Open Houses, Open Thread, and Open Tweets
It may not be Spring yet, but Spring Bounce is in the air! More and more Open Houses for everyone to enjoy. You can tell us about the houses you visited this weekend right here in this Weekend Open Thread.
But wait, there’s more! Burbed reader Divasm also passes along a twitter account you might want to start following. This is run by the fine folks over at Redfin, only this is full of mysterious finds when they show up to tour homes. Have a look at RE Confidential.
Let’s start with a few of their tweets and see what they suggest.
Fashion forward décor!
Well, what do you expect for twice as much as not a lot of money?
Would she be actually living there, or just “legally” entitled to stay enrolled? Maybe we’re giving the seller more credit than we should.
Let us know your favorites, or if you think you can identify any of the houses they’re describing.
March 10th, 2012 at 9:51 am
That redfin twitter account is hilarious!
This one is my favorite:
Seller told us we’d love the master bedroom… The ceiling was covered with mirrors & there was a strange leather contraption in the corner.
March 10th, 2012 at 10:10 am
I was amazed at the number of posts about walking in on people having sex…in most cases Realtors. Is that an industry standard? No wonder they use so many exclamation points to describe homes!!!!!
March 10th, 2012 at 12:10 pm
Locked my purse inside the house, with phone & lockbox key. The client (high-level elected official) jimmied the window lock and climbed in!
In reading through these, certain themes keep coming back, and one of them is Realtards locking themselves out of houses, occasionally into contained yards, balconies, etc.
Another is sellers or tenants giving “warm welcomes” to agents upon arrival.
Another is squatters.
March 10th, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Why would you put auto-locking doors onto balconies and courtyards, anyhow? I hate auto-locking doors, but that’s just… a trap waiting to happen.
March 10th, 2012 at 8:50 pm
The theme of pot smoking and/or growing seems to be prevalent as well. My friend is about to close escrow on a place that, while she toured it, featured two DSPs (Dudes Smoking Pot).
March 10th, 2012 at 11:05 pm
I was amazed at the number of posts about walking in on people having sex…in most cases Realtors.
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Why paying for motel/hotel room when they can have sex in those “vacant” houses.
March 11th, 2012 at 11:00 am
thanks for the twitter gold!
a few interesting recent PA sales. first, a pair of well-executed (professional) flips:
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Palo-Alto/1236-College-Ave-94306/home/658404
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Palo-Alto/1382-Forest-Ave-94301/home/545036
next, a rare spring 2007 spring 2012 apple illustrating both that 5 year holds are terrible ideas and that the market is hitting new highs:
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Palo-Alto/825-Sutter-Ave-94303/home/1690252
and finally a lot sale:
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Palo-Alto/900-N-California-Ave-94303/home/1599890
March 11th, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Awesome finds, steve! So that lot on Louis/California went for $4.2M for 0.72 acres, which means land in PA midtown is worth just about $6M an acre.
LOLcano on the Sutter resale.
March 11th, 2012 at 3:32 pm
I just checked out a trophy property in Saratoga, there were at least 4 other couples viewing it and a bit of fun with cars entering/exiting the long and narrow driveway. This one is worth checking out for the spectacular (and I do mean spectacular) view if nothing else. It’s open for one more hour, so hurry!
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Saratoga/15401-Bohlman-Rd-95070/home/909072
March 11th, 2012 at 4:20 pm
The 2007 buyers on Sutter overbid $85k; I didn’t think it was possible to overpay in PA! (smirk)
March 11th, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Hey, that house on Forest was given some burbed love when it was just an “uninhabitable” little teardown in 2009:
http://www.burbed.com/2009/06/18/1-8-mil-for-a-1br1ba-in-tear-down-condition/
March 11th, 2012 at 7:43 pm
Being used to Palo Alto prices, that Saratoga house seems down right cheap.
March 11th, 2012 at 8:14 pm
madhaus, those bedrooms looked like they were teeny. Why do people insist on building five shoebox-sized bedrooms instead of three or four spacious ones, where you can turn around without knocking stuff off the shelf with your ass?
March 11th, 2012 at 10:55 pm
The 2007 buyers on Sutter overbid $85k; I didn’t think it was possible to overpay in PA! (smirk)
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By definition, Sutter is not a “buyable” property of Palo Alto. Otherwise, it would have been sold $400K over asking.
March 12th, 2012 at 12:01 am
herpderp, were you there too? Did you enjoy the shuffle with the cars backing out when others were coming in?
Yes, the rooms, especially the kids’ rooms that shared the bathroom, were small. I theorized that the house was built for someone whose kids moved out, and the rooms are only there in case they visit. Note there is no room in the kids’ rooms for things kids need in their rooms, such as a dresser, or a desk large enough to work at, or a table for hobbies.
The MBR itself was also on the cozy side, but the dressing room/walk-in closet was okay, and I did like the location right near the hot tub.
Turns out the heated floors were powered by the giant-ass propane tank. Only 90% of the house is solar-powered.
What the heck is RE‘s new avatar supposed to be? It looks like a notched brick with an imprint of an AmEx black card painted on one face. That looks a little too large to slip into a wallet comfortably. Maybe they’re designed to be so ungainly you have no choice but to leave them out so everyone else can notice you own one?
March 12th, 2012 at 12:21 am
What the heck is RE‘s new avatar supposed to be?
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Black card. He recently got one. His new achievement after Porsche, Rolex, subzero refrigerator, exotic plants and custom built furniture. Rarely you will find people brag about their credit card. After all it is credit card, not wealth. He is one of a rare kind.
March 12th, 2012 at 2:02 am
it’s sad people are so insecure they pretend to own a centurion card.