SF Bay Area Home Price and Mortgage Insanity Blog - Burbed.com

You can totally afford this with your high median income in the Bay Area…

2008-07-18T06:52:34Z

Given that the Bay Area has many of the highest median incomes, that means I know you can afford to donate to Burbed.

Donate at whatever level you feel comfortable with.

Thanks!

Bay Area - highest median family income

2008-07-14T23:21:02Z

Best places to live 2008 - Top 25: Biggest earners - from MONEY Magazine

Biggest earners

Here are towns from the Best Places database with the highest median family income.

Rank City Median 2007 family income

1 New Canaan, CT $231,138

2 Darien, CT $218,130

3 Lake Forest, IL $212,122

4 Saratoga, CA $196,420

5 Westport, CT $193,540

6 Los Altos, CA $189,839

7 Potomac, MD $183,258

8 McLean, VA $180,103

9 Wellesley, MA $172,900

10 University Park, TX $170,150

11 Bethesda, MD $167,043

12 Southlake, TX $166,878

13 Danville, CA $160,560

14 Greenwich, CT $157,232

15 Ridgewood, NJ $153,436

16 Manhattan Beach, CA $151,258

17 La Canada Flintridge, CA $150,985

18 Bloomfield Township, MI $150,969

19 Los Gatos, CA $150,556

20 Wilmette, IL $149,667

21 Lafayette, CA $149,597

22 Dranesville, VA $149,294

23 Deerfield, IL $148,612

24 Highland Park, IL $148,131

25 Garden City, NY $147,804

Rank	City	Median 2007 family income
1	New Canaan, CT	$231,138
2	Darien, CT	$218,130
3	Lake Forest, IL	$212,122
4	Saratoga, CA	$196,420
5	Westport, CT	$193,540
6	Los Altos, CA	$189,839
7	Potomac, MD	$183,258
8	McLean, VA	$180,103
9	Wellesley, MA	$172,900
10	University Park, TX	$170,150
11	Bethesda, MD	$167,043
12	Southlake, TX	$166,878
13	Danville, CA	$160,560
14	Greenwich, CT	$157,232
15	Ridgewood, NJ	$153,436
16	Manhattan Beach, CA	$151,258
17	La Canada Flintridge, CA	$150,985
18	Bloomfield Township, MI	$150,969
19	Los Gatos, CA	$150,556
20	Wilmette, IL	$149,667
21	Lafayette, CA	$149,597
22	Dranesville, VA	$149,294
23	Deerfield, IL	$148,612
24	Highland Park, IL	$148,131
25	Garden City, NY	$147,804

Thanks to Madhaus for pointing this out. Congrats to the Bay Area for taking a whopping 4 out of the top 25 cities with highest median incomes.

NY only has 1 and it’s in dirt cheap Long Island. CT has a few, but those hedge funders are doomed anyway.

I think the most important metric, what really defines how special a place is, is the “Family purchasing power”. Let’s look at the last few:

Los Gatos: $440,376
Garden City: $273,437
Greenwich: $604,400

Ouch. Greenwich beat Los Gatos. <sigh>

What can we do to make living here more expensive so that we can only have the best and brightest people here?

Sunnyvale is a top 100 city. Here’s why:

Meet the neighbors	City stats	Best places avg.
Median age	37.5	35.9
Completed at least some college (% of residents)	77.2%	73.7%
Married	50.9%	57.5%
Divorced	9.0%	8.3%
Racial diversity index (100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)	308.9	104.2
Amount spent on vacations (domestic and foreign, household avg. per year)	$8,352	$8,007

Check out that diversity index. You’ll never find a place as diverse as the Real Bay Area.

OMG - Atherton High house in Menlo Park for just $599,000!!

