Rolling Hills Estates: Loads of Activity on Small Rolling Meadows Road

For this week’s blog post, I am going back to sharing some specific sub-market content before we head into analyzing the election results next week.

Tucked into a small cul-de-sac between Palos Verdes Drive North and Silver Spur Road is a small street on the border of Palos Verdes Estates and Rolling Hills Estates named Rolling Meadows Road.

There are a mere 29 homes with a Rolling Meadows Road address.

In 2015 and 2016, there were five home sales that occurred on this one street representing a relatively large turnover that accounted for 17% of Rolling Meadows Road home inventory.

For the next three years, 2017-2019, there was not one sale that occurred on this street.

That all changed in 2020 when another rush of owners decided that it was time to sell. Just this year, there have been four homeowners completing a sale or currently have a home on the MLS. The new inventory on this sleepy street is sizable to those numbers seen just four years ago where almost one fifth of inventory sold.

Rolling Meadows Road

What makes Rolling Meadows Road such an interesting, yet tricky, street to value is its close proximity to busy P.V. Drive North and Silver Spur Road…as well as its topography.

The topography of this street is an incredibly important factor to home buyers which you will see below.

Homes located on the northeast side of the street back-up to Palos Verdes Drive North and the noise from the busier street is definitely a negative factor when considering a purchase.

As you move south on the street, the homes at the end of the cul-de-sac, regardless of size, are affected by noise from the other busier street, Silver Spur Road.

Homes on the west side of this street feel little to no effect from the traffic noise and are considered more desirable by some buyers.

As you climb higher up the street, city views can be obtained, but sometimes at the sacrifice of privacy with homes on Range Horse Lane sitting above you and looking down into your backyard.

The trade-offs are interesting. Each and every home location on Rolling Meadows needs to be studied closely to understand the positives and negatives of every unique lot.

New 2020 Inventory & Sales

Of the four homes that came to market in 2020, three have sold and one has been sitting on the market for about six weeks now. Let me start with the first sale of 2020…

• 4921 Rolling Meadows Road
  • 3 bed, 2 bath, 2,700 sq. ft., 15,677 sq. ft. lot
  • Sold Price: $1,365,000

This property may seem familiar to my avid readers since I have written about this property before as the poster child of a bad buy and a potential sign of a falling market during scary economic times.

4921 Rolling Meadows was purchased for an awfully expensive price in 2016 considering all of its challenges in the floor plan, lack of backyard, and close proximity to noisy P.V. Drive North.

At a $1,375,000 purchase price four years ago, the homeowners started their listing journey at $1,777,000, and ultimately closed at $1,365,000. Right off the bat, this is a loss of $10,000 and likely far more once you factor in selling costs. This comp in April set a somber tone on the street as the only comp in the past four years.

• 4903 Rolling Meadows Road
  • 5 bed, 2 bath, 2,395 sq. ft., 14,318 sq. ft. lot
  • Closed Price: $1,370,000

Thanks to the seller’s loss at 4921, the 4903 Rolling Meadows Road listing found itself fighting an uphill battle during its listing period.

While the home was in very livable condition, it also had its challenges with livable square footage being on the smaller size as well as its location at the end of the street right next to a very busy section of Silver Spur Road. That said, it had nice views, a cute patio, and ample backyard space.

Starting its initial asking price at a much higher $1,588,000, the sellers had to cut drastically to settle for $200,000 less thanks to the impact of Silver Spur Road and it eventually closed at a disappointing $1.37 million.

• 5036 Rolling Meadows Road
  • 3 bed, 2 bath, 1,781 sq. ft., 18,912 sq. ft. lot
  • Sold Price: $1,180,000

The latest sale came from a heavy fixer that was priced at land value. With the underwhelming performances of the past two 2020 sales, the sellers listed for an ultra-low $999,000 asking price.

It made a deal in five days and sold for $181,000 over asking to officially close at $1,180,000.

This was a smart play to undercut the value and allow for a controlled auction to occur. There was demand and positive momentum on this sale, however, for the street as a whole it is another very low sale. In fact, it was one of the lowest sales in the P.V. Drive corridor this year and an amazing price for a location that is just a stone’s throw from Valmonte and Masongate.

Current Rolling Meadows Road Active Inventory

• 5030 Rolling Meadows Road
  • 5 bed, 4 bath, 3,117 sq. ft., 14,038 sq. ft. lot
  • Asking Price: $1,799,000

The fourth and final property is 5030 Rolling Meadows that is currently on the market.

There are many benefits to this home. Some of those benefits include the larger square footage offering of 3,100 square feet that allows for five-bedrooms and a pool in the backyard. It also just happens to be located on the quieter side of the street.

That said, it needs work. And larger homes require bigger repair budgets.

Even amidst the opportunity this home offers, the drag in disappointing sales seen from the 2020 closings in the $1.3’s along with the land value sale presents many challenges for this home.

The sellers are bound to fight an uphill battle to get this home sold as well.

Starting at $1,999,000, the sellers cut just three weeks into listing by a sizable $104,000, and just recently cut an additional $96,000 just two weeks after that. Currently, the home sits at an improved price of $1,799,000 and is waiting for the right buyer to come make a deal.

Conclusion

Unfortunately for the small street of Rolling Meadows, the price momentum has been mostly, if not all, negative.

That is a hard thing to shake when you are a unique street with a lot of recent comparable sales. Buyers will hold you to those comps, whether they are good or bad.

It will likely take a couple of years of no sales to reset this street’s market value, and then owners have to hope for a beautiful and well-located home on this street to sell at a big number. That is the catalyst needed to reverse the softness on this charming cul-de-sac location.

If 5030 Rolling Meadows continues to sit and keeps cutting its price, then there could be opportunity for a savvy buyer with a long-term time horizon to take advantage of the bearish sales and land a low number.

Exercise patience to score a great price here. Then bring your hammer and some cash, and stick with it until a bullish comp closes a few years from now.

There is a chance that you could do quite well on this one with the right approach.

See you next week.

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