Trading Up to a Los Feliz Village Home

The Los Feliz Neighborhood Council draws the Village as District C. Los Feliz Boulevard is the north edge and Vermont Avenue the west edge. Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard form the south. The east border runs along Commonwealth Avenue to Prospect Avenue and then down Hoover Street.

Directly across the boulevard to the north, the land climbs into the Los Feliz Hills. The City's SurveyLA calls the heart of that hillside the Los Feliz Heights Residential Historic District. It counts about 317 Period Revival homes between Nottingham Avenue and Vermont Avenue, running north from the boulevard toward Griffith Park, with work by architects including Paul R. Williams and Wallace Neff. The corner of Vermont Avenue and Los Feliz Boulevard is where the two neighborhoods touch.

To the east, Franklin Hills begins where the Village ends. Its district is bounded on the north by Franklin Avenue and Tracy Street and on the west by Commonwealth Avenue and Hoover Street, the same streets that close the Village's east side. Los Feliz Knolls lies across Commonwealth Avenue as well, running out to Riverside Drive and the 5 Freeway.

Inside the Village itself, the trade is about the block. Vermont Avenue holds the Los Feliz Village Commercial Historic District, about 15 buildings on the east side between Franklin Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard, anchored by the Los Feliz Theater that opened in 1934. The North Vermont Avenue Moreton Bay Fig Trees are City Historic-Cultural Monument No. 940. Moving from a street near that row to a street near the boulevard, or the reverse, changes what is moments from your door without changing your neighborhood.

1. Name the move date. Write down the day you want to be in the next home and the latest day that still works. Every other date works backward from these.
2. Estimate your equity. We look at comparable sales for your current home and build a value range. You subtract what you owe and your expected costs of sale, and you plan with the range rather than one number.
3. Talk with your lender. Ask what you can carry before and after the sale. Loan programs and requirements vary by lender and by borrower, so confirm every option directly.
4. Set your carrying limit. Add the mortgage, taxes, insurance and upkeep for two homes. Multiply by the months you are willing to cover.
5. Choose the sequence. Sell first, buy first, write a contingent offer or plan a rent-back. Pick a backup as well.
6. Sign the buyer representation agreement. It is signed with Rooster Homes before the first showing.
7. Prepare the current home. For a Village home this means gathering permits and plans and checking the address on the City's monuments list before buyers ask.
8. Tour with the map in hand. Homes inside District C and homes across the boulevard in Los Feliz Heights can be seen on the same afternoon.
9. Write the offer to fit the plan. Your contingency or rent-back terms go into the contract. Brandon typically writes an inspection period of 7 to 10 days, and the exact number is set in each offer. The initial deposit is about 3% of the price, held by the escrow company.
10. Coordinate both escrows. Purchases in Los Angeles close through escrow and title companies, with no attorney required at closing. We keep both calendars in view and adjust together if one date moves.

This page explains how the process generally works. It is not tax, legal or lending advice. For your own situation, talk with your lender and your CPA or attorney as well.