2008-07-10T06:19:56Z

923 Marsh Rd, Menlo Park, CA 94025 MLS# 768984 - Property Details - Movoto
$599,000

* Status: Pending Release
* Bedroom: 3
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1950
* Lot Size: 5000
* Square Footage: 1070
* List Date: 12/21/2007
* Garage Spaces: 1
* MLS#: 768984

$100,000 PRICE REDUCTION! VERY CUTE! BEST VLAUE FOR THREE BEDROOM HOME WITH MENLO ATHERTON HIGH SCHOOL!Adorable home with lots of charm and light. Very sunny, private backyard, nice sized bedrooms, hardwood floors, fireplace, newer applicances, nice bathroom. very good quiet. Menlo Atherton High School. Go Direct or call Listing Agent. Back on the market, loan fell through, no fault of the home.

I love decorations in this home - very timely.

Wait a minute… why does this seem so familiar?

Free child included with Menlo Park home? [Burbed.com]

Oh right. This was featured in February. Doh!

Well, the deal fell through and it was no fault of the home. So that makes this an incredible steal. The photos seem to indicate that the child still comes with the house, so that could be some additional income too.

This house is going to be scooped up in just a few days… you just watch!

$1 million house in Millbrae - free christmas lights!

2008-07-10T05:56:54Z

1176 ELMWOOD Dr, Millbrae, CA 94030
$1,050,000

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 4
* Bathroom: 2
* Year Built: 1955
* Lot Size: N/A
* Square Footage: 1610
* List Date: 2/6/2008
* Garage Spaces: 4
* MLS#: 336688
*
PRICE REDUCED! Beautiful ranch-style home in a desirable area of Millbrae * 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, family room, formal dining area, huge kitchen area & bar * 2-car garage side-by-side * Large fenced backyard * Double pane windows, hardwood floors throughout.

Sellers continue to give and give and give. This house comes not only with a reduced price, but those hard to find lights hanging off the roof. Some would call them Christmas lights, but we know them as festivus lights.

And check it out, you get a four car garage somehow - can you say passive income?

And look at the prestigious area this in - don’t you like golfing? Don’t you like being near a lake?

If you ask me, this is a fantastic deal! Just a million!

Silicon Valley Rent Rises, you are now very priced out forever

2008-07-13T17:54:33Z

South Bay leads increases as rents soar
The sharpest increases occurred in the South Bay counties, with the average rent jumping 8 percent to $1,786 in San Mateo and 7 percent to $1,679 in Santa Clara in the second quarter compared with the same period a year earlier. Even rents in the East Bay, where growth was more modest, climbed, helped by the strength of the San Francisco and Silicon Valley markets, according to Jerry Smith, regional manager for Marcus & Millichap’s East Bay office.

“The East Bay is being framed by some very, very strong bordering markets that are experiencing 7, 8, 9 percent rent growth,” Smith said. “Silicon Valley and San Francisco are leading markets on a nationwide scale for rent growth. We’re seeing a lot of pressure on those rents, and it’s spilling over into the East Bay market.”

Average rents and vacancy rates

It remains a landlord’s market as rents have increased and the vacancy rate has remained stable during the last year in all nine Bay Area counties.*

County 2nd quarter, 2007 2nd quarter 2008 Year-over-

year change
Vacancy rate

Alameda $1,337 $1,409 5.4% 4.7%

Contra Costa $1,250 $1,328 6.2 5.1

Marin $1,528 $1,591 4.1 2.8

Napa $1,264 $1,307 3.4 3.7

San Francisco $1,757 $1,926 9.6 4.0

San Mateo $1,654 $1,786 8.0 4.1

Santa Clara $1,569 $1,679 7.0 2.7

Solano $1,137 $1,164 2.4 5.0

Sonoma $1,140 $1,212 6.3 5.5

Didn’t you wish you had bought a place? Prices are still rising in the Real Bay Area. Rents are zooming. That giant gap between renting and buying? Well, it’s closing fast!

Pretty soon, if you don’t buy a place, rent will be $10,000 a month, and you will have no choice but to live in a Honday down by the river.

