October 28, 2012

Innocent Ingenues, Allergy Antagonists or School District Scammers?

Here’s a great story we found via Inside Los Gatos, and by “great” this time we actually do mean “great.”  It’s got a number of hot buttons, so fire up your righteous outrage!

Los Gatos Family Continues to Fight School

Edwards family says school won’t let their kids attend because of nut allergies. Los Gatos Union School claims the family doesn’t live in the right district

By Stephanie Chuang, NBC Bay Area, Tuesday, Oct 23, 2012, Updated 9:15 PM PDT

Edwards family says school won’t let their kids attend because of nut allergies, school claims the family doesn’t live in the right district

In a story we first told you on NBC Bay Area last Friday, the tension between one South Bay family and the Los Gatos Union School District (LGUSD) is coming to a head.

Tuesday morning, the Edwards family walked 9-year-old Ella and 7-year-old Sarah into the Van Meter Elementary school office – only to be greeted by the superintendent and two police officers.

“That’s when my heart sank, when I heard there were police officers just to prevent my girls from going to the school they belong in,” said Shuly Edwards, the girls’ mother, before she began to cry.

121026-vanmeter-ella-sarahThis story has a mom claiming her daughters have been kicked out of five different schools because of their nut allergies.  It has a district superintendent retorting the family is scamming the district because they actually live elsewhere.  It’s got threatened lawsuits. And of course, it’s got video of the girls being cute on cue. 

Due to all the highly pressurized and flammable contents, we hope this will lead to a veritable flamefight lively discussion. And just to pour some gasoline on the fire, we’ll get you going with some of the ruder observations from ILG’s own commenters.  Below is the first video, with more background on the Edwards’ nut allergy claims.

121026-vanmeter-policeHere are some of the juicier rumors from Inside Los Gatos. (Burbed provides the comment summary as-is and without any implied warranty for accuracy. Some material appearing herein may not have been meant as a factual statement.)  The photo at right is also from the blog.

  • This family has a home in Campbell mom’s sister is renting from them
  • The same family was asked to leave Mulberry School (private) because of unreasonable food demands of others; mom is a troublemaker.
  • The same mom was in a different news story about her chronic migraines (Confirmed!)
  • Van Meter Elementary already has a nut-free lunch table
  • Family provided two addresses and the first one was fictitious; were investigated for 5–6 weeks.  They have until next Wednesday to provide all paperwork or they’re out again.

We laugh at the foolish reporter in the follow-up video (top) for comparing Los Gatos Elementary to Moreland and Campbell school districts. Stephanie Chuang asked administrators at the latter two if they had ever called police to resolve a residency dispute.  As all readers of Burbed know, only Real Bay Area cities have Real Bay Area schools worth lying to get your kids into.

Comments (26) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:12 am






October 3, 2012

Messy hobby? Not enough parking? You’ll love this Los Gatos garage!

Our readers have mentioned what they’re looking for in an ideal home.  Some want a big, well-organized kitchen, some want spectacular views, some want the best school district possible.  And since Silicon Valley is We-Built-That Central, we’ve heard from many readers who want nothing more than a lot of garage and workshop space.  This lascivious Los Gatos listing, lobbed in by Burbed reader nomadic, may be where you’ll end up dropping your tools, banging your head, and having the time of your life.

Oh yeah, there’s supposedly a house somewhere on the property.

121002-harwood-redfin119 HARWOOD Ct
Los Gatos, CA 95032
$2,895,000

5 Beds 
5 Baths 
5,361 Sq. Ft.
$540 / Sq. Ft.
Built: 1987 
Lot Size: 1.49 Acres 
On Redfin: 20 days
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Stories: Bi/Split Level
Community: Los Gatos/Monte Sereno
MLS#: 81233794
Style: Mediterranean
View: City Lights
County: Santa Clara

Under Construction! Unique opportunity to complete construction to your own taste. Serene setting next to natural open space & trails. Mediterranean home, 4 BR & 3.5 BA (2 BRs are suits with Jacuzzi), sweeping city light views from all rooms. High ceilings & skylights bring lots of natural light. SF includes separate guest unit(960 SF) w/ 1 BR & 1.5 BA * Unit has 4 car garages. Total 7 car garages.

