Archive for October, 2008
October 9, 2008
That’s exactly what Tesla Motors is trying to do. This local upstart automaker is producing (very) high-end electric vehicles for the rich and green in Silicon Valley. They have recently opened their second dealership (the first being in SoCal), on the border of Menlo Park and Palo Alto at 300 El Camino Real, a place that has become death row to four dealerships in the last decade.
The Tesla Roadster is their first production vehicle and began rolling off the line in July. This sporty little car is 100% electric, burns no oil, and gets 244 miles per charge, not to mention it can make 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds! Currently a waiting list of 1200 for this little gem, which is selling for $109,000 (base price). Obviously the economy can’t be hurting too much…at least for some.
Tesla is the one car that is headquartered, designed, and will be produced locally. Tesla’s home base is in San Carlos, but they made the decision to mass produce their cars in San Jose. The new state-of-the art plant, to be located off Zanker Road and Highway 237, will pour $250,000,000 into the local economy in construction costs, and will house the assembly plant, corporate headquarters and their R&D campus. Construction begins next summer and when completed will employ 1,000 local workers.
The Tesla S, their 5-passenger luxury sedan, will follow as the second car in production. Once the San Jose plant is up and running, they expect 15,000 vehicles to roll off the line per year, starting in 2010. The Tesla S will run on a lithium-ion battery pack and be priced around $60,000, a bit more affordable in the scheme of things, not to mention it will hold a family and groceries.
One thing Tesla has done right, trumping mortgage lenders, is requiring a $5000 initial deposit to lock in price, and an additional $55,000 before production begins. That’s a 55% total down payment, significantly more than recent home loans.
October 9, 2008
Right, most of you are thinking “I can’t even afford my first house, forget about retirement.” But there are those of us in the Bay Area that are thinking about these things. There has been a large exodus in the last 10 years, and will continue to be, due to baby boomers cashing in their equity and moving to a slower-paced life, in a less-expensive, smaller home.
My husband and I are looking down the road a few years to retirement. It has been our intention and goal to semi-retire in our fifties. We’d like to move out of suburbia and have some room to stretch our legs. We’ve seen too many family members either work up until they died, or retire early and succumb to disease and illness in their sixties. We had our children young, so we’d like to spend our later years doing a bit of travel, gardening, and whatnot before infirmities or death set in. While we may very well live into our 80s or 90s, nothing is for certain and we’d like to take advantage of our stable legs and sound mind while we can.
While we don’t have the money to invest in a second home yet, it’s important for us to try and find the right fit, location-wise, which means some travel. There are a few things we are determined to have in our search for a new area to live. One is that we will stay in California and the other is that we want some land. Doesn’t have to be a lot of land, just an acre or so, just so we don’t have to hear our neighbors sneeze and we can sleep without loud music keeping us awake or leaf blowers waking us up. Beyond that we have criteria to help us whittle down the large number of potential sites available to us. They are in no particular order, but I’m sure over time that I will build some sort of spreadsheet and we will develop a rating system to help guide what is sure to be an emotional decision.
Promixity to family (by plane or car)- Proximity to major airport
- Price of real estate
- Weather ( we like it warm/hot)
- Quality of medical facilities
- Cost of living
- Safety
- Ability for additional residence on property (for aging parents)
A few months ago I found a link to a site that recommended areas to live based on a few minimal criteria (and which I cannot seem to locate now). It seemed a bit half-assed, but I’m game to try these things in the interest of research. What came back was 8 of the 10 recommended cities were in San Diego County, a place we had never entertained thoughts about. But it got me searching and wondering, and given that a friend just relocated to Carlsbad, I though it might be a good idea to check it out. So, today my hubby and I are off on a road trip to visit said friend and look at possible cities to retire. I’ve done my homework and there are quite a few, at least on paper. I’ll be doing posts on these towns and properties on the San Diego Sweet Digs blog. If anyone around these parts is interested, I’d be happy to post them here, too. Just let me know.
October 8, 2008
San Anselmo, in the Ross Valley area of Marin is already a great area. Ok, I am bias because that is where I live. But, I live here for a reason. Similar to Larkspur and Mill Valley, San Anselmo has a great little downtown full of charm and retains the feelings of yesteryear.
