278 N RENGSTORFF Ave, Mountain View, CA 94043 | MLS# 80926202
278 N RENGSTORFF Ave Mountain View, CA 94043
Price: $745,000

Beds: 4
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,344
$/Sq. Ft.: $554
Lot Size: 5,000 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Stories: 2
Year Built: 1955
Community: Thompson
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80926202
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 16 days
Complete interior remodel in the Monta Loma community, light & bright-this home features a new kitchen with stainless steel appls, granite counters & recessed lighting. Both baths tiled in stone, gorgeous new flooring. New furnace, water heater, insul, 2-pane windows, electric & wiring. Large by-landscaped. Close by shopping, amenities, commutes, Los Altos High. SELLER FINANCING AVAILABLE AT GOOD RATES

Let’s face it, with the economy not so well in other states, invaders might be tempted to come to the Bay Area to steal our treasure and bring it back to their savage states.

With that mind, it is obvious why the owners of this house built this guard tower. You and your family can take turns at night, peering out the windows, ensuring that any trespassers onto your property will be detected.

Or you can do this in reverse and make sure no one sneaks out of the house. Perhaps you’re a parent whose kids might not be on track to getting into Stanford – now you can be sure they’re not leaving until they’ve done their homework.

Either way, this is great for those who want to be aware of the surroundings. Spotlights not included.

240 JUNIPER Ave, South San Francisco, CA 94080 | MLS# 80834807
240 JUNIPER Ave South San Francisco, CA 94080
Price: $350,000

Beds: 2
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 740
$/Sq. Ft.: $473
Lot Size: 3,500 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Contemporary
Stories: 1
Year Built: 1906
Community: Old South SF/Rocca
County: San Mateo
MLS#: 80834807
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 269 days
LOOKING FOR A BARGAING? Fantastic Opportunity For anyone including contractors. Lots of Potential in this 2Bed/1Bath and 1detach car garage Home, plus 2Bed/1Bath in-law in basement with separate entrance(not warranted). New pluming and electricity. Good commuter location. Needs some work. Don’t Miss This One. Here’s Your Chance!

This house may need some work. Like making it visible! Actually this house was built originally as part of the government’s continuity plan. You see, by making it hard to find, terrorists can’t get to it. They just never got around to adding concertina wire to the fences on either side – but you can do that. Cool huh? If you like privacy, this house is for you!

And now it can be yours. It’s a BARGAING! And at $473 per square foot, definitely super affordable.

There. Now the Bay Area (unreal) is affordable. Problem solved.

Best Places to Live 2009 – Yahoo! Finance
Here’s our list of the 10 best places to live:

1. Albuquerque, N.M.

2. Auburn, Ala.

3. Austin, Texas

4. Boise, Idaho

5. Durham, N.C.

6. La Crosse, Wis.

7. Loveland, Colo.

8. San Luis Obispo, Calif.

9. St. Augustine, Fla.

10. Upper St. Clair, Pa.

Thanks to Burbed reader E.S. for sending this to me. Here’s what E had to say:

They have forgotten the RBA!  Where’s the culture, the access to VCs, and all the other… uhh.. benefits to living here… like how your school might shut down because a right wing state assemblyman from Fresno thinks life should be tax free…

hmm…

moving to Portland soon.

Ouch. Well have fun in Portland. Do they have Fry’s there? Do they have good schools like Monta Vista, Gunn, Sequoia, or Fremont there? Do they have VC’s up the wazoo? Can their light rail system compare with ours?

But back to the original topic, it’s a shame that this happens. We need to get our message to the MSM (Main Street Media) that they’re completely wrong if they should ever forget to include Mountain View, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, etc in the list of best places to live.

Any one up for a letter writing campaign?

The Housing Boom and Bust

This is a plain-English explanation of how we got into the current economic disaster that developed out of the economics and politics of the housing boom and bust. The “creative” financing of home mortgages and the even more “creative” marketing of financial securities based on American mortgages to countries around the world, are part of the story of how a financial house of cards was built up—and then suddenly collapsed.

The politics behind all this is another story full of strange twists. No punches are pulled when discussing politicians of either party, the financial dangers they created, or the distractions they created later to escape their own responsibility for what happened when the financial house of cards in the financial markets collapsed.