121002-harwood-viewHere’s why nomadic sent in the gorgeous garage (with ginormous garrison).

A trunkey Mediterranean (sic)! 7 car garages (huh?) 2 of the bedrooms are suits with Jacuzzis (how do you keep the water out of your shoes?)

Purchased at the height of the bubble for $2.3M, now in the “middle of remodeling” and the seller is trying for $2.9M.  Comparing with the 2008 listing, it looks like they added 1500sf, but I suspect that’s the size of the “guest house” because looking at the site, it doesn’t appear that they’ve expanded the house.  The bedroom/bath counts match up with the old 2008 listing too.

121002-harwood-listing-2008I go past this house regularly, and it seems like they’ve been working on the new tile roof for at least a year.  I figured the owner was doing it himself and was low on cash. 

Alas, the listing doesn’t show the garage as it goes through construction.  Instead, all we get are exterior shots such as this smoggy and obstructed view of Milpitas, except there’s a bunch of buildings blocking The Great Mall.  (The photo at right is from the aforementioned old listing.)

121002-harwood-construction-nomadicFortunately, nomadic took some actual on-site pictures!  Ready?

As promised, here are the pictures of the current state of the house on Harwood.  It’s kind of bizarre that he started putting pavers down for the driveway and quit part way through.  Usually you can put them in pretty quickly once the hard part (the base and leveling) is done.

The guest house (bottom left) looks kind of abandoned, just like the main house.  The view from the main house is pretty good; you can see Communications Hill (no big deal) and downtown San Jose.

121002-harwood-guest-nomadic121002-harwood-driveway-nomadic 

121002-harwood-view-nomadic

Still can’t see the Great Mall.  Might as well go back to the garage and enjoy that seller financing.

Comments (13) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:06 am

September 30, 2012

Kittehz 4 Sale on ur haiwhey

Here’s a property coming on the market that you don’t see every day.  The Cats estate in Los Gatos is for sale.  It’s right off Highway 17 just a mile south of downtown Los Gatos, next to the The Cats Restaurant & Tavern.  Thanks very much to Burbed reader Kir from Inside Los Gatos for passing this item along.

120929-cats-sothebys

More info, and videos, are at the agent’s site.  The property is nine separate parcels consisting of over 75 acres of land, with three different originally built houses.  Views galore, of course.  It can be yours for $8,995,000.

120929-cats-platFacts and Features

Main House:

3985 Square Feet
Built in 1925
5 Bedrooms
4 Bathrooms
Remarkable Valley Views
Finished Basement-perfect for wine cellar
View Amphitheater
Terraced Courtyard
Famous collection of notable “attached” art work

Additional Buildings:

The Gatehouse
The Poet’s Cottage
The Ranch
The Geodesic Dome
The Teacher’s House
…more

Additional Features:

Gated entry featuring the famous Stone Cats
Riding/biking trails
Poet’s Canyon
The secret benches
The round bench
Superb acreage for horses
Natural splendor, a photographer’s paradise
Natural springs
Suitable for vineyards
120929-cats-gatehouseMountain, valley and lake views

Chain of ownership:

1920-1955
Charles Erskine Scott Wood & Sara Bard Field
1955-1960
Fred G. Hampton
1960-Current
Ogilvie Family

Does nine million seem like the right price for a property like this?  Think of all the fun you’ll have with everyone who ever knew you in elementary school dropping by because “they were in the neighborhood.”

This is the gatehouse above right.  Below is the main house.

120929-cats-main

All these pictures were snagged from the videos on Duane Adam’s site.  Below left is a view inside the main house, and below right is the Poet’s Cottage.  The latter gives just a taste of the views from the property.  Plenty more in the videos, plus footage from the 1930s!

120929-cats-inside120929-cats-poets

Watch the daughter of the current owner get all choked up over the property being sold.  She says whoever gets the property will be “very lucky,” so why didn’t they price it at $8,888,888?

