'Open-Concept Floor Plan' – House Crushed By A Tree Lists For Half A Million

If a tree falls in the forest, no one hears it. If a tree falls in suburban Southern California, it makes the evening news. 

In May, a one-bedroom bungalow in Monrovia, CA, made headlines when a large pine tree fell on the house, trapping residents inside. A couple who was renting the home and two dogs were there when the tree crashed down, hiding under a sewing table. No one was seriously hurt, but the house was red-tagged and deemed uninhabitable. 

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Now the home is on the market, and buyers will want to bring their contractors along because this is an extreme fixer-upper. The listing calls it the "Miracle On Mountain," referring to its address on Mountain Avenue. The home was built in 1921 and sits on a flat 2,504-square-foot lot. It was 645 square feet before the disaster struck. The tree is no longer on top of the house, but only one wall and a segment of the roof remain. It is listed for $499,999. 

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, the agent Kevin Wheeler joked that the home has "an open-concept floor plan." Rules in the Monrovia area require demolitions on homes over 50 years old to be subject to a city review, but this home is exempt from that regulation because it was damaged by an act of God. The electricity is turned off in the house, but the plumbing is still in place. 

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Wheeler said demand for the property has been high because there is a shortage of inventory in the area, and people are attracted by the low price. After the home was damaged, locals approached the owners with lowball offers. The median price in Monrovia is $1,065,000, up 14% year-over-year, according to Redfin data. Monrovia is in Los Angeles County and has a population of approximately 38,000. The listing states that the owner is open to carrying the note and that a construction loan may not be necessary. It also mentions the possibility of rezoning in the area, which could add to the property value. The question the eventual buyers will have to ask themselves is if the cost of rehabbing the property will be worth the investment. 

Although most homes hit the market in better shape, there is precedent for homes in less-than-perfect condition with sky-high prices. These properties tend to go viral simply because of their novelty. In 2022, a severely fire-damaged home in Oakland, CA, was listed for $765,000. Earlier this year, a dilapidated $2 million home in Palo Alto, CA, had more than 12 million views on Instagram. Despite its rough condition and its less than 1,200 square feet of space, it sold quickly and had eight offers over the asking price. 

Location is the central part of these viral teardown stories. In hot California markets, prices routinely soar over the $1 million mark. Buyers are scrambling for whatever they can get, and real estate investors looking for a deal on land are often attracted to the challenge a home like the Monrovia house represents. 

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