4br/2.5ba for just $384,950! Guess where!
So on Friday, we saw what $387k gets you in Menlo Park:
Not bad. Not bad. Easily will be $900k by end of year.
I’ve heard about this place called Chicago. Burbed reader Alex had this to say:
As for zip codes in Chicago. Try 60563 (Naperville, IL) which is pretty much a middle class town in the middle of so called Silicon Prairie. Great schools, a lot of parks, low crime, lots IT jobs etc.
Alright… let’s take a look:
Single Family Home – 1509 INVERRARY DR, NAPERVILLE, IL, 60563 – Realtor.com
$384,950
4 Bed, 2.5 Bath1509 INVERRARY DR
NAPERVILLE, IL 60563
MLS ID# 06552878
$384,950
4 Bed, 2.5 BathBeautifully maintained 4 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom home in much sought after Cress Creek Commons. All newer windows, hardwood floors, upgraded neutral carpet. Great kitchen with oak cabinets, upgraded appliances and huge pantry. Family room complete with fireplace, overlooks patio and beautiful yard.
Gag! Puke! Cough! Choke!
Oh my god. No wonder no one lives in Chicagoland. Gross. Look at this hulking beast.
No self respecting green smart person would ever want to live in a giant home like that. Think of your carbon footprint.
This is clearly not a sign of smart, open minded people. Gah.
Thanks Alex for the wakeup call on why Silicon Prairie is doomed.
Sheesh.
March 3rd, 2008 at 8:58 am
Moved from San Ramon (not the REAL Bay Area) to Naperville in late 2006. Real happy to have sold my house then (took 5 months, and I bought it in 5 hours). Still have very fond memories of the SF area, and hope to return someday. Until then, I will have to uncomfortably pace in my 3000+ sq. ft. house with an additional 1000 sq. ft. finished basement (kids’ playroom) on my 1/3 acre lot. If you don’t have kids, you wouldn’t want to live here, but hey I do, so the local amenities are fantastic. See you in a couple years.
March 3rd, 2008 at 9:06 am
Checked out some Open Houses in Menlo Park this past weekend (The Real Menlo Park, not the ghetto on the east side). Activities from what I could see was extremely brisk. A lot of people are out shopping for homes in the $1M to $2M range.
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:09 am
That’s right… take that Trader Joe… or should I say, Traitor Joe. While you’re enjoying your 3000+ sq ft house in boringsville, houses in Menlo Park are popping at $1 million.
HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL? Like a CHUMP!
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:42 am
That’s why I read this site every day! Thanks Burbed!
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:56 am
Gosh, I guess I’m priced out forever. I must forever give up my dream of homeownership in the Real Bay area, despite being a two engineer family. Thanks, RealEstater!
March 3rd, 2008 at 11:34 am
Lookieloos at an open house? What a surprise!
I’ve been to open houses with no intention to buy, and I’m sure others have as well. In fact, whenever I’ve been to an open house with a million dollar price tag, all I ever see there are the neighbors comparing their house to the one being sold with dollar signs in their glassy eyes.
Lots of activity?
In the deadpan, sarcastic words of Dr. Evil, “Riiiiight.”
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Good find burbed. Glad my post found the use. BTW, this house is 10 minutes away from nearest Fry’s.
As for boreville vs real bay area. I have to say that Naperville downtown is more lively than any downtown in Bay Area except for SF. Besides, it’s a college city and Chicago downtown is about 30 minutes to the east, so nobody will be bored there.
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Gosh, I guess I’m priced out forever. I must forever give up my dream of homeownership in the Real Bay area, despite being a two engineer family.
———–
In this market it’s not all that bad to be “priced out forever”. This weekend I met one of my friends. They bought their home in early 2006. They are really worried about the housing market and their financial situation tied to it (“what if one of us lose job” kind of anxieties), although they are living in one of the best school districts in bay area and price has not started declining in those areas yet. I have not seen many happy homeowners in recent days who bought their homes in last 1-3 years.