One thing we did discover that isn’t on Adam’s site: the actual address.  If you bought the Cats Estate, you’ll be receiving your mail at 17525 Santa Cruz Hwy, Los Gatos, CA 95033

Comments (9) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:06 am

September 7, 2012

Excellent Los Gatos and San Jose Public & Private Schools

And we’ll finish up this shortened week of accommodation awesomeness with some new construction in Los Gatos!  Thanks very much to Burbed reader nomadic for yet another example of Truth in Real Estate!

120906-panorama-redfin116 PANORAMA Way
Los Gatos, CA 95032
$1,999,000

4 Beds 
3.5 Baths 
3,000 Sq. Ft.
$666 / Sq. Ft.
Built: 2012 
Lot Size: 10,100 Sq. Ft. 
On Redfin: 126 days
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Stories: 2
Community: Los Gatos/Monte Sereno
MLS#: 81216707
Style: French, Mediterranean
View: Mountains
County: Santa Clara

New Construction. Excellent Floor Plan; Gourmet Kitchen with Custom paint & glazed Cabinets with Professional grade Bosch Appliances; Walk-in Pantry; Alarmed Security Systems; Smart Wired for CATV/HDTV & custom audio system; Laundry with custom built Cabinets with Granite Countertops & skylight.

120906-panorama-tubNot another one of those backwards houses!  And by backwards we mean a “luxury” type McMansion that has an impressive address, but forgot to bring the school district along for the ride.  Let nomadic explain:

New construction for a premium in the slums of Los Gatos!

I’m calling them out because on the “features” tab it says: “Excellent Los Gatos and San Jose Public & Private Schools.”  They must be referring to private schools in Los Gatos, because the public schools (while quite good) are in the Union Elementary and Campbell Union High School districts.

120906-panorama-virtual-tour-features

120906-panorama-streetview-from-unionRedfin has the location all wrong for these houses on the Google map, which makes me think they’re taking liberties with the lot sizes too.  If you look on the map and pan down Union Avenue to just north of Leewood Court, you can see the two of them nuzzled together on the construction site. 

Wow, it looks AWFUL on the satellite view – worse than the view from Union. 

120906-panorama-redmap

The better-looking but much too close companion chateau finally went Pending a couple of weeks ago.  And given how lovey-dovey these two homes are, who wants to guess that the lot size of 10,500 is for both of them?  (Lot size of 117 is conveniently provided in acres to make comparisons quick and easy!  That’s 11,326 sf.  You’re welcome.)

Comments (10) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:04 am

August 29, 2012

Dome, Dome on the (Coast) Range

120828-bear-microbusIt’s time to put on your hemp sandals and splash with a bit of patchouli oil, because we’re driving the VW Microbus up the long and winding road to a groovy getaway.  Thanks very much to mystic crystal hip chick and Burbed reader Tracy Tea House for this psychedelic shack in the Santa Cruz mountains!

21864 Bear Creek Road
Los Gatos CA 95033
$999,000

120828-bear-trulia

120828-bear-houseBedrooms: 5 
Bathrooms: 3 full, 1 partial 
98 days on Trulia
1,515 views
Property type: Single-Family Home
Size: 4,426 sqft
Lot: Ask agent
Price/sqft: $226/sqft
Year built: 1983
MLS/ID: 81219243
Zip: 95033
Provided by: californiamoves.com

This home appraised last March for $1,050,000! Want a “green” home? 120828-bear-livingYour geodesic dome has efficient wood heating, solar hot water, R30 insulation, PGandE bills of less than $60/month!! 164 acres feels like a kingdom. Great potential for horses, vineyards, hiking or just getting away to relax. Wonderful decks for entertaining. Outstanding views. Los Gatos Schools. Please do not drive-by.

The home may have a Los Gatos mailing address, but just like its 1960s architectural influence, it sits proudly on the Santa Cruz side of the County Line.  There is no doubt this is an authentic hippie pad, or at least that it could have been.  Too bad it was built in 1983.

Here’s what Tracy had to say about this geodesic goody.

120828-bear-low-ceilingI just love a good dome! This one features… Logging roads! Don’t drive by. In fact if this was my dome, I might never be able to leave. I’d get a few horses, some vineyards and watch the view. Working in the valley… forget about it. At 999 it’s a little high for a second mountain home, maybe when it gets down to 888???

120828-bear-bong-useA little high.  Snort.  Don’t bogie the bong.  Share.  Peace, man. 

