Ascent On Site Sales Center Now Open

Last week, KB Homes opened their on site sales office for Ascent at Warner Center and moved out of their temporary office which was located across the street.

From a company press release:

KB Home’s Ascent at Warner Center Unveiled

Homebuilder Hosts Special Sneak Peek Event This Weekend; Tours, Giveaways and More at Stylish New Condominium Community

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–KB Home (NYSE: KBH), one of America’s premier homebuilders, is unveiling Ascent, a brand new option for condominium home living in the heart of Warner Center in Woodland Hills, this Saturday, August 28. During a special Ascent Event from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the community, home shoppers can get their first look at this distinctive collection of residences that combine the convenience of urban living with sophisticated lifestyle amenities. During the special event, they will also be able to enter for a chance to win one of six $500 Westfield shopping center gift certificates. Shoppers can also meet with a mortgage loan officer to learn how to be among the first to own a new home at Ascent.

“We’re excited to show off Ascent this weekend. It is a gorgeous community, in a stellar location, priced right for those looking for an attractive alternative to a traditional single-family home,” said Steve Ruffner, president of KB Home’s Southern California division. “Saturday’s event is designed to educate buyers on why now is the time to buy a new home. Many homebuyers are going through the homebuying process for the first time, and we want them to feel comfortable with making the smart decision to purchase a new home today.”

Within walking distance of dining, shopping and many of the area’s major employers at Warner Center Business Park, and just minutes from Highway 101 and Interstate 405, Ascent is in one of the San Fernando Valley’s most easily accessible locations. The location affords residents access to entertainment studios and other leading Los Angeles area employers via either car or the new Orange Line system, including NBC Universal, Disney, Anthem Blue Cross and Kaiser Permanente.

Ascent provides refined amenities amid sleek urban architecture. Residents enjoy exclusive access to an onsite, state-of-the-art fitness center, resort-style pool and spa with Wi-Fi enabled cabanas, a clubhouse with a gourmet kitchen, entertainment lounge with flat-panel TVs, outdoor lounge with fireplaces, tranquil courtyards with lush landscaping, a full-service concierge and a dog park.

The one- and two-story residences include one to three bedrooms and up to two-and-a-half baths. Each residence also comes with two parking spots in the controlled access garage. Pricing for new homes at KB Home’s Ascent starts in the $220,000s.

Residences at Ascent include high-quality finishes and desirable design features such as granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and distinctive cabinet styles and colors. Homebuyers can further personalize their new homes at Ascent by visiting the KB Home Studio, where they will meet with a personal design consultant to select from a wide variety of design choices including flooring, backsplashes, lighting and wall color.

Ascent at Warner Center is located at 21220 Erwin Street in Woodland Hills. For more information, call 888-KB-HOMES or visit www.discoverascent.com. For the gift certificate drawing, see Official Rules at the special event for complete details. No purchase necessary.

Ascent Warner Center Nears Completion (4/18/2010)

In the past month or two, KB Homes has greatly amped up the pace of construction at the troubled Ascent at Warner Center condominium project on Erwin Street.  See my previous post about this project for some back story on the delays.  KB closed the first sales office, which was on Oxnard Street, for the project in 2008 after a fire and amidst the flagging economy, but on Thursday I observed them placing signage for a new office at 21220 Erwin St.  Looks like the sales push for the project is now in full swing, as there are now also sign twirlers out and about on Canoga Avenue.  My guess is that there are some bargains to be had in the building, so if you’re interested drop by or give them a call at 818-274-0101.

The gallery below contains some recent pictures of the project, the sales office, sign twirlers & sidewalk signs, as well as some previous photos I’ve taken over time.  There are also some nice artist renderings on the KB Homes website.  Nice landscaping.

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4389 Park Paloma, Calabasas, CA

Kourtney Kardashian’s 2,245 sq. ft. townhouse in Calabasas (4389 Park Paloma) has recently been listed for $795,000.  This property was featured in numerous episodes of Keeping Up With The Kardashains, and Kourtney was filmed many time crying on her bed in this very townhouse over her baby’s daddy Scott because she was never willing to acknowledge what a scumbag he was.  You can see many more pictures of this home here.

Kourtney Kardashian is a huge Z Gallerie fan.

The listing reads:

Gorgeous Calabasas Home In Gated Community Of Creekside. Beautifully Updated With Hardwood Floors, Granite Counters, Stainless Steel Appliances, Custom Window Treatments, Refrigerated Wine Closet, Marble Bath, Beautiful Fireplace, Skylights & Vaulted Ceilings. Immaculate Throughout. Third Bedroom Currently Finished As Built-In Study With Lighted Cabinets. Private Yard With Covered Patio, Fountain, Lush Landscaping. Two-Car Attached Garage With Built-In Storage. Excellent, Close-In Calabasas Location Near Tennis Center And The Commons Shopping Center. Prime, Las Virgenes Schools. Pride Of Ownership Here. Don’t Miss This One.

