Areas close to the high-tech jobs are so desirable right now, homes for sale there are snapped up before the seller finishes signing the contract with an agent.  Meanwhile, far-flung exurbs are not doing as well.  Commuting an hour, or even more, is not desirable to most buyers with Silicon Valley jobs.

So what about the places that are still within what we think of as Silicon Valley, but aren’t a relatively easy commute to the job centers?  What if those areas were Foreclosure Central during the credit crunch?  What if some of the residents in those neighborhoods aren’t exactly Junior League material? Let’s take a look at such a big lot Berryessa listing from Burbed reader Tracy Tea House.

1199 PIEDMONT Rd
San Jose, CA 95132
$748,800

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,448
$/SQ. FT.: $517
LOT SIZE: 0.46 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Ranch
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1956
COMMUNITY: Berryessa
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81214183
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 20 days

LARGE LOT, Value in land, city allowed to build 3 houses couple years ago, contact city to verify status of approval. Near Piedmont high, Piedmont Middle, elementary school and library. It is very rare to find large lot like this in North Valley. Check with City to explore other possibility. VERY LARGE DOG, DO NOT DISTURB OCCUPANT, DO NOT ENTER PROPERTY. WRITE OFFER SUBJECT TO INSPECTION

Since you won’t be entering the property (VERY LARGE DOG, DO NOT DISTURB OCCUPANT), good thing this home listing has 24 pictures.  Here a few of our favorites.

24 pictures of the same six parts of the outside of the house.  But the good thing about these photos is you can play Where’s Waldo with them, assuming Waldo’s the name of the VERY LARGE DOG.

Want a house in the lovely Rose Garden area of San Jose?  So do a lot of people!  Central location, big houses on beautiful lots… what’s not to like?  Tracy Tea House found a real goodie that shows every rule has an exception, and every good neighborhood has some Fail.

Now this property is gone,  It’s not on Redfin at all, nor on Movoto even, and Trulia says it’s off-market.  Guess who still has it.  Zillow.

1135 Yosemite Ave
San Jose, CA 95126
$699,000

Beds: 2
Baths: 2
Sqft: 2,868
Lot: 13,068 sq ft / 0.30 acres
Type: Single Family
Year built: 1922
Parking: —
Cooling: Central
Heating: Forced air
Fireplace: –

Spacious floor plan on a large lot. Tons of potential to add bedrooms if needed. Charming home located in the Historic Rose Garden area. Formal dining room with plenty of natural light, living room with wood burning fireplace, separate family room looking out into backyard and pool. Perfect for entertaining. Hardwood floors, A/C, side yard with space for boat or RV parking.

Here’s what Tracy had to say about this find.

The price on this house keeps dropping like a stone. I looked at it a few times over the years and it is a great old place, full of charm. Except it has location FAIL. It is located at the corner of Yosemite and Race, famous for the prostitution ring, busted across the street. Shares a wall with a Mexican restaurant parking lot, and is down the street  from the “water Garden.”  If only it was located a few more blocks into the Rose garden.. Sigh..

Looks like we had best get some pictures up before Zillow gets a friendly visit from the wild and crazy lawyers who work for MLS.  They even have a much better front view than the one they led with.

There are several higher-resolution photos of an empty house.  This is a photographer who loves the interplay of light.  See these and more photos after the break.

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Burbed loves East San Jose, because some of the best properties can be found here.  That is, if by “best” we actually mean “Can you believe this?”  Thanks very much to Burbed reader Tracy Tea House for proving once more, that when it comes to housing, Alum Rocks!

1412 Mount Herman Drive
San Jose, CA 95127
$300,000

Status: Withdrawn
Bedrooms: 4
Bathrooms: 3
Property type: Single Family Residential
Size: 1,368 sqft
Lot: 0.12 acres
Price/sqft: $219/sqft
Year built: 1961
Added on Trulia: 180+ days ago
Neighborhood: Alum Rock
Zip: 95127

The property has been maintain by sellers. With the converted garage, you have additional living area. Lots of parking space, nice front yard, rear room converted! Brokered And Advertised By: PN Real Estate Group Listing Agent: Louis Montalvo

Here’s why Tracy thought you’d love this place:

Here is a shack that proves the point, interior pictures are unnecessary anymore. Now if you can just “maintain” yourself, all rooms are converted. Even the car  has been covered, and probably converted.

