No one wanted this Long Beach home until waves crashed into its living room

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred Andy Carter’s latest listing on the Long Beach peninsula has it all: four stories, ocean views, even a private elevator.But when the house hit the market for $4.95 million in August, it couldn’t find a buyer.Turns out, the missing piece was a red tag deeming it unsafe for occupancy.After Tropical Storm Rachel battered the oceanfront home in October, sending waves crashing into the living spaces, the sellers decided to keep the property on the market, but with a new price tag: $2.9 million.

Now, buyers are swarming.“I’ve been getting five to six calls per week from developers,” Carter, a real estate agent with Fiv Realty Co., said, adding that two developers already made offers.When the home relisted on Oct.14, it featured a new line at the top of the listing description: “Property has been RED TAGGED and is LAND VALUE.” It sent developers into a tizzy.Carter said developers and builders he has spoken to are looking to purchase as many homes as possible that were damaged by the storms.“There’s a big market for it,” he said.

“It’s an interesting property to pencil if you’re planning to sell it.It depends on if you can save the home or scrap it and rebuild.”Carter said 70% of the house is salvageable.

There’s a crack in one of the home’s two foundations, and interior damage from waves breaking into the lower levels.It’s a strange market, Carter said.High interest rates are keeping many buyers at bay, and the threat of more damage from a potentially historic El Niño this winter is causing further fear.The disaster market — when real estate speculators scoop up properties in the wake of a disaster — happens quite often in Southern California, a region battered by fires, earthquakes, landslides and floods.

Last year, Altadena’s burned-out lots were flying off the shel...