Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage presents
335 HEDGE RD
Menlo Park, CA, 94025 offered at $749,000

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 1 Full
Apprx. Sq. Feet: 1020 Year Built: 1950

Original owner of this home has watched all of the trees in this neighborhood grow tall!! Very special home with separate dining room, beautiful hardwood floors, new paint inside & out. Formal entry. Woodburning fireplace in living room with looks out toward lovely backyard with prolific lemon tree. Two car attached garage. Excellent neighborhood with a great sense of community. Superb Menlo Park Schools and very convenient location.

Thanks to Burbed reader Mia for this find. Here’s what Mia had to say:

I had to LOL at the first line: “Original owner of this home watched all of the trees in this neighborhood grow tall!!”  Yeah, well the backstory to this is that the original owner — probably there over 50 years — passed away in her home a couple of months ago.  So yes, it is true: she DID watch all the trees grow tall…until she died.

How touching!

This backstory instantly adds another $250,000 to the price of this house! My heart! It just says “open wallet. get super jumbo. spend spend spend.”

521 2nd Ln, South San Francisco, CA 94080 MLS# 80831073 - Property Details
$449,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 2
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1925
* Lot Size: 1750
* Square Footage: 650
* List Date: 8/30/2008

* Garage Spaces: 1
This cute affordable home is not a distress sale. Owner has finished years of remodeling and is ready to sale. In the last 5 years owner has replaced the roof, exterior siding, interior sheetrock, all windows, back stairs and remodeled bathroom. In the past 2 years owner has remodeled kitchen with stone counter top, wood cabinets, new gas range, replaced water heater and central air heating system

Let’s face it, the tech sector hasn’t done as amazingly well as we had hoped this year. On the other hand, biotech is going to rock. Why? People keep getting sick!

It’s only a matter of time before South San Francisco becomes the next Palo Alto… or the next Atherton! Biotech! You think $691 per square is expensive - better buy now - $900 per square foot is right around the corner!

Plus, with a house this small, you’ll be able to spend more time at work working on solving the next major human illness. See, you’re helping humanity by owning this home.

If you’re not buying it, you don’t care about people. Sorry.

NY’S PROPERTY-TAX TOPPER - New York Post
New York state has just landed the dubious distinction of having the county with the highest property taxes in the nation, according to a new Census Bureau study released yesterday.

Westchester homeowners paid a whopping median $8,422 in taxes last year, leaping from their previous third-place spot to bump the formerly No. 1 ranked Hunterdon County in New Jersey.

Hunterdon settled in second place for 2007, with an $8,224 median tax bill.

Nassau County, which had been No. 2 in 2006, was left still nipping at Hunterdon’s heels, coming in third with an $8,153 median, according to the review of updated Census data as part of the American Community Survey.

The national property-tax median is a paltry $1,838 by comparison.

Everyone knows that one of the great advantages of living in California, aside from diversity, open minds, smart people, coasts, and great weather is… low property taxes.

And this article proves it!

Have you ever heard of anyone paying $8,224 in property taxes here in California? Oh wait… everyone who buys in the Real Bay Area does.

Well… look who has better schools and services!!! Oh… wait…. Westchester does.

Fine, but do they have great mass transit… or great sports teams… or sushi?

Oh.

Uh.

Do they have great weather and nerds who looooooooooooove to go hiking?

HELLS NO!

Bay Area wins again! Woot!

It’s Friday! Time to wrap up San Jose week! Here’s the final entry!

3262 Firth Way, San Jose, CA 95121 Evergreen MLS# 80776102 - Property Details
$299,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 2
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1971
* Lot Size: 5300
* Square Footage: 805
* List Date: 2/2/2008
* Garage Spaces: 2

* MLS#: 80776102
Beautiful home close to freeway and shopping center. New hardwood floor and remodeled bathroom. Go and show it.

Are there any Realtor photo competitions coming up soon? I’d really like to enter this photo into a competition. The haunting light really enthralls attracts me. It has this ominous beckoning sensation - telling me to come to the house. That once I do, the glory of light and hope will instantly radiate as the SOLD sign is planted into the fertile soil.

It’s quite the breathless composition - wouldn’t you agree?

I also like the Realtor’s captivating caption: “Go and show it.” Go and show it - I command thee. Biblical reference?