These photographs have so much artistry in them, and such a unique point of view. The detail shot of the concrete is inspiring me. As a bonus, you will not be able to leave the house by car twice a day. If you want to walk however, the school has crossing guards.

Now wait, this house is Special.  It has been maintain by sellers, something one rarely finds in buying a house from them.

Bunus: the reason this house was withdrawn is that it got foreclosed on April 2nd. 

Thanks very much to Burbed reader sonarrat for this essential elegance in East San Jose! 

1613 ORLEANS Dr
San Jose, CA 95122
$300,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,283
$/SQ. FT.: $234
LOT SIZE: 5,562 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Contemporary
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1968
COMMUNITY: Alum Rock
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81200318
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 98 days

nothing

There simply are no other words for how awesome this listing is.  Or exactly how much this agent is willing to do to sell it.

Burbed reader Petsmart Groomer week continues, this time right in the heart of San Jose!  No, not downtown, silly.  Santa Row!  The Real San Jose!

334 SANTANA Row #300
San Jose, CA 95128
$1,298,000

BEDS: 2
BATHS: 2.5
SQ. FT.: 2,042
$/SQ. FT.: $636
HOA DUES: $620/month
LOT SIZE: 435 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Condominium
STYLE: Modern/High Tech
STORIES: 1-3 (Low Rise)
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 2002
COMMUNITY: Campbell
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81202429
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 77 days

Santana Row Villa space at a great loft price! Over 2,000 sf on just 2 floors! ~$200k in upgrades, including, remodeled kitchen with high end all-European appliances, remodeled bathrooms with Japanese soaking tub, 3 parking spaces, and more.

Burbed has visited Santana Row before, and it was thanks to PG that we discovered something very exciting about the real estate over there: All of the Santana Row condos that sold new in 2005 and ‘06 have dropped around 40% in value since then.  That article last May featured twenty separate units for sale or recently sold, and all but one of them showed some homedebtors taking pretty serious haircuts.

All but one.  This one.  Because this one is Special.  It’s so Special, you can still get it at the 2011 asking price!  How’s that for Special?  It’s so Special that despite selling new for $996,000 in the wild, heady, bubbly days of June, 2006, and despite the $200K in upgrades, it’s now worth more than $300K than it was six years ago!  Or at least this seller thinks that’s the best way to recover all those monthly $600 HOA fees.

This unit does come with three parking spaces, which is one thing in limited quantities here.  We suggest you snap this place up for that reason alone.  You’ll make your investment back within ten years just from renting out the spaces.

Somewhere in the Great Temporary Handover of This Site, there was a Twitter account with our name on it.  Unfortunately, it must have fallen between the couch cushions when we were rearranging the boxes of light bulbs and Drano.  That’s too bad, because Burbed reader Swan has found the perfect house  for those who need to make every letter count.

Please welcome Swan to the front page as today’s guest blogger with this compelling Campbell/San Jose casa!

3226 RIDDLE Rd
San Jose, CA 95117
$568,888

BEDS: 4
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,646
$/SQ. FT.: $344
LOT SIZE: 7,956 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1948
COMMUNITY: Campbell
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81205068
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 49 days

Gorgus inside:Brit/chesfl!tstflly remdle/update in modern style * Kit w/ track li, doubl-sink, grden windo . . * Huge clasy hal ba w/ jet tub, sep stal shower, dubl-sink, sky li . .. * Lrg Ms BR w/ slid dr to nuly lanscap B-yd * Nu fenc in Mar. * Wk-In Clset * Shor * 2-pane windos * Butifl wod fl * Tiled bath/kit/dining fl * nuer stov/roof/heater/drway . . * Recnt int/ext/paint. .. much mor * Convnt loc nr Santana Row/ W-field *

Oh my…I realize we are fast paced society who wants everything in Tweets of 140 characters or less.  But this realtard takes abbreviations to a whole new level. 