Different colors, living side by side for just $239,900 in Santa Rosa

2008-07-10T05:49:01Z

2227 Malin Pl Santa Rosa, CA 95407
Price: $239,900

Beds: 2
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 943
$/Sq. Ft.: $254
Lot Size: 1,307 Sq. Ft.
$/Acre: $7,996,667
Year Built: 1976
Stories: 1 Story
Style: Other
Area: Southwest Santa Rosa
County: Sonoma
MLS#: 20809034
Source: BAREIS
Status: Active
On Redfin: 77 days
Duette home located in a cul-de-sac, with a large side yard.

Burbed rarely ventures north - and this piece of real estate is a great example why. Just $239,900? Sheesh… might as well price it for free if you’re going to price it like that.

Still Burbed reader mrbogue was reminded by something when he saw this listing:

Let That Be Your Last Battlefield (Star Trek: The Original Series)

Personally, I’m reminded of this:

Seinfeld - The Dinner Party
JERRY: Oh look Elaine, the black and white cookie. I love the black and white. Two races of flavor living side by side [mumble?] It’s a wonderful thing isn’t it?

ELAINE: You know I often wonder what you’ll be like when you’re senile.

The term duette is pretty cute. What does this house remind you of? Doesn’t it sound like a cleaning product?

Terry Childs and the San Francisco FiberWAN computer network

2008-07-16T03:42:15Z

S.F. officials locked out of computer network
A disgruntled city computer engineer has virtually commandeered San Franciscos new multimillion-dollar computer network, altering it to deny access to top administrators even as he sits in jail on $5 million bail, authorities said Monday.

Terry Childs, a 43-year-old computer network administrator who lives in Pittsburg, has been charged with four counts of computer tampering and is scheduled to be arraigned today.

Prosecutors say Childs, who works in the Department of Technology at a base salary of just over $126,000, tampered with the citys new FiberWAN Wide Area Network, where records such as officials e-mails, city payroll files, confidential law enforcement documents and jail inmates bookings are stored.

Childs created a password that granted him exclusive access to the system, authorities said. He initially gave pass codes to police, but they didnt work. When pressed, Childs refused to divulge the real code even when threatened with arrest, they said.

He was taken into custody Sunday. City officials said late Monday that they had made some headway into cracking his pass codes and regaining access to the system.

Childs has worked for the city for about five years. One official with knowledge of the case said he had been disciplined on the job in recent months for poor performance and that his supervisors had tried to fire him.

“They werent able to do it - this was kind of his insurance policy,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the attempted firing was a personnel matter.

This isn’t particularly housing related - ok, it’s not at all housing related. I just thought it was amusing.

Who doesn’t want a especial house? Especially a Tiffany colored one!

2008-06-16T02:44:54Z

185 DALE DR, San Jose 95127 (San Jose)
$499,888 Beds: 2 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s)    MLS: 80768953

Property Overview
185 DALE DR
San Jose (San Jose) 95127
Detached Single Family (Class 1)
Bed/Bath:    2 / 1
SqFt:    1,028
Lot:    18,295 sq ft
Yr Built / Age:    1932 / 76 years
List Price:    $499,888
Assoc Fee:
Remarks
This unique house is ready to move in conditions, two bedrooms and one full bathroom two car garge with a nice espacius workshop with electric power, with 1028 sqft of living space and parcial basement. Don’t miss this oportunity to own this property, located in a nice area. Call for more Informacion.(As is Sale)

You see them all the time. Cookie cutter McMansions that have the same mute tones, and no personality whatsoever.

This house, on the other hand, really stands out. With a fence that can impale, the paint alone says: “Look at me, I’m special! I’m unique!”

Nothing will ring in your head like pride of ownership like this amazing charm. Here, let’s look at another glamour shot:

Wowser! It’s like walking into Tiffany’s and being surrounded by… Tiffany’s!

If you don’t call this house a jewel, I don’t know what your tastes are.

Dude, where’s my house?

