Thanks very much to Burbed reader Wendie for this palatial pad in Palo Alto!  And unlike almost every other property in Palo Alto, this one’s still for sale despite this my sitting on it since April.  Remember, there is nothing wrong with any house that price cannot fix.  And by those standards, this house is definitely a fixer.

1870 UNIVERSITY Ave
Palo Alto, CA 94301
$8,995,000

BEDS: 6
BATHS: 6
SQ. FT.: 9,319
$/SQ. FT.: $965
LOT SIZE: 1.97 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Spanish
STORIES: 2
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1929
COMMUNITY: Crescent Park
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81211470
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 55 days

One of PA’s largest lots! GardnerDailey’s classic Monterey Colonial style of architecture. The interior is classic and stylish featuring a lavish master suite w/ spa inspired bathroom, and 5 additional bedrooms, 3 with en suite baths. Additional 1 bedroom apartment above a 3 car detached garage completes the generous accommodations totaling over 9,300 sf. Park like 86k sf lot in Crescent Park.

Here’s what Wendie had to say about this house:

What an awful kitchen! 

For a 9M dollar house, couldn’t they have AT LEAST upgraded the kitchen counter tops? Amazingly crappy kitchen for 9M!
No, no, no, Wendie, this is an amazing vintage kitchen for 9M!  After all, this is Palo Alto.  What would be a problem in any other listing just automagically converts that bug into a feature.  Weird countertops?  More awesomeness.

And talk about convenience!  Look where this house is located!

Right next to East Palo Alto!  This home is guaranteed to be the very first place those delightful scamps will visit for a few good-natured pranks when hijinks ensue!

Thanks very much to Burbed reader steve for calling this house out in comments.  Yes, an actual house (not a condo!  not a townhouse!) in 94301 in a nice area (not near train tracks!  not on or near El Camino or any other busy street!)  This was a fine find requiring an official site visit with some custom photos you won’t see on the listing.  Plus, it’s about time we featured another pink house.

And since it’s in Palo Alto (hot! hot! hot!), it’s probably pending already, despite this article being written up the night of the Open House (4/29).

746 HOMER Ave
Palo Alto, CA 94301
$838,000

BEDS: 2
BATHS: 1
SQ. FT.: 660
$/SQ. FT.: $1,270
LOT SIZE: 1,960 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Cottage/Bungalow
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1926
COMMUNITY: Community Center
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81215282
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 4 days

Tucked away in Community Center end of cul de sac, Palo Alto. A charming 1926 remodeled bungalow Fondly referred to as the "Pink Bungalow" it has 660 interior sq ft, 1,960 ext sq ft, 2 br & 1 ba. fully remodeled, hardwood floors! Tranquil and peaceful yet blocks to Downtown Palo Alto. Addison, Jordan and Paly

Look at those incredible schools.  Whoever buys this house can fill it to the brim with kids to take advantage of Addison, Jordan, and Paly.

There is actually a driveway for this house, which I had seriously doubted after seeing how small the lot is (1,960 ext sq ft).  However, that picture above doesn’t really do justice to how useful that “garage” is.  Have a look with an actual non-1926 vehicle parked in front to get a sense of scale.

Much more photos after the break!

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Today’s luxe listing is all about location, location, location!  Many thanks to Burbed reader Overheard in San Carlos for passing along this plum place!

664 CHESTNUT St
San Carlos, CA 94070
$850,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 2,920
$/SQ. FT.: $291
LOT SIZE: 7,350 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Mediterranean
STORIES: 2
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1950
COMMUNITY: Howard Park
COUNTY: San Mateo
MLS#: 81207068
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Pending Without Release
ON REDFIN: 25 days

CHARMING 3 BEDROOM, 1.75 BATH HOME W/ FRM, HDWD FLRS THRU-OUT & 2 CAR TANDEM GARAGE. SPACIOUS LIVING RM W/ BRICK SURROUND FRPLC. SEP FRML DINING RM W/ ARCHED DOORWAY. RETRO 50′S STYLE EAT-IN KITCH W/ TILE COUNTER TOPS, PLENTY OF CABINETS, FREE STANDING RANGE/OVEN & REFRIG. 3 NICE SIZE BEDRMS ON MAIN LEVEL. DWNSTRS FULL BASEMENT W/ LAUNDRY AREA. 7350 SQ FT LOT/ZONED RM59

HRS OF ENTRTNMNT INSD & OUT.

BUNUS: RM-59 ZNG = “MLTPL FAM MED DNSTY.”  Which is great, because this place already looks more like an APT HSE.

IDEAL LOCN, WLK 2 LIB, CTY SVCS DWNTWN, CLS 2 EVRYTNG.

