Berkeley: Bargains To Be Had If You Know Where To Look
I fear a couple of my readers are a tad despondent after I reported in a recent post that prices in Berkeley seemed to be holding their own.
BJ wrote:”…I keep hoping things will get more affordable in the inner Bay Area. Maybe someday or maybe I should quit hoping.” While BB said: “I’m a buyer, and I want prices to go down, but this is scary… I’m waiting 3-4 more years before buying, maybe…”
With them, and others like them, in mind — good folk who feel this market is never going to be kind to them despite, or perhaps because of, the momentous financial upheavals of late — I say this: there are deals to be had in hot spots like Berkeley. Reader Toady is convinced of it. He just bought a “nice big house with income units” in the city. And he reports that: “After we put a new foundation under it, we’ll be out about $258/sf.”.
So today I bring you three properties currently for sale that I believe are at least worth investigating for their “bargain potential”. Two of them come in at under $600K. (Securing a mortgage is a whole other matter and not one that I, unfortunately, will be able to help you with.)
2434 Byron Street (above): Let me pre-empt those of you who will question the location of this home, but I happen to think San Pablo Avenue, which is nearby, is a very interesting street, full of quirky boutiques and go-to restaurants. This 3/2 home looks like it has a lot of charm and appears to be in ship shape. Price: $595,000 ($387/sq ft).
2314 1/2 Blake Street (above): This 2/1.5, 2-story condo is intriguing because it seems more like a single home and is effectively invisible from the street, being on the back of a lot behind some street-facing units. It looks like it has been smartly remodeled and has an appealing garden, reached through French doors off the living room.
Lastly, it is worth noting that a home I have been following for a while, 1730 Sonoma Avenue in the Monterey neighborhood of north Berkeley (pictured right) — a 3+/4 Cape Cod with a solar-heated swimming pool and master suite with city views — is down $601,000 (or 33%) from its original asking price of $1,849,000 to $1,248,000.
That’s either a storming case of initial overpricing, and/or an out-and-out bargain.