Oh that sky, it’s, it’s, it’s… it’s the HDR processing that makes the blue so intense and the horizon so actinic.  Or maybe this is really bad acid.

Feels like a kingdom already.

Comments (10) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:08 am

May 1, 2012

There is nothing wrong with any house that price cannot fix

Remember the above and remember it well if you are trying to buy or sell a house.  Here’s an example from Los Gatos from Burbed reader nomadic!  Thanks very much.

Remember, if you have a listing that you think belongs on the front page, please send it in to one of our emails on the right hand column.  “Bunus” points if you let us know why you’re sharing it.

104 HARWOOD Ct
Los Gatos, CA 95032
$2,099,000

120429-harwood-redfin

BEDS: 4
BATHS: 4
SQ. FT.: 4,146
$/SQ. FT.: $506
HOA DUES: $23/month
LOT SIZE: 1.01 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Tudor
STORIES: 2
VIEW: City Lights
YEAR BUILT: 1981
COMMUNITY: Los Gatos/Monte Sereno
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81146396
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Pending Without Release
ON REDFIN: 177 days

JUST REDUCED PRICE by $400k!Enjoy striking 180 degree views from this hilltop Tudor mansion. Formal dining room has sculptured ceilings, soffet, hrdwd floors. Kitchen open & bright w/ walnut plank wood floors. Freshly painted interior. Approx. 350sft studio (could be additional 2 car garage)Backyard has wrap around deck, built in spa, garden, landscaped w/ many fruit trees. Top Union Schl

120429-harwood-deckHere’s what nomadic had to say when sending in this 834-square-feet-too-small-to-merit-the-ginormous-tag tumor.

Check out the last 3 pictures in this listing (#23-25).

“Agent related to Seller” – $400k price reduction, kitchen and baths need to be gutted, and HDR at its worst.  Nice combo. 

I 120429-harwood-citylightswas actually looking at this house because I thought it was a REO, but I guess it isn’t.  And this definitely isn’t the RBA!  Twenty years later they’re trying to eke out a price double.  You won’t have to worry about this house going pending before you feature it.

Au contraire mon frère! It indeed went pending before we featured it! The market is hot, I tell you, hot, hot, hot!

120429-harwood-the-hdr-it-hurts

But OMG look at that HDR.

In case you don’t know what HDR is, have a look at this recent article where we covered the joy of High Dynamic Range as used in real estate photography.    And it’s no coincidence whatsoever that that example of what not to do with HDR is also in Los Gatos.

In particular, look for the odd glow whenever sky meets, well, anything else.  See how the tree on the left is emitting some serious Cherenkov radiation?  Maybe those Los Gatos Mountains have an actinium mine below.  Or maybe whoever bought this house, before moving in, needs to do a radon test.

120429-harwood-kitchen

At right is another egregious example of bad HDR in the listing photos.  Look at the windows.  Notice the dark ovals in the middle?  That’s what’s actually outside.  The HDR process created the lighter artifacts around the inside of the window frames.

Holy crap, when was that kitchen last done?  It’s got tiled countertops.  Better get some glittery hair gel to go with.

Now check out the bathroom.

120429-harwood-bathroom

Does something here look kind of familiar?

Can’t quite put a finger on it, but this bathroom photo is producing some serious déjà vu.  Or maybe in this case, déjà vomutu.

Bunus: HOA fees!

What do you predict this house finally sold for after half a year?  And how much overbidding was involved after all the price reductions finally fixed this house?

Comments (6) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:08 am

April 25, 2012

Living not quite so large in Los Gatos

Let’s have another look at Los Gatos, as it’s one of those Real Bay Area cities.  You can tell it is when you see a property listed for twice as much as it sold for in the bubblicious days of 2005.  Thanks very much to Burbed reader nomadic for this peerless property.

