…Tales from the front line of buying and selling San Francisco real estate

We recently helped a couple swiftly sell their loft condo in the Inner Mission after it had been on the market with another agent for a year!

Chad & Mike had their condo on the market for a year with another realtor before calling my team. They saw our signs go up in the neighborhood and the yellow “Sale Pending” stickers that would soon follow. They often wondered why the same quick and profitable sale wasn’t happening for them. After a great meeting at their home, we used our extensive network to implement a strategic staging and marketing plan to attract the strongest buyers to their listing. Our energy were focused on getting the home sold as quickly as possible and for as much money as possible. Et voila!  We were in contract one week after listing their unit and closed escrow 21 days later.  Needless to say, the guys were thrilled!

Who do you know looking for a passionate and intelligent real estate team to help them devise the best marketing plan to sell their home?

Pacific Heights Top Floor Condo for Sale

2950 Clay St #302 — Condominium

FIRST SUNDAY OPEN HOUSE — Sunday, January 8th, 2:00-4:00PM

Brokers’ Tour — Tuesday, January 10th, 10:00-11:30AM

 We are super excited about our new listing for sale - 2950 Clay Street #302 San Francisco 94115, listed at $799,000 - Pacific Heights Top Floor Condo with Parking for Sale!

WANT PHOTOS? VISIT THE PROPERTY WEBSITE FOR THIS CONTEMPORARY PACIFIC HEIGHTS CONDO?

Welcome to 2950 Clay St #302, a contemporary top-floor condo in a 12-unit building. This condo is centrally located in a highly sought-after section of Pacific Heights. Enjoy the perks of living on a classy, residential block yet be easy walking distance to cafes, shopping, and activities such as The Mindful Body, Eliza’s, Food Inc., Solstice, Tortilla Heights, Alta Plaza Park, Laurel Village, Fillmore Street and more.

This condo features an open floor plan great for entertaining, an updated kitchen with stainless steel appliances, engineered wood floors throughout the living areas, three large, freshly carpeted bedrooms, two remodeled marble bathrooms, including one master suite, and closets galore with custom modular shelving. Since the 4^th floor of the building is built back behind unit #302, relish the quiet of having no one above you. Enjoy the abundant natural light and southern exposure as well as partial San Francisco city and hill views, including the gold dome of City Hall. This unit also benefits from two exclusive storage lockers, one car deeded parking, and shared laundry.

Enjoy Pacific Heights living at its finest!

A NOTE FROM OUR SELLER:

Dear Prospective Buyer,

The Pacific Heights neighborhood is unlike any other in the city and is considered to be one of the most scenic and vibrant areas in SF.  Living here allowed us to enjoy some of the best things San Francisco has to offer. For example, Fillmore Street is just a few blocks away and has a variety of restaurants and cuisines to satisfy anyone’s palette. We’ve been going to our favorite Peruvian restaurant ‘Fresca’ for years and absolutely love their ceviche!  The convenience of being able to walk to Mollie Stone’s for groceries and then to our favorite bakery La Boulangerie for coffee made living in Pac Heights a unique urban experience.

The condo is surrounded by beautiful Victorian homes, churches and parks. Check out Alta Plaza Park, 2 blocks from the building. It has spectacular views of the city and bay, and we’ve enjoyed a few tennis matches at the free courts. Walking distance from the condo is Divisadero Street, which has great pubs and bars. We’ve spent many Saturday nights with friends at our favorite local “Lion Pub.”

Most of all, we have enjoyed living in our condo at 2950 Clay. We love the high ceilings with the wood panels, cozy fireplace and French doors in the living room. My husband and I like entertaining and cooking for friends and family, and the open kitchen layout was great for that. The bedroom and spare rooms are spacious, and the upgraded and remodeled bathrooms add to the charm of the condo. If you are looking for a modern, centrally located condo in a great neighborhood – this is it.

-Jaime & Michelle

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Happy New Year! I have this firm belief that the world is not going to end this year and that 2012 is going to be awesome, especially here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Everyone and by everyone, I mean Fox News and Rush, teases us for living in a bubble of fruits, nuts and flakes. Add in nerds, and yes, they are right. And we love it! Our bubble affords us a temperate climate, year-round produce, delicious, innovative food, wine and design, a stable housing market, jobs, an accepting culture, and so much more. (Read about the Bay Area’s innovative & pioneering spirit on my SF real estate lifestyle site daniellelazier.com.)