I teach elementary school and have seen some odd spelling skills in my time, but some of these I can’t even decipher.  For example, "chesfl!tstflly."  What is that?

Gud thng the hous is on Ridl Rd, bc the rite up is a ridl.  Bunus:  8s in the pris. .. . & nr santa rw!

Njoy!

Here’s a really hot number for you, direct from San Jose!  Thanks very much to Burbed reader Melanie for finding this smoking good deal in Almaden Valley!

6324 LILLIAN Way
San Jose, CA 95120
$499,900

BEDS: 4
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,350
$/SQ. FT.: $370
LOT SIZE: 6,000 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Ranch
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Mountains, Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1962
COMMUNITY: Almaden Valley
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81208134
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 19 days

Rare opportunity for a complete home renovation in Almaden Valley. Home had a garage fire in August 2011 but the tastefully remodeled bathrooms and bedrooms are intact. Kitchen also has newer cabinets and counters. Great location close to Almaden Expressway and shopping on a quiet street with pride of ownership. Bring your contractor & inspiration to transform this property back to a family home.

Some places merely claim pride of ownership, but this one is living it.  Because nothing says pride of ownership like this garage.  All you have to do is transform this property back to a family home.

Anyone wonder what it was serving as before the garage fire?

Here’s the cached text from Trulia; it’s a little different now that the home went on the market:

Bank owned property. It had a fire in the garage, damage extends into the home. The price is an estimate by the agent since it is not currently on the market. Get an opportunity to view this home before all the other competition! Cash buyers only. — Buyer’s only to inquire about this property. If you are a realtor, this home will be on the market soon. Viewing and questions answered at that time. If you would like to be on the call back list feel free to send us an email.

Looking for something a little easy on the budget?  This house doesn’t cost a lot of money.  Thanks very much to Burbed reader sonarrat for this fine find in San Jose: a prewar cottage right in the middle of everything!

878 N 4th St
San Jose, CA 95112
$495,000

BEDS: 2
BATHS: 1
SQ. FT.: 832
$/SQ. FT.: $595
LOT SIZE: 6,850 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 1
YEAR BUILT: 1939
COMMUNITY: Central San Jose
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81149902
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 101 days

Charming 2 bedroom 1 bath home located in Hyde Park. Detached 2 car garage, wood burning fire place, hardwood floors, dining room and interior laundry. Located near parks, schools, shopping and downtown amenities. 101, 880 and light rail nearby. Large lot with room to expand. Do not disturb tenants.

This lawn sure doesn’t suggest it’s in the middle of a city of just under a million people, does it?  Why, this could be the suburbs anywhere, provided they were building suburbs in 1939.

Love the handy waste receptacles!

But why didn’t the agent mention the magnet middle school across the street, guaranteeing lots of traffic coming in from all over San Jose?  Plus, if you want to enroll your child in any program in SJ Unified School district, just hop across idyllic 4th Street, as this school doubles as a year-round enrollment center!  You’ll be first in line, and you can always sneak back home to refill your thermos!

Here’s another big-lot big-win find from Burbed reader Tracy!  And this one has been off-market long enough that most of the usual listing sites didn’t have the listing photos anymore.  Good thing there’s always Movoto, keeping them available so you can decide if you want to rent this puppy.

3010 Jenkins Ave
San Jose, CA 95118
$1,100,000; Reduced from $1,200,000 after 2 months
Off market since February 5, 2012

Price: $1,100,000
Bedrooms: 4
Bathrooms: 2
Size: 2,767 sqft
Type: Single Family House
Year Built: 1950
Lot Size: 20,196
Days on Movoto: 124 days
MLS#: 81147324
Status: Expired
Views: 2

Off the market to be rented. Wonderful 1 story on 1/2 acre, brick fireplace, Lots of charm & ready for your touch. Tall windows and sliders line the F/R and hallway overlooking the lush backyard & covered patio. Tile entry, hardwood floors Oversized new drvwy to 2car, plus detached garage. Hedges and trees offer privacy. New roof, new walk way, copper plumbing, updated wiring too! Regular sale!

