The year was 1990, the summer I graduated college and packed up my car and moved to Hermosa Beach. The sun, surf and beach vibe was a dream come true for a twenty two year old looking to start his post college life. It was a different Hermosa then – my friends and I would hang out and watch bands at the Lighthouse Café, grab schooners at the HBYC, drop into the Poop Deck after a day at the beach, listen to DJ Roy at BBC (upstairs at Besties) and always be cruising the Strand…those were the days!

Spring listing season is here — look for inventory to heat up in the next sixty days. As of press time, there are 328 active Single Family homes on the market in the cities of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, and Rolling Hills Estates. Additionally, a total of 266 Single Family homes have sold in the first quarter of 2012 for the same cities.

Looking at the available inventory of homes for sale in the South Bay reveals some interesting trends and begs the question — where’s the inventory? For instance, the total number of available Single Family Homes for sale as of March 19th in the cities of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills & Rolling Hills Estates is only 331, compared to 939 this time last year. In other words, there are 608 less homes available for sale this March vs. last March 2011!

This issue’s front cover home is a stunning French Riviera Style custom home in the heart of the Hill Section in Manhattan Beach. Offered by Ed Kaminsky, ITZ Sold, Shorewood Realtors. In this issue’s feature SWEET DIGS — “Mission Project: Restoring a Spanish Colonial Revival,” we check out a one-of-a-kind Spanish Colonial in Palos Verdes Estates.

This issue’s front cover home offers a once in a lifetime opportunity to own a prime 4700 sq. ft. estate on a huge 1.13-acre mostly usable lot with unsurpassed panoramic ocean view. Offered by Raju Chhabria, Shorewood Realtors.

As we close in on the end of the year there are about 445 active single family residences for sale in the Beach Cities of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach and the Palos Verdes Peninsula – a total of $935,244,598 in inventory available with an average list price of $2,101,673. (48% of the listings are listed over $2,000,000).

Local real estate is the common thread in the fabric of our South Bay community. Our homes help define who we are — an expression of how we live. It’s what we talk about. Our recent SWEET DIGS articles are a testament to the relationships people have with their homes and the community. There’s really an endless supply of cool and interesting homes here, each with its own distinct personality and style.

Can you believe it…this issue marks our one year anniversary for South Bay Digs magazine! I’m truly humbled and honored with the progress we have made and the support we have received in the community. I want to personally thank all of our clients and let you know how deeply I value our business partnerships.