Winding along San Anselmo Avenue, the downtown area can be almost divided into two areas. One that is the heart of the downtown, with boutique clothing shops, restaurants, book stores and the city hall. The energy fades just west of Ross Ave, where the shops and restaurants just don’t seem to have that zing. Well, it seems that there are plans to change that.
The Southern San Anselmo Avenue Vision Committee has grand plans to inject a bit more life into this half, with grand plans for a possible underground garage as well as adding more shops by taking over a lane of Sir Francis Drake. More details on this ad-hoc committee’s plan is detailed in this recent MarinIJ article.
Regardless of whether this plan comes to fruition or not, living close to downtown already has its pluses. Take a look a current listings that will have you walking to downtown San Anselmo in no time:
26 Tamalpais Ave #E - 2 beds, 1.5 baths – $557,000: This is the lowest price point currently that is walking distance to downtown. A condo in a small complex with a large patio. Fairly good size – 1331 SF. On the market now for 81 days, it’s offering seller financing. Though maybe a price reduction could be better. Only a $8000 drop so far. Probably because the current owner paid $505,000 in 2007.
26 Belle Ave #D – 3 beds, 2.5 baths – $569,000: A condo/ townhouse less than a block to the new proposed section of downtown with a enclosed garage. Small complex and probably the best bang for your buck in these parts.
191 Tunstead Ave – 2 beds, 1 bath – $739,000: Just reduced by $30,000 after being on the market for 14 days, this is a charmer built in the 1920s. Small home but a decent sized lot offers potential to add – on.
8 Richmond Rd – 4 beds, 3.5 baths – $2,400,000: This is a completely brand new house built after a tear down with all the high end touches and right across from the seminary. On the market for quite some time. Most recently agent has it listed for 64 days. Prior to that, the 1st agent had marketed in the neighborhood of $2.6 million. Quite a high price tag. The lot and the now demolished home was purchased in 2005 for $950,000, so it looks like there is definitely costs to be recouped here.
October 8, 2008
Two hours of Congressional grilling yielded no apology from Lehman Bros. CEO Richard S. Fuld. The fired exec earned over $350 million dollars in the last 7 years—a figure which he calls “appropriate”—and yet watched his company go down in flames, taking no direct responsibility during testimony. Why shouldn’t I be surprised? Apparently, he wants to know “Why Lehman didn’t get a federal rescue while others did.” A bit more business acumen might have not only kept his company afloat, it might have benefited from the recent bailout bill. Bur we’ll never know, and that’s probably a good thing.
But who will the bill bailout? That has yet to be seen, but Carolyn Said over at the SF Chronicle has an idea of some measures the government could make to help out you, me, and the economy: An interest rate cut to stimulate the economy [note: a key rate was cut this morning by .5%]; a stimulus package—think tax cuts, maybe another tax incentive to buy a house, and money to create jobs; further deposit insurance, beyond the $250,000 current limit; restructure mortgages to prop up housing and prevent further wholesale foreclosures; and, direct capital injections to keep companies afloat—in return for a share of the profits. This last idea is one I wrote about September 24th in the weekly news, in which Sweden stopped a similar crisis by participating as owners in companies they helped fund. It was win-win for the companies and the taxpayers.
As if it wasn’t enough that the Feds are bailing out what seems like everyone but those who read this blog, our illustrious Governator is asking the Feds for a $7 billion loan to help pay the bills for our fair state. After an 80+ day budget stalemate that he could not negotiate, he goes hat in hand to D.C. to make payroll. Not that I want state employees going without, that is not the point. The point is that we should be paying closer attention to local happenings. With the election, the credit crisis, mortgage meltdown, Wall Street taking a hit, we hardly have time to catch out breath. But if I were the federal government, I’d get the ruler out and slap his wrists. With Louisiana still trying to play catch-up and Texas in crisis due to recent natural disasters, why should we get money? There are countries that run on budgets smaller than ours….