Last week, the Brad Stone of Bloomberg Business Week wrote about Silicon Valley’s recession-not and how Sean Parker’s party for Spotify epitomized the current vibe of the valley. (Sadly, I had a prior engagement and could not make it.)

Every so often, the best parties come to represent moments in time. Think of Truman Capote’s Black and White Ball in 1966, the celeb-studded Liberty Island launch of Tina Brown’s ill-fated Talk magazine in 1999, and private equity maven Stephen Schwarzman’s 60th birthday bash in 2007, which featured Rod Stewart. Sean Parker‘s bacchanal for the streaming music service Spotify on Sept. 22 in San Francisco may well join the ranks of these epic affairs.

In Silicon Valley, all the Sturm und Drang of 2011 seemed as relevant as the Cricket World Cup. High unemployment? Crippling debt? Not in Silicon Valley, where the fog burns off by noon, and it’s an article of faith that talented, hardworking techies can change the world and reap unimaginable wealth in the process.

“We live in a bubble, and I don’t mean a tech bubble or a valuation bubble. I mean a bubble as in our own little world,” says Google Chairman Eric Schmidt. “And what a world it is: Companies can’t hire people fast enough. Young people can work hard and make a fortune. Homes hold their value…”

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/12/24/BU2J1MG1Q8.DTL#ixzz1iFS193PJ

Technorati Street Cred = Live in San Francisco

As you know, I sell real estate in San Francisco and on the Peninsula. Lucky for me and the rest of the local real estate market, many of the technorati like to keep their street cred by living in SF (at least part-time!) and in fact, many of the hottest companies are based here (Zynga, Twitter, etc).

When Silicon Valley does well, so does San Francisco, at least for the demographic we’re talking about. My clients often don’t believe me when I tell that the housing downturn in SF is long gone and the competition is fierce for the best listings until the first time they write an offer and compete with 6 other buyers to get the house they want.

Bring on the bubble.

…Tales from the front line of buying and selling San Francisco real estate

There is a lot of talk today about historically low interest rates & the amazing opportunity for “first time buyers.”

It is likely that today’s mortgage rates are the cheapest money we will see in our lifetime so if you have grown out of your home or are just ready for a new scene, it makes sense to explore your options. Believe it or not, you may find that you can live in a larger home for approximately the same monthly payment. Now, that is strategic planning!

Let’s talk about your ideal housing plan.

Have a question or want more info? Call, email, or comment.

St. Francis of Assisi has looked fondly on our fair city by the Bay and has bestowed upon us an inordinate number of amazing and dedicated animal lovers in the rescue movement.  As I see it, Muttville Senior Dog Rescue is at the top of the list.  Go see for yourself at the Muttville Holiday Adoption Pop Up Shop!   This pop up, affectionately referred to as a “pup up”, is an adoption center, retail space and resource space all in one.

Hop on your sleigh, or spin your way on your dreidel, and get down to 1259 Polk St (the corner of Polk and Bush) every weekend in the month of December — you have 3  more chances — to see Muttville’s adorable pooches who are up for adoption.  The Pup-Up is open from 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Saturday and Sunday. There are so many things to do once you’re there!  You can grab treats from Paw Patch Pastries, get your dog’s picture taken with Santa Paws by Nuena Photography or Chung Nguyen Photography,  or buy matching Muttville t-shirts for you and your canine best friend.  Don’t forget to check out Small Club: San Francisco small dog walking , a dog walking, daycare, and boarding service for small-sized dogs of all ages.  Personally, I like just hanging out and providing a warm lap for one of the Muttville mutts.

If you can’t make it to the Pup-Up Adoption Shop, maybe a Christmas Day walk at Fort Funston is more your speed. Meet at the parking lot at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday December 25th and join us for a leisurely stroll with the sweetest, most irresistible,  zaniest pack of mutts !

…Tales from the front line of buying and selling San Francisco real estate

Bay Area Mortgage Rates

Last year was an amazing year for mortgage rates. This year is even better. Of course, this means a continuing sluggish national economy but locally, the market is stable and improving. Hey, it’s true! Ask you techie friends?

Check out the average interest rate on a conforming 30 year fixed interest rate home loan over the past 3+ decades.

1981 = 18.45%

1991 = 9%

2001 = 7%

October 2010 = 4.25%

November 2011 = 4%

2012 = ?

Q: Who should act in today’s housing market?

A: First time buyers…with stable employment, “trade-up” or “trade-out” buyers (buyers who are also sellers), and financially distressed homeowners who need to lower their overhead.

Have a question or want more info? Call, email, or comment.

