Issue No. 7

The one thing. Two towns three miles apart, two opposite markets: over the three months ending May 31, Manhattan Beach’s median sale ran $3.75M, up 22% on the year — while Hermosa’s slipped to $2.41M, down 4.3%. The lesson for owners in either town is to stop reading “the South Bay market” as one number. MB’s engine: inventory down a third year over year, a third of homes still selling over ask. Our full take →

The rate. Cost of entry barely moved — the 30-year fixed ticked up 2 basis points to 6.49% for the week of June 25 (Freddie Mac), down from 6.77% a year ago. Freddie’s read: purchase demand eased while refinances picked up. At MB’s median, that still pencils to roughly $18,900/month in principal and interest, 20% down. The full dashboard →

Your money. If you carry an HSA-eligible high-deductible health plan, the 2027 contribution ceilings are set: $9,000 family, $4,500 self-only, per IRS Revenue Procedure 2026-24. The HSA is the rare triple-tax-advantaged account, so it’s often the number high earners max first. These hit plan years starting in 2027 — your open enrollment this fall is when you’d set it. Read the actual Rev. Proc. →

At City Hall. Manhattan Beach is one vote from locking in what you and your neighbors can build. The Housing Element ordinance — rewriting ADU, manufactured-housing and supportive-housing rules to match state law — was introduced 4-1 on June 16 and needs a second reading, expected at a 5 PM adjourned meeting Tuesday, July 7. To weigh in, eComment at manhattanbeach.granicusideas.com once the agenda posts; it closes noon that day and takes about 2 minutes. Our plain-English digest →

Quieter in Hermosa. No HB council meeting until July 28 — the calendar’s dark for a month. One loose end: the outcome of the June 23 master fee study, which could raise a range of permit and program fees, hasn’t surfaced in the city’s posted documents. Pulled a permit application this summer? The video record at hermosabeach.gov is where the council’s actual direction lives.

The pulse. Headed in this week? Know how to spot and ride out of a rip current first — the National Weather Service has a moderate rip risk up for LA County beaches through Monday, on a 2-to-4-foot mixed swell and 63-68°F water. The system’s working: LA County’s June 26 check posted no advisory for MB or Hermosa. Real-time status: 1-800-525-5662.

This week.
• Tue 6/30: MB Farmers Market, 11 AM–3 PM, Civic Center lot off 15th St (MB) — Details
• Sat 7/4: 4th of July Pool Party, 10 AM–2 PM, MB aquatics center (MB) — City Hall closed July 3 — City calendar
• Sun 7/5: Concerts in the Park opens with The Satin Dollz, 5–7 PM, Polliwog Park (MB) — a genuinely good free Sunday with the kids — City calendar
• Mon–Sat 7/7–7/11: JVA/BVCA National Beach Volleyball Championships (HB) — expect parking and beach-access congestion — City calendar

One question. That MB-vs-Hermosa split is the kind of thing the data shows but locals feel first. If you’ve bought, sold, or watched a block over the last year — does the divergence match what you’re seeing, or is the real picture messier than two medians let on? Hit reply; we read every one.

— Written and edited by Jamie Marsh