Just like that, 2019 has come to a close. As we enter a new decade, we are excited to look back as well as look forward.

In this post, we will share our own success from 2019, success of the Compass brokerage, and final statistics for Malibu Real Estate.

The Mark & Grether Group’s 2019

This year, we are thrilled to have closed over $67 million in real estate transactions! This includes:

• 22 leases ranging from $3,500/month to $150,000/month
• 4 land sales including the highest land sale price in all of Malibu during 2019, sold off-market at $5.5 million
• 19 single family and income properties sold, including the Marshall Family beach house on Carbon Beach asking $15.95 million

Our success is not only measured in numbers. As proud members of both the Malibu and realtor community, this year we are happy to report the following:

• Tony Mark and Russell Grether were voted the best realtors in Point Dume, Malibu
• Our team led the Compass corporate team in the 2019 Nautica Malibu Triathlon
• We raised over $5,000 for Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles through a benefit event in coordination with the Malibu Triathlon with the help of incredible local vendors who donated items for a silent auction
• The Malibu Podcast, hosted by Tony and Russell and concerning all things Malibu, was created this year and we look forward to continuing season 2 in 2020
• Nikki Hutcheson, our Social Media and Marketing Specialist, joined The Mark & Grether Group and continues to give each of our listings their maximum exposure
• Three new associate partner agents have joined The Mark & Grether Group and we are ecstatic to work alongside them and support their real estate business

The Malibu Real Estate Market in 2019

This year saw far less closed transactions in Malibu than 2018. Across the entire beach and landside, sales were down 38% in comparison with last year. However, much of this is due to the Woolsey Fire which swept through Malibu in November of 2018. The real estate market came to a halt as the tragedy, shock, and fear of living in Malibu took hold for months. Slowly but surely, the scars began to fade and buyers started looking for homes once again.

Despite the tragedy of the fire and predicted recession, Malibu still had landmark sales in 2019. The most notable being the sale of Ron Meyer’s oceanfront bluff home for $100 million. Our takeaway is the following:

• People will always want to live in Malibu and high-end luxury buyers are still looking
• Properties that are selling are either presented and marketed at their very best OR have the best price
• The market has shifted to support buyers, meaning that sellers must compete to be the most compelling offering
• Correctly executed listing preparation and active marketing are more essential now than ever

Malibu Single Family Home Sales | 2019

Malibu Beach per the MLS:

• Total sales: 35 | Down from 56 sales in 2018
• Average days on market: 97 | Down from 176 in 2018
• Average list price: $13,139,400 | Up from $9,999,795 in 2018
• Average sold price: $11,512,114 | Up from $8,054,295 in 2018
• Average sold price per square foot: $3,095.21 | Up from $2,468.81 in 2018

Malibu Landside per the MLS:

• Total sales: 95 | Down from 156 in 2018
• Average days on market: 103 | Up from 103 in 2018
• Average list price: $3,452,642 | Down from $3,798,038 in 2018
• Average sold price: $3,098,578 | Down from $3,422,917 in 2018
• Average sold price per square foot: $953.01 | Down from $1,046.14 in 2018

Malibu Condominium Sales | 2019

Malibu Beach per the MLS:

• Total sales: 18 | Down from 21 in 2018
• Average days on market: 59 | Down from 89 in 2018
• Average list price: $1,432,275 | Down from $1,528,569 in 2018
• Average sold price: $1,338,011 | Down from $1,425,476 in 2018
• Average sold price per square foot: $1,350.67 | Up from $1,304.70 in 2018

Malibu Landside per the MLS:

• Total sales: 41 | Up from 36 in 2018
• Average days on market: 95 | Up from 65 in 2018
• Average list price: $1,139,898 | Down from $1,304,577 in 2018
• Average sold price: $1,072,110 | Down from $1,254,182 in 2018
• Average sold price per square foot: $699.53 | Down from $778.34 in 2018

Malibu Land Sales | 2019

Malibu Beach per the MLS:

• Total sales: 3 | Down from 8 in 2018
• Average days on market: 428 | Up from 163 in 2018
• Average list price: $4,128,333 | Up from $3,912,500 in 2018
• Average sold price: $2,856,000 | Down from $3,029,375 in 2018

Malibu Landside per the MLS:

• Total sales: 38 | Up from 35 in 2018
• Average days on market: 125 | Down from 237 in 2018
• Average list price: $1,606,050 | Down from $1,653,364 in 2018
• Average sold price: $1,041,250 | Down from $1,356,043 in 2018

Compass in 2019

Together, we focused on depth, not breadth — helping agents win more business and investing in existing markets. This focus led to remarkable results:

• Compass agents helped 111,976 buyers, sellers & renters find their place in the world. On average, Compass agents helped someone complete a transaction every 5 minutes
• Agent sales volume grew from $33 billion to $88 billion, and Compass became the #1 independent brokerage in the country by closed sales volume, per Real Trends
• Compass grew to serve a community of 15,000 agents, making it even easier to find an agent to refer your clients to
• Agents used Compass Concierge for $8.5 billion of listings, representing 17.5% of active Compass listings
• Compass agents debuted 21,107 listings as exclusive Compass Coming Soons, allowing sellers to pre-market their homes and get valuable market feedback
• Compass agents can now offer Compass Bridge Loan Services, a simple solution to bridge the gap between the home you have and the home you want. Agents have told Compass CEO Robert Reffkin about multiple clients who literally burst into tears of relief when they learned about the program
• Compass agents now operate out of 325 offices (87 more than last year) across 135 cities
• Compass agents and employees supported over 2,000 different nonprofits through Compass Cares in just its first 9 months. Service is the heart of who we are and what we do. That’s why 100% of Compass transactions result in a donation back to our communities
• We announced a raise of over $350 million of new capital at a $6.4 billion valuation this summer from a handful of investors, bringing our total capital raised to over $1.5 billion. As has always been true, we have $0 in debt. This lets us invest more in building tools and support for agents than any other company.
• We received some nice recognition for our culture and technology, like LinkedIn’s “Top 50 hottest U.S. startups to work for right now” (we were #9), Fast Company’s “Best Workplaces for Innovators”, Glassdoor’s “Best Places to Work 2020” and the Webby Award for Best Real Estate Website.

We are looking forward to an amazing 2020! 

If you are considering selling, buying, or leasing in 2020, please contact our team at russellandtony@compass.com or call 310.230.5771