So, what do you all think about Coldwell Banker’s 10 Day Sales Event (October 10th – 19th),
where you can get 10% off Coldwell Banker listings nationwide? I’ve been hearing about it, but I have to say that trying to confirm the 10 day/10% was difficult. The main CB website doesn’t even make mention of it all. The CB event website (which I googled) came back with 2 sentences and no details. The Buy section of CB doesn’t mention it either. The CaliforniaMoves.com site that CB owns does have an ad for it in the sidebar. Clicking on it gives you a downloadable pdf, which makes no mention of the 10% off, only a vague reference to “specially reduced prices.” Blessings go to the San Francisco Real Estate Blog, which posted part of the press release. I read the fine print and it does say that the 10% is for “participating home sellers,” which could mean 1 or 1,000 or 10,000. That’s the kicker. You have to contact them to find out which homes are participating. A great marketing ploy, to be sure. It may also help to sell houses, which is an even bigger result. Although if they don’t do better getting their message out and available, no one is going to take advantage.
I just checked out “Seductively Sold XXIX” over at San Franciscso Schtuff. They are reporting 40 SFRs sold last week, ranging from $225,000 to $4,500,000. A whopping 48% of those sold within 30 days. One even sold with 0 days on the market. Only 6 had been sitting for longer than 90 days, leaving 25% of the homes waiting 31-90 days for a buyer. I actually think that’s pretty darn good. The prior week saw only 28 SFR sales, with only 8 sold in less than 30 days, so there was a bit of a bump.
October 7, 2008
Selfish? Okay, maybe; but I’m hoping one side effect of the plunging stock market is that I might see houses I can afford in neighborhoods I’d like. Fellow blogger Tracey Taylor mentioned some deals in Berkeley, even in areas considered fairly immune to economic recessions, and we all know San Francisco real estate is purported bullet proof to such downturns. Yet, Susan Brady’s blog on Property Shark’s bubble-trouble map of the city suggests we are suffering in SF– at least, in parts.
The perplexing thing for me then, as a would-be, currently priced-out, hoping for reality check buyer, is that prices are not really going down as much as I would expect. Or maybe, as much as I’d hope. I’m not sure what I can expect for home prices, since listings can sometimes defy logic, and (these days at least) are apt to come down several thousand dollars when they start too high.
For instance, Susan’s analysis of the Property Shark map tells us Hunter’s Point and Ingleside are in trouble. This I’d expect. And as a buyer, I’d not want to try those nieghborhoods just because I might get a deal there. I would not want to actually live out there long enough to realize any investment potential. But Upper Market, Twin Peaks, and the Castro are a different story. I’d live in all those neighborhoods, and frankly, am surprised the Castro, just a street away from super-in-demand Noe Valley, is suffering.
Listings in these ‘hoods flat out belie Property Shark stats. Here’s one at 4644 18th St. (Castro): a 2/1 TIC– that’s right, a tenancy in common– for $885K. Nearby comps show nothing over $799,500.
In Twin Peaks (Clarendon Heights), a 1/1 at 160 Graystone Ter., #4 is also a TIC, albeit a “luxury” model. At 691 sq. ft. and $575K, the price-per-square is $832. Size and TIC status make this seem high to me. It’s been reduced already to get here. May be due for more…?
Also in Twin Peaks, 260 Portola Dr. is a 2/2.5 condo for is $839K. It’s been on the market at that price since Aug 31.
Grand prize goes to 3645 Market St., #2. This is a 3/3.5 condo- sounds (and looks) good but at just over 1800 sq. ft, do you need 3 and 1/2 baths? What does that leave for non-bathroom activities? Interesting too, the price history: sold for $356,500 in 2003. Started at $1,295,000 in September, now listed for $1,230,000.