ESPLY POLCE STN.

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!

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!

Here’s a peach of a property courtesy of Burbed reader Swan, complete with an agent who ought to look into some alternate nicknames.

1980 HEATHERDALE Ave
San Jose, CA 95126
$475,000

BEDS: 4
BATHS: 2.5
SQ. FT.: 1,550
$/SQ. FT.: $306
LOT SIZE: 6,360 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1946
COMMUNITY: Santa Clara
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81208684
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 6 days

Move in conditions, up dated kitchen and baths. Well maintained 4 bedrooms plus one additional master bedroom. Large level back yard , 2 car side by side. Apartment complex at back of this house. Short sale , 2 lender’s ( 2 loans )

Here’s what Swan thought about this place:

I came across this listing today and found it possibly Burbed-worthy.  First, the realtor’s name is Lucky Chan.  In my experience, any person or animal named Lucky is usually the opposite.  This realtor should change his name to Honest.  He is very honest in the listing:  apartment complex at the back of the house (yup, sure is), short sale (have fun looking at the price history on Zillow), and two lenders (that can’t be good).  Last we have "2 car side by side."  Do the cars come with the house?  Where are the lucky 8s in the price?  Anyway, someone buy this quickly so Lucky can get lucky. 

For a short sale, this property is in surprisingly acceptable shape… that is, for what little we get to see of it.  I do wonder why, given how little clutter was left in the yard, why we’re looking at any of it.  It would have taken all of 2 minutes to move that ladder and the blue ball out of the frame above, and another 2 for the small collection of patio crap at left.  I guess it was easier to simply go for the soft-focus effect.

And Honest, or Lucky, could have been even more honest by telling us about this home’s excellent location, location, location.  Not only is there an apartment complex behind it, you’re also really close to transportation!

Plus let’s take a quick peek at the neighborhood.

Awesome!  A gated home next door, plus on-street parking is at a premium.  Looks like you’ll be having all kinds of spirited discussions with your neighbors! 

All this and a house old enough to collect Social Security.  Maybe you’ll get Lucky, too.

Here’s a Santa Clara twofer for you, as we stay in The Mission City for a second day.  This is a fine submission from Burbed reader Petsmart Groomer that should convince you to stop renting and start owning before you are PRICED OUT FOREVER.

62 CLAREMONT Ave
Santa Clara, CA 95051
$750,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,104
$/SQ. FT.: $679
LOT SIZE: 6,090 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STORIES: 1
YEAR BUILT: 1956
COMMUNITY: Santa Clara
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81205842
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 26 days

Come see this wonderful home in Santa Clara with real pride of ownership. This is a move in ready home with nothing for you to do! Enjoy the updated kitchen, remodeled bathroom, hardwood floors under the carpet, a beautiful pool and spa and more. The neighborhood gets very little traffic and in the Cupertino School District (Eisenhower Elementary and Hyde Middle School).

Yeah.  Definitely nothing for you to do with this place.  Just be ready to move in, and you won’t ever need any coffee in the morning as this kitchen décor is going to wake you no matter how late you were up.

Also, the listing copy above mentions how little traffic the neighborhood gets, so maybe we should have a look at the neighborhood.

Perhaps it’s because the three-story townhouses that loom over the backyard are all populated by Neighborhood Watch enthusiasts.

More good news: this house appears to have some solar panels, and they are perfectly sited with a southern exposure.  They’re also perfectly sited not to overheat or generate excess capacity, thanks to those townhouses blocking the harmful winter UV rays.

And if you want to know more about that housing development over the back fence, Burbed has already paid them a couple of visits, both to a townhouse and the (genius!) detached single family house tucked into a high density complex.  That means your back fence neighbor is one of two dueling Lords of the Manor.

Looks like there’s lots of Real Pride of Ownership for everyone to share!

Let’s finish out our workweek with a magnificent Menlo Park manse, courtesy of Burbed reader Moxie Girl.  And fortunately, Moxie has enough to say about this luscious listing that she’s sitting in as today’s Guest Blogger.

So please give her a big, warm, Real Bay Area welcome and enjoy this Burbed Guest Post!

1427 GARWOOD Way (Unable to map)
Menlo Park, CA 94025
$699,950

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2.5
SQ. FT.: 1,655
$/SQ. FT.: $423
LOT SIZE: 4,503 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Traditional
STORIES: 2
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 2000
COMMUNITY: Middlefield to El Camino
COUNTY: San Mateo
MLS#: 81207110
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 13 days

Fantastic like new 3BD/2.5BA for under $700,000 in Menlo Park. Spacious living area, hardwood floors, crown molding, new paint & carpets and beautiful kitchen wih granite counter top tiles, walk in pantry. Private yard with deck & grass area. Close to downtown. Price is right!

