February 25, 2013

FOCUS-LIVE-ENDURE! In San Carlos! Again!

Okay, vacation’s over. Time to get back to work, and that means heading over to real estate sites to plan on where you really want to live.  Boss has the door shut, so fire up those listing websites! And today’s listing was sent (during coffee break) by Burbed reader Divasm.

130224-belle-zillow1959 Belle Ave
San Carlos, CA 94070
$2,100,000 (Listing removed 2/8/13)

Zestimate®: $1,957,700
Est. Mortgage: $1,883/mo
Bedrooms:4 beds
Bathrooms:5 baths
Single Family:3,532 sq ft
Lot:5,227 sq ft
Year Built:2012
Last Sold:Mar 2012 for $525,000
Heating Type:Forced air

Description

130224-belle-elevations” Tuscan Villa” – Centrally situated, within walking distance to Award winning “Brittan Acres” & “Central” schools. South Bay views from Master bedroom. Construction to start summer ’10 built by luxury home builder The Armanini Group (TAG) Builders, Inc. This home consists of six large bedrooms, den, five full baths, Family room boosting stone fireplace, extra-large eat in Kitchen with breakfast bar & nook open to Family room, Living room with single-beamed ceilings, 130224-belle-elevations2panelled ceiling in Dining room and attached two Car Garage / shop. Anderson wood windows, (full bullnose) granite countertops in Kitchen, travertine stone in Master bath, designer ceramic tiles in auxiliary baths, Kohler plumbing fixtures, custom hand-made cabinetry throughout by local craftsman, Thermador appliances, 3/4″ distressed hardwood flooring, 14 seer-rated air conditioning units, high energy efficient multi-zoned forced-air central heating, tank-less 130224-belle-siteplan(space saving) insta-hot water heater, wireless computer network, smart home electronics for computer programming your lighting, heating & air conditioning, audio, video & irrigation and extensive millwork throughout the entire home. Not all features mentioned. For a personal showing of this magnificent home in San Carlos, please call Michael or Genna Armanini at (cell) 650.218.5123 or email us at [email protected] PRICE, TERMS AND MATERIALS UTILIZED SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE, CONTACT YOUR REAL ESTATE BROKER FOR CURRENT PRICING & TERMS. CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS “NEW CONSTRUCTION RESIDENTIAL PURCHASE AGREEMENT AND JOINT ESCROW INSTRUCTIONS” CONTRACT TO BE UTILIZED IN THE PURCHASE OF SUBJECT PROPERTY. FOCUS-LIVE-ENDURE!

No photos, just plans. Inappropriate use of quotation marks. A BUNCH OF ALL CAPS TEXT AT THE END. Best of all, construction promised the summer of… three years ago.  Oh, this is going to be good.  Let’s check in with Big D.

130224-belle-sketch-movotoI was browsing listings in San Carlos and came across this $2.1mil gem. It sounds terrific on paper, and I guess I can see why it’s so expensive, San Carlos, 4/4.5, 3500 square feet, built in 2012. But was it really?

The pic shows a sketch, and the satellite view shows a big dirt lot. Perhaps since then a house has popped up for which they offer to show you the plans, but then why not show a pic? Is it because you’re buying a lot and approved plans for $2.1mil? And look at the history, it’s all over the place. If I had any time I’d drive by myself and check it out…but it certainly must have some reason it’s been on the market for 138 days.

130224-belle-redfin-notforsaleHmm, plans on Zillow, sketch on Movoto, along with this description:

Off market until construction complete approximately mid-May. New quality construction. Plans available to view. Go to: www.johnshroyer.com, Click on “My Featured Listings”, scroll to photo of property, disclosures

Mid-May of what year? We’re starting a pool.  And who is John Shroyer? What happened to Michael or Genna Armanini? Does their cell phone still work? Did they pay their Summer 2010 bill?  How did that FOCUS-LIVE-ENDURE! thing work out for them?

Meanwhile, this construction site gave us some serious déjà vu, and for good reason.  Find out why, after the break.

130224-belle-reprise-110428

Hmm, Tuscan Home wasn’t a “Tuscan Home” back then. No wonder the price went up!  And when we shared the previous Burbed entry with Divasm, it led to an onsite visit.  So here, exclusively on Burbed, are current photos of how the construction is doing.  (Click on any image to see a larger version.)

130224-belle-front130224-belle-vehicle130224-belle-2houses130224-belle-trash130224-belle-sign-1959130224-belle-sign-1961

I managed to stop by this morning! Looks like its officially two properties, both under construction. A neighbor outside told me it could all be mine for $2.1 million! He said about 5 years ago the previous tenants tore the house down with intention to rebuild, and then it sat as a pit in the ground for years until 4-5 months ago when construction started.

So how much did this pit in the ground cost the new builder?

130224-belle-history

And don’t forget to check out the house next door as well (Construction to begin Spring ‘11). FOCUS-LIVE-ENDURE!

Comments (8) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:09 am

8 Responses to “FOCUS-LIVE-ENDURE! In San Carlos! Again!”

  1. nomadic Says:

    I want to know how Zillow came up with the mortgage payment of just $1883, given their Zestimate of $1.96M. Maybe it was based on the last sold price instead.

  2. SEA Says:

    Just remember: It’s cheaper to buy than rent.

  3. Divasm Says:

    Is it false advertising when the artist rendering of each of these homes has it surrounded by big trees, when in fact they are spitting distance from each other?

    This was the first time I’ve gone out in the field, so to speak, to take pics of something that wasn’t an open house (where it’s relatively normal to be taking pictures.) The neighbor was looking at me a bit suspiciously as I snapped these on my cell phone, I tried to make it sound as though I was considering purchasing but I’m not sure he bought it since I drive a Mazda instead of a luxury car…

  4. SEA Says:

    “false advertising” in real estate?

  5. DonnieJ Says:

    Well it appears they solved the problem of “they aren’t making more land”.

    You just buy one house, level it, and build two.

  6. sfbubblebuyer Says:

    Looks like they ruined a perfectly good lot with two giant McMansions.

  7. gallileo Says:

    Real Estate agents sell a dream. In this case, quite literally a dream.

  8. Jack Martin Says:

    Wow that is one of the most expensive pits in the ground I have ever seen haha. Glad it is on it’s way now.


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