138 SMITH RANCH Ct
Los Gatos, CA 95032
$888,000

120424-smithranch-redfin

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2.5120424-red-arrow-hoa
SQ. FT.: 1,582
$/SQ. FT.: $561
HOA DUES: $85/month 
LOT SIZE: 3,484 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 2
YEAR BUILT: 2005
COMMUNITY: Los Gatos/Monte Sereno
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81211027
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 31 days

Beautiful 7 yr new home walking distance to Courtside, Netflix, LG trails, restaurants and shopping within Los Gatos school district. Regular sale, shows like a model, with high ceilings, recessed lights, granite kitchen & stainless appliances, hardwood floors in the family room/kitchen areas. Large, bright master with over sized tub and walk in closet. Private back yard and large 2 car garage.

120424-smithranch-insideNote the HOA fees prominently listed next to key features such as size of the house, size of the lot, and how many beds and baths.  When did Redfin start doing that?

Now here’s what nomadic had to say about the house.

Purchased two weeks ago at foreclosure (auction?) for $730k and now listed for a lucky $888k to cash in on $158k of instant 120424-smithranch-backyardequity!  It’s on a postage stamp lot that backs up to the 85 off ramp at Winchester.  The most recent sales on the street were in June 2010 for $460/sf, but those were about 1/3 larger – maybe the price isn’t as ridiculous as it seems…

Let’s see if Zillow agrees with “ridiculous.”

120424-smithranch-zillow

Um…whoa.  Those ZEstimates are all OVER the place.  And the “bunus” is the railroad tracks (shown as the dashed line) that run behind the homes across the street, the cherry on top of the awesome sauce that is Winchester plus the freeway ramp.

What do you think this home should sell for?  What do you think this home should sell now that you know it has “corporate ownership” plus “agent has financial interest”?  Usually corporate ownership means you’re looking at an REO, but in this case the place is owned by “Petwun LLC,” and the agent is the “manager” of said entity.

Comments (11) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:01 am

April 21, 2012

Pride of Ownership: Los Gatos Edition

Thanks very much to Burbed reader Kir for passing along this nugget from her blog Inside Los Gatos.  While this is a commercial property, there’s no reason why it couldn’t be returned to its original purpose as an ostentatious trophy home.

120420-santacruz-house

Pride of Ownership Retail Investment | Los Gatos

115 N. Santa Cruz Avenue
Los Gatos, CA 95030
$4,900,000

Building Size: 7,300 SF
Price/SF: $671.23
Property Type: Retail
Property Sub-type: Free Standing Bldg
Property Use Type: Net Lease Investment with 10+ years left on lease
Cap Rate: 5.14%
Occupancy: 100%
Tenancy: Single
Lot Size: 17,987 SF

Highlights

  • Iconic Historic Building – One of Los Gatos’ Most Well Known Landmarks
  • Irreplaceable Downtown Los Gatos Location
  • 100% Leased to Experienced Restaurant Operators
  • New 10 year Lease w/Scheduled Increases
  • Minimal Landlord Obligations
  • Recent Extensive Renovations

Here’s what Kir had to say about this place over on Inside LG:

Coggeshall Mansion is For Sale

120420-palacio-dallasOne of our readers sent me a real estate flyer about the Coggeshall Mansion. I was going to post it in my "Where to Build a School" column, but decided it would be just too ridiculous of an idea; however, I want to share the fact that you can own a piece of historic downtown Los Gatos.

The history of the Coggeshall Mansion is interesting, to say the least. The house was originally built for Mary G. Coggeshall, a wealthy widow with two children. According to Alastair Dallas, "Once a grand home, one of many along N. Santa Cruz Ave., the Coggeshall Mansion was built in 1891 and converted into the Place Mortuary in 1917. When it re-opened as the Chart House restaurant in 1976, the bar in the back was called the Embalming Room. After the Chart House closed, the restaurant was known as Trevese from March 2007 to Fall 2009…" Now, Palacio inhabits the mansion.

Hooked on Los Gatos has a 1949 flyer depicting the Place Funeral Home. You can check it out HERE. In fact, many of the locals swear the mansion is haunted.

120420-place-funeralSo not only is the former home being sold at a premium as commercial in-town property, it comes with “bunus” ghosts.  Here’s some more on the hauntings mentioned above.

Unfortunately the link above is to yet another Google product called “knol” that’s being abandoned for insufficient awesomeness. That means the link above may not work after May 1st.  Sorry about that. 

Here are the links given in that article about the ghosts, like the one who runs up huge bar tabs or the little girl who turns wine bottles hiding the label, or the little boy running outside the building.

