Real estate in Manhattan Beach is moving at a blistering pace. At the midsummer point, the number of escrows is at the highest in eight years, according to Manhattan Beach Confidential.

Manhattan Beach recorded a record total of 79 new deals over 6 weeks. That includes 24 new deals in the just the first two weeks of July.

Furthermore, that 2-week total for July is 9 more than last year, double the 2018 total, and much more than 2016 or 2017 had in the same half-month period.

"New escrows are a good indicator that the market is moving," said Dave Fratello, broker with Edge Real Estate Agency, and the author of the popular Manhattan Beach Confidential real estate blog. 

Fratello also noted that during this time there were six homes that fell out of escrow. Nevertheless, he said, each escrow is specific to its individual situation and there did not seem to be any specific trend - unlike in the early days of the COVID-19 shutdown when many buyers canceled because of financial concerns. "Every broken escrow has its own dynamics, so it's hard to read into this finding," he said.

MB Confidential's real estate market update report for the period ending 7/15/20 also recorded: