Here’s another great find from Burbed reader sonarrat.  Imagine, this house just like living in toney La Jolla, CA, only it’s actually in Alum Rock so you’ll save a couple hundred bucks.  Plus your commute to Facebook is much, much shorter.

52 N White Rd, San Jose, CA 95127
$590,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,526
$/SQ. FT.: $387
LOT SIZE: 5,220 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Mediterranean
STORIES: 1
YEAR BUILT: 1927
COMMUNITY: Alum Rock
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81055565
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 74 days

Super Location/Near James Lick HS, Alum Rock Library . .. Remodeled!Light Peach and Green Mediterranean Style Home, Copied from an Oceanfront house in La Jolla, CA call listing Agent to show. .Tenant Occupied. Best Offer will be considered

Here’s what sonarrat has to say about this house: “I just.. uh… what the f—????”

What the fail indeed!  I’m just glad the agent told us it’s a Light Peach and Green Mediterranean Style Home, because from the photo I thought it was a cream and crud crapbox.  Now let’s check out that Super Location!

“Near James Lick HS?”  James Lick HS’s address is 57 N White Rd.  So this is kind of like how Red Rock Island is “near” SF Bay.  Don’t plan on leaving the house when school starts, ends, or has any sporting events.  According to greatschools.com, their big sport is badminton.

Now let’s get a few more views of the house since the Realtard didn’t want to get out of her car.

Okay, I see the Green, but that still doesn’t look like Light Peach, unless she’s talking about the roof.  And my, my, look at those, um, bold, yes, bold power lines in front.

Plus a pickup truck around the corner!  What’s that classic 70s muscle car parked at the fence break?

Oh, please say the garage is included!  It matches the paint job, and you’ll make loads of money towing the neighbors’ cars when they block it.

And don’t worry if it isn’t your garage, it looks like your next-door neighbor can rent you a parking space.  Wow, this really is just like living at the beach in La Jolla!

10495 CROTHERS Rd San Jose, CA 95127

$380,000

Beds:	3
Baths:	2.5
Sq. Ft.:	2,352
$/Sq. Ft.:	$162
Lot Size:	1.63 Acres
Property Type:	Detached Single Family
Style:	Contemporary
Stories:	1
View:	Valley
Year Built:	1925
Community:	Alum Rock
County:	Santa Clara
MLS#:	81036177
Source:	MLSListings
Status:	ActiveThis listing is for sale and the sellers are accepting offers.
On Redfin:	173 days

Property is on a hill, which provides a great view of the city and the valley. Off Mt. Hamilton Rd. country styled area, modern home on a flag lot. Plenty of room to roam around. Home has been newly rebuilt in the recent years. Unique floor plan. MUST SEE! SELLER LOOKING FOR AS-IS OFFERS. Please DO NOT disturb next door neighbor (pink house behind subject).

Hm… what do we have going on here? A recently rebuilt house with…

mismatching appliances…

… and columns to make it classsssy. How peculiar!

Fortunately, Burbed reader T has the inside scoop on this house! Take it away T!

Hi Burbed, I have been house hunting every day for 7 months and been
involved in two short sales so far… so I read Burbed and I love your
blog…And,  I keep seeing this house

10495 CROTHERS RD San Jose – Other, CA 95127 ( Mt Hamilton, Alum rock)
Which I have gone to see. If you ever need a house that has so many
complications and its price is about 1/3 of what it started at… This is
it. Bizarre story included, which is not listed in the agent copy. I got it
from the son of the sister.

Brother and sister split a lot there were two small 1940s houses on it. They
share utilities…Brother remodeled front house ( by himself) kind of a
“bury the old house.” His house is a Persian palace style, including palm
trees. He did nothing about the old foundation which the house fell off of.
He did not have the money to remedy.They may have other complications like
sharing more then utilities, driveway and yard.

When I first started looking it was listed near $800,000 I think.  Of course by this point, everyone probably has looked at this house that is looking in the East Hills! I am sure your readership is very broad though, and it is an interesting story of a house gone wrong. Of course the story is hearsay at this point.

It is for sale for $380. Now… foreclosed. A good deal?

Wow talk about a soap opera. Personally, I think this is a great deal in that you could buy it and turn it into the next Winchester Mystery House (ignoring the fact this house is one of the 101 Places Not To See Before You Die [alongside with BART]).

