Manhattan Beach Living

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Botello & Senser | ESTATE PROPERTIES Lic 01903493
1401 Highland Avenue, Manhattan Beach, California 90266
https://garysenser.substack.com Stan Botello and Gary Senser, expert Realtors®, combine 33 years of experience, industry knowledge, proven marketing techniques & an innovative approach to ensuring that their clients receive the highest standard of service, are introduced to all

relevant and available market opportunities are guided through a smooth & seamless property transaction. The BOTELLO & SENSER Team continues to pioneer advanced strategies that guarantee their clients have the upper hand on any sale or purchase and fiercely apply best practice negotiation techniques, modern marketing strategies & relentless dedication to ensure their clients always find their dream home. Servicing in Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, El Segondo, and surrounding areas.

Bedtime walk with Teddy
09/08/2026

Bedtime walk with Teddy

Some Manhattan Beach scenes never stop changing, even when you have seen them for decades.Late-afternoon light moves acr...
09/08/2026

Some Manhattan Beach scenes never stop changing, even when you have seen them for decades.

Late-afternoon light moves across the Spanish Colonial stucco, warms the brick, and opens the view toward the Pacific. It is the reason Golden Hour on the Strand remains the anchor work of the Manhattan Beach Reimagined collection.

Original photography, interpreted as impressionistic fine art in the tradition of darkroom enhancement.

If you could bring one Manhattan Beach view into your home, would it be the Strand at golden hour?

Timeless coastal character. 🇺🇸🌊An American flag flying proudly from a classic beach cottage on the Manhattan Beach Stran...
08/31/2026

Timeless coastal character. 🇺🇸🌊

An American flag flying proudly from a classic beach cottage on the Manhattan Beach Strand, captured in the warm golden light of late afternoon. It's a scene that feels both deeply specific to the South Bay and universally resonant.

This is "Old Glory on the Strand" from the Manhattan Beach Reimagined collection. Impressionistic fine art photography celebrating the spirit of the neighborhood.

Prints available in multiple sizes. Link in bio to shop the full collection.

08/03/2026

Golden Hour on the Strand — Manhattan Beach Reimagined. 🌅

The anchor piece of the collection. Impressionistic fine art photography capturing the warmth and character of the South Bay’s most iconic walkway at golden hour.

Prints available via the link in my bio.

Layers of history hiding in plain sight. 🎨Most people think of Manhattan Beach architecture as purely Spanish Colonial o...
08/02/2026

Layers of history hiding in plain sight. 🎨

Most people think of Manhattan Beach architecture as purely Spanish Colonial or modern coastal. But this panel of Victorian fish-scale shingles tells a different story. The ombre color gradient — from sky blue down to warm cream — is extraordinary.

This is “Fish-Scale Shingles” from the Manhattan Beach: Up Close collection. Impressionistic fine art photography revealing the hidden artistry of the neighborhood.

Prints available in multiple sizes. Link in bio to shop the full collection.

There is something almost architectural about an agave plant. 🌵This is “Agave” from the Manhattan Beach: Up Close collec...
07/24/2026

There is something almost architectural about an agave plant. 🌵

This is “Agave” from the Manhattan Beach: Up Close collection — shot from above with the 70-200mm lens, the radiating blue-green leaves with their burgundy-red serrated edges creating a bold geometric pattern against a clean lime-green background.

The 70-200mm compression flattened the perspective so the leaves appear to stack and layer. The result is something between a botanical illustration and an abstract painting.

Prints available in multiple sizes. Link in bio to shop the full collection.

Shoot from below. Point at the sky. Wait for the light. 🌺This is “Pink Hibiscus Against the Sky” from the Manhattan Beac...
07/19/2026

Shoot from below. Point at the sky. Wait for the light. 🌺

This is “Pink Hibiscus Against the Sky” from the Manhattan Beach: Up Close collection — a hibiscus bloom shot from below against a brilliant blue sky, the stamen and petals backlit by midday sun.

The 70-200mm lens compressed the composition and the canvas texture gave it the painterly quality that makes it feel like more than a photograph.

Prints available in multiple sizes. Link in bio to shop the full collection.

CoastalGarden SouthBay CaliforniaArt BeachArt LocalArt ArtPrints FineArtAmerica UpClose TropicalFlower

Mosaic Fish — Manhattan Beach: Up Close. 🐟A hand-crafted ceramic fish set into a mosaic wall in the Sand Section of Manh...
07/16/2026

Mosaic Fish — Manhattan Beach: Up Close. 🐟

A hand-crafted ceramic fish set into a mosaic wall in the Sand Section of Manhattan Beach. The orange-amber ceramic against the cool blue-gray tile — only visible when you stop and look closely.

Prints available via the link in my bio.

CoastalDecor SouthBay ArtPrints FineArtAmerica UpClose

07/15/2026

Mermaid Mural — Manhattan Beach: Up Close. 🧜‍♀️

Most people walk right past this. A hand-painted mermaid mural on a walk street wall in Manhattan Beach — transformed into a fine art print. The brushwork in the radiating panels and the mermaid figure is already impressionistic — the digital painting process simply deepens what was already there.

Prints available via the link in my bio.

CoastalArt SouthBay ArtPrints FineArtAmerica UpClose WalkStreet

Why isn't your neighbor selling?You've probably wondered. The house next door — or down the street — has been there fore...
06/18/2026

Why isn't your neighbor selling?

You've probably wondered. The house next door — or down the street — has been there forever. Same family. Same landscaping from 2004. The owners are empty nesters. The house is too big. They've talked about downsizing for years.

But they don't list it.

Here's one reason nobody talks about: the capital gains tax trap.

A couple who bought their home in the Beach Cities in 2000 for $750,000 is likely sitting on a property worth $3 million or more today. That's $2.25 million in gains. The federal exclusion covers $500,000 of it. The remaining $1.75 million? Taxable. At combined federal and California rates, that's potentially $350,000 to $450,000 in taxes — just for deciding to move.

So they stay. The house stays off the market. And buyers keep competing for the same thin inventory.

Economists call it the "lock-in effect." It's not the only reason inventory is tight. But it's a real one — and it's getting worse every year the exclusion stays frozen.

This is the policy landscape behind the data I track every week. The numbers don't exist in a vacuum. They're shaped by decisions made in Washington 29 years ago that nobody has updated since.

Your Real Estate Insider

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1401 Highland Avenue
Manhattan Beach, CA
90266

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