2008-06-16T02:30:49Z

2852 SAN JUAN BL, Belmont 94002 (Belmont)
$619,900 Beds: 2 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s)    MLS: 80815233

Bed/Bath:    2 / 1
SqFt:    720
Lot:    8,000 sq ft
Yr Built / Age:    1958 / 50 years
List Price:    $619,900
Assoc Fee:
Great Westside Value! Large 8,000 SQ FT lot with studded redwood tree setting, cozy and expandable rancher, 2 car garage, hardwood floors, bank owned REO. Opportunity knocks!
Great Westside Value! Large 8,000 SQ FT lot with studded redwood tree setting, cozy and expandable rancher, 2 car garage, hardwood floors, bank owned REO. Opportunity knocks!

Now granted this is a rather large lot, but still… I’d feel better about paying $861 a square foot if there was a house in this photo. Is it just the garages? How perplexing!

Maybe that’s the point - that’s all you need - two garages and you’re set. Minimalist living at its best. It can be yours, here in Belmont.

San Jose - #1 of 34 cities where it’s still better to rent

2008-07-09T07:46:15Z

34 cities where it’s still better to rent - Rentals - MSN Real Estate
Hit worst would be home buyers in San Jose, Calif., the nation’s priciest market. By the study’s calculations, anyone who bought a low-priced home there with a 6% loan could be $355,000 in the hole in 2012. (A low-priced home was defined as 75% of the area’s current median price.)

In San Francisco, you stand to lose around $254,000 in the next four years, according to the study; in Honolulu, $115,000; in Seattle, $108,000; in Washington, D.C., $81,000; and Boston, $28,000.

<snip>

Projected equity in 2012 …

Metro area 6% loan 7% loan 8% loan

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif. -355,346 -361,381 -366,603

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif. -253,875 -259,684 -264,711

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif. -222,719 -227,598 -231,820

Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, Calif. -203,481 -208,464 -212,776

Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn. -183,685 -187,931 -191,605

San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif. -157,371 -161,798 -165,629

Honolulu -114,657 -119,323 -123,360

Stockton, Calif. -109,757 -112,775 -115,386

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash. -108,427 -111,496 -114,151

Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, Calif. -107,621 -110,772 -113,499

New York-North New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-Pennsylvania* -102,428 -106,287 -109,625

Ouchers. This begs the question: why does the MSM (Main Street Media) hate the Bay Area so much? Is it out of sheer jealousy? Do they hate the players, not the game?

I wanted to beat New York, but this wasn’t quite what I had in mind!

I think we need a Proposition to fix this fast!

Bay Area Demographics - are young people all leaving California?

2008-07-10T06:57:17Z

Daniel Petelin speaks out [Burbed.com]
bob Says:
July 8th, 2008 at 11:06 a

The age remark is pretty much right-on. The youngest city in the US is Atlanta.The median age in that city is 32 years old. The median for the Bay Area is pushing 40. Alameda, where I live has an avg age of 48. Most other East Bay burbs are the same or even older. This number increases almost yearly, in step with the current age, which indicates that the majority of persons aged 25-32 do not stay. the 25-32 age group is the most highly prized in terms of growing a new economy. If the BA loses this demographic, then it’ll kill the economy eventually.

Is this really the case? For some reason I have a hard time believing that the Bay Area is that old. What about our competitors like Portland, Seattle, (cough) New York, Boston?

San Francisco is only the 4th worst city for unemployement benefits

2008-07-09T07:44:35Z

Unemployment: The 20 Best And Worst Cities For Unemployment Benefits

Losing a job is bad enough, but your unemployment benefits can vary wildly depending on where you live. The L.A. Times compared unemployment benefits to the cost of living and picked the twenty best and worst cities to be unemployed.

The 10 Worst Cities

10. Los Angeles, Calif.—$450 per week

5. Washington, D.C.—$359 per week

4. San Francisco, Calif.—$450 per week

1. New York, N.Y.—$405 per week

Good grief. Does NY really have to beat us in so many categories?

