follow the time-honored path towards the periphery of the metro." 

Baby boomers are also likely to make a move in 2015. Chan says he's "gotten so many calls from baby boomers recently saying, 'We're downsizing, and we're moving to be closer to our grandkids or our son or daughter.'" With fewer homes underwater, they're finally in a position to sell. 

While mortgage rates may not remain at the historic lows seen recently, more people may qualify for home loans as issues like foreclosures or short sales age out of their credit reports and Freddy Mac and Fannie Mae ease mortgage eligibility. Freddy and Fannie recently announced a new mortgage program for buyers with a down payment as low as 3 percent. "Freddy and Fannie have always been the industry leaders, and they're saying, 'It's OK to lend to people who don't have 5 percent down. It's OK to extend credit in a reasonable and safe manner," Richardson says.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/real-estate-trends-expect-2015-144806401.html

 

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Good news for Silicon Beach. Google is expanding again this time in Playa Vista near Marina Del Rey. This is phenomenal as it further makes and brands the area as the tech and innovation capital of Los Angeles. It's a real key move and will continue to attract talented people to the area as the entire area is already booming. Google is projected to bring as many as 6,000 well paid workers to the area. Yahoo is also expected to lease 130,000 square feet of office space in a separate deal in Playa Vista too. Wow! Lots of positive news for the area.

Google buys 12 acres in Playa Vista, vastly expands presence in L.A.

 

Google is expected to lease the historic hangar where aviator Howard Hughes built his famous “Spruce Goose” airplane. (Annie Wells, Los Angeles Times)

By Roger Vincent and Andrea Chang 

December 3, 2014 

 

Google Inc. is making a bold move to expand in Southern California, the nation's nexus of technology and entertainment.

The tech titan has spent nearly $120 million on 12 vacant acres next to a historic hangar where aviator Howard Hughes built his famous "Spruce Goose" airplane in the Playa Vista neighborhood near Marina del Rey. The land is zoned for nearly 900,000 square feet of commercial space that could house offices or studios, vastly more room than Google now occupies in a handful of buildings in Los Angeles County.

Google is also expected to lease the Hughes hangar built in 1943. The 319,000-square-foot building has recently housed sound stages for movie and television production.

"This is phenomenal news for the Westside and for the Los Angeles economy," said City Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the Playa Vista area. "It really makes and brands Playa Vista as the tech and innovation capital of Los Angeles."

The Mountain View, Calif., company wouldn't detail its plans. But if Google is to develop the land as zoned, the Playa Vista site and the Hughes hangar could be home to as many as 6,000 well-paid, highly educated workers. Internet firms such as Google commonly set aside about 200 square feet per employee.

Local entrepreneurs and investors say they're excited about the possibilities that a stepped-up Google presence could bring.

More Google offices mean more quality engineers, many of whom may eventually launch their own ventures in Los Angeles, which in turn will lure more investors and more developers, said Paige Craig, a prolific angel investor who lives in Venice. That self-perpetuating cycle will boost the tech economy, he said.

"The real key to this is Google is going to attract talented people to come to L.A.," Craig said.

The deal also underscores the region's growing influence as a breeding ground for new forms of digital entertainment.

That's especially important as the technology and entertainment sectors continue to converge. These days, companies such as Amazon.com Inc. are churning out original programming, celebrities are launching their own gaming apps, and Apple Inc. recently spent $3 billion to acquire Beats, which included its online music streaming service.

Playa Vista has become a major hub of innovation in recent years. At first, the neighborhood's appeal largely stemmed from its location near major freeways, the Westside and Los Angeles International Airport. Now a vibrant community encompasses media companies, ad agencies, start-ups and established titans.

Last year Microsoft Corp. opened a roughly 20,000-square-foot space in Playa Vista to house 130 employees who had previously been in downtown L.A. Facebook Inc. has operations nearby. The neighborhood boasts the headquarters of online advertising platform Rubicon Project, consumer electronics and accessories maker Belkin International and ICANN, the nonprofit organization that is responsible for assigning Internet domains.

Playa Vista is also home to USC's Institute for Creative Technologies, which has attracted several top virtual reality researchers. The institute is where Oculus Rift founder Palmer Luckey once worked as a designer.

A juggernaut like Google would help bring even more attention, developers and investment to the booming area.

"It increases the quality of the work, it increases the ability to network, it increases the ability to attract more people here," said Kieran Hannon, chief marketing officer at Belkin, which has 450 employees in Playa Vista. "It has a complete knock-on effect."

