la jolla Archives - Luxury Home Digest

The Luxury of a Perfect Steak

Roberta Murphy Thompson — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 13:55:08 +0000

I love to go the Ruth’s Chris in Del Mar, Donovans in La Jolla and other fine steak houses–and always wonder how they get their perfect steaks. Of course, the meat is prime quality, but I’ve also heard it’s their 800-degree cooking surfaces that allow the steak to arrive so hot inside. The problem for me is tht I don’t have any surface in my home that even comes close to such a temperature.

So, when cooking steaks at home, I usually sear the meat first in a cast iron skillet and then finish in a hot oven. The result, after a brief rest, is generally a nice medium rare finish with a crust on the surface of the steak with a pink-to-red gradient finish on the inside.

Now, there is a different suggestion for the perfect steak.

Slowly cook the steak in a 275 oven, let sit for 15 minutes, then sear in very hot cast iron skillet. The result will be a very hot steak with crust on ouside and a medium rare (or whatever level you prefer) finish throughout the inside.

I wish I could take credit for the idea, but picked it up this morning and will share article and video below, which offers more detailed instructions.

How to cook the best steak.

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Jumbo Loans Boosting Luxury Home Sales

Roberta Murphy Thompson — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 14:47:28 +0000

Luxury Home

Jumbo Loans are Back with a Bang to Fuel the Luxury Real Estate Market

by Selena Cowell
Is the luxury real estate market on the mend? Home sales and prices are gradually rising in those places where the wealthy would like to plant their mailboxes–such as Chicago’s North Shore, the San Francisco Bay area, the haute Hamptons and the Rancho Santa Fe and La Jolla areas near San Diego.

According to recent reports, national sales of properties in the $75,000 and $1 million range are up by 38.7% compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, properties priced over $million are up by 25.7%, according to the National Association of Realtors. The good news is that the luxury real estate market is being driven by another resurgence–the jumbo mortgage loan.

These loans are typically over $417,000, the usual limit for qualifying by agencies like Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Jumbo mortgage loans are gradually coming back to the market after they all but disappeared in the wake of the credit crisis of 2008. Although most lenders had stopped making new jumbo loans, they’re back in the market again.

Presently, the credit markets are comparatively stable and the lenders who lend such big loans to the most efficient homebuyers now see that jumbos are one of the most profitable ways of making money with the low cost deposits. The secondary market investors are starting to regain their taste for the high-yielding loans. The jumbo mortgage loans are being offered at interest rates that are barely higher than those offered by the conventional mortgage loans.

If you’re about to take out a jumbo mortgage loan, you should first calculate how much you can borrow before striking the final deal. The jumbo mortgage market might fare better than the overall mortgage market throughout 2013. Our preferred lender for jumbo mortgages in San Diego is WJ Bradley Mortgage in La Jolla–and Jenny Nguyen, who can be reached at either 858-877-8008 or858-799-0747, If income and/or assets are no barrier, you should have no diffiulty in finding mortgage loans up to $10 million-or more.

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Luxury Real Estate Market on the Rise

Roberta Murphy Thompson — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 20:21:23 +0000

2012 Luxury Home Sales

by Roberta Murphy

We have noted a decided uptick in our own luxury real estate market in San Diego. Home shoppers from Europe, Canada, Mexico, Asia and the United States seem to have collectively decided that now is the best time to invest in coastal San Diego–in communities ranging from Coronado and downtown San Diego to La Jolla, Del Mar, Solana Beach and Rancho Santa Fe.

Apparently, this is a growing trend, as can be seen by this infographic that shows recent luxury home trends throughout the United States. Anecdotally, we are hearing the same from luxury real estate brokers in Florida, Colorado, and other states.

As you can see, biggest gains in luxury home sales occurred in the Western states, followed by the Noetheast, the South and trailed by the Midwestern states.

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Hong Kong Luxury Real Estate on a Roll

Roberta Murphy — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:46:18 +0000

by Scott Murphy

$57 Million as a sales price for a Hong Kong apartment?