Tracy called this a “mid-century half acre Japanese farm,” but you’ll just call it Burbedelicious!  And the more you look at these pictures, the more you realize that this property photographer really should have taken a different career path into fine arts.  This is some seriously disruptive work!

For instance, delightful juxtapositions of lush and sere, idyllic and workaday, shaded and exposed, continually inform this paradoxical collage that is all of one and the same property.  Note the clever reflection of the utility pole shadow with its power cable above.  Brilliant!

This pairing achieves the same discordance: concrete concrete versus idealized landscape.  One nice touch is the clever contrast of shade on the garage, versus bright sun on the trees at the upper left.

The two previous diptychs cannot prepare the viewer for this partnership: A hint of the verdant yard from the dank interior, and the grounds with HDR turned up to 11.  Wowza!

And it’s going to stay at 11, whether or not there is any furniture in the picture!  Tell me, have you ever seen heavy HDR with an empty room before?  Is this mid-century minimalism?

Okay, now it’s your turn!  Compare and contrast!

Here is an extra-credit problem for those of you who find this too easy.

And I will leave you with this riddle to ponder: which is worth more, the stove at left, the computer at right, or all of these photos?

San Jose: Crews use huge trucks to clear junk from hoarder home

By Mark Gomez, San Jose Mercury News
Posted:   03/15/2012 06:24:40 AM PDT, Updated:   03/15/2012 08:03:03 AM PDT

Crews were in their second day at a San Jose home removing mountains of debris so massive that workers used two hauling trucks, each capable of carrying 72,380 pounds of material, to get the job done.

As of Wednesday morning, they still hadn’t made their way into the backyard.

The extreme makeover at 226 S. Claremont Ave. began Tuesday after a vote last month by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors to declare the residence a public nuisance. The piles of junk, garbage and other items, including worn out bicycles, car tires and animal cages, had become so vast that it was visible from satellite photos.

The cleanup, which is expected to take about five days, ends a years-long struggle for neighbors who live in the otherwise well-kept neighborhood located off Alum Rock Avenue.

Thanks very much to Burbed reader Tracy Tea House, who had sent in an earlier story about the residents complaining about the massive piles of garbage at this house.  Looks like once this story hit both what’s left of a newspaper as well as on KGO-7 television news, the County finally took action.

Neighbors have been trying to have the grounds cleaned up since 2005.  Cleanup orders and fines were ignored by Richard Baker, the 58 year old son of the registered homeowners.  People fortunate enough to live near this local attraction suggested that Richard might be a few hundred square feet short of a McMansion.

Robert and Bessie Baker, Richard Baker’s parents, have both been deceased for ten years, so management of the house was transferred to the Office of the Public Guardian.  This agency will be responsible for inventorying whatever is in the house, as opposed to the mountains of garbage outside mostly headed for the landfill.  Anything of value inside or out would be saved for the Bakers’ estate, over and above this valuable residence.  In addition to Richard, the Bakers also have a daughter living in Santa Cruz who was only located recently.

Richard had been living in the house while collecting treasures, but not recently.  He did show up at the County hearing to object to the the home’s being declared a public nuisance, although the neither the Murk nor KGO-7 reported on what his reasons were.  He attempted to postpone the hearing because he had been in the hospital, but was unsuccessful. We’d guess the County’s embarrassment over things getting to this point trumped a hospital stay.  Remember all those fines Richard blew off?  Guess they did.

Okay, enough rewording the newspaper and TV articles.  Let’s have a look at this house.

Better have a good look at the driveway, too.

Wow, the Streetviews actually look worse than the satellite view.  And someone updated this record recently even though the house wasn’t for sale.

So here’s a way Richard (right) and his sister (who had the sense not to show up when cameras were rolling) could save even more money.  We know the County’s going to stick them with that clean-up bill, so every little bit is going to help!

Thanks for the advice, Trulia!  Anyway, do you have a neighbor building a fortification on the front lawn like this?  Tell us about it in today’s Weekend Open Thread!