August 29, 2008

“Complete fixer!!! Everything needs replacing. Do not enter.”

2222 Francisco BLVD, Pacifica, CA 94044 West Sharp Park MLS# 80821476 - Property Details
$286,900

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 1
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1948
* Lot Size: N/A
* Square Footage: N/A
* List Date: 7/14/2008
* Garage Spaces: 1
* MLS#: 80821476

Complete fixer!!! Everything needs replacing. Do not enter. Property is sold “As Is”. Trash and garbage have not been removed. Public records do not state Sq Ft of lot nor building. Age is an estimate. Bulldoze and start from scratch.

Burbed has seen a lot of strange properties, but this find by Burbed reader sonarrat really takes the cake. The outside isn’t great - but it’s not super bad either. Let’s take a look at some interior photos:

Wow. Just wow.

But just think: buy it, bulldoze it, build a new house? Hey - suddenly you’ve got a pretty nice piece of real estate in Pacifica.

And this brings us to Friday’s “Write a story about what happened here” contest.

So… what do you think happened here? Let’s get those creative juices flowing!

Comments (64) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:03 am

August 28, 2008

The house has a detached garage - but is it detached itself?

427 Commercial Ave, South San Francisco, CA 94080 MLS# 80823291 - Property Details

$499,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 2
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1910
* Lot Size: 3000
* Square Footage: 1000
* List Date: 7/22/2008
* Garage Spaces: 1

* MLS#: 80823291
Starter home with new paint and carpets. 2BD/1 BA home with detached 1 car garage. Additional uncovered parking at back of house. Perfect for investors or contractor’s looking for a light remodel. Close proximity to the shops and restaurants of Grand Avenue. Also close to freeway access for easy commute to City or South Bay.

If you ask me, I sort of wonder if this house is actually detached.

That said, this house is near super star Genentech - which once acquired by Roche for $200 per share, will instantly cause the RE market in South San Francisco to soar. Just think about all the new millionaire employees that will be generated. Plus, think of all the expansion and hiring they will do.

Personally, to me, the biggest draw is that this is near the shops and restaurants of Grand Avenue. Wow. Grand Avenue. I mean, it’s so…. uh… grand!

With the money you’ll be making from buying this house, you’ll be able to invite your neighbors (whom you will know rather well) out to dinner all the time!

Comments (30) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:16 am

August 27, 2008

Great starter home in Gilroy

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage presents CaliforniaMoves.com
296 CARLYLE CT
Gilroy, CA, 95020 offered at $249,900

Stop SlideshowStart Slideshow

Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 1 Full
Apprx. Sq. Feet: 1123 Year Built: 1972
Request More Info Schedule A Showing

Great Starter Home. Large Corner Lot with access to Backyard from Street. Walking Distance to Neighborhood Park. Vaulted Ceiling and Fireplace in Living Room. Covered Patio off Kitchen. Conveniently located to shopping centers and Easy Access to Highway 101. Lots of Potential.

Even though we all know that Gilroy is no longer part of the Real Bay Area (if even the Bay Area itself!), Burbed doesn’t really feature it so often.

That said, Burbed reader Jackie did find this great starter home. Wow what a beaut!

To all you RE investors - is now the hot time to buy here? Will Gilroy be the next Foster City? What appreciation should we expect?

Comments (37) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:59 am

August 26, 2008

How does a freeway, power lines, and an aiport affect home price?

MLS-2.com: Property Details
349 SAN PABLO AV, Millbrae,CA,94030 - $735,000

3 Beds 1140 Sq.Ft. Aprx. 2 Car Garage MLS#: 828147
1.0 Baths 5,000 Lot Size 56 Yrs Old Aprx. List Date: 2008-08-15

What’s new on MLS-2: Search by % Price Drop // Search by “MOTIVATED SELLERS”

Description - 349 SAN PABLO AV, Millbrae,CA,94030
Delightful three bedroom one bath corner home filled with charm has an open and Airy Living Room with adjoining Dining Room, Newer Stainless Steel Appliances in Kitchen. Spacious backyard has adjoining 1,188 /- lot perfect for entertaining guests of all ages, manicured lawn, and mature vegetable gardens. APN 021-306-280 also included in this sale! Making this lot 6,188 /- Square feet!!

If you’re in the Bay Area, the answer is clearly: “Makes it more special.”

Everything in the Bay Area only serves to make housing more expensive. Let’s take a look at a map and see how the components of this particular property make it a must buy:

First, this house is situated right near the International terminal of SFO. This means that rich moguls from Moscow and Shanghai and Mumbai will easily be able to visit their investment properties in your neighborhood. Haven’t you heard? With the dollar so cheap, these people are snapping up real estate all over - they’ll probably see your house as they taxi to the gate and say “I vant that house! Here are my rubles!”

Next, there’s tranquil 101. Everyone wants easy access to freeways - boom, a major commute saver.

