Adventures in Marketing: Here’s a hilariously bad rap video…

May 8, 2013 | PropertyRazzi

Here’s a hilariously bad rap video from yet another real estate agent who thinks rapping is the best way to sell a house and/or the American dream. The victim, this time? The fair city of San Francisco, which has “beaches, fine dining, hiking, and Legos. Even Killer Whales are nice and playful.” Huh? [Video Gum] Read More

Spotting Celebs with Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC]

April 9, 2013 | PropertyRazzi

While on vacation we hope to spot a celeb or two whether it’s in the concrete jungle (a.k.a. New York) or on the beaches of Miami. Check out this infographic provided by ForRent of how to spot celebs using social media. Read More

First You Get the Sand: Rich Malibuites Now Want to Harvest LA’s Sand Off Dockweiler

April 1, 2013 | PropertyRazzi

The super-wealthy homeowners of Malibu’s Broad Beach have faced all kinds of foes in their battle to restore the eroding beach with sand harvested from someone else’s coast–so far, Manhattan Beach has refused to sell them any precious sand and environmentalists have criticized the plan (which would only fix the beach for 20 years, tops, and most likely far less time). The 114 Broad Beach owners (who include Steven Spielberg, superagent Michael Ovitz, and LA’s richest man Patrick Soon-Shiong) have now “homed in on Los Angeles-owned sand from the bottom of the sea off Dockweiler Beach ,” reports the LA Times . So far the LA County Department of Beaches and Harbors isn’t wild about the idea–they say “that the Broad Beach project would deplete reserves that might be needed later to replenish other public beaches eroded by rising sea levels” (the city hasn’t made up its mind yet). But the consequences of the beach erosion are dire : Modern Family co-creator Steven Levitan says that “A number of times we’ve had to cut up and take the street home” during walks at high tide. The amount of money being thrown around here is pretty bananas–the Broaders have taxed themselves to raise $20 million for the project, which pencils out to north of $175,000 per homeowner. They whine that they’ve already spent more than $5 million “preparing scientific studies and getting approvals from half a dozen different agencies, each with its own rules and regulations …. If they keep spending at the current rate, they say, they will exhaust their funds before they can start the project.” Back during the storms of 2008 and 2009, when Malibu gave out emergency sandbagging permits, some Broaders “spent as much as $60,000 on sandbags, only to see them disintegrate in the pounding waves.” Later, residents spent $4 million on an emergency rock wall. Read More

Meanwhile, in the OC…: Newport Beach Fire Ring Fight Turns to Health Effects

March 7, 2013 | PropertyRazzi

Just last week it was looking likely that Newport Beach was going to be stuck with the beach fire rings they’ve been trying to rid themselves of for years. The Coastal Commission was all set to vote on the matter today, but the LA Times reports they’ve decided to postpone their decision after it came out that another agency was getting involved. Now the South Coast Air Quality Management District is getting in on the hot fire ring action, and will release a report in May considering effects of all those beach fires. “We don’t want to get at odds with public health , even if it’s at odds with [beach] access,” the commission chair says. · State delays fate of Newport Beach fire rings [LAT] · Newport Beach Will Probably Keep the Fire Rings It Hates [Curbed LA] Read More

First You Get the Sand: Rich Broad Beach’s Plans to Harvest Sand From Manhattan

November 12, 2012 | PropertyRazzi

Click here to view the full photogallery. Details have been released on superwealthy Broad Beach ‘s plans to raid sands from Manhattan Beach and other areas to help shore up its rapidly-eroding beach–the Malibu homeowners along Broad have voted to tax themselves to pay for the project. According to an analysis by the State Lands Commission, about 500,000 cubic yards of sand would be taken from a 27-acre L-shaped plot off MB; that sand would then be moved in “up to 500 barge trips and 270-small vessel trips,” according to Malibu Patch . They’re also eyeing sand off Ventura Harbor and Dockweiler Beach. Broad plans to take fine sand from its own off-shore Trancas deposit as well–that’d be used to make sand dunes “and would be placed over an existing, emergency rock wall that was rushed into place several years ago to protect houses.” Apparently the whole project “is expected to provide relief between 10 to 20 years for up to 114 threatened homes.” Plenty of time to come up with a permanent solution, right? The Daily Breeze reports that “The replenishment project hasn’t been well-received in Manhattan Beach, where the City Council decided several weeks ago to send the Lands Commission a letter voicing its opposition to losing offshore sand.” The city plans to submit additional comments on the SLC report; feedback on that is due by November 16Read More