What’s it like to live in a dream house? To most people, having a mansion in LA would be the ultimate goal. A castle on a rolling hill with a breathtaking view of Bel-Air, a glass and steel modern masterpiece in the Hollywood Hills or a five-acre Mediterranean castle in the prestigious Pacific Palisades. Each zip code offers a different take on luxury, but the million dollar question is, what’s it really like to live there?
But nobody ever mentions the upkeep.
Maintaining a Luxury Home in Los Angeles is a 24/7 job. Luxury homes look great with bells and whings, but require a lot of work, special management and attention to detail to handle various systems and vendors. Whether you are looking to purchase a Luxury Home in Los Angeles or you already own a Luxury Home, this is what it really takes.
The Scale Is Completely Different
For the lucky few with the budget to maintain a luxury home, the projects required to keep the property up to scratch can be considerably more complex and challenging than those faced by the average homeowner.
- Multiple HVAC zones with smart thermostats and air quality monitoring throughout the space.
- Resort style pools and spas with automated chemical systems.
- Whole-home generators and battery backup systems
- High end home automation solutions to allow owners to control lighting, security, window treatments and audio visual equipment throughout the home.
- Wine cellars with climate control
- Outdoor kitchens with commercial-grade appliances
- Elevator systems in multi-story estates
Every system in your house needs to be inspected, maintained and repaired as needed. When a furnace breaks down, a handymen is not going to be the right professional to call. Instead, you will need to call on a furnace technician for repairs.
Los Angeles-Specific Challenges
Wildfire and air quality. The official site for information on wildfires throughout California is: https://www.fire.ca.gov/. The number of high-risk areas for serious wildfires in areas of prime luxury real estate including many areas of Los Angeles is increasing. As a result, homeowners of all income levels with homes in areas prone to wildfires can expect to pay to have their properties cleared of dead and dry brush on an annual basis. In addition, some homes will have ember resistant vents and roofs, and the creation and periodic maintenance of defensible space around homes.
Seismic activity. Although Southern California is one of the most active seismic areas in the country, with many earthquakes occurring there each year, with appropriate planning and compliance, huge losses can be prevented. Luxury homes and historic homes require seismic assessment, repair, and retrofitting as necessary.
Salt Air & Coastal Exposure The corrosive life cycle of exterior components on beach residences is significantly increased due to salt air and exposure to the coastal environment. Salt air and coastal exposure affects everything from windows and HVAC components to trim, doors, siding and complete railing systems and their related exterior hardware. The average lifespan of exterior and mechanical components on beach residences is decreased due to these corrosive effects and requires more frequent replacement than comparable homes in other climates.
The Dry Season is upon us. During droughts beautiful landscaping, pools and hot tubs are under tremendous stress. Homes can even shift due to the contract and dry out of soil beneath the foundation. While drought tolerant landscapes require periodic maintenance in order to achieve their greatest beauty, the irrigation system must be periodically adjusted for each season.
Vendor Quality Is Everything
We specialize in servicing “luxury” real estate which means the bar for us to perform well is extremely high. Luxury home owners require luxury service providers and demand the highest standards of performance from the installation, operation, maintenance and longevity of products used in their homes. Not just do they expect it to work, it has to work perfectly and look great too.
- Licensed electricians who understand smart home integration
- Pool technicians trained on automation systems
- Sustainable Landscape Design and Installation with both aesthetic appeal and environmental responsibility.
- Technicians who are HVAC specialists as well as manufacturer certified technicians for the leading brands in HVAC.
- Interior cleaning experts. We are very familiar with the care and maintenance of special stone surfaces, custom wood, and other unique finishes.
You may not always think about response time until it’s late at night and you are facing a broken part. With a luxury property maintenance contract you can rest assured that you will have the full attention of the vendors on your property and they will respond in a timely manner. Waiting a week for an appointment is not timely service for a luxury property.
Managing It All Without Losing Your Mind
We’re on call 7 days a week. We can keep track of calendars for maintenance, fill out work orders as needed for anything from repairs to pre-rainy season roof checks to making sure the pool equipment is functioning properly and not making any unusual noises.
Who is going to help coordinate all of these owners and their different needs? The high-net-worth homeowner is busy. Their primary residence may be abroad and their time is precious. Managing a maintenance calendar for a 10,000 square feet home is a tough enough job, but managing a calendar for 5, 6, 7 homes throughout the world is impossible.
In markets such as Los Angeles, owners often take pleasure in owning the calendar and may not even realize the value that an experienced management team brings to the table — companies like Earnest Homes approach this by keeping track of calendars and successfully coordinating with and managing vendors, and can spot a problem before it develops into a costly expense.
Preventive Maintenance Pays Off Long-Term
Deferred maintenance is a value killer in real estate and there is no luxury property that is immune from this. A $50 million estate, in a high-end neighbourhood like Bel-Air, is not going to sell itself. If the property has been allowed to decay, it will be offered to the market at a value based on a project, not a $50 million home.
Unlike some smart luxury home owners who view maintenance as an expense, our clients see it for what it truly is – an investment in their homes. Our routine preventive maintenance program includes.
- Annual roof and gutter inspections
- Quarterly HVAC filter and system checks
- maintenance of filters.
- Seasonal irrigation audits
- Exterior paint and sealant assessments
- Foundation monitoring in hillside or coastal properties
- Fire clearance and defensible space compliance checks
It is often a small fraction of the deferred maintenance cost to stay current with maintenance. For example, it might cost $300 to have a roofer replace a couple of flashings around a chimney, versus the $2,000/year that a prudent homeowner might spend to have their roof inspected. But not spending that $2,000 might wind up costing $750,000 (not counting the cost of an emergency repair at night) to restore a high-end house to its original condition.
The Expectations Are Unforgiving
When luxury homeowners move into a new home, they may not realize that in high-end real estate, there is very little room for error. All surfaces, systems and finishes are on full display and under intense scrutiny. Therefore, every detail must be considered to ensure that nothing is showcased that will negatively impact the aesthetic or operational value of the home. The finish on a wall, the clarity of water in a pool, the sheen on a finish, a scratch on a limestone floor, or the delayed response time of a home automation system can all be issues that are easily observable.
We expect all property owners and their representatives and vendors to meet a high level of excellence in preparation, cleanliness, communication and quality of work. We are screening for and developing positive relationships with effective and qualified vendors to assist in repairs and are looking for help in this area as finding good vendors is a full time job in itself.Many people think that taking care of a luxury home is all fun and games. It’s not. Luxury home maintenance is painstaking, grueling and seemingly never-ending. However, there is value in knowing what it takes to care for a luxury home, whether you already own a multi-million dollar Los Angeles mansion or are about to shell out millions for one.
