There are poems on the billboards at Barnsdall right now

Hey, Ben here.

There are five hand-painted billboards standing in the pine grove at Barnsdall right now with poems on them. Nobody asked for that, and I am glad it happened anyway.

That is roughly the shape of the month. A few things you can walk up to and look at, and one piece of news about Vermont Avenue that has been ten years coming and is about to turn into orange cones.

Here's what’s inside.

• Neighborhood Happenings: The park gets busy after the 18th
• What’s Going Up: Vermont just got $150 million
• How’s The Market?: How long it takes to sell what is standing
• On the Table: Anchovy toast… Don’t knock it ‘til you try it
• Ben’s Picks: Four houses, four different arguments

…

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California's Statewide Rent Cap Explained: What AB 1482 Really Requires (and Who's Exempt)

California’s Statewide Rent Cap Explained: What AB 1482 Really Requires (and Who’s Exempt)

California’s Tenant Protection Act of 2019 has governed rent increases and many tenancy terminations across the state since 2020. Here’s what property owners, investors, homeowners, and tenants should know about AB 1482.

AB 1482 applies to much of California’s rental housing, but important exemptions and local rules can significantly change how the law applies.

If you own, manage, rent, or are shopping for property in California, chances are AB 1482 already affects you — even if you’ve never heard the name. Formally known as the Tenant Protection Act of 2019, this state law has governed rent increases and evictions for much of California rental housing…

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Half a mile from the B Line? The math under your lot changed.

Hey, Ben here.

Most of what changed around here this month happened on the big streets.

Walk one block off any of those corridors, and it is quiet. Same porches, same parking habits, same neighbors arguing about the same tree.

That gap, between what the boulevard is doing and what the block behind it is doing, is where most of this edition lives.

Let's get into it.

• Neighborhood Happenings: Hollywood Blvd closes, and the Observatory opens its lawn

• What’s Going Up: Sunset and Hyperion both get fences

• How’s The Market?: Houses firmed up, small buildings did not

• On the Table: A Craftsman cottage starts its next chapter

• Ben’s Picks: $845 a foot, $1,459 a foot, and sixteen doors

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Serrano, Hillhurst, and a few reasons to stay out

Hey, Ben here.

Summer has a way of pulling people back outside around here.

I usually notice it in the longer dinners, the slower walks, and the few extra minutes people spend talking on the sidewalk before heading home.

This month, I’ve pulled together a few things I think are worth knowing.

So, let’s get right to it.

• Neighborhood Happenings: A few plans worth circling

• What’s Going Up: Housing pressure shows up on Serrano

• How’s The Market?: Where the money is really stretching

• On the Table: A British-leaning spot settles into Los Feliz

• Ben’s Picks: Three homes, three different angles

Plans That Earn the Calendar Space

Check out these…

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A Few Good Reasons to Leave the House

This month, I figured I’d switch it up a bit and drop a few fun facts you may (or may not) know about this side of the city:

• Eastside neighborhoods are some of the oldest in Los Angeles, with roots going back to the 1870s.

• Before Hollywood took over, Silver Lake, back when it was Edendale, was one of the city’s early film hubs, and Walt Disney built his first studio there.

• Andy Reid (yes, the 3x Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Chiefs) went to the high school one block away from my house. John Marshall High School.

And if you’ve ever wondered where the people who always seem to know what’s opening, closing, or worth paying attention to are getting their information, The Eastside Rag is a pretty good…

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Spring Just Changed the Eastside (Here’s Where)

This month, I figured I’d switch it up a bit and drop a few fun facts you may (or may not) know about this side of the city:

• Eastside neighborhoods are some of the oldest in Los Angeles, with roots going back to the 1870s.

• Before Hollywood took over, Silver Lake, back when it was Edendale, was one of the city’s early film hubs, and Walt Disney built his first studio there.

• Andy Reid (yes, the 3x Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Chiefs) went to the high school one block away from my house. John Marshall High School.

And if you’ve ever wondered where the people who always seem to know what’s opening, closing, or worth paying attention to are getting their information, The Eastside Rag is a pretty good…

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Nearly 1 in 5 California homes now pass through inheritance

Hey, Ben here.

I have been spending a little more time paying attention to how people are moving through the neighborhood lately.

Not in a big picture way, more in the small moments.

What gets a second look, what fills up faster than expected, what still feels unchanged until it suddenly doesn’t.

A few things this time around made more sense the longer I sat with them.

Nothing dramatic, just the kind of shifts that start at street level and quietly work their way outward.

Let’s get into it.

• Neighborhood Happenings: Plans that feel right for this stretch of spring

• What’s Going Up: Sunset gets a new neighborhood staple

• How’s The Market?: How the four neighborhoods are settling

• On the Table: …

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107 year-old gas station getting new life

February is when things get honest.

The rush fades, the noise drops, and what’s left is how people actually move.

Buyers slow down in a good way.

Sellers decide whether they’re really in or just watching.

Around the neighborhood, plans don’t disappear; they either keep inching forward or quietly fall off.

This edition sits right there. A few places worth stepping out for. Just a clearer read on where things are settling.

Let’s get into it.

• Neighborhood Happenings: 59 free ways to celebrate the Lunar New Year

• What’s Going Up: 107-year-old gas station is getting a new life

• How’s The Market?: A closer look at the numbers + what they mean

• On the Table: Echo Park’s newest late-night snack spot

  …

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The market didn’t stall. It got more selective - January 2026 Newsletter - Ben There Done That!

The market didn’t stall. It got more selective. ????

The market didn’t stall. It got more selective. ????

Hey, Ben here.

The start of the year always brings a shift.

Not in headlines, but in behavior.

People pause. Deals get more deliberate. You start seeing what actually carried over from last year and what didn’t.

Around the neighborhood, change doesn’t announce itself. It shows up in who’s listing, who’s waiting, and which projects quietly keep moving.

That’s what this edition is about. Less noise. More signal.

Let’s get into it.

• Neighborhood Happenings: Plans worth penciling in

• What’s Going Up: Small-lot housing inches north on Hyperion

• How’s The Market?: A look at the numbers

• …

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Understanding Price Gouging in California During Wildfires

In urgent need of housing after the Los Angeles wildfires, displaced residents are facing a rental market flooded with unlawful price hikes. The California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) has noted alarming increases in rental prices—some by 25% or more. 

Under California Penal Code Section 396, price gouging is strictly prohibited. Landlords cannot increase the price of rental housing by more than 10% after a State of Emergency is declared. For properties newly advertised or not leased before the emergency, the rent cannot exceed 160% of the fair market value established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

For daily rentals like Airbnb, the increase is similarly capped at 10% post-emergency. If housing was rented on a…

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