http://www.redfin.com/city/1590/CA/Berkeley

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Thanks for the cost detail from the reports – super stuff! And definitely more than I expected. I like playing the guessing game on prices to test whether I have any idea on pricing, and potentially to assist in putting in an offer on some eventual house that is aggressive yet credible. I just checked my (mixed) recent track record. On 626 Vistamont, it listed at $799K, I offered an expectation of $840K, and it went for $885K. I was definitely surprised by the Rifle Range house listed for $1.15 going for +$1.1m, although I don’t think I offered an explicit view. Then there was the Spruce bachelor pad that I thought would go for $500K, but went for $477K. I’m sometimes high, sometimes low.

All that pointlessly revisited, I’m going to stick by my guess for better or worse. It’s remained the most popular listing on Redfin for Berkeley effectively since it came on the market. I expect it to be under contract by Monday.

Debt, still thinking $905K? I’ll say $855K.

At least two toilets were labeled as inoperative (or, at the very least, troubled) – either that was to discourage use by visitors or reflects the need for attention from a plumber. The deck off the living room had been cordoned off – it was a long-neglected hazard and will have to be replaced. I didn’t see the deck replacement as such a great big deal – there was a nice tree coming up through the center of it that made for a lovely space.

The kitchen was tiny – that’s an absolute deal-killer for us, but perhaps not for others. The distance between the master suite in the back of the house and the two bedrooms upstairs from the living room may appeal to others but make this house less attractive to us – we’ve no interest in great distance from our young children. I overheard the showing agent (I think) indicate that the bare-wood flooring upstairs was previously covered by linoleum that had been pulled up. There were plenty of water stains on the open beam ceilings in various places suggesting where roof maintenance may have been deferred. To its credit, however, the house did not smell damp or moldy. The living room space appealed greatly to me; so too the bathroom in the master suite with its Japanese shutters. I also liked how the layout provided for covered steps from the garage down into the house itself.

I had the sense that it would be cold in winter, and that you’d either spend a fortune replacing the floor to ceiling windows with double-paned ones, or would run the hearth 16/7.

The “basement” was the sort of area I covet in a prospective purchase – unfinished, interior access to the main house, sufficient glass & light, immediate access to the yard. For me, that was where the interesting value of the property was: with a bit of imagination, you could see it being a private suite for an aging parent, a family rumpus room, and/or home office.

All & all, it was in worse shape than I expected, and I didn’t fall in love with it as much as I’d hoped or wanted. I didn’t ask about pest estimate. I think LA has it (just…) about right with a 9-handle. There’s a lot of inspiration and potential here – for someone prepared to invest 6-figures, a dream home awaits. The template here for “before” and “after” photos are the sort over which I would drool in a magazine.

I’ll place my guess at $905K.

I drove past this place during the week. Someone’s got to report back from the open house.