As an open-house aficionado, I will go and snoop around villas and Craftsmen homes, mid-modern ranches and cottages without the excuse that I am actually on the hunt for a new abode.
Some bona fide house seekers might see literaly hundreds of homes before settling on the “right one”.
Read more on my Block post today.
Posts from ‘December, 2009’
So Many Homes, Only One is Right
Closing Escrow on a Closing Year
When you’ve been sitting on your unsold property since the summer, hoping and praying that someone will make you an offer before year’s end, it must be more than a relief to finally find a buyer — even if, in this instance, you have to stomach a 19% reduction on your original asking price.
The 5/3.5 [...]
A Small Come Down for Hill-Top Home
Another home on Alvarado Road in the Claremont hills sold recently — and this time its closing price tells you something about the effect the market has had on values.
The imposing Colonial style house at 614 Alvarado last sold in April 2007 for $1,630,000 (on an asking of $1,550,000). In late October this year, it [...]
Happy Christmas for High-End Berkeley Sellers
Proving that there are always homes which will defy market rules if the right stars align for seller and buyer, the “majestic Monterey Colonial” home at 245 Alvarado Road in Berkeley (above) sold comfortably over its asking price.
The 5/5 house, with its “graceful balconies, terraces, landscaped gardens and grand rooms for entertaining”, went on the [...]
What the Median Priced Home Looks Like: East Bay
It could look like the contemporary apartment on the Oakland-Emeryville border pictured above, which his priced at $379,000, a tad under the current median price paid for a Bay Area home which last month was $387,000.
For more details, head on over to the Block.
In Tiburon, those 911 Calls Keep on Coming
Next time you are worrying about the levels of crime in your neighborhood, consider what your Bay Area neighbors in Tiburon have to put up with.
The following three calls to the police were recorded in the The Ark, Tiburon’s local paper of record:
December 4, 11:42 a.m.: Police responded to a vacant lot near Claire Way, [...]
Long, Longer, Longest: Berkeley Laggards
At this time of year when there are very few new listings to peruse, it’s worth checking on those that have been sitting on the market for so long they feel like they are permanent fixtures. An aggressive offer may just fall on receptive ears as sellers contemplate closing another year without a sale.
In some Oakland [...]
Real Estate Not So Much, More Indian-Mexican Oasis
Spoiler alert: this post has nothing to do with East Bay real estate. Instead I am shamelessly using the Home Girl space to tell you about a wonderful place I visited over the Thanksgiving break, which happens to be owned by my sister in law.
Shanti San Miguel is a recently opened, Indian-themed sanctuary in the [...]
They Bought the Fairytale Home
It is with a smidgen of regret that I report someone (other than me) pounced and bought the “fairytale” home at 299 Panoramic Way that had my heart beating a little faster in late October when it listed for sale. (My remarks about the home’s low Walk Score also provoked a lively debate in the [...]
Berkeley Diamond in the Rough Suggests Potential
Newly listed at 2479 Cedar Street in north Berkeley is a home even the real-estate broker describes as a “diamond in the rough” and one needing “TLC and more”. So, it goes without saying this home requires investment, both financial and emotional one assumes.
That said the photographs suggest real potential. Look at that lovely bay [...]