Google's Playa Vista acquisition and pending lease deal reflect a rapid buildup of bricks-and-mortar facilities for the Internet company.

Google has already bought or rented about 6.2 million square feet of space this year in the Bay Area, bringing its total there to 15 million square feet, according to real estate brokerage statistics.

Three years ago, Google increased its Southern California presence by opening a campus in Venice, where it leased 100,000 square feet in three buildings for about 600 employees. One of those buildings is the Binoculars Building, a three-story office on Main Street designed by architect Frank Gehry.

Google also rents a 41,000-square-foot video production facility for subsidiary YouTube in a renovated former Hughes building in Playa Vista.

A Google spokeswoman said the company, which typically likes to expand near its existing properties, will continue to rent the 69,000-square-foot Binoculars Building. Google views the Playa Vista land purchase as a long-term investment and has no particular design in mind for the site, she said.

Google and property seller Lincoln Property Co. did not disclose how much Google paid for the land, but real estate experts familiar with the transaction who were not authorized to speak about the deal valued the sale at nearly $120 million.

Lincoln is the largest commercial developer in Playa Vista, having built five office buildings including a new West Coast headquarters for big-screen cinema purveyor Imax Corp. that is under construction next door to the new Google property.

Lincoln is also building the Runway, a $260-million retail, housing and office project that will become the commercial heart of Playa Vista when it opens early next year. Other developers are in the process of building an additional 2,600 housing units.

The introduction of potentially thousands of affluent Google workers to Playa Vista, a self-contained neighborhood of about 6,500, would drive the development of new shops, restaurants and housing.

More newcomers are expected to flood Playa Vista in the coming months. Google competitor Yahoo Inc. is expected to lease about 130,000 square feet of office space at Playa Vista in a separate deal with landlord Tishman Speyer, said Jeff Worthe, who co-owns an office complex in the area.

"There is a giant consolidation of the tech industry and content creators coming together, and Playa Vista is the direct beneficiary," Worthe said.

Tenants in Worthe's converted former industrial complex, called the Reserve, include TMZ, Warner Bros, Microsoft, Sony PlayStation and Verizon.

Mike Jones, founder and chief executive of Santa Monica incubator Science, said Google's proximity to existing start-ups in L.A. might entice it to go on a buying spree. That would lead to more technical jobs and set an example for young entrepreneurs on how to successfully create and grow a company in L.A., which would drive more entrepreneurship, he said.

The hope is that Google will invest heavily in Los Angeles and develop an appetite to acquire more companies in Los Angeles, said Jones, the former chief executive of Myspace.

"L.A. needs to turn into a city of acquirers," he said, "not a city of the acquired."

Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-playa-property-sale-20141203-story.html#page=1
 

 

 

 

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Beach close properties are still the hottest!! While housing market is a bit sluggish the high end is hopping!! The number of homes bought for $2 million or more in recent months has been the highest ever on record. Low mortgage rates and wealthy international investors contribute as well as does doing well. California's real estate market is a bargain compared to New York or London.

Quotes:
"High-end home sales are surging in "Silicon Beach," too, with tech entrepreneurs and Bay Area transplants scooping up multimillion-dollar homes in Santa Monica, Venice and Marina del Rey. Many of the buyers work in the area, said Miller, and prefer walkable neighborhoods, relatively close to work, to the traditional hubs of Westside glitz."

 "Then there's the formerly sleepy South Bay. The average sales price in Manhattan Beach through the first nine months of the year topped $2.2 million, said Barry Sulpor at Shorewood Realtors. That's up from $1.85 million in the same period last year. Even empty lots in the beach town's "Tree Section" are going for $1.3 million."

As you get closer to the beach prices go higher. There seems to be no end in rising prices for the high end market.

High-end home sales are surging in Southern California

 

The number of Southern California homes bought for $2 million or more in recent months is the highest on record. Above, Rafael Lopez, left, and his wife, Jacqueline, step out of a model luxury home in Irvine's Orchard Hills community. (Cheryl A. Guerrero, Los Angeles Times)

 

By Tim Logan ; November 23, 2014

 

By most measures, the housing market these days is a bit sluggish. Prices are flat. Sales are drooping. A lot of people are priced out.

 

But not everyone. The high end is hopping.

Luxury home sales in Southern California are hitting levels not seen in decades. The number of homes bought for $2 million or more in recent months is the highest on record. Sales worth $10 million or more are on pace this year to double their number from the heights of the housing bubble.

"It's pretty mind-blowing, to be honest," said Cindy Ambuehl, an agent with the Partners Trust in Brentwood. "The luxury market has been completely on fire."