This house/restaurant/funeral parlor is definitely for someone who had a huge pile of stock option cash dumped in their lap who wants to one-up all those Facebook poseurs househunting in Palo Alto and Hillsborough.

Thanks very much to Kir for allowing us to reprint articles that mention real estate.

Comments (4) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:06 am

April 8, 2012

Lights Out for Los Gatos Painter Thomas Kinkade

Here’s something to deepen your observation of Easter.  While devout Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus today, this man’s passing on Good Friday leads to a kind of different kind of immortality, and we are not talking about paintings.

Thomas Kinkade, one of nation’s most popular painters, dies suddenly in Los Gatos at 54

120407-kinkade-2002By Mike Rosenberg, San Jose Mercury News
Posted:  04/06/2012 06:43:30 PM PDT; Updated:  04/07/2012 03:41:26 AM PDT

Thomas Kinkade, the “Painter of Light” and one of the most popular artists in America, died suddenly Friday at his Los Gatos home. He was 54.

His family said in a statement that his death appeared to be from natural causes.

“Thom provided a wonderful life for his family,” his wife, Nanette, said in a statement. “We are shocked and saddened by his death.”

120407-kinkade-tasteHis paintings are hanging in an estimated one of every 20 homes in the United States. Fans cite the warm, familiar feeling of his mass-produced works of art, while it has become fashionable for art critics to dismiss his pieces as tacky. In any event, his prints of idyllic cottages and bucolic garden gates helped establish a brand — famed for their painted highlights — not commonly seen in the art world.

“I’m a warrior for light,” Kinkade told the Mercury News in 2002, alluding not just to his technical skill at creating light on canvas but to the medieval practice of using light to symbolize the divine. “With whatever talent and resources I have, I’m trying to bring light to penetrate the darkness many people feel.”

120407-kinkade-products

Now, if you want to instead refer to the Los Gatos Patch (an AOL-owned series of hyperlocal blogs), Kinkade actually died in Monte Sereno, while with his live-in girlfriend, as he had been estranged from his wife for two years.  That would explain why his family was in Australia at the time of his death.  Kincade’s passing is indeed relevant to the Real Bay Area, since he lived in Los Gatos.  Or Monte Sereno, depending on which reported version you prefer.  But this scan of the firefighters’ frequency shows an engine was dispatched to 16342 Ridgecrest Ave, due to a 54 year old male “drinking all night, not moving.”  That address is owned by someone named Kinkade, and also had an “under influence of drugs/alcohol” arrest there last year.  The address is missing from most property databases, though, including the Recorder’s Office.

120407-kinkade-vallejo-village-at-hiddenbrookeKinkade certainly has his staunch supporters and determined detractors.  This Mercury News article generated 150 comments in just a few hours and had more than 250 by the following afternoon.  Most Merc articles draw under 20 comments.  The NY Times obituary generated an even more derisive stream of criticism, while the Washington Post put the negative commentary in the article itself.  The daddy of all Kinkade-dissing news items has to go to this 2006 Los Angeles Times piece, though.

But there’s an aspect of Thomas Kinkade that had managed to elude us all this time.  It turns out that his kitschy paintings of cottages in the woods inspired multiple housing developments.

That’s right, for the fan who isn’t content with buying a snowglobe or a throw rug, there were plans for actual tract houses trying to look like his paintings.    And one of the first such developments, the Village at Hiddenbrooke, was built in Vallejo right as dot.com went dot.bomb in 2001.  4259 Andover, The Villages at HiddenbrookeThe homes were 1800-2600 square feet on 4000 square foot lots.  The large photo above is interior décor from one of those model homes.  Most of the links to the builder and the development in the Salon article are now defunct.

It’s not easy figuring out which streets in Hiddenbrooke are part of The Village.  And given that the builder was London-based, that’s a particularly interesting name for a community accused of being somewhat, um, ersatz.  Here’s a home that sold last year, and do check out its history, because it sold for less in 2011 than when it was sold new nine years beforehand.  You can check out the neighborhood on Redfin but nothing seems to be for sale there now.

However, Kinkade did not stop with just the one housing development in Vallejo.