Bubble trouble? I don’t see it here…
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Pic: SoCalBubble.com
October 7, 2008
The Crocker Highlands area has a lot of homes on the market right now: I counted seventeen on Redfin. You can search for them either by typing in Crocker Highlands in the search box (although some are only listed as “Crocker”) or just by honing in on the area of the map of Oakland with the arrow compass. Here are a couple of factoids:
(Second) Best Bang for Your Buck: While not the absolute cheapest per square foot for the whole area (for that see 1272 Bates Rd. listed below at $218 per square foot) at $300 per square foot 684 Walavista Ave. is some pretty nice bang for your buck. I mean, it’s not often you find a 4bd/3ba home in Oakland that was built before the 1980′s. Due to the large number of beds and baths as well as the drawing pictured in the thumbnail, I thought at first that the home was new construction. However, the description states it was built in 1922.
Least Days On Market: 1615 Trestle Glen Rd. (pictured above) and 1272 Bates Rd. have both been on the market for six days and both appear to be English Tudor style (although the Bates home is listed as “Mediterranean”; but the photo looks more like a Tudor). However, the similarities end there: the Trestle Glen home has roughly 600 square feet less than Bates, is nearly twice the price and has almost three times more lot space.
Most Days On Market: At 132 DOM and 122 DOM respectively, 1131 Excelsior Ave. and 812 Creed Rd. take the cake for longevity on the market. While the Excelsior home may be having trouble due to proximity to the highway (see Oakland: Great Deals I Wish I Had Waited For) it’s unclear why the 3bd/2ba at 812 Creed is taking a while to move. This home was originally priced at $799,000 in March of 2008 and is now down 200k to $599,000. Any thoughts on what’s up (or rather, er, down) with this one?
October 7, 2008
This town has a lot going on right now, and it’s hard to keep up with it all. Retail real estate seems to be booming and walking the length of downtown, I only found a couple of storefronts for lease. San Carlos has worked hard, like its neighbor Redwood City, to redevelop the downtown and revitalize business. The Thursday night Farmer’s Market is always hopping, no matter the weather, and mid-day, midweek traffic is a constant stream. I’d call that success.
I’m not sure what happened, but in the last 35 years, San Carlos has chewed up and spit out a lot of grocery stores, which is a great revenue loss for the city. When I was growing up there was a grocery at Laurel and Eaton, one where the current Rite Aid store is located, one across from the post office, Foodville at the end of San Carlos, with another mom-and-pop store almost directly across the street (where Chocolate Mousse now resides). And at one point a Safeway was located where the current Longs Drug Store is on San Carlos Avenue. Foodville is the lone survivor from that crowd, and the oldest market in downtown. (Trader Joes being the only other market, located off Belmont and El Camino.) Owned by the Bianchini’s, who also have a market in Portola Valley, Foodville is slated to move into the old Bell/Lunardis spot across from the post office. The move will mean larger quarters, more shelf space, and a new name. Foodville will join its sister store in becoming Bianchini’s Market. While I am sure that many will miss the old store for its convenience, that building was badly in need of repair and updating and my guess is that the renovation would have cost too much, in money and in lost revenue. I’m looking forward to seeing them in their new spot (below).
Also on the horizon are three new eating establishments (like San Carlos really needs more!). On the west side of Laurel between Cherry and Olive, a new wine bar is being created. The Cask, located next to Cowabunga Creamery at 782 Laurel, will be a sister to Spasso, just across the street. Spasso features some great tapas and probably one of the best lavender crème brulees that I have ever had. The owners are diversifying and trying their hand at offering something for the after-dinner crowd. On the east side of Laurel, in the same block, the former crepe restaurant is being completely transformed into something very Asian. The
design, bamboo plantings, and serving dishes sitting in plain sight gave away its intention, but no sign tells us what exactly it will be. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Finally, Red Mango is opening up a storefront by Starbucks, on Laurel between Olive and Arroyo (see photo right). This frozen yogurt chain offers all-natural yogurt, with no artificial anything. This will make the 5th NorCal store on the map, beating out its rival Pinkberry, which has not strayed out of SoCal as yet. Unfortunately, there is already an independently owned organic fro-yo store around the corner on Arroyo, Harmony Frozen Yogurt. Serving Strauss Creamery yogurt, it has gotten rave reviews and has quite a following. I hope readers will continue to frequent this establishment so it can remain in business.
The other “big” project is at Morse and Laurel; dubbed 1001 Laurel, this project will house 90 luxury condominiums as well as professional and retail space, further extending downtown. Look for a full post on this project in the near future.