The more unemployed people we get rid of, the better off our properties will be and the more our housing prices could rise. Sheesh, do these people have no clue?

Friday Caption Writing Contest for East Palo Alto Home

2008-06-16T02:23:36Z

1926 PULGAS AV
East Palo Alto, CA, 94303         offered at $299,000

Bedrooms: 2         Bathrooms: 1 Full
Apprx. Sq. Feet: 1190         Year Built: 1950
Request More Info Schedule A Showing

Cozy home-Updated kitchen with tile floors,dining/living room combo. One full bath,one car garage converted to bonus room. Fully fenced w/one car carport, driveway for two vehicles. Newer iron fence, lush landscaping w/automatic sprinkler system.

Alright, this is the last East Palo Alto home I’ll feature this week - I promise.

Now, there’s a lot to talk about for this home - after all, it has a newer iron fence, lush landscaping, and a garage converted into a bonus room.

But what strikes me the most is the photo of the house. It’s so unique. So avant garde. So photojournalistic. So raw. So gritty.

So it’s time to put on your thinking caps. Can you come up with a good back story about how this photo was taken, or why this photo is the way it is?

To quote a recent realtor: BE CREATIVE!

San Francisco is #1 Best City for Young Professionals

2008-07-10T19:34:42Z

Why San Francisco Is No. 1 - Forbes.com
Why San Francisco Is No. 1
Matt Woolsey, 07.09.08, 5:00 PM ET

San Francisco is this year’s best city for young professionals because of its ability to attract and retain talent. It does this by offering long-term job opportunities, plenty of singles and impressive starting salaries.

The City by the Bay outshined the rest of the field in attracting alumni from the nation’s top schools. More of the class of 1998 from Harvard, Stanford, Rice, Princeton, Duke and Northwestern picked San Francisco as home, 10 years out of school, compared with any other metro. These are graduates with the skills to work virtually wherever they want, and this measure is an indicator of where high-caliber professionals have decided to settle, based on a combination of job and lifestyle factors.

It’s easy to see San Francisco’s attractive opportunities. Forbes rates the 400 best big companies and the 200 best small companies based on revenue and high rankings for corporate practices, as well as long- and short-term sales and earnings growth and stock market performance. Of the 600 companies in this index, 41 of them are in the Bay Area, which is the second-highest overall total, and when adjusted for population, this makes San Francisco the fourth-best place to find a top employer.

Congrats! Oh my god. We beat New York! I’m so happy!

So far house prices haven’t done so well this year, but with trends like this, you can be sure that our god given 10% year over year annual appreciation is right around the corner. The median here in the Real Bay Area might not $1 million this year, but 2009 - watch out!

Can you get to Home Depot in your sleep? This house is for you!

2008-07-10T16:20:22Z

427 Larkspur Dr, East Palo Alto 94303 (East of U.S. 101)
$279,500

* Status: Active
* Bedroom: 3
* Bathroom: 1
* Year Built: 1954
* Lot Size: 5100
* Square Footage: 1020
* List Date: 3/19/2008
* Garage Spaces: 2
* MLS#: 785751

Can you get to Home Depot in your sleep? This cute but tired 50’s era rancher will really pay off for the diligent investor or first time home owner willing to put in the work. Decent size lot with lots of off street parking and still plenty of room left over for a front lawn. Tankless water heater = energy efficiency positive! Offered “as is”. BE CREATIVE, MAKE OFFERS!!!

Wow… the steals in East Palo Alto keep rolling in! When they talk about EPA having a high crime rate, what they’re talking about is how houses are going for a steal!

This house comes with a tankless water heater. Amazing. And, since it’s conveniently located within walking distance to Home Depot, you can easily furnish the rest of this house with pipes, walls, and more.

Most notable is the challenge the Realtor is presenting you: “BE CREATIVE, MAKE OFFERS!!!”.

Clearly, just offering a high price won’t help - might I recommend offering to sign a contract promising to feed the squirrels, or choosing one of the many other helpful tips I offer here to help buyers stand out?