I found another gem. This one is based in Menlo Park, for which I have deep affection, having worked and briefly rented there for some years. But hold the train (literally), folks, here is an RBA winner. Now this is clearly a steal: RBA real estate in the highly desired downtown Menlo Park area, and such a bargain it’s priced for $699,950, which just squeaks by at $50 under $700,000. But how can this be, you ask? Surely nothing in the desirable 94025 zip code can be for sale for such a ridiculously low price! Au contraire, mon ami.

Now, the first glaring bit of information that is odd is the “unable to map” in the header line of the address. Clearly the real estate agent thinks savvy buyers are incapable of mapping the true address of this property.

Luckily for us, one of Redfin’s cracking real estate team does note from a tour last September that the property is literally next door to a PG&E power facility. AND, based on the Google map…within about 20 steps of Caltrain train tracks. That’s right. Southern view/bedroom window: power facility; eastern view/from front door: gravelly train tracks. So you’ll be humming and/or rattling to your heart’s content as you revel in the fact that you are now living in the sought-after 94025 zip code you always longed for.

Well played, “Eliz. Bianchini, Coldwell Banker-Woodside” (from Redfin listing). Can we really trust someone to publish correct information about a listing when she can’t be bothered to fully spell out her first name? Just wondering.

Today’s Adventure in Realtard Listing Copy is courtesy of Burbed reader Tracy.  Thanks very much for separating the wheat from the chaff, and sending us the chaff!

2430 RUBY Ave
San Jose, CA  95148
$579,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 2
SQ. FT.: 1,420
$/SQ. FT.: $408
LOT SIZE: 0.57 Acres
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Contemporary
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1950
COMMUNITY: Alum Rock
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81205841
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 21 days

* * * Regular Sale * * * Newer home with 3 bedrooms 2 bathrooms in a 24,829 sqft land. It has Pergo floors throughout, recessed lighting, ceiling fan, double Pane windows. Inside laundry room in the kitchen area. Kitchen has granite counter top and newer cabinetry. Low maintenance backyard with large patio and large storage room. Close to Eastridge Mall, restaurants and easy access to frwy 680/101.

Here’s why Tracy thought you’d be interested in today’s featured house:

HUuh??? Built 1950 “newer home”  708 sf with 3/2 and the most ginormous lot.. I am confused. I like the “Low maintenance backyard” and the storage shed might be bigger than the house.

The house is 708 sf, but the agent reports it as 1420?  Maybe the garage and that storage shed were added into the sqft land.  And do you see what’s there on the front porch?  I think it’s time to break out the Burbed Red Arrows, because we’re looking at some MAWBUL KAWLUM ACTION.

Also have to wonder about this Realtard leading with the kitchen cabinets instead of the awesomeness of these profound pillars.

Fortunately, there’s plenty of greenery in the back yard, so don’t worry about the seller neglecting the landscaping.

In fact, there’s so much treasure to hunt for, both on the property and in the surrounding neighborhood, that both you and your kids will enjoy being told to play outside in the Low maintenance backyard!  That is, if you and your kids are intrigued by vintage automotive finds.

Otherwise, at least you’re Close to Eastridge Mall.

Here’s a fantastic find from Burbed reader Petsmart Groomer for your Super Tuesday pleasure.  Almost anything with a Mountain View address is going to sell in a New York minute, so imagine how Rocky Mountain High the overbidding will go with a brand new house!

The new UPDATE is at the bottom, with more pictures!

285 STIERLIN Rd
Mountain View, CA 94043
$1,500,000

BEDS: 5
BATHS: 4.5
SQ. FT.: 3,235
$/SQ. FT.: $464
LOT SIZE: 5,001 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Modern/High Tech, Contemporary
STORIES: 3
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 2012
COMMUNITY: North Shoreline
COUNTY: Santa Clara
MLS#: 81205009
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 25 days

Here’s why Petsmart Groomer sent this house in for some Burbed loving:

Definitely where people want to spend $1.5M: Walking distance to Social Services Agency.

That sounds really handy.  Pick up your disability check and your government cheese without needing to borrow a shopping cart from the Safeway.

And we can see from the 25 photos of the house that the inside is just loving its close-up.  Wonder why the outside was so shy?  Nary a shot of the house or the grounds.  Let’s see if Google Streetview can help.

Looks like the Googlecam is overdue for a neighborhood spin.  Fortunately, there’s a Virtual Tour available.  And I do suggest you check this one out, because it has dozens and dozens of pictures not found on the listing.  The Virtual Tour is not afraid to show us what the house looks like.  Click on through to see those pictures and so much more!

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