Bernal Heights Home

178 Prentiss Street — Single Family Home

FIRST SUNDAY OPEN HOUSE — Sunday, October 23rd, 2:00-4:00PM

Brokers’ Tour — Tuesday, October 25th, 2:30-4:00PM

We are super excited about our new listing for sale - 178 Prentiss Street San Francisco 94110, listed at $711,000 – Bernal Heights Home with Deck & Yard for Sale!

WANT PHOTOS? VISIT THE PROPERTY WEBSITE FOR THIS BRIGHT & OPEN BERNAL HEIGHTS HOME?

Located north of Cortland, away from the bustle yet walking distance to the charm & convenience of Cortland Ave and Bernal Heights Village (organic groceries, yoga, sushi, Italian, Peruvian, public library, bookstore, video store, bank, etc), 178 Prentiss Street is a bright & open single family home. Built in 1927, 178 Prentiss St features an open floor plan – perfect for entertaining and hanging out – with 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom with shower over bathtub, hardwood floors, a remodeled kitchen with office nook, and a bonus room & ½ bath off of the garage. The garage has laundry, parking for 1 car and plenty of storage.

But what makes this house so unique and special is the direct access from the kitchen to the sunny deck and flat, landscaped yard. Soak up the sun, play with the pooch/kids/both/neither, host a BBQ, pour some Pinot, do a Downward Dog or just relax with a book. You’ll be sure to enjoy the indoor-outdoor living in your new home!

A NOTE FROM OUR SELLER:

Dear Prospective Buyer,

We have thoroughly enjoyed living in this home in this community of Bernal Heights for the past nine years.  As far as the house itself goes, we love the openness of the floor plan, the wood floors throughout, and the way the yard feels like an extension of the house.   On many days, we have simply opened our French doors and sat out on the deck to enjoy the sunshine and privacy of the backyard.  We have also appreciated the quietness of the street itself and the easy off-street parking!

Living in Bernal Heights has been absolutely wonderful for our family.  Our two children have enjoyed the parks, library and family events of the community like Fiesta on the Hill and the annual Hill wide Garage Sale.  Our family has also enjoyed our many walks around Bernal Hill where we take in 360-degree views of the city.  You also can’t beat the shops and restaurants on Cortland Avenue. Within walking distance you can enjoy great pastries at the Sandbox Bakery, strong coffee at Martha Brothers, exotic sushi at Moki’s and delectable brunch at Liberty Café, just to name a few of our favorites!   With more new businesses opening their doors, it is also fun to explore the many new shops and restaurants in the area.

Finally, the best part about living on Prentiss is the community.  We have caring and wonderful neighbors that have made living in Bernal meaningful to our family.  We move away with life-long friends and many warm memories of our time here.

Simply stated, we have loved living in this home and being part of the Bernal community!

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Sunnyside Home

225 Detroit Street, Single Family Home

Brokers’ Tour — Tuesday, October 11th, 1:00-2:30PM

SUNDAY OPEN HOUSE — Sunday, October 16th, 2:00-4:00PM

We are super excited about our new listing for sale - 25 Detroit Street San Francisco 94112, listed at $649,000 – Sunnyside Home for Sale- because it’s bright & spacious, has a great flow, a lovely yard and two garages!

WANT PHOTOS? VISIT THE PROPERTY WEBSITE FOR THIS SUNNYSIDE HOME.

Situated on a well-maintained, flat block in the Sunnyside neighborhood – walking distance to Glen Park Village – 225 Detroit St is perfectly situated to enjoy “single family home” living without leaving the fun and convenience of San Francisco.

With close proximity to freeways, BART, SFO and the South Bay, you’ll enjoy an easy commute whether to Downtown SF or Silicon Valley. Glen Park Village is wonderful, offering a public library, organic grocery store, cafes, shops, banks, and destination restaurants (Gialina Pizza, Le P’tit Laurent & more).

This single family home is spacious, bright and well-planned. The main level features hardwood floors throughout, formal living room, dining room, ½ bath & eat-in kitchen. The updated kitchen has new Quartz counter tops and an easy, open feeling. Enjoy direct access to the large, sunny deck & over-sized backyard. Soccer or volleyball, anyone? The upper level offers 2 good-sized bedrooms with custom closets & 1 full bathroom with shower over bathtub. There is plenty of storage & natural light throughout.

And now for the fun part…TWO GARAGES. The primary garage offers 1-car parking, laundry and plenty of storage. We’re told it’s easy to park a 2nd car in the driveway. The second garage is detached and set-up as an awesome home office, guest area, or home gym.