Come on - you live in Silicon Valley. You can think of something innovative to do here!

You snooze you lose 2: $219,000 house in the Peninsula

2008-06-16T02:09:51Z

1516 URSULA WY, East Palo Alto 94303 (East Palo Alto)
$219,900 Beds: 3 bed(s) Baths: 2 bath(s)    MLS: 80809472

Bed/Bath:    3 / 2
SqFt:    1,150
Lot:    5,060 sq ft
Yr Built / Age:    1956 / 52 years
List Price:    $219,900
Assoc Fee:
THERE IS GREAT POTENTIAL IN THIS SINGLE FAMILY HOME!
THIS HOME OFFERS 3 BEDROOMS, TWO BATHS, A LARGE LIVING/ DINING ROOM COMBO WITH A WOOD BURNING FIREPLACE.

Again, by the time you read this, this house probably won’t be available anymore. Just think: this house was sold last year for $504,519 - you just missed out on over $285k in instant equity. Free money.

Not only that, but this house has a wood burning fireplace - which may or may not have been used in the incident which caused this house to be cordoned off. Hah, I’m just kidding: this house is cordoned off because it’s such a steal, that it’s a crime! Hah. I crack myself up.

Anyone have the full scoop on what happened here?

You snooze you lose: $109,500 house in the Peninsula

2008-06-16T02:05:04Z

2833 FORDHAM ST, East Palo Alto 94303 (East Palo Alto)
$109,500 Beds: 3 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s) MLS: 80813385

Bed/Bath: 3 / 1
SqFt: 1,030
Lot: 5,000 sq ft
Yr Built / Age: 1953 / 55 years
List Price: $109,500
Assoc Fee:
Remarks
This property is the perfect find for investors & buyers! This home is priced to sell, but will need a lot of time & work! This diamond in the rough has great potential to become a worthwhile investment! Don’t let yourself miss out on this golden opportunity!!

Like the people who line up outside of the Apple stores to buy iPhones and MacBook Airs, you really do have to get up early sometimes to buy houses in the Bay Area. This freaking amazing deal will probably be gone by the time you read this. And you’ll feel sorry for missing out on the $548,000 equity you missed as this house last sold in 2007 for $657,5000.

Wow. Don’t you feel embarrassed for missing this golden opportunity.

My god. $109k for a house in the peninsula. My god.

Daniel Petelin speaks out

2008-07-08T06:17:53Z

Daniel Petelin and the $1.8 million dollar house in Redwood City [Burbed.com]
I’m Daniel Petelin — and I would like to clarify a few facts mentioned in the above comments. First of all, I have lived in the house on Palomar for 60 years — although I have lived briefly in Monterey, Sacramento and San Francisco. It is part of my Russian culture to value home life and I am proud to stay that I have lived in my parent’s beautiful home so long. The mortgage I have is due to earthquake damage to the home that has been repaired. I also have contributed monies to the repair and maintenance of the home, consequently I have no regrets that Prop 13 let’s the house pass to the children. It should be that way since I always helped out with the family obligations. In addition, I am recovering from a mini-stroke — that is why I can’t work full-time. Consequently I may consider a reverse mortgage or lease the house. In any case, I have worked hard to honor my parents wishes that the home continue to be in the Petelin Family. I know in my heart my parents wanted me to have this home and pass it on to the next generation.

Assuming this is the real Daniel Peterlin (and I believe it is) - I now feel bad for calling out someone who has had a stroke.

Burbed wishes you well.

Berkeley house could use some rehab

2008-06-16T01:55:46Z

Property Detail
Offered at $429,000
1552 ALCATRAZ AVE BERKELEY, CA 94703

6BD/2BA former residential care facility located on Alcatraz in Berkeley. The bldg. may be able to be converted to a lrg (2195 sq ft) home or multi-units (chk w/city), or operated as a nursing or boarding home (its current zoning). Lrg. lot (6450 sq ft), bonus rms, 2-car garage. Needs rehab.