Come on, it’s got columns! This has got to be a good deal!

1051 S WHITE Rd San Jose, CA 95127

$375,000

Beds:	2
Baths:	1
Sq. Ft.:	1,088
$/Sq. Ft.:	$345
Lot Size:	10,080 Sq. Ft.
Property Type:	Detached Single Family
Style:	Ranch
Stories:	1
View:	Neighborhood
Year Built:	1951
Community:	Alum Rock
County:	Santa Clara
MLS#:	80945706
Source:	MLSListings
Status:	ActiveThis listing is for sale and the sellers are accepting offers.
On Redfin:	473 days

DO NOT DISTURB TENANTS. NO MATTER HOW INTERESTED YOU ARE !! THIS MEANS YOU !! Not a short sale. Fixer upper on large lot w. frontage to White Rd. Future commercial potential. Circular driveway, lot size is 70ft. by 145 ft. Recently annexed into City of SJ. Great New Potential !!

Wow… I can just picture it now. Tour bus load after tour bus load of tourists from China and India, stopping by, disturbing the tenants, all desperate to buy this house.

Wait a minute… haven’t we seen this before?

March 4, 2010

Affordable housing, or commercial real estate in East San Jose

1051 S WHITE Rd Sa
n Jose, CA 95127

$375,000

But hey, now it’s been annexed into the City of San Jose! (What was it previously?)

But whatever you do…. don’t disturb the tenants you desperate uncouth buyer you!

Today’s post is from Burbed reader sonarrat.  Let’s give sonarrat a warm, Real Bay Area welcome.

I was just thinking about a classic Burbed listing – the San Jose cubicle house. Whatever happened to it?

Now…

480 S Capitol Ave, San Jose, CA 95127
$360,000

 

Beds: 3
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,056
$/Sq. Ft.: $341
Lot Size: 5,400 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Ranch, Traditional
Stories: 1
View: Mountains, Neighborhood
Year Built: 1951
Community: Alum Rock
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81016789
Source: MLSListings
Status: Sold

COMPLETELY REMODELED THROUGHOUT, GLEAMING HARDWOOD, DESIGNER TILE, NEW DUAL PANE, GOURMET KITCHEN, AMAZING BATHROOMS w/ CUSTOM VANITIES, ITALIAN TILE, TOP OF LINE FIXTURES, NEW 200 AMP PANEL & CUSTOM LIGHTING, ALL NEW COPPER PLUMBING, FRESH PAINT, SKYLIGHTS, PROFESSIONALLY LANDSCAPED w/ BEAUTIFUL ARBOR, LAWN & SHRUBS & MUCH MUCH MORE. SPACIOUS INLAW UNIT w/ SIDE ACCESS. DONT MISS THIS TURN KEY HOME

Then…

Unfortunately, it looks like we’ve all missed the bottom already. Look at the sales history.

Sold for $628K at the peak, gutted and fitted with cubicles. Foreclosed 2007. Sold to an investor for $276K the next year.

Fixed up over the next five months, rented out for $2200 a month.

Then sold for $345K, then sold 4 months later for $369K.

11/07/2010  Sold *  $369,000  7.0%  $246  —

06/30/2010  Sold  $345,000  -3.9%  $230  Public Record    Flag transactionClose

04/07/2010  Listed for sale *  $359,000  16,218%  $239  Agent  

10/25/2008  Listing removed *  $2,200  –  $1  Postlets 

10/11/2008  Listed for sale *  $2,200  -99.2%  $1  Postlets  

05/29/2008  Sold  $276,000  -1.4%  $184  Public Record 

03/19/2008  Listed for sale *  $365,500  -20.5%  $243  Intero Commercial  

03/06/2008  Listing removed *  $459,900  –  $306  –  

09/18/2007  Listed for sale *  $459,900  -26.8%  $306  Agent  

06/19/2006  Sold  $628,000  28.2%  $418  Public Record 

So if you’re looking at houses in East San Jose – ship has sailed! Sorry!

$80,000

259 N CAPITOL Ave #291 San Jose, CA 95127

Beds:	1
Baths:	1
Sq. Ft.:	777
$/Sq. Ft.:	$103
Lot Size:	1,742 Sq. Ft.
Property Type:	Condominium
Style:	Contemporary
Stories:	1-3 (Low Rise)
View:	Neighborhood
Year Built:	1977
Community:	Alum Rock
County:	Santa Clara
MLS#:	81048882
Source:	MLSListings
Status:	ActiveThis listing is for sale and the sellers are accepting offers.
On Redfin:	38 days

It’s Black Friday! And I think we all know what this means! DEALS DEALS DEALS!