That’s a price that would make the most expensive areas around the world such as San Diego, Los Angeles, New York and even London cringe. This five-bedroom, 6158 square foot luxury duplex suite located at one of Hong Kong’s most prestigious addresses was bought by an unidentified Chinese buyer.

And if you think that is really high for an apartment like this, another recently sold in the same building for $51 million as well.

Created and crafted by one of Hong Kong’s major development companies, this is reported to be Hong Kong’s most expensive residential real estate sale–at a mind blowing $9,200 per square foot. This building also has many amenities such as an aroma spa center, fitness room, outdoor yoga gym and amazing views of the harbor.

That is an amount that most people cannot even imagine. No matter how hard-working or how dedicated to the saving, wise spending and money management encouraged by Forbes.com, lovemoney.com and the like, most people will not accumulate that kind of wealth–even in several lifetimes. It is most definitely the realm of the super rich, being able to purchase such colossally expensive homes–and the ultra-wealthy in Hong Kong are no exception.

There have been many fears of a bubble in China’s real estate economy, but lately the rich have been getting richer. There are now 130 billionaires in China and the number is expected to rise with all the money being poured into their economy.

There is also talk from Hong Kong’s leader Donald Tsang about freeing up more land for development to help add supply and bring down the prices to make housing more affordable.

What if I had $57 million to buy a luxury home in the U.S.?

I would seriously have to consider a currently-available 10,000 square foot home right on the beach in Del Mar, just north of La Jolla. The climate couldn’t be more perfect, the views are spectacular, while snow-covered mountains and desert golf are just a couple of hours away. But then again, I am a big fan of (and a Realtor for) homes in San Diego!

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Urban Luxury Near the Beach

Roberta Murphy — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 20:46:31 +0000

by Roberta Murphy

When the combination of urban luxury and sandy beaches come together, we might think of high rises in Miami, Los Angeles, La Jolla or Honolulu.

San Diego County now boasts a second urban and beach destination: Oceanside Terraces, the new luxury midrise residence in downtown Oceanside.

We spend a great deal of time here and think we are in heaven, because we are dealing with amazed guests and interested buyers all day long.

Many step off the new Sprinter train next door, having come for a day trip from inland Escondido, Valley Center, San Marcos or Vista-or from San DIego to the south, They cant resist checking out Oceanside’s version of luxurious high rise living. Others come from Los Angeles, Orange County, North Dakota, Connecticut, Manhattan, Tucson, Las Vegas and Scottsdale–and are no less amazed.

The most excited guests, though, are Oceanside residents, who watched the construction of Oceanside Terraces over the last few years.

They understand the significance of this six-story multi-use building with prime retail on the first floor, offices on the second, and residences and penthouses on the fourth through sixth floors. They know that downtown Oceanside is becoming a walkable community and is on its way to becoming a shining model for urban living. They also know they have 3.5 miles of great beaches, the longest wooden pier on the West Coast, a balmy year round climate, and some of the friendliest people in San Diego County.

They are also savvy and know that Oceanside Terraces offers the coastal urban lifestyle so many buyers are seeking:

They want spacious single level homes large enough for guests, entertaining and long-term living.
They want close proximity to the beach. (How about 400 yards?)
They want a walkable community that offers fine dining, shopping, museums and farmers markets.
They want secure buildings, adequate covered parking and large lockable storage for bicycles, surfboards and other toys.
They want to be close to public transportation. (How about a train and transit center on the adjacent block?). They want an easy train ride to downtown San Diego to see Padres games, San Diego Civic Center theater productions, or perhaps enjoy dinner or a day in San Diegos Old Town or Gaslamp District. The appeal of more distant travel also beckons as a possibility with Amtrak.

Oceanside Terraces offer floorplans that range from 1730 to almost 2600 square feet. Prices range from the high $500s to $1.7 million and many boast sparkling ocean views.

For additional information, call Roberta Murphy at 760-402-9101 or Eve Simnski at 760-518-2264.

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Luxury Foreclosures Becoming More Common

Roberta Murphy — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:37:40 +0000

by Roberta Murphy

Bradenton Florida Luxury Home

Once upon a time, we whispered about the “F” word creeping into luxury real estate. These days, it is common real estate talk.