Believe it or not, this is actually the first home in Berkeley ever featured on Burbed. Thanks to Burbed reader mrbogue for this find (sorry it took me so long to post it!)

Burbed doesn’t know much about Berkeley, other than it’s the other pillar of the Smart People factory that the Bay Area is. So, help me out… is this a good deal or not? Could you rent this to 24 undergrads to turn a profit?

6257 Cottage Dr: Everything must go, including the kitchen sink!

2008-07-02T03:42:57Z

Bubble Markets Inventory Tracking: Hell Hath No Fury Like a Short Seller Denied
Joe and Heather thought in the summer of ‘06 that a purchase in Bressi Ranch of Carlsbad was a sure bet. They purchased a 2,476 sqft back loading home on 6257 Cottage Dr for $695,000, or $280/sqft.

But fast forward a year and Joe and Heather realized they were in way over their head. So in August of 2007, they listed their home of 1 year for sale. Of course, still firm believers in the Bressi Promise, they listed the home for $745,000. Joe and Heather didn’t think they were greedy. They just needed 6257 Cottage to cover the 6% commission as well as the few upgrades they made to the home.

After wasting a couple of valuable peak summer selling months in the $700k range, their REALTOR was finally able to talk them down to $649,000. But even at that price the home lingered on the market for another 6 months. Finally in April, Joe and Heather dropped down the price further to $630,000:

“This home offers 4 bedrooms or 3 bedrooms and a downstairs den, 3 full bathrooms and plenty of upgrades! Short sale approved at $630,000. Great opportunity to get into this neighborhood for a bargain price!”

After wasting a couple of valuable peak summer selling months in the $700k range, their REALTOR was finally able to talk them down to $649,000. But even at that price the home lingered on the market for another 6 months. Finally in April, Joe and Heather dropped down the price further to $630,000:

“This home offers 4 bedrooms or 3 bedrooms and a downstairs den, 3 full bathrooms and plenty of upgrades! Short sale approved at $630,000. Great opportunity to get into this neighborhood for a bargain price!”

So looks like their REALTOR was able to arrange for a short sale approval at $630k. So this gets Joe and Heather a free Get Out of Bressi card, right?

Nope, unfortunately not… the short sale didn’t take and Wells Fargo ended up taking back the property in June… only to find a few things missing in the kitchen. Currently the home is on the market as a REO for $575,000, hardly a bargain considering the replacement cost for the matching cabinets and appliances.

Well, so the saying goes… if you can’t take the house with you, at least take a few treasured mementos…

Fortunately, this happened in Carlsbad. All of us known that stories like this could never happen in the Real Bay Area. Thanks to Burbed reader Frank for pointing this out.

County	2nd quarter, 2007	2nd quarter 2008	Year-over- year change	Vacancy rate
Alameda	$1,337	$1,409	5.4%	4.7%
Contra Costa	$1,250	$1,328	6.2	5.1
Marin	$1,528	$1,591	4.1	2.8
Napa	$1,264	$1,307	3.4	3.7
San Francisco	$1,757	$1,926	9.6	4.0
San Mateo	$1,654	$1,786	8.0	4.1
Santa Clara	$1,569	$1,679	7.0	2.7
Solano	$1,137	$1,164	2.4	5.0
Sonoma	$1,140	$1,212	6.3	5.5

Metro area	6% loan	7% loan	8% loan
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.	-355,346	-361,381	-366,603
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif.	-253,875	-259,684	-264,711
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif.	-222,719	-227,598	-231,820
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, Calif.	-203,481	-208,464	-212,776
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn.	-183,685	-187,931	-191,605
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif.	-157,371	-161,798	-165,629
Honolulu	-114,657	-119,323	-123,360
Stockton, Calif.	-109,757	-112,775	-115,386
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.	-108,427	-111,496	-114,151
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, Calif.	-107,621	-110,772	-113,499
New York-North New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-Pennsylvania*	-102,428	-106,287	-109,625