Architect Rann Haight, left, financier Roger Stewart, center, and builder Steve Torres have signed a deal to build luxury homes that will be based on the Thomas Kinkade paintings on the table in front of them in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, April 21, 2006. The luxury homes, to be built around Lake Coeur d'Alene, will cost $4 million to $6 million. (AP Photo/SPOKESMAN-REVIEW, Jesse Tinsley)The photo at right shows the team planning for five Kinkade-inspired $4 to $6 million luxury homes around Lake Coeur d’Alene in Idaho named The Gates of Coeur d’Alene.  This project was launched in (of course) 2006, at the height of bubblicious housing insanity.

Plans for 100 homes based on the cottage paintings were being developed later that winter for a project in Columbia, Missouri called The Gates at Old Hawthorne.  Prices were expected to come in at $500,000 to $1 million.  It’s not clear if any of these plans came to fruition, as the builder’s website no longer seems to exist.  This 2007 article reflects the typical attitude of housing boosters, acknowledging the slowdown but insisting that It’s Special Here and full steam ahead for the Kinkade development:

120407-kinkade--missouriThe homes are being built at a time when the U.S. home market is declining. However, Columbia and Boone County have been able to avoid the national trend. The median price for new single-family homes in Boone County has steadily increased, going from around $136,000 in May 2003 to a little over $188,000 in May of this year. And while the price of new homes is rising, the number of homes being built has decreased from 79 single-family units in May 2003 to 52 this May.

“In general, our home market is good, (but) it’s not as good as last year’s,” said Brent Jones, president of the Columbia Board of Realtors. According to Jones, the present home market is a buyer’s market. The effects of the market are even more apparent in the sale of high-end houses, like the Kinkade homes. […]

“News stories give the idea that the market is homogenous,” Jones said. He cited cities that have experienced extreme home appreciation, and are now experiencing just as extreme depreciation. The Columbia market is relatively stable and hasn’t had the appreciation that other markets have experienced, .

However, market fluctuations are not a concern for HST.

“One of the reasons we came to Columbia is because Columbia’s economy is so strong,” Stewart said. Sales of the Kinkade houses are surpassing the inventory, Stewart added.

120407-kinkade-empty-caveThere is no evidence that either of these Kinkade-inspired home developments were ever built.  Most references to them are from 2006, when everyone was drunk on Kool-aid.  Here’s an application for an alternative use for the Missouri land, which suggests nothing was ever built from the Kinkade project.  The Gates of Old Hawthorne website is gone, and here are some empty lots for sale from that project.

Just like the empty cave in today’s Holiday Story.

Have yourselves a Happy Easter, and remember: This means Spring Bounce has begun!

Comments (19) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:09 am

April 4, 2012

Post-modern style meets post-modern price in Los Gatos

Thanks very much to Burbed reader nomadic for finding this luscious living situation in Los Gatos, one of Silicon Valley’s few celebrity domiciles!

300 SANTA ROSA Dr
Los Gatos, CA 95032
$5,000,000

120402-santarosa-redfin

BEDS: 6
BATHS: 6.5
SQ. FT.: 7,500
$/SQ. FT.: $667
LOT SIZE: 1.19 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Modern/High Tech, Contemporary
STORIES: 2
VIEW: Canyon, Valley
YEAR BUILT: 1986
COMMUNITY: Los Gatos/Monte Sereno
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81207180
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 38 days

This exquisite 7500 sq/ft, 6 bedroom, 6.5 bath home on 1.19 acres nestled in the Los Gatos Mountains, combines post-modern style with majestic natural views. It is a natural abode for light and warmth. Recently re-designed and renovated, this home was originally built by Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer, Inc. and retains several of his most unique design elements.

120402-santarosa-loudcolorsHere’s why nomadic sent us this natural abode for light and warmth:

The former Wozniak house.  Featured on burbed many moons ago, and now listed for $5M.  Look at its history.

We don’t have anywhere as many celebrities in Silicon Valley, but Woz is one of the few that we ought to look into a house he had built.  So let’s have a look at how this house was marketed back in the early end of the bubble days of 2008, right after the break!

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Comments (10) -- Posted by: madhaus @ 5:08 am
 
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