I think I’d find it almost impossible to come to LA and be surrounded by so much real estate without getting out for a bit of a look. So today in sunny West Hollywood I consulted Google Maps and off I went. Whilst I would have loved to have gone up into the hills to stroll through mansions my lack of car (and multiple millions of dollars) kept me local. I selected 2 properties to view, one on the ‘If I won lotto list’ and the other was on the ‘this could be doable one day’ list. Let’s start with the home that would use up my lotto winnings.
Described as a Stunning 3 bed, 3.5 bath town home with superb finishes located near the famous and trendy Melrose Place, I’d certainly be thrilled to call this place home. At just under 1.5 million it’s not cheap, but for the location in West Hollywood and the amazing property I’d be thinking this is good value. Huge bedrooms, great bathrooms and a large outdoor area help finish off the 1 year old 2250sq foot 2 level condo.
Although the agent was assuring me that the US property market is well on the rebound I had the luxury of looking through this amazing property by myself for almost 45 minutes. I get the feeling that the level of confidence in the local property market may not be quite as positive as he indicated, or maybe all of the movie stars were off filming today. So I then packed up my bags and headed west to the other end of West Hollywood, literally the other side of the street to Beverley Hills.
This cute bungalow below is situated in an area known as the Norma Triangle and was built in 1922. This was the more realistic property I wanted to inspect, with 2 beds and 1 bath it is quoted at $787,000. OK, maybe not amazingly cheap but half the price of the previous one…and it comes with your own recording studio (formerly known as a garage). It had a completely different feel to the other property being much more homely. A fantastic hedge rose 10 feet as your front fence which appears very common in LA and looks great. There was also a nice backyard to relax in after your exhausting recording sessions. I’ve asked both of the agents to get back to me with what their rental estimates would be, I’ll be interested to see what percentage return you get.
I’d always recommend having a look at properties in other countries if you get a chance whilst travelling. I find it not only very useful to get an idea of what you can get for your money but also fascinating to see how others live!
Landlordism 