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:11 pm
It can’t possibly be more lively than Downtown Palo Alto.
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:18 pm
It can’t possibly be more lively than Downtown Palo Alto.
———–
Oh yes, a downtown where everything except bars closes at 9 PM – even in Friday and Saturday.
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:20 pm
Lots of activity?
———–
That’s what you do. When numbers do not support you, show your visitors’ logbook and show “activity”.
March 3rd, 2008 at 1:59 pm
> Oh yes, a downtown where everything except bars closes
> at 9 PM – even in Friday and Saturday.
That’s a bad excuse. Try drinking earlier to get into the right condition before 9pm.
March 3rd, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Try drinking earlier to get into the right condition before 9pm.
———–
I can understand if someone does that in Salt Lake City, Utah. But here in California!!!!
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Trader Joe,
Would you please share a bit of information? How much did you buy your San Ramon home, and how much did you sell it, and how much did you buy your Naperville home? I want to see the benefit of leaving Bay Area.
March 4th, 2008 at 12:02 am
Don’t leave the Bay Area! I just left town for a business trip. What do I see out here? Snow on the ground, lack of development, darkness in the night, and freeways that charge toll!
March 4th, 2008 at 6:19 am
Bought San Ramon home in 2/04 for @550k, sold 2/07 for @670k (started listing at 749k in 9/06, took 5 months and my lowered expectations to sell). Bought Naperville home for under 500k. My San Ramon home was 1800 sq. ft. on 5000 sq. ft. lot. Current home, 3000 sq. ft., finished 1000 sq. ft. basement on 14000 sq. ft. lot. Truth be told, if my small children were not involved, I would have never left California. It was tough to move. But I think that this is a better place for me to raise my family (for now). Naperville downtown is very nice, and I live within walking distance.
March 4th, 2008 at 11:07 am
Trader Joe,
Sweet. San Ramon’s housing price is already back to 2004 level. A lot of people left Bay Area for their children.
March 4th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Actually most of the Bay Area might as well be Texas. Strip mall after strip mall after strip mall….
I bet the downtown of Napierville rules.
And here’s something I just can’t stop talking about …. here in Flyover country, people are NICE. Instead of having to walk around like a schizo wearing imaginary blinders and just barely keeping the internal voices at bay, you can say Hi to people and they’ll say Hi back. People know each other, hell, you move to Flyover country and you’ll likely to even know your neighbors, imagine that!
March 4th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
# RealEstater Says:
Don’t leave the Bay Area! I just left town for a business trip. What do I see out here? Snow on the ground, lack of development, darkness in the night, and freeways that charge toll!
Hey RE — how can you possibly have any business important enough to leave the Bay Area and all its specialness? My god, freeways that charge toll! How could you cope? Lack of development! Darkness in the night! Did you see scary pinpoints of light overhead too, and did they drive you insane?
There’s just about nothing for sale in my Sunnyvale neighborhood. Sellers are refusing to list because they know their specialness is being ignored. There have been no comps here for three months. I’m sure RE would see this as a “wonderful opportunity” for some lucky buyer, assuming anyone will ever lend any of them money on a house that can’t be appraised because no one around wants to sell first.
March 4th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Dang. I hate it when I forget to turn off bolding. Burbed, you need a preview function.
March 5th, 2008 at 12:05 am
I fixed the bold thing.
March 5th, 2008 at 8:03 am
Five families from the Bay Area live on my block, and they all moved here after 2004. I’m sure they all read Money magazine, too.
March 6th, 2008 at 12:03 am
thanks burbed – but I think someone also forgot to turn off the italics. RE’s comments should be italicized but not mine (second graf).
How about a preview function? Is that not special enough for this site?
March 6th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Hey the activities in the foreclosed houses have been brisk too!
Only difference is that people come out with valuable (stolen) things than just empty handed.