Now go out there and serve your nation by consuming consuming and consuming some more!

To celebrate Black Friday, for the next few days, Burbed is going to feature the cheapest properties around. This happens to be the cheapest home in all of Santa Clara county – wowsers! At just $80k, you could easily charge this on your credit card!

This place is so packed with value that there’s not even a description! That’s right! They’ve passed the savings on to you!

No need to wait in lines folks, for silly deals. This is the best deal in the Bay Area!

Here’s a burbed featured listing from last November.  This condo is as low-priced as a 13-year-old trailer mobile home, and it’s moving about as quickly.  The Alum Rock townhouse-style unit was $99,000 then, and it’s still at that same bargain price now!

Here’s where the rubber meets the road.  Eleven months later: same photos, same price, same description.  The only thing that’s changed is the number of days on Redfin.

2137 Luz Ave  San Jose, CA 95116
$99,000

Beds: 2
Baths: 1.5
Sq. Ft.: 956
$/Sq. Ft.: $104
Lot Size: 871 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Condominium
Stories: 1-3 (Low Rise)
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 1973
Community: Alum Rock
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80942348
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 404 days

Affordable townhouse!!! Perfect for first time buyers or investor. Kitchen-tile counter, wood cabinets, and new tile bathroom floor. Close to freeways, stores and hospital.

Good thing it’s close to the hospital.  This isn’t exactly the safest part of San Jose, but at this price, why would you care?  You could afford to live in the intensive-care unit full-time with how much you’d save compared to the Real Bay Area (RBA).  Plus, with all the Section 8 apartments around, nobody at the hospital would bother running your credit if you told them you can’t afford health insurance.

Something else changed too.  Looks like the FB and the agent were having some differences of opinion.

Last November, the condo was “30 year fixed mortgage of $425 and the HOA of $280.”  But now, with interest rates down, your mortgage will be even less!  Think the homeowner fees have gone much since last year?

And you can save even more, because:

If this place isn’t worth Redfin’s time, it’s got to be worth somebody’s!  It sold for $389,500 in 2006. That means there’s more than a quarter million in instant equity waiting for you to unlock it!  What are you waiting for?  Somebody might buy that foosball table any minute!

burbed reader sonarrat is back with another unpretentious property in a zip code that’s never been called Real Bay Area (RBA).  sonarrat’s comment on this listing:

What kind of business would you put in this colorful neighborhood?

Let’s see what colorful delights await.

1657 Alum Rock San Jose, CA 95116
$649,999

Beds: 4
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 1,176
$/Sq. Ft.: $553
Lot Size: 0.83 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: 1 House on Lot, Detached
STORIES: 1
Year Built: 1928
Community: San Jose
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 10036818
Source: MetroList
Status: Active 
On Redfin: 156 days

MIXED USE property, retail space upfront and SFR in the back. Motivated seller. see also listing # 10036818

Did you look up the other listing?  I’ll just wait here while you do that.  Also I’m calling shenanigans on the lot size.  Have a look at the neighborhood:

Wouldn’t you say the property appears to be the smallest visible in this aerial view?  So either commercial space on State Route 130 is quite generous, or the agent’s description of the lot size as 0.83 acres is wildly off from the 90 x 40 foot description in the listing detail.  An acre is 43,560 square feet, 0.83 acre is 36,155 sf.  90 x 40 feet is 3600 square feet.  Wow, that’s a 900% error.  I think the technical term for this is “wrong.”

In addition, the cross street for this Alum Rock Ave address is given as “Alum Rock,” the school information, for both Elementary, Junior High, and High School, is “Other,” for that matter so are the Bathrooms, Heating and Cooling, and it says the lot has a gravel road.  But speaking of what kind of business could be here, there’s already a link to another blog post on the Redfin site.  It’s for raw dog food.  I am not even going to ask.

There have been a number of requests that burbed stop with the high-priced houses, and return to its roots.  That means “scrapers in the ‘hood,” and today’s featured property qualifies on both counts.  But the price will definitely surprise you.

