The Balcony Inspection That Almost Killed a Sale — And How We Closed It at a Record Price

2026 YTD Proof — Client-Facing Figures

$40.3M — Sales volume YTD 2026 (+35% vs. prior year)
28 — Transactions closed (+33% vs. prior year)
~$1.44M — Average sale value
15 / $21.9M — Santa Monica closings/volume — our core market

THE PLAIN TRUTH

We talk a lot about what can go wrong in a condo sale. This week, instead of explaining it, we'll show you. Real deals we closed on the Westside this year, in the Los Angeles condo market. Names of buildings with issues stay private, for good reason. The point isn't to expose anyone. It's to show what happens when the building gets read early instead of mid-escrow.

THE SAVE

We'd sold multiple units this year in a Santa Monica mid-rise, so we knew the building. On the next one, our Pre-Packaged review of the HOA file turned up something the seller didn't know was a problem: the building was missing its required SB 326 balcony inspections and the corrective work that follows them. Under the old rules we were working within, that was a financing risk waiting to surface.

The difference between us and a reactive process is simple: we didn't wait for a buyer's lender to find it. We flagged it to everyone up front, lined up multiple lenders — including ones who could work with the building's status either way — and walked the buyer through exactly what we were solving and why. Then we did something most listing agents never do: we led the fix. We helped the HOA and its management company identify the right firms to perform the inspections and complete the corrective work, and within about two months, with a planned delayed close, we got it done. The sale closed — at a record price for the building.

THE SECOND ONE

A different building looked fine on paper but couldn't produce its documentation in time. During the condo certification process, it couldn't show the paperwork proving required work was complete — so Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac treated it as non-warrantable. We worked with the HOA and management to get the building's file in order. It's now fundable by essentially any lender, and in the meantime, we brought in alternative lenders to close the deal quickly rather than letting it die waiting.

THE BUYERS WIN TOO

Preparation isn't only a seller's tool. On a competitive Lyceum purchase, our buyer went up against nine other offers — and won. Then, because we ran real due diligence after the offer was accepted, we negotiated a $25,000 credit back to our buyer. They got the property and money back.

And when the pricing is right, this market still rewards it decisively. This year we sold 20762 Rockpoint at nearly $700,000 over asking, and 918 18th Street at more than $160,000 over. The market is not weak. It is selective — and correctly priced, well-prepared properties are still drawing multiple offers.

THE PATTERN, IN NUMBERS

None of these are one-offs. Across our 2026 book, our listings go through the Pre-Packaged process, and the results show up in the aggregate: sales volume up 35% year-over-year to $40.3M, transactions up 33%, with the majority of our deals clearing contingencies in about seven days and near-zero repair requests. When the building is known before it's listed, negotiations get cleaner, escrows get faster, and buyers close with confidence instead of surprises.

Thinking about selling? Let's talk.

WHY THIS MATTERS MORE NOW

Every one of these saves happened while the rules were still relatively forgiving. This summer they tighten — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are narrowing the shortcuts that used to let buildings skip full review, and California's insurance market keeps hardening. The balcony problem we fixed in two months could, under the new standard, take a building out of financing entirely until it's resolved. The time to find these things is now, before a lender does.

When everything is known, everything works. If you're thinking about selling, or you sit on a board and want to know whether your building would pass today, let's review it. Send us your reserve study, budget, insurance declarations, and recent minutes, and we'll tell you plainly where you stand.