What to do, now that we are in the midst of an economic disaster, is yet another story—one whose ending we do not yet know, but one whose outlines and implications are explored to reveal some surprising and sobering lessons.

It’s Saturday and that means it is time for Burbed’s book of the week.

Thanks to Burbed reader Butzi’s for this recommendation. It’s clear why this book was suggested – we in the Real Bay Area really need to do more to learn about the areas in the rest of America. The less fortunate areas, full of blissfully ignorant people, who don’t know what sushi is, or have never been able to experience the majesty of Fry’s.

Ideally we could invite Thomas Sowell over to the Bay Area so he could write about this amazing phenomenon. Perhaps it could be a sequel to his first book (“Basic Economics”) – he could call it “Paradign shifted economics.” Let’s face it, we have an economy here that defies all expectations. Whether it be $3 cupcakes, $500k condos in Mountain View, or Teslas, the economy here is rocketing forwards. It is the classic example of a perpetually New model of economics.

Finally, speaking of economics, if you’re looking to help this site out, click this link to learn more!

2050 WAVERLEY St, Palo Alto, CA 94301 | MLS# 80925636
2050 WAVERLEY St Palo Alto, CA 94301
Price: $4,995,000

Beds: 4
Baths: 4
Sq. Ft.: 4,157
$/Sq. Ft.: $1,202
Lot Size: 8,322 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Colonial
Stories: Tri-Level
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 2009
Community: Old Palo Alto
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80925636
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 26 days
Fabulous Dutch Colonial in the heart of Old Palo Alto. Now complete, beautifully appointed and fully staged. Four bedrooms, four and 1/2 baths on three levels, wine room, outdoor fireplace and barbeque. The gourmet kitchen is exquisitely designed and has a fabulous Aga range, granite countertops and beautifully crafted cabinetry. Seller will consider offers between $4,995,000-$5,300,000

I know this was recently discussed in the comments, but frankly, the fact the range of offers expected is pretty stunning to me.

Here’s what the Burbed reader who shared this with me had to say:

Hello! I am a new reader to your site and love it. I thought this  Palo Alto home in the “old palo alto” neighborhood might provide a fun post for the site. They just reduced the price of the house from 5.495million to 4.995million, and now the mls listing reads “Seller will consider offers between $4,995,000-$5,300,000 – this does not mean seller will accept any offer but will consider all offers in this range”

How arrogant, especially in this market? Did this developer/flipper not get the memo that the sellers market is over?

–Palo Alto Resident

So what happens if you submit an offer that’s $5,300,001?

How peculiar!

What are you planning to offer?

11700 Putter Way, Los Altos, CA 94024 | MLS# 80925199
11700 Putter Way Los Altos, CA 94024
Price: $1,375,000

Beds: 3
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,500
$/Sq. Ft.: $917
Lot Size: 6,000 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Mediterranean
Stories: 2
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 2000
Community: Country Club
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80925199
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 23 days
$$$$ BIG PRICE REDUCTION. OVER $100,000.00 IN SAVINGS SELLER IS READY TO LISTEN TO ALL OFFERS. SELLER MAY CARRY PAPER OR LEASE OPTION. LOW MAINTENANCE BACK YARD, 5 T. V. s INCLUDING ENTERTAINMENT CENTER ALL INCLUDED. READY TO MOVE INTO. GREAT BACK YARD-EASY FLOOR PLAN TO ENTERTAIN. GREAT LOS ALTOS SCHOOLS. CLOSE TO EVERYTHING INCLUDING 280-CUPERTINO-LOS ALTO-PALO ALTO.

Thanks to Burbed reader Herve for this find.

Wowsers! 5 free tv’s? Price reduction of $100,000? What more do you want this seller to give? His first born? Bone marrow?

Come on! This house is practically being given away for free!

And look at the easy access to 280!

If you’re not thinking of snatching this house up, you should be. It sold for $1.395 in 2005 – so right away there’s instant equity. And face it, shouldn’t every house in Los Altos be $1000+ per square foot?

This house is just begging for you to buy it!