The Wall Street Journal quotes Realty Trac reporting that the number of $1-plus million homes in some stage of foreclosure has ballooned to 7,968 between January and August this year. This compares to 4,214 during the same months last year.

Within these numbers, it is interesting to note the relative surge in the $2-plus million home market. This luxury group has grown the fastest: How about 499 in foreclosure process, compared to 201 for the same period last year.

These luxury foreclosures aren’t just the McMansions that proliferated in many upscale suburban communities. These homes are waterfront, behind exclusive gated communities, and in tony towns where these financial embarrassments rarely occur.

The bargains abound. The luxurious Bradenton, FL home pictured above (and listed by Patricia Tan with Prudential Palms Realty), for example, was originally listed at $3.78 million and is now under contract for $1.1 million. There again, and according to DataQuick, more than 64,300 homes priced at $1million or more were sold in 2007–which is more than triple the number for 2002.

In our local San Diego luxury real estate market, we are seeing our own casualties. According to our stats, there are 34 homes in some state of the foreclosure process in exclusive Rancho Santa Fe–with one on Via De Santa Fe valued at over $12 million. In La Jolla real estate, where prices are equally high, but with more condos and a greater population, there are 118 properties in the throes of foreclosure.

What will be the consequences to the highest end of the luxury market? There will be some fallout–and perhaps a more robust luxury home rental market, but most of these owners are well-entrenched and funded–and can afford to wait out this market crisis.

And for luxury home buyers, the market hasn’t looked this good–or offered so many choices– in several decades.

For more, read:

The Finest Foreclosures – WSJ.com

The Luxury of Frugality

Rise in Luxury Home Foreclosures, REO’s and Short Sales?

California Luxury Home Foreclosures

7 Bargaining Secrets for Luxury Home Buyers

Luxury Home Foreclosures More Common

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Nouveau Luxury Home Buyers: Instapreneurs

Roberta Murphy — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:01:09 +0000

by Roberta Murphy

Who are these young and ultra-affluent buyers of homes in Rancho Santa Fe, Palm Beach, La Jolla, Aspen and Manhattan?

Robert Frank, in his best-seller Richistan, calls them instapreneurs (didn’t he coin the term?).

These are the new titans in technologies, who have benefited from a rise in financial speculation and governments that support free trade and wealth.

Instapreneurs are not plodders when it comes to accumulating wealth. They don’t develop companies to last for family generation; rather, they may launch several companies over their career life spans. And the goal for each venture is a lucrative “exit strategy” that will create the fattest windfall possible.

What are these luxury buyers seeking when searching for their trophy home?

1. They are specific in their demands as to age of property, views, room volume, luxury closets, privacy, and entertaining areas.

2. Instapreneurs often wish to be near prestigious country clubs, where they can golf, play tennis and entertain business elite.

3. In San Diego, many of these nouveau uber-wealthy demand ocean frontage, ocean noise–and silent streets. Or the highest penthouse in downtown San Diego. The want what is rare, what is singular.

4. Instapreneurs often have children, and are concerned about the quality of nearby and private schools. How the home works for the kids can be of keen importance. Instaprenerual parents want safety, space and room for kiddie galas.

5. These luxury home buyers often have special room requests, such as a library, multiple offices, servant quarters, guest houses, snoring rooms, home gyms, massage rooms, a conservatory or even a panic room.

6. These busy people often demand to be not far from a major airport because of frequent travel demands and the desire to minimize time spent away from families.

We enjoy working with these interesting folk, not just because we enjoy finding perfect property fits, but also because of the stories we get to hear. Some have been scientists, some movers and shakers in technology, and some who just had the courage to pour everything they had into an idea whose time had come.

They all inspire and the world is a better place because of these producers.

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San Diego Real Estate Exchange

Roberta Murphy — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 01:24:39 +0000

by Roberta Murphy

Bob Dyson is a real estate legend who recently launched Sothebys real estate offices in the San Diego, Palm Springs and Las Vegas markets. He has kindly agreed to share some exciting news with us about a new real estate exchange program that is set to rock the San Diego real estate market mid-January.