Power lines! Everyone knows that California’s energy grid is in shambles, and that it is 1 step up from Iraq’s. Fortunately, by having these power lines near you, you will likely have first dibs to energy if they should fall down. It’s called thinking ahead.

Not shown, this house is also located near Bart and Caltrain - again, more great commute options.

Frankly, I don’t see how you lose - especially with this bargain basement price of just $735,000 for a 3/1!

Comments (25) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:47 am

August 25, 2008

“wave good bye !!! renting days will be over”

727 Elm St, Redwood City, CA 94063 MLS# 80817142 - Property Details

$579,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 2
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1939
* Lot Size: 5000
* Square Footage: 810
* List Date: 6/23/2008
* Garage Spaces: 1

Great oppourtunity for all buyers!!!NOT A SHORT SALE wave good bye !!! renting days will be over when your clients invest in this cute rancher home!! it has bonus room in the back With it’s own Bath , also bunus room in garage area. Perfect for an in law!Great Location!!!

That’s right ladies and gentlemen! Be prepared to wave good bye to your renting days because once you buy this home, this excellent oppourtunity for all buyers, you will be set for life.

The bunus room for your in-laws is a dream for most - honestly I can’t think of why you wouldn’t want to spend $714 per square foot for this fine fine house. Heck, you could rent it out! Boom instant passive income!

Garage? Bah! Who needs that.

This is really like buying one house, and getting a bonus condo! What’s stopping you now?

Comments (68) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:02 am

August 23, 2008

California has the most milionaires!

The Wealth Report - WSJ.com : Florida Beats New York for Millionaires
According to new wealth stats released by the I.R.S. Florida had 199,000 residents with a net worth of $1.5 million or more as of 2004 (their latest period). That topped New York’s count of 168,000, though it still trailed way behind leader California, which boasted 428,000–more than a fifth of the nation’s total.

BOOM! We beat New York. Which in turn beat Florida. BOOM!

House prices out of whack in this state? Are you kidding? With so many millionaires, how can prices not be high? It’s a simple matter of supply and demand. And guess what - all these millionaires want to live in the Real Bay Area. Mountain View, Cupertino, Half of Sunnyvale - millionaire magnets for sure.

Booyah baby!!

Comments (48) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:18 am

August 22, 2008

Free guy on the couch with purchase of this oakland home

1470 17th Ave, Oakland, CA 94606 MLS# 80784432 - Property Details

$289,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 2
* Bathroom: 2
* Year Built: 1910
* Lot Size: 1498
* Square Footage: 744
* List Date: 3/14/2008
* Garage Spaces: 1

* MLS#: 80784432
Rare opportunity! You can own a single home for less than $300,000. Very cozy 2 bedroom and 2 full baths in a very quite neighborhood. Close to Hwy 880 and walking distance to park. This home has alot of upside potential and ideal for the first time home buyer.

Burbed doesn’t usually venture to Oakland, but since Burbed reader Alex sent this in, I figure I’d share it with you.

Frankly, I’m tired of people complaining that there’s no affordable house in the Bay Area. Oakland is part of the Bay Area, not the Real Bay Area, but the Bay Area nonetheless. This house has very easy access to 880, another draw.

But what I think fascinated Alex the most was some of the photos that the Real Estate agent felt necessary to include. Let’s take look:

Sweet! You get a pair of men’s legs and the right to sleep in your living room. You can totally be all starving artist like here. Like Salvatore Dali!

Wow. Check out this awesome kitchen. It leaves me speechless. But suddenly I’m sort of wondering if this is actually also the bathroom. How confusing.

Anyway, you get the point. There’s plenty of affordable housing - you just have to quit being whiny!

Comments (71) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:49 am

August 21, 2008

What kind of house does $1.2 million buy you in expensive New Jersey?

So yesterday we saw what $1.2 million buys you in the Bay Area’s best school district:

Let’s look at a house in what some claim is Burbed’s city of obsession in the East Coast:

Single Family Home - TENAFLY, NJ, 07670 - Realtor.com

Wow. Is it any wonder why the message boards are full of threads about people wanting to leave New Jersey and it’s best in nation school districts?

My god.

Just look at that bloat. You spend $1.2 million and you get 3425 sqft of waste. What are you going to do with that space? How will you be incented to work anymore? You’ll probably just want to sit at home and relax all the time.

And just think about those taxes in New Jersey. That’s right! They have a state income tax of 8.97% if you make more than $500,000. Which, of course, nearly all of Burbed’s readers do. (It’s only 6.37% if you make $75k-$500k. You might as well get food stamps if you do!) And no taxes on clothing!

Then there’s the lack of any good schools in the area. Do they have Cal or Stanford? DUH of course not. All they have is Princeton, and maybe Columbia. Are those schools known for anything?

When you put it all together, it makes sense why people are fleeing New Jersey for low tax destinations California all the time. Just the idea of living in 3425 sqft taxes my mind!

UPDATE: Edited the title.

Comments (80) -- Posted by: burbed @ 5:41 am
 
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