Low interest rates, a strong stock market and waves of cash sloshing in from overseas are boosting demand for high-dollar homes. A record 1,436 homes worth $2 million or more were sold in the six-county Southland in the second quarter, according to CoreLogic DataQuick.

In the more recent third quarter, 1,431 were sold. That was up 14% from the third quarter of 2013, and well ahead of any three-month period in the housing bubble years of the mid-2000s. This comes even as the broader market has plateaued, with prices in the Southland still about one-fifth below their pre-crash highs and sales at less than two-thirds their 2005 pace.

It reflects a housing market that is now moving at two speeds, said Selma Hepp, senior economist for the California Assn. of Realtors. Fast for the high end, sluggish for the rest.

"It's just a completely different story between the two segments of the market," she said. "Those who are doing well are doing really well."

The biggest difference in the luxury market between now and a decade ago is that the world is smaller, said Drew Fenton, an agent who specializes in high-end homes at Hilton & Hyland in Beverly Hills. Wealthy international buyers are scooping up second homes, investment properties and safe havens for their cash. And it's easier for them to scout — and travel — the world to do so.

"Everything's just more global now," he said. Ten years ago "it was much harder to reach those people and they didn't travel as much."

Now they are, and so are the agents who cater to them. Sandra Miller, a broker at Volker & Engels in Santa Monica, last week was jet-lagged from a trip to London, where she met with nearly two dozen brokerages that represent high-end buyers. At the end of the month, she's off to Kuwait. Every week, she has a conference call with international agents.

The Southland scores points with these buyers for its weather, its glamour and a population diverse enough that nearly any transplant can feel at home. And despite its reputation as one of the nation's least-affordable housing markets, Los Angeles can look like a steal compared with other high-end havens.

"We talk to private wealth managers around the world who think California is a very good market right now," Miller said. "Compared to New York or London, L.A. real estate is a bargain."

But it's not just foreign money that's heating up the high end.

A surging stock market has boosted portfolios for domestic buyers in recent years, especially for those who have money to invest. Low interest rates have made mortgages cheap. And banks — still risk-averse — are offering lower rates and better terms to deep-pocketed borrowers than to cash-strapped first-time buyers. Meanwhile, wealthier households have seen their incomes grow faster than average in recent years.

Builders are recognizing this. Aliso Viejo-based home builder New Home Co. has several developments underway in Orange County targeting high-end buyers, including 6,700 square-foot five-bedroom homes in Irvine and ocean-view condos in Newport Beach.

Sales have been brisk, said Joan Marcus Colvin, New Home's senior vice president of sales, marketing and design, especially at that Newport condo building, the Meridian, where 34 units have sold since February, at an average price of nearly $3 million. That's without even having a model home to show customers — the site is still under heavy construction. Renderings and drone shots of the views are all that's offered.

"It's quite a testament to the strength of the high end of the market," Colvin said. "These were bought sight unseen. We couldn't even stand people there and show them it."

But it's the first new home development in Newport Center in a quarter-century, Colvin said, so there's demand. And income growth has been strong in coastal Orange County, minting new buyers for high-dollar homes. The same trend is happening in places less associated with luxury than Fashion Island.

High-end home sales are surging in "Silicon Beach," too, with tech entrepreneurs and Bay Area transplants scooping up multimillion-dollar homes in Santa Monica, Venice and Marina del Rey. Many of the buyers work in the area, said Miller, and prefer walkable neighborhoods, relatively close to work, to the traditional hubs of Westside glitz.

"These people don't want to commute an hour and a half to Beverly Hills, which is a whole 13 miles away," Miller said.

Then there's the formerly sleepy South Bay. The average sales price in Manhattan Beach through the first nine months of the year topped $2.2 million, said Barry Sulpor at Shorewood Realtors. That's up from $1.85 million in the same period last year. Even empty lots in the beach town's "Tree Section" are going for $1.3 million.

"That's just lot value," Sulpor said. "And as you get closer to the beach it goes up from there."

Prices have been climbing so fast that even fairly recent buyers say they're lucky they got in when they did. About 18 months ago, Ray Ahn and his wife bought a place half a block from the beach, a pocket listing that was never widely marketed. Before the purchase even closed, the house's appraised value started climbing. And of the eight or so houses that neighbor Ahn's, three have gotten high-end remodels since he moved in.

"I probably wouldn't be able to buy here today," said Ahn, who works for an investment firm in downtown Los Angeles.