For those of you with children, you’ll be happy to know that the Burton Park Playground renovation, initially scheduled to be completed last August, is now set to open on October 25th, assuming that the landscaping is established enough and the final touches are complete. What has been done so far looks fun and safe for the city’s youngest residents: bright colors adorn the climbing structures and slides, a water-spray feature has been added, there are modern swings, soft and safe ground covers, new benches/seating, and low knee-high walls with children’s artwork. Shades for the school-age area, picnic tables and final landscaping is all that is left to do.
October 7, 2008
Back in July I wrote about real estate site Property Shark, kind of an online detective service for housing. Limited to 15 major markets, including SF, this site provides a long list of info on all homes, and you can get comparable and foreclosure info as well.
One of Property Shark‘s more recent postings is a color-coded map of the month detailing which areas in our beloved 7×7 have seen a drop in the price of sales, drop in the number of listings sold, and rise in the number of foreclosures. Cleverly worded as Triple Bubble Trouble (if all 3 criterion exist), Double Bubble Trouble (2 criterion) or Single Bubble Trouble (you get the jist here). I see that there are even pockets that are not color coded, which leads me to believe that they aren’t in trouble at all.
Neighborhoods in Triple Bubble Trouble, appropriately colored red, include Chinatown, Western Addition, Upper Market, Castro, Twin Peaks, Bayview/Hunters Point, Sunnyside, Ingleside, Crocker Amazon, and Visitacion Valley. On the other end of the spectrum, those areas absent of color—meaning they seem to be faring well in this crisis—are the Marina, North Beach, parts of SOMA, and the Civic Center neighborhoods. The majority of the City is purple, meaning there are only 2 of the 3 criteria present, and there are only very small pockets of blue (other than bodies of water), indicating only one issue is at hand. I’ll keep an eye on future Bubble Trouble maps, hopefully to see more blue and less red.
October 7, 2008
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.
October 6, 2008
Today is the last day we will spend in San Francisco, and we get a sneak peek at some of the highest end homes, of which there are three, all in the Pacific Heights neighborhood. Two of the three are historical homes, designed by famous architects for famous people, and one is only 2 years old, on the market since its construction.
First off is a $23,000,000 beauty built for Adolph Spreckels in 1912 and, I believe, currently owned by author Danielle Steele. On the market 91 days, and holding steady at its asking price, this home has been fully restored with every attention given to the original details. Its 7800 square feet is made up of gorgeous dark wood (floors, doors, window casings, wide baseboards and crown molding, fireplace mantles, and even paneling in some rooms), and windows galore, allowing light to flow into every room. The lower of the 4 levels has been completely developed, adding space and an elevator transports you between floors. Bonus here is a buildable lot (maybe a carriage house for the help? Additional garage for the toys?).
Today’s middle-of-the-road mansion can be found just three doors down from the most expensive property (see below). 2901 Broadway, designed by Henry Clay Smith, is a $48,000,000 Italian Renaissance mansion built in 1928. Listed for $48,000,000 (originally $55mil), it has been on the market for 532 days. Site of the 30th Annual San Francisco Designer Showcase in 2007, it was the first time that the doors of this spectacular building were opened for the public. With 7 bedrooms. 7.5 baths, and over 10,000 square feet in size, this home has all the requisite amenities a high-end home should have, including its own tennis court. Beautifully appointed, inside and out, it really must be seen to be believed. The agent has kindly posted 33 photos on the MLS listing, affording us peons a glimpse into the magnificent.
The most expensive property listed is this Neoclassical villa, located at 2845 Broadway. Sweet Digs blogger Anna Hibble wrote about this home back in March of 2007. Listed for a cool $65 million, this home has been patiently awaiting a buyer for 948 days (without budging on the price, I might add). Built in 2006, it boasts over 20,000 square feet, plus a guest house, and sits on two lots between Broadway and Pacific (although the aerial map on Redfin does not show the second lot in a red outline.) Needless to say this is the best house in the best neighborhood. You can read Anna’s post and check out exterior pictures here.