2255 FRUITDALE Ave, San Jose, CA 95128 | MLS# 80905220
2255 FRUITDALE Ave San Jose, CA 95128
Price: $470,000

Beds: 2
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 816
$/Sq. Ft.: $576
Lot Size: 7,950 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Cottage/Bungalow
Stories: 1
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 1941
Community: Central San Jose
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80905220
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 134 days
What a Charmer! Fresh paint; newer roof, siding and copper plumbing. Gorgeous hardwood floors. Recessed Lighting throughout. Washer/Dryer/Refrig incl. Light, bright, cozy & happy! 2-car garage new Workshop/Artists Studio in back – same style as home – many uses. Home improvements designed to be wheelchair-friendly. Extra-large lot with room for garden; fence has new gate; covered patio.

When Burbed reader sonarrat send this on to me the other day, it was listed at a higher price. Let’s take a look at the price history:

Wow. A 25% price cut since the initial listing in January. (BTW, check out how much tax this person is paying.)

That’s really surprising since this house appears to me like a Costco special. Just take a look at this photo:

I’m not sure what’s going on here. There’s a plethora of blue buildings. So when you buy 1 do you get 2 bonus houses? Sure they might be garages or sheds, but let’s be frank, those are houses in San Jose.

It seems to me that now’s a great time to snatch up this amazing deal. Again, think of all the cash flow opportunities that this house can offer!

1279 E JULIAN St, San Jose, CA 95116 | MLS# 80922869
1279 E JULIAN St San Jose, CA 95116
Price: $875,000

Beds: 2
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 828
$/Sq. Ft.: $1,057
Lot Size: 0.49 Acres
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Cottage/Bungalow
Stories: 1
Year Built: 1920
Community: Central San Jose
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80922869
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 35 days
The value is in the land. Lot is 20,909 SF! Endless possibilities to expand – great for having a home and all that space for your hobbies. Bring your ideas and tools to make this into your special place. Currently rented @ $800/mo.

Thanks to Burbed reader sonarrat for this find. (What’s up with the usage of the word rat in names on this site?)

Let’s look at some additional photos first:

This really begs the question – what are the current tenants paying $800 a month for?

You know what? It’s an indication of how tight the rental market is right now. If people are willing to pay $800 a month for this, is it any wonder why this property is so expensive? Think about it – at .49 acres, 21,353 square feet, you can fit a huge number of people. And like astronauts, they could sleep standing up strapped in.

People will pay anything…. ANYTHING… to live here in the Bay Area. And that’s what makes this cash flow positive for you.

Great deal. Snatch it up right now. And give sonarrat a cut!

253 KELTON Ave, San Carlos, CA 94070 | MLS# 80921524
253 KELTON Ave San Carlos, CA 94070
Price: $1,179,000
Beds: 4
Baths: 2.5

Sq. Ft.: 2,484
$/Sq. Ft.: $475
Lot Size: 4,400 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Contemporary
Stories: 2
Year Built: 1947
Community: El Sereno Corte
County: San Mateo
MLS#: 80921524
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 44 days
LAST CHANCE! COMING OFF MARKET ON 6/30!! 10K REDUCTION. Remodeled 2-story home in White Oaks! 4 lg BR, 2.5BA. Maple h/w flrs, chefs kchn w/ granite counters, luxury stnlss appliances, built-in fridge & freezer. Downstairs master w/ walk-in closet. French doors open to slate patio. 2 upstairs bedrooms w/ Jack-n-Jill BA. Ceiling fans throughout. Upstairs family room away from bedrooms for privacy.

Thanks for Burbed reader Rink Rat for sharing this!

Here’s what he had to say:

Oh my god.  Now I see where the term “Realtards” comes from.  Take a  look at MLS 80921524. It has been on the market since 6/17/08 –  basically a year — under a variety of brokerages.    So what do they do to convince people to buy a house that’s obviously massively overpriced?????  They drop  it $10,000.  I can hear the stampede of  buyers from here….

Could someone please call the police in San Carlos to let them know about a possible pending riot. I can see it now, hordes of people are going to descend on this house from San Jose, Washington DC, Seattle, Shanghai, Moscow to snatch it up before it goes off the market.

Traffic is going to be zoo. They’ll need riot gear.

Once this house goes off the market, it will be like the sun imploding – there will be no hope left. People will freak out. 4 horsemen, and all that.

$10,000 has already been droppped from the price. The warning shot has been fired.

Be prepared. Strap on the kevlar before you go.

Any predictions as to what will happen on 7/1?

Palo Alto Online: Flood ’98

Burbed reader steve posted this a while back. I just wanted to make sure everyone saw it.

Always be prepared.