Today’s fantastic find has been brought to you by Burbed reader Pralay.  Remember, if you find a listing that makes you wonder how some real estate agents could call themselves professionals, send it in!  We’ll show it as much Real Bay Area love as we can.

269 OCONNOR St
Menlo Park, CA 94025
$1,470,000

BEDS: 5
BATHS: 5
SQ. FT.: 2,615
$/SQ. FT.: $562
LOT SIZE: 10,822 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Contemporary
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 2008
COMMUNITY: Willows/O’Conner Area
COUNTY: San Mateo
MLS#: 81151036
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 61 days

150 ft long private tree lined drive way leads to this 3-yr new custom built nestled in matured trees. 1 story home w/ 5br, 5baths. 1/4 acre lot, Min. 9′ceilings, 8′doors. Gourmet Kitchen, Crown Molding, hdwd flr, A/Cm intercom, central vacuum, alarm, custom steel entry door, Sub zero refrig, body sprays. .. & more. ..

Here’s what Pralay had to say about this Menlo Park pick:

There are some interesting properties in this area. Essentially it is a house in someone else’s backyard. I am not sure how the lot size be 10,822 sqft. It that *was* the lot size was divided into two? "Custom built", "Gourmet Kitchen", "Crown Molding", "Custom steel entry door" and most importantly "Sub zero refrig". Built in 2008. Too bad, the owner is not able to enjoy for little bit longer time, as he has to sell it to cash in "Facebook effect".

Wow, a 150 foot driveway!  That means you get to drive past the house in the front yard.  But the best way to check on how true the quarter acre lot claim is?  Zillow.

Zillow makes it easy to click on every house in a neighborhood and quickly see the important numbers, including house and lot size.  And that claimed property area looks reasonable, given what the surrounding measurements show.  We’ve seen homes piled three deep on one lot while the agent claims every square foot of the original grounds. Alas, that didn’t happen here.

But all is not lost with this listing, despite the 10,000 foot lot size being completely legit.  By going to the Zillow map, we also notice the lovely mansions right over the back fence, complete with Palo Alto address, Eastern division. 

So you can assure your colleagues that you have arrived, because you’re in a neighborhood of much more expensive 32 bedroom homes.

Today’s house hasn’t been sitting on the market for a year, isn’t on the wrong side of 101, has four digits of square footage, and doesn’t have an East Palo Alto address.

2162 MENALTO Ave, Menlo Park, CA 94025
$689,000

BEDS: 3
BATHS: 1
SQ. FT.: 1,010
$/SQ. FT.: $682
LOT SIZE: 5,000 Sq. Ft.
PROPERTY TYPE: Detached Single Family
STYLE: Traditional
STORIES: 1
VIEW: Neighborhood
YEAR BUILT: 1954
COMMUNITY: Willows/O’Conner Area
COUNTY: San Mateo
MLS#: 81127301
SOURCE: MLSListings
STATUS: Active
ON REDFIN: 15 days

Great starter home in The Willows. Excellent condition. Updated kitchen. New roof. Painted in and out. Double paned windows. Updated electrical. Menlo Park schools. (Please check availability. )

Now, the agent wants you to know this home has an updated kitchen, but not enough to bother showing it to you. Pictures of the outside, only!  And the house sold in 2009, for $445K, Yowza, up a whopping 54% in just two years! Do you know what this means?

It means SELLERS MARKET, baby! It means if you want to buy anything on the Peninsula, even this crapbox, you’re going to have write a personal note to the sellers, along with four dozen homemade cookies and an earnest money deposit of about fifty thousand (not refundable).

And those double-paned windows?  You’re going to need them.

But your commute to Facebook will be sweet!  I suggest you snap it up before the market comes to its senses and overbids this back over seven digits.

414 OCONNOR St, Menlo Park, CA 94025 | MLS# 80848553
Menlo Park, CA 94025
Price: $1,299,400

Beds: 3
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,677
$/Sq. Ft.: $775
Lot Size: 10,200 Sq. Ft.
Property Type: Detached Single Family
Style: Country English
Stories: 1
View: Neighborhood
Year Built: 1926
Community: Willows/O’Conner Area
County: San Mateo
MLS#: 80848553
Source: MLSListings
Status: Active
On Redfin: 216 days
Classic design. Totally remodeled (95% new)3 bedrooms w/ 2 full baths. Just a short walk to University Ave. shops & restaurants. Kitchen has granite counters & custom cabinets w/ professional stainless appliances. Open light & bright main living areas w/ patios off dining and family rooms. Spacious master suite w/ hipped ceiling & French doors lead to beautiful secluded garden. MenloPark schools

Finally, a property that makes Menlo Park proud to be a member of the Real Bay Area. $1.3 million with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. Ahhhhhh.

What’s fascinating is that this place is totally remodeled and is thus 95% new. But if it were 95% new, wouldn’t you build a bigger place? Especially with this large lot? What gives?

And while we’re at it, what’s going on in this picture outside?

The reminds me of the scene in Terminator 2 where Sarah has the dream about the playground that is covered in ashes. I mean, this is seriously creepy. Has the technological apocalypse happened already in Menlo Park? Has SkyNet finally risen out of the wacky projects in Palo Alto and started to terminate humanity?

I don’t know the answers – but I do know that you should feel pretty safe on this huge lot with French doors!

269 O’connor St, Menlo Park, CA 94025 MLS# 40393829 – Property Details

269 O’connor St, Menlo Park, CA 94025 – 5 Beds, 4 Baths, $1,595,000

Gorgeous new construction built in 2008. Graciously designed home W spacious open floor plan. Craftsman residence feature 5BR & 5BA. Gourmet chef’s kitchen W granite counter & top line stainless steel appliances. Home equipped W alarm, intercom, entertainment, central A/C & vacuum system. Excellent serene neighborhood. Close to Stanford. Shopping & Highway.Rental is available for $6,500 per month

Hey this house is in Menlo Park? Why would it need a security system if it is in a serene neighborhood?

Burbed reader sonarrat has an explanation:

next block over is E Okeefe which is a whole bunch of rent-controlled apartments in East Palo Alto.

Oh. So maybe that’s why it’s just $609 per square foot and not a more healthy $750 per square foot.

But here’s the real question: is it better to rent this or to buy? Or to buy and rent it back out?

Come on finance wizards! I know its Friday, but come on, you’ve been laid off from your I-banking jobs so that’s why you’re in Silicon Valley, catching up on greentech. Until you land that job at the Next Hot thing, please help us out with your analysis!