Mark Gonzalez, a reader of the blog and local real estate agent, posted about this on his Facebook page.  And, while he’s not the listing agent, he’d love to help make owning this property a reality for you.  If you are interested give him a call at(818) 414-1914.

Siegfried? Roy? Liberace?

Oh man, normally I wouldn’t even bother to re-post a real estate related story off of Curbed LA.  But, you’ve absolutely got to see the interior of the house at 5223 Winnetka Ave in Woodland Hills.  See all the pictures on Curbed LA’s site. It will be worth a good laugh or two on this rainy Friday.  And just think, for a mere $6.5 million it could be yours!   This asking price is absurd because the location of the house is very mundane and they guy paid $2.25 million for it in ‘07 and we all know where the market has gone since then.  But hey, maybe gilded leopard statues get you amazing bang for your buck!

Curbed LA writes:

When we spied the exterior of this eight-bedroom, seven-and-half bath we consulted with an expert to try to figure out what exactly was going on, architecturally-speaking. Neoclassical Revival columns and balustrades, she thought. Mediterranean roof. French-inspired quoins flanking the entrance. The mashed-up exterior didn’t even hint at the wonders to be found inside. But here’s our dirty little secret. We sort of love it. It’s a fine line between something truly hideous and something that is actually secretly spectacular. What’s the difference? Like the Supreme Court definition of pornography, we can’t explain it. We only know it when we see it. With a “palace” this majestic, we can only imagine the dungeon that lies beneath. According to the listing, the house was “designed by top industry designers and transformed into a true royal mediteranean palace with no expense spared.” The designers also had “a meticulous approach to fine details that created the emotional and rich ambience this palace exudes.” The owner, who was profiled in the NY Times a decade ago for quitting yeshiva to become a tech millionaire at the age of 18, is also hoping to make a hefty profit on this investment. Purchased in 2007 for $2.25 million, today’s asking price is $6.5 million or $801 per square foot. That’s almost triple neighborhood comps.

Visit Curbed LA to see all of the images.

Corbin Palms Advertisement

Some San Fernando Valley landmarks were in the news yesterday, including a home in Woodland Hills.

The Daily News writes:

Chris Nichols knows a good beer-barrel building when he sees one. And a group of Kennedy High School students has an eye for San Fernando Valley architectural gems.

Both are seeking to save four historic buildings, from a Lankershim Ranch reading room to a North Hills church.

And both are working to name each a city Historic-Cultural Monument, which would protect such landmarks as the onion-domed Sepulveda Unitarian church and the barrel-shaped bar once known as the Idle Hour Cafe.

The nominations for monument status, including three by the Kennedy High students, will be considered today by the Cultural Heritage Commission. If approved, the applications will likely clear the City Council this spring.

“It’s particularly exciting to have four remarkable San Fernando Valley landmarks in a single Cultural Heritage agenda,” said Ken Bernstein, manager of the city Office of Historic Resources.

“It’s tremendously exciting that a Valley architectural magnet school is preparing an entirely new generation of preservationists to take responsibility for Valley history.”

Fewer than 10 percent of the city’s nearly 1,000 historic-cultural monuments are located in the San Fernando Valley.

One of these sites is the Corbin Palms House:

The Corbin Palms House, an impeccable ranch-style house in Woodland Hills built in 1955 by William Krisel and Dan Palmer. The duo designed many modernist homes in the Valley and Palm Springs.

A site I found called Eichler Networks did an great write up about Corbin Palms here (a must read), and this is there blurb about that development:

• Corbin Palms is located on the west side of Corbin Avenue, between Calvert and Hamlin streets. The 6100 and 6200 blocks of Jumilla have homes that are particularly well preserved. Two landmark homes share a broad, park-like lawn on Corbin, just south of Topham Street. Victory Boulevard has a remarkable array of palms.

I was trying to figure out by searching online exactly which home they are speaking about in the article, and as of this moment I’m not sure.  If anyone has any idea, please leave a comment so I can find it and go take a picture.

Man, it’s a slow news week so far in Woodland Hills.  Must be all this gloomy weather?  So, I’ll cover this mind numbingly boring real estate transaction.

A joint venture between an affiliate of the San Francisco-based Swig Co. and an institutional real estate investment fund managed by Capmark Investments LP has acquired the 250-unit Arbors at Warner Center multifamily residential community located in the Warner Center area of Woodland Hills.

The property was purchased for approximately $33 million dollars — about $132,000 per unit.

Now, what sort of makes it interesting is that back in mid-2006 an Orange County company purchased the property for $50 million.

An Orange County real estate investment firm has paid more than $50 million for the Arbors at Warner Center, a 12-building apartment complex, and will invest several millions more in an extensive renovation, officials said Tuesday. The price paid by Real Estate Partners Inc. to Gateway Arbors LLC works out to about $200,000 per unit.

Now, I can’t exactly tell if it was Real Estate Partners that sold the property in this most recent transaction, but it certainly stands to reason. Maybe the new buyers got a sweet deal, but I’m guessing the seller got hosed thoroughly on this one. $17 million hit has to sting!