Long Beach/Southern California Real Estate

4/07/2026

What about the Smart Home Devices When a Long Beach Home is on the Market?

Keypad being set for smart device

The outside cameras and doorbell cameras are familiar to many people. But what about the interior of a home? Videos on during showings have been a showing occurrence for a number of years, but be aware of capturing sound without consent in California, which has certain restrictions about this.

Smart devices generate and store data. So agents and buyers and other visitors to a home on the market should be aware that technology may impact privacy, and that conversations about a listing inside a property may not be confidential. While sellers are advised to give notice about video recording at the entrance to home visitors, agents are not responsible for the installation of such technology, so parties should be aware of holding conversations about negotiations or other remarks while they are in the property. Agents and buyers should actually assume that surveillance devices could be present when visiting a property, and act accordingly. So do not discuss offer strategy, inspection findings, or other opinions about the property while you are in it. It's easy to forget this, but even casual remarks may have an impact on the seller's impression of a prospective buyer and how a subsequent offer can be viewed.

A homeowner may not even be aware of the device's capacity, as privacy policies and terms of setup can be lengthy, and then not reviewed after installation. A buyer and agent should not take for granted the privacy of conversations while in a property.

Especially in new homes, connected technology is less of a "feature" and more part of the infrastructure. So being more aware of how smart devices function can lessen any surprises after a showing.

For more information about your home's value in this market, I can help with local market information in Long Beach and surrounding area.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.abodes.realestate | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

3/17/2026

The ‘Ugliest House of the Year’ Gets a Dramatic Makeover

Remodeled Home

The house in this article is located in Boise, Idaho. It wasn't just ugly, it needed a lot of work, and the type of home even some investors would not want to work on. The article shows several before and after photos (this image is after the work) which are worth examining well, because they show not only a major cleanup, but how living spaces can be reimagined. The owners invested $100,000 in the overhaul of this property. They not only improved the property, but they helped to improve the neighborhood in the style that was already there.

The work was accomplished in 6 weeks, and was a full scale overhaul with new plumbing, flooring, HVAC, paint, and new driveway, for this 4-bedroom home on a 9,000 sq.ft. lot.

The purchase price is not mentioned, but after work was done, it relisted for $624,000 and sold shortly thereafter.

One thing for investors to know is that in California, disclosures to the buyer must include the work done to the property, regardless of how long the property was owned, which is usually just a few weeks or months. The responsibility to disclose is the same as an owner occupant who had lived there for a longer period of time. And, REALTORs throughout the country all have the same ethical obligations as found under the National Association of REALTORS, even though there is variance in different state laws.

If you are thinking about making a change, or are wondering if you should sell or remodel, please contact me for help on your home's valuation.

The ‘Ugliest House of the Year’ Gets a Dramatic Makeover: A trash-filled, ‘uninhabitable’ home sheds its title after a six-week transformation.

3/12/2026

Long Beach 90815 Housing Update for February, 2026

90815 Housing Market

The housing market in the 90815 area of Long Beach remains very competitive. This zip code includes the higher end pricing of Bixby Hill and Park Estates, and the softer prices in Stratford Square. The median sold price for homes reached $1,210,000, while the average sold price was approximately $1,234,000. Homes are also selling quickly, with a median of just 7 days on the market.

Limited inventory continues to support strong home values, with about 1.08 months of supply, which still favors sellers. Over the past three months, more than 50 single family homes sold as listed on the MLS and public records, representing more than $61 million in total sales volume. For the 44 homes sold via the MLS, the mid-point price was $1,159,000, with the lowest 14 homes selling between $685,000 and $975,000.

For homeowners, this means property values in the area remain stable with steady appreciation. For buyers, preparation and strong offers are key in this fast-moving market.

If you're curious about your home's current value or are considering buying or selling in the area, feel free to reach out.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.abodes.realestate | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

2/26/2026

FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) Rule In Effect March 1, 2026.

Signing forms for FinCEN

NOTE: 3-22-2026: Update from CAR: "On March 19th, a Federal Judge in Texas struck down the FinCEN reporting requirements which had gone into effect on March 1st. Based on this development, FinCEN has stated that reporting is not currently required, and that reporting persons will not be subject to liability for failing to report while the order remains in force. Keep in mind that this decision will almost certainly be appealed."

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network published a Residential Real Estate Rule in 2024 which does require real estate closing services, i.e., title and escrow ("Reporting Persons"), to collect data on "certain" all cash transactions and report that information to FinCEN. This applies to the purchase of residential real estate, occupied by one to four families, a condo, single family house, or shares in a co-op, residential property in a mixed use residential/commercial building, all of which are located in the United States including territories and Indian lands.