But to live by the beach, he said, it's worth it. So did Daphna Oyserman. She and her husband — professors who relocated from the University of Michigan to USC — spent $2.2 million in January for a house just a few blocks from the sand. They expected to pay a premium to live in a nice beach town, Oyserman said, and they did. But, although their house is "half the size at three times the price" of what they owned in Ann Arbor, Mich., Manhattan Beach offers amenities Michigan can't.

"We thought, if we're moving to L.A., we'd like to enjoy it," she said. "In the morning I go for a run on the beach. When we go to sleep we can hear the ocean."

These well-heeled professionals have played a big part in the South Bay's surge, said Sulpor, along with those in the tech industry who prefer a more laid-back scene than Santa Monica and a growing cadre of professional athletes. Then there are young buyers who walk in with trust funds or family money.

"A lot of folks in their 20s and 30s are coming in and taking properties off the table at $3 million or $4 million," Sulpor said. "Sometimes all-cash."

Ambuehl said her luxury buyers also are starting to skew younger. Among her clients, tech entrepreneurs and other wealthy shoppers in their 20s and 30s are gradually replacing baby boomers, who often weren't as young when they earned enough to afford a big-ticket house. They're looking for different kinds of homes — often with more outdoor space — and in different neighborhoods. And, she predicts, they'll be driving up the high end of the market for a long time.

"You've got 70 million baby boomers. You also have 70 million Gen Yers. They are a huge part of our buyer pool," she said. "It's a market we have to pay attention to."

Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-luxury-home-sales-20141124-story.html#page=1

 

My website: www.sandralew.com

Good news! The US economy is predicted to have a 3 percent growth rate in 2015. Consumers are more upbeat and businesses confident which help foster improving economic growth.This optimism produces positive effects on our economy by adding more and higher paying jobs which provide the financial support for a continued sunny housing outlook.

5 Real Estate Predictions for 2015

Daily Real Estate News | Tuesday, November 18, 2014 

 

Expect the home-purchase market to strengthen along with the economy in 2015, according to Freddie Mac's U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook for November.

"The good news for 2015 is that the U.S. economy appears well-poised to sustain about a 3 percent growth rate in 2015 — only the second year in the past decade with growth at that pace or better," says Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist.

 "Governmental fiscal drag has turned into fiscal stimulus; lower energy costs support consumer spending and business investment; further easing of credit conditions for business and real estate lending support commerce and development; and consumers are more upbeat and businesses are more confident, all of which portend faster economic growth in 2015.

And with that, the economy will produce more and better-paying jobs, providing the financial wherewithal to support household formations and housing activity."

Freddie Mac economists have made the following projections in housing for the new year:

1. Mortgage rates: Interest rates will likely be on the rise next year. In recent weeks, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has dipped below 4 percent. But by next year, Freddie projects mortgage rates to average 4.6 percent and inch up to 5 percent by the end of the year.
2. Home prices: By the time 2014 wraps up, home appreciation will likely have slowed to 4.5 percent this year from 9.3 percent last year. Appreciation is expected to drop further to an average 3 percent in 2015. "Continued house-price appreciation and rising mortgage rates will dampen affordability for home buyers," according to Freddie economists. "Historically speaking, that's moving from 'very high' levels of affordability to 'high' levels of affordability."
3. Housing starts: Homebuilding is expected to ramp up in the new year, projected to rise by 20 percent from this year. That will likely help total home sales to climb by about 5 percent, reaching the best sales pace in eight years.
4. Single-family originations: Mortgage originations of single-family homes will likely slip by an additional 8 percent, which can be attributed to a steep drop in refinancing volume. Refinancings are expected to make up only 23 percent of originations in 2015; they had been making up more than half in recent years.
5. Multi-family mortgage originations: Mortgage originations for the multi-family sector have surged about 60 percent between 2011 and 2014. Increases are expected to continue in 2015, projected to rise about 14 percent.

 Source: http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2014/11/18/5-real-estate-predictions-for-2015

My website: www.sandralew.com

California's peninsula on the bay area as well as Newport in Southern California made up the nation's top 9 out of 10 real estate markets for being the most expensive. Actually California made a virtual sweep for top markets that had at least 10 listings for 4bedroom, 2 bath homes which the study was based upon. Many high tech companies are located in these areas which continue to contribute to have positive economic effects. Location matters...

The 10 most expensive real estate markets in the US

 Robert Frank - CNBC November 13, 2014

Visions of America | UIG | Getty Images

 

If you think Apple or Facebook stock is expensive, look at the price of real estate near their headquarters.