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Mission Dolores TIC

465 14th Street- 3-Unit Building

 FIRST SUNDAY OPEN HOUSE — Sunday, September 25th, 2:00-4:00PM

Brokers’ Tour — Tuesday, September 27th, 12:00-1:30PM

We are super excited about our new listing for sale - 465 14th Street San Francisco 94103, listed at $615,000 - Mission Dolores Edwardian TIC for Sale- because it’s spacious, detailed, tastefully updated and ideally situated!

WANT PHOTOS? VISIT THE PROPERTY WEBSITE FOR THIS MISSION DOLORES EDWARDIAN FLAT.

Enter 465 14^th Street, a spacious Edwardian TIC in a 3-unit building (461-465 14th St). This TIC has entered the condo lottery 4 times and is ideally situated in uber-cool Mission Dolores / Valencia Corridor. Want to be walking distance to: Four Barrel Coffee, Mission Beach Cafe, Pauline’s Pizza, Pica Pica Kitchen, Little Star Pizza, clothing boutiques, bookstores, bars, entertainment, the Mission, Mission Dolores, the Castro, Duboce Triangle and more? There’s no need for a car in this “Rider’s Paradise” with 44 routes nearby! But don’t worry if you do need parking – this TIC comes with an enclosed, leased parking space just a block away.

Open the doors to this large flat and you will be stunned by the high, coved ceilings and Edwardian period details. This flat comes fully equipped with 3 bedrooms (all with closets – a pleasant rarity!), 1 ¼ updated bathrooms, a formal living room and formal dining room – both with gorgeous decorative fireplaces, and a gourmet updated kitchen with Quartz counters, new stainless steel appliances and custom built cabinets.

This unit also boasts attractive softwood floors, a laundry room off of the kitchen with a stacking washer & dryer and a developed bonus room down used as a fully functional office plus additional storage. Enjoy stylish, urban living in Mission Dolores.  

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A NOTE FROM OUR SELLERS:

DearProspective Buyer,

This home has been a special place for us for the past 7+ years. We have put a lot of work and love into it. Just before sitting to write this note, we spent the afternoon in the backyard with our neighbors reminiscing… Here are a few things we recounted:

This house is part of a wonderful community. In the units behind us you have two sets of young, considerate and friendly folks. We’ve spent time in the garden barbequing and enjoying the warm Mission Dolores weather. The co-owners – Mark, Matt and Jennifer – are responsible and wonderful people with whom we consider ourselves
lucky to have co-owned a TIC. You hear so many stories to the contrary. We all started as strangers and now consider each other friends. There are many other neighbors on the block that we have gotten to know and who keep an eye out for each other, which makes this neighborhood feel warm, friendly and even safer than your average urban city block. When you’re in the front yard working on the tree plants or sweeping the street, people stop and thank you for adding beauty to the neighborhood.

We can’t say enough about the location, location, location! Where to begin? You are within a few steps of a culinary mecca. We go to Mission Beach Café almost every morning (the others are spent at Four Barrel Coffee) where the coffee and pastries are to die for and you feel a real sense of welcome when you’re greeted by name. The walkability of healthy grocery shopping is also key. Within four blocks you have: Rainbow Grocery, Golden Produce (a small private organic grocer by Safeway) and Bi-Rite.  Whole Foods is supposed to be going in a block and a half away. The list of restaurants we’ve enjoyed is too long to write, but Chow, Delfina, Loconda …the list really goes on and on.

This neighborhood if vibrant and full of activities; Dolores Park gives us sun, tennis, music, movies and there’s a nice little farmers market a few blocks up in the Castro on Wednesday evenings during Summer. Enjoy ‘Sunday Streets’ on Valencia and the Carnival as well.  The access to BART and Muni has made the entire city easily accessible and I’m afraid we’ve been spoiled.

Real Estate Realities:

…Tales from the front line of buying and selling San Francisco real estate

Moving On Up – How To Trade Up From Your Starter Condo to Your Dream Home

My team and I recently helped a couple purchase a large family home and sell their “starter” condo. Jason bought his condo as a single guy and is now a married Dad of two. His family had quickly outgrown their condo and wanted a much larger single family home.

The process of a simultaneous purchase and sale was concerning to Jason & his wife Amy. So, we assembled an expert team consisting of a mortgage broker, buyer’s agent and listing agent to help them determine their options. After our mortgage broker determined their purchasing power, our buyer’s agent took them around town to look at homes, while my listing coordinator and I started planning for the sale of their condo.

Goals accomplished, stress decreased!