In the words of the California Association of REALTORS, "Reporting persons are required to collect information from buyers and sellers on an “all-cash” purchase of residential real estate, regardless of location or price, and report the collected information to FinCEN if the buyer is an entity or trust.
Failure to do so can result in significant civil and criminal penalties. All-cash includes financing through parties not normally subject to reporting requirements, like many hard-money lenders. Reporting information includes name, address, taxpayer ID – including foreign jurisdiction if applicable, and applies to trustees, beneficial owners and signing individuals, as well as price, property address and account from which the purchase price was paid."

Notice that it concerns if the buyer is an entity or trust, including a living trust. This program is meant to combat money laundering--per the www.fincen.gov site:

Information provided on Real Estate Reports is meant to help combat and deter money laundering by increasing transparency in the U.S. residential real estate sector. Although there are many legitimate reasons to use legal entities and trusts to own residential real property, illicit actors intent on laundering funds through residential real property often use legal entities and trusts to disguise their identities and make the proceeds of crime more difficult to identify. Illicit actors often favor non-financed transfers (including “all-cash” sales) of residential real estate to avoid scrutiny from financial institutions that have anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) program and Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) filing requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act.

Escrow cannot close until the requested data is submitted via the Federal Reporting Requirement Purchase Addendum (a REALTOR form) and the Reporting Person (escrow or title) has determined the applicability; signing this form does not affect a transaction if it's determined the data collection does not apply to the particular transaction. In other words, the Reporting Persons bear the responsibility of making sure the FinCEN requirements are complied with so that escrow closes on time.

Also, escrow may have an additional charge for handling this additional requirement. Reporting information includes name, address, taxpayer ID – including foreign jurisdiction if applicable, and applies to trustees, beneficial owners and signing individuals, as well as price, property address and account from which the purchase price was paid.

More information at https://www.fincen.gov/rre-faqs#A_1

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.abodes.realestate | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

2/13/2026

See Affordability Visual for Los Angeles/Long Beach Metro Area

Use the tabs and drop-down in the data visualization below to get the most recent housing, demographic, economic and affordability statistics for your local area. Or, click on this link

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.abodes.realestate | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

2/11/2026

Long Beach Sales January 2026

Long Beach Market January 2026

Long Beach saw a January 2026 increase of over 12% in median sales price compared to January 2025 for single family houses, and an increase over 9% in average selling price.

The condo prices tell a different story: The median sales price is practically the same compared to one year ago, but the average condo price citywide has decreased almost 9% compared to one year ago! And, there are more condos on the market now than single family homes. There are numerous reasons for that, as the insurance market and balcony inspection rules have had an impact on homeowner associations.

Area average sale prices in January 2026 for several

zip codes in Long Beach:

90803 - SFR - $3,225,000

90803 - Condo - $700,000

90806 - SFR - $787,500

90806 - Condo - $515,000

90815 - SFR - $1,238,067

90815 - Condo - $762,500

90808 - SFR - $1,090,100

90808 - Condo - $872,000

90805 - SFR - $721,917

90805 - Condo - $513,246 (for last 12 months)

90807 - SFR - $1,214,250

90807 - Condo - $413,333

Buyers may be interested to know that there are down payment assistance programs available (please find them on my website below), that there are sellers willing to do rate buydowns to assist buyers get into their home, and VA and FHA loan are still very advantageous for both condo and house purchases.

Manufactured housing opportunities also exist in Long Beach and surrounding areas, another way to buy a larger single family home for less money.

Please contact me for more information.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.abodes.realestate | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

1/20/2026

Long Beach 2025 Sales Price Report for Houses and Condos

Long Beach December Market

The average sales prices in Long Beach for a Single Family Residence in 2025 (as reported in CRMLS), leading to a highest point in June, down to $1,114,859 in December.

$1,132,231 - January
$1,058,802 - February
$1,188,403 - March
$1,266,298 - June
$1,108,575 - October
$1,086,980 - November
$1,114,859 - December

Condos in Long Beach followed a similar trajectory but with July being the highest point. In August, condos reached 5.5 months of inventory, meaning it would take 5.5 months to sell all remaining inventory if no new properties came on the market. This is what used to be considered a "normal" market, close to 6 months. However, condos are taking long than houses to sell, which is unusual considering they are much more affordable than single family homes. Condo sellers are having to deal with HOA issues such as completing the required balcony inspections and repairs, as well as higher insurance demands on some HOAs (not all). For example, in December the days active in the MLS for condos was 51, while for houses it was 32 days.