I think it’s time for a captioning contest - what would you call this photo?

I’m thinking: “Good Morning San Jose”

America Says NO to the Bush Bailout!
People’s Speak Out to Stop the Bail Out
September 25, 2008
5:00 PM - 6:30 PM

Stand with your neighbors and say NO Bush Bailout! Bush strong-armed Congress into supporting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and has spent more than $800 billion for these wars. Now they demand a $700 billion blank check for Wall Street using fear and threats with no public debate! Bail Out the Troops and Main Street, Not Wall Street! Make some signs and bring your families and friends!
Address
front of MLK Library, 150 E. San Fernando St.
San Jose, CA 95112
Directions

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library is on the corner of San Fernando and Fourth Streets. Check the VTA web site for directions to the library by bus/light rail. If you have to drive, a parking garage is located across the street.

Burbed Reader Sunny asked me to share this with you.

Welcome to the 4th day of San Jose week!

83 N 13th St, San Jose, CA 95112 Central San Jose MLS# 80786611 - Property Details
$1,195,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 6
* Bathroom: 4
* Year Built: 1907
* Lot Size: 7084
* Square Footage: 4200
* List Date: 3/24/2008
* Garage Spaces: 1
* MLS#: 80786611
SPECTACULAR COMPLETELY REMODELED SINGLE FAMILY HOME WITH 12 SPACIOUS BEDROOMS AND 4 BEAUTIFULLY REMODELED BATHROOMS!GREAT RENTAL OPPORTUNITY TO SJSU STUDENTS AND SILICON VALLEY COMMUTERS!DETACHED GUEST COTTAGE!FULL FINISHED BASEMENT PLUS HUGE UPSTAIRS LOFT!GOURMET GRANITE KITCHEN!BRAND NEW LANDSCAPING!LARGE LOT!CLOSE TO ALL DOWNTOWN SJ HAS TO OFFER!AMAZING INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY!MUST SEE!

I thought we’d take a break from some of those fantastic starter homes in San Jose to take a look at some of the higher end, more magnificent homes. This home totally reminds me of a European palace. Except in San Jose. And next to another house. And not in Europe.

Oh who am I kidding. This is another great opportunity for you investors… rent each room for $1500 a month - boom that’s $18,000 in cash flow a month! Wow, that’d totally cover the mortgage and more! A lot more! In fact, you could probably IPO this house with its amazing cash flow.

Welcome to Day 3 of San Jose week!

Evergreen, San Jose, CA 95121 MLS# 80777766 - Property Details
$375,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 3
* Bathroom: 1&1/2
* Year Built: 1971
* Lot Size: 5200
* Square Footage: 910
* List Date: 2/10/2008

* Garage Spaces: 2
Charming 3 bedroom/1.5 bath ranch style home. Ready to move in! (Remodeled 2 years ago - kitchen/paint/texture/carpet)** BANK-APPROVED SHORT SALE !**

When I looked at this entry, the first thing I wondered was: What? No address? That’s peculiar!

But that’s when I remembered and realized that many rich and famous people do not want their addresses listed because they’re afraid of home invasions and robberies. Security is on the top of everyone’s minds these days - and no wonder. Crime is up again unfortunately. That’s why this house has its address hidden.

But then I started wondering - does this house come with the dubs or not? If it doesn’t come with the dubs, then no deal!

Dubs - oh yeah. They’ll make any house classy!

Millions spend half of income on housing - Yahoo! News

In San Francisco, more than one out of five homeowners with a mortgage spends half or more of their income on housing.

That’s also true in 13 more of the largest 100 metro areas analyzed by the Associated Press. Other places include California metro areas of Stockton, Los Angeles, Riverside, Oxnard-Thousand Oaks, San Francisco, and San Diego. Also in the top 10 are the Fort Myers, Sarasota and Orlando metro areas in Florida, and New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island.

But the most cost-burdened homeowners in the country live the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach metro area: 58 percent of homeowners spending 30 percent of their income on housing costs, and 29 percent spending half of their income or more on housing.

Sigh. It’s nice that we got an honorable mention - but still I’m dismayed that we’re not in the Top 5.

We can do better. I know we can. Perhaps next year.