This program will do much to liberate locked-up equities in homes throughout Southern California.

But Ill not steal his thunder.

by Bob Dyson

How I See It: Lets Liberate Home Equities

With all the alarming issues facing us in Real Estate ownership and all the turmoil in Real Estate lending, I have been searching endlessly for fresh solutions to these problems. What if we could create a new and faster way to buy and sell homes in todays challenging market? What if real estate buyers and sellers could focus on the deal instead of getting lost in the details of granite surfaces, designer amenities and upgrades?

We believe our home exchange program will help stabilize our troubled real estate market and could be a program easily implemented in other cities outside of Southern California.

Quick Facts:

There are more than 25,000 homes for sale in San Diego County. We believe there are also more than 19,000 qualifed buyers who wish to purchase a home in San Diego RIGHT NOW.

So where are the buyers and who are they?

They are home owners living right here in San Diego.

They are home owners with œFrozen Equity – people who want to relocate right now but must sell their home first.

The Media:

Granted, there have real problems with the real estate lending industry . And the media has done an excellent job paralyzing the home buying public, scaring them away from purchasing.

Recent statistics provided by First American Title Company show that in San Diego County, the Palm Desert/Palm Springs areas and Las Vegas, foreclosure activity is centered in small pockets of those communities.

Areas like Rancho Santa Fe, Del Mar, Indian Wells and Summerlin have experienced very little impact from local foreclosures; however, those communities have been brought down by media hype and generalities.

It seems that nobody at the media level, or especially the government level, is paying attention to details. Our congressmen who are holding hearings on these issue dont even know what questions to ask – much less are able to present viable solutions.

Been There, Done That:

In January 1993 – in a similarly challenging Real Estate Market – several of us in the industry began calling our listing clients and we asked them one question: œWhen you sell your home, are you moving up in price, down in price or out of the area?

From that calling session forward, our little group began selling homes at an incredible pace. In January of that year alone, we sold 48 properties.

How We Did It:

We took our clients who had good equity, good jobs and good credit and matched their wants and desires to move up with other clients selling their homes who desired to move down.

We simply exchanged properties. It was actually as simple as œIll buy yours and youll buy mine.

Two purchase agreements were drawn up, each contingient upon the concurrent close of the other. Both clients got new loans and became a buyer in one escrow and a seller in the other.

The process and the response exceeded our wildest expectations. We provided all parties with work sheets, we moved sales prices and new loan amounts around with our lenders and, in most cases, satisfied the needs of both clients.

Exchanging Properties in Todays Real Estate Market:

Today, we are taking our exchange idea of the 90s, dusting it off and are updating it with todays technologies.

What is evolving is an industry-supported effort to help buyers and sellers with good credit, good jobs and solid equity move NOW.

To best understand this new program please click on the following link to visit www.HomeExchangeProgram.com. The site is still under construction, but you can get a feel for how exchanges work.

Real Estate agents and sellers alike can participate in this program. The more of us who participate, the faster this Real Estate market will right itself and and help œAll Ships to Rise.

If you would like to discuss the Home Exchange Program, please give me a call at 858.481.2020 or email me.

And thats œHow I See It.

Bob Dyson

Bob Dyson is the Broker of Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty in Palm Desert/Palm Springs, Calif. and Las Vegas, Nevada and Villa Sothebys International Realty in Del Mar, Calif. With nearly 40 years experience in the Real Estate Industry, Bob has become an industry innovation leader. In addition to his many years in the brokerage industry, Bob is also involved in real estate mapping and development and currently has several thousand acres in various stages of mapping and development in Southern Nevada and Southern California.

About the Company
Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty and Villa Sothebys International Realty were founded in Southern California in 1988 under the name Dyson & Dyson Real Estate Associates. Offering a variety of unparalleled real estate services, the brokerage operates offices in Las Vegas, the Palm Desert/Palm Springs area, and Garner Valley under the name Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty and in the San Diego County area under the name Villa Sothebys International Realty.

Each office is independently owned and operated.