14335 Story Road, San Jose 95127
$1,199,950

Beds: 3
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 1,474
$/Sq. Ft.: $814
Lot Size: 0.78 Acres
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Traditional
Stories: 1
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 1930
Community: Alum Rock
County: Santa Clara
MLS#: 80778197
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 964 days

May have the ability to develope multiple units!

Wonder why the agent may, but didn’t, have the ability to develope multiple photos?  Especially because they went through all the trouble of setting up a virtual tour. There’s more descriptive copy in this link.  Are you ready, because I’m going to post all of it. It’s a bit of a teal deer, sorry.

3 beds, 1 bath, 1474 sf on a 34,000 sf lot. Large lot perfect for possible PUD and or multiple units adjacent to National Hispanic University. Buyers duty to confirm.

Did somebody buyers have to confirm it’s “adjacent to National Hispanic University”?  Isn’t this photo good enough?

Plus, there’s nine more pictures to drool over, every single one of them outdoors.  Here’s my favorite:

I love that weird glow around the trees.  Someone’s been playing with Photoshop!  Maybe you can buy this property and play Develope!  Put in that multiple property PUD thing, throw up a dozen scrapers, and start evicting deadbeat tenants now!

Want a private and spectacular estate for less money than yesterday’s building pad farm?  You can’t have it.  It’s been delisted.

10264 MERKLEY Row  San Jose, CA 95127
$1,199,900

BEDS: 5
BATHS: 4.5
SQ. FT.: 4,416
$/SQ. FT.: $272
LOT SIZE: 2.22 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 2
VIEW: Mountains, Neighborhood, Valley, City Lights
YEAR BUILT: 1990
COMMUNITY: Alum Rock
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81024704
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 5 days

* BANK OWNED/REO * Private, grand and elegant gated estate nestled on an approximately 2.2 acre parcel w/ breathtaking panoramic views of the Santa Clara Valley floor and neighboring mountain ranges. Large open rooms, guest quarters, library/office and a large master retreat. All non all cash offers must be accompanied by a Bank of America pre-qual. AS IS sale!

Today’s non-listing has plenty of questions it doesn’t want to answer.  Maybe the readers of burbed can figure them out!

Why was this lovely property taken off the market?  The homedebtors paid $1,715,000 for it at the peak of the market for non-RBA properties.  Then some trust fund snapped it up from the bank last December for $775,625, which is probably what was owed on the mortgage.  Here’s the really weird thing.  The property was listed on May 18th and delisted on May 25th.

What flavor of Kool-Aid made this property worth $1.7M in 2006?

What did the FBs do to the place that the property was being sold AS IS?  The house was built in 1990-91 with a quality level of 9.0, so this is not new but incomplete construction.  Perhaps we are talking about new and incomplete destruction.

Is the location so non-RBA that the high quality of the construction and the private, grand and elegant gated estate nestled on 2.2 acres with breathtaking panoramic views comes down to lipstick on a pig?

How come only Bank of America pre-qualifications were acceptable on this foreclosure?  Is this some kind of inside job?  Is there a whiff of funny business to this property?

Why is the Trulia listing only for 4416 sf but the Redfin one presents 5227?  Is that why the property was AS IS?  Are we to believe that someone bought a 4400+ sf property on 2+ acres and decided it wasn’t big enough?  And that they then managed to wreck their financial health by adding to a gated estate in Alum Rock?  But they didn’t bother getting any permits?

Is this place sold but secretly?  How did they manage to sell it with this out of focus picture?  Is it still on the market?  Where did the extra 800 square feet go?

Good luck answering these questions, especially why you cannot buy this property today.  Or whether you should have bought it in May to grab the state tax credit. Or if you’ve been – TOO LATE – priced out forever.

1051 S WHITE Rd San Jose, CA 95127

$375,000

Beds:	2
Baths:	1
Sq. Ft.:	1,088
$/Sq. Ft.:	$345
Lot Size:	10,080 Sq. Ft.
Property Type:	Detached Single Family
Style:	Ranch
Stories:	1
View:	Neighborhood
Year Built:	1951
Community:	Alum Rock
County:	Santa Clara
MLS#:	80945706
Source:	MLSListings
Status:	Active This listing is for sale and the sellers are accepting offers.
On Redfin:	145 days

Not a short sale. Fixer upper on large lot w. frontage to White Rd. Future commercial potential. DO NOT DISTURB TENANTS. Circular driveway, lot size is 70ft. by 145 ft.