Los Altos, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley, is now the most expensive real estate market in the country, according to a new report from Coldwell Banker. The average four-bedroom, two-bath home in Los Altos costs $1,963,100—about 30 times the average cost of a home in Cleveland, the country's most affordable market.

"The continued success of many tech companies throughout Silicon Valley has brought markets such as Los Altos into focus," said Joe Brown, managing broker of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Los Altos.

In fact, California has a virtual sweep on the 10 most expensive markets in the country, claiming all but one of the top 10 spots. Granted, Coldwell didn't include New York City in its data, so the results are skewed.

But the list shows just how big the economic ripple effects of the tech boom have become in California.

10 most expensive real estate markets in the U.S.

Rank	City	Average price
1	Los Altos, CA	$1,963,100
2	Newport Beach, CA	$1,904,083
3	Saratoga, CA	$1,867,980
4	Redwood City/Woodside, CA	$1,430,329
5	Los Gatos, CA	$1,307,408
6	San Francisco, CA	$1,294,250
7	Sunnyvale, CA	$1,267,185
8	Moraga, CA	$1,129,300
9	San Mateo, CA	$1,093,346
10	Wellesley, MA	$1,090,089

Source: Coldwell Banker

 

For the report, Coldwell Banker pulled average listing prices of four-bedroom, two-bathroom real estate properties on coldwellbanker.com between January 2014 and June 2014. Markets without at least 10 four-bedroom, two-bathroom listings on the website (such as New York City) between January 2014 and June 2014 were excluded from the ranking.  

 

Source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/102179051#.

My website: www.sandralew.com

El Segundo has another new mall coming to town next summer.  "This is a really affluent, educated, sophisticated pocket of Southern California " which borders on Manhattan Beach thus developers have found it challenging to find the right mix to appeal to the area that already offers so much.

This new location is between two existing established malls (one across Rosecrans in Manhattan Beach Mall and the other just to the North in El Segundo Plaza) and down the street (Rosecrans) from several mid to upper scale restaurants. This rules out a number of stores/restaurants... The selective list of signed tenants thus far are Lucky Brand, Atheleta, Mendocino Farms, Superba Food & Bread, ShopHouse and True Food Kitchen. Looks to me like the mix should be another success!

Developer selectively signing up tenants for El Segundo mall

 

Federal Realty Investment Trust is building the Point, shown in an artist's rendering, at the northeast corner of Sepulveda Boulevard and Rosecrans Avenue. (Federal Realty)

By Roger Vincent; November 5, 2014 5:00 am

An $80-million outdoor shopping and dining complex under construction in El Segundo has signed up nearly half of the tenants expected for the mall when it opens next summer.

Federal Realty Investment Trust is building the lushly landscaped center, called the Point, at the northeast corner of Sepulveda Boulevard and Rosecrans Avenue that it hopes will become a meeting place for South Bay families and workers.

As designed by Architects Orange, the Point will include a large outdoor grass courtyard, a children's play area, casual seating and fire pits.

So far, the developers have selected a mix of popular but not nationally prevalent eateries, retailers and an exclusive fitness studio.

It has been challenging to find tenants likely to appeal to the demanding South Bay audience, said Jeff Kreshek, head of leasing on the West Coast for Rockville, Md.-based Federal Realty.
"This is a really affluent, educated, sophisticated pocket of Southern California," Kreshek said.

Athleta, an upscale fitness fashion brand for women owned by Gap Inc., will sell apparel and gear for yoga and seasonal sports such as swimming and running. Athleta will also offer free in-store fitness classes with local instructors.

Los Angeles denim and fashion giant Lucky Brand will open its largest store in the country at the Point in what is intended to be a first-of-its-kind flagship location, Kreshek said. Also on the fashion front will be a location of Orange County retailer No Rest for Bridget, which specializes in trendy, affordable apparel for career women.

For diners, the mall landlords have signed Los Angeles artisan sandwich maker Mendocino Farms and Superba Food & Bread, a coffeehouse, wine bar, restaurant and marketplace created by the founder of Pitfire Artisan Pizza.

True Food Kitchen, created by boutique restaurant group Fox Restaurant Concepts, will offer dishes based on the principles of doctor and author Andrew Weil. Another Fox Restaurants eatery will be North Italia, a traditional Italian restaurant.

ShopHouse, which was developed by Chipotle, will serve an Asian interpretation of fast food. Other retailers are in negotiations for the remaining space, Kreshek said.

"We are trying to curate the right mix of tenants," he said. "We expect to open very close to full."

Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-el-segundo-tenants-20141105-story.html