Issue No. 3 — MB's median hits $3.75M, the 2026 tax changes, and Tuesday at City Hall
The one thing. Manhattan Beach’s median sale price just printed $3.75M — up 22% on the year, the biggest annual jump in the data we track, across 118 spring sales. Homes are moving in 28 days and a third are selling above ask, so if you own here your equity headline is real; the catch is that Zillow’s value index says a much calmer 5%, because a sale-price median only sees what actually closed. Both numbers are true — neither is your house. Our full take →
Your money. The One Big Beautiful Bill — the federal tax law from last July — now lands on your 2026 return, and a few pieces actually reach a Beach Cities household: the standard deduction is $32,200 for joint filers, the per-person estate exclusion jumped to $15M, and the 1099-K reporting threshold went back up to $20,000. Whether you still itemize is a CPA conversation, not a rule of thumb. What changed, translated →
At City Hall. The Housing Element — the state-approved plan for where MB must allow new housing — hits the zoning code tonight: a first-reading hearing at 6 PM (today, June 16), the step opponents of projects like 2301 N. Sepulveda have been watching. The same evening brings two hearings that land on your property-tax bill: the street-lighting assessment and the storm-drain fee. New to the fight? Our explainer → Want to weigh in? An eComment takes about two minutes, and the window closes at noon today. Comment here →
Schools. MBUSD adopts its 2026-27 budget this week — a hearing June 17, the adoption vote June 18 — locking in fall staffing after final teaching cuts settled at 14.8 positions, down from 40.4 in March. How the state budget lands by June 30 decides whether any get restored. Our full take →
The pulse. Clear water, no shark advisory, and a long-period south swell holding around 3 feet — El Porto and the HB pier are the best angle this week. Juvenile white sharks are a normal summer presence in South Bay water; the Shark Lab’s drone-and-tag system texts lifeguards when one comes within about 100 yards of shore.
This week.
• Sat 6/20: Jazz by the Sea, 4 PM, St. Peter’s by the Sea Church (HB), free — Eventbrite
• Sat 6/20: free paper shredding, 9–11 AM (MB) — MB calendar
• Sun 6/21: MB Juneteenth Celebration & Concert, 2–7 PM — MB calendar
• Through 7/19: World Cup watch parties at Belamar, Shade, and Rocks & Brews (MB) — MB Chamber
• Tue 6/16: MB council — housing ordinance + property-fee hearings — Agenda
One question. Numbers like a $3.75M median are an average of the whole town — they can’t see your street. If you’ve bought, sold, or shopped for a home here lately, what did the market actually feel like: bidding wars, or more room to breathe? Hit reply; we read everything.