Gregory San Francisco Real Estate Blog

PriceChopper: Soundproof Lone Mountain Retreat

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:16:57 -0600

PriceChopper: Soundproof Lone Mountain Retreat

November 17th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Then: $769,000
Now: $749,000
You Save: $20,000, or 3 percent

The condo at 115 Masonic was listed earlier this fall at $769,000, not so far above its 1999 sale price of $670,500. With a modest price chop, the 2-bed, 1-bath, 1,582 square foot property inches a bit closer to its pre-millennium asking price. The listing says the building's an Oliver Rousseau, and also points to "sound proof barrier windows" and a yard in the back. That's also the first piano in a while we've seen in a condo stage job. Don't worry, a 60″ HDTV would do just as well there.
· 115 Masonic Ave [Redfin]

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The Metreon's Cash Flow Problem: The Metreon's makeover — following its...

November 17th, 2009

The Metreon's makeover - following its failure as an electronics mall of the future - sort of hinged on their nabbing New York's Tavern on the Green. When that, too, fell through, their plan to rejigger the mall so that it would have a larger mid-block entrance on 4th Street also hit the rocks. The original plan was to get started in early 2010, but now funding for that hinges on getting tenants for the forlorn mall. Westfield's still playing coy: "There is significant interest by a wide range of appealing tenants." In other words, Target. [SF Examiner, previously]

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Pagoda Reboot: The Palace at Washington Square

November 17th, 2009

Approved earlier this year after maximum hateage by neighbors, it appears the Pagoda Theater project in North Beach has finally started rumbling forward. To wit, the "Enough with the plywood" banner that was long draped in protest on the empty husk of a building has now been either removed, or covered with a much larger banner. A much larger banner announcing the project's name - The Palace at Washington Square! - and its long-in-waiting ground-floor taqueria, La Corneta. Above will go 18 condos with one-, two-, and three-bedroom units, and below, La Corneta and another retail space or two. There'll also be 27 parking spaces in an underground garage. A call to the number on the banner is as yet unreturned, leaving a few biggies unresolved: 1) when does construction start? 2) when will it finish? and 3) it is starting soon, right?

On the Market, Sort Of: Toy Factory Loft Penthouse

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:15:46 -0600

On the Market, Sort Of: Toy Factory Loft Penthouse

November 17th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

It's not on the listing service, but it's been looking for a buyer for several months now: the Toy Factory Lofts' Penthouse H has 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and 2,428 square feet. After being converted to its new life as an exposed-concrete loft building by architect James Magni in ‘97, Unit H sold for $1,380,000 in 2005. It's now going for slightly higher $1,695,000, with homeowners dues of $518 a month. Bonus: private deck's view of the love-or-hate Federal Building, not to mention SOMA Grand and Trinity Place.
· Stunning Toy Factory Conversion Penthouse Loft in SOMA [Craigslist]
· One Rausch Street [Website]

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CurbedWire: Saitowitz Artifacts: We found out a few months...

November 17th, 2009

We found out a few months ago that the designer of the Contemporary Jewish Museum, Daniel Libeskind, had also designed a mezuzah for their gift shop. Now San Francisco's own Stanley Saitowitz has his own "series of ritualist artifacts" called the Judaica Collection (including a mezuzah too, naturally). According to the firm, "each piece is a contemporary expression of an ancient object." Saitowitz gives a free introduction to the line from 6 to 8 p.m. on Nov. 19 at Propeller in Hayes Valley. In time for Hanukkah, no less. [Curbed Inbox]

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Boon vs. Boondoggle: Richmond SF Blog has a nice...

November 17th, 2009

Richmond SF Blog has a nice pro vs. con dialogue on the Geary BRT project. No. 1: "All businesses will benefit a little, some a great deal. Geary BRT will attract more people to the corridor as people figure out that if you want to go downtown without your car, you can always walk to Geary and catch a fast and comfortable BRT vehicle in five minutes." No. 2: "Businesses will suffer during construction and after. The loss of traffic lanes, left-hand turns and parking spaces will hurt an already battered business district."

Hunters Point Report Drops, 49ers Stadium Still in the Works

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:14:58 -0600

Hunters Point Report Drops, 49ers Stadium Still in the Works

November 17th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

One giant leap forward for Lennar-kind: the Hunters Point/Candlestick redevelopment's draft environmental impact report for Phase II went online yesterday. The project, which encompasses a total of about 790 acres in the southeastern portion of the city, is so huge it's about twice the size of Treasure Island, which incidentally is also supposed to get redeveloped by Lennar. Phase II follows the comparative drop in the bucket of Phase I, in which the 247 condos as first described in April and in another render reveal just a couple weeks ago belong. The impetus behind the massive redevelopment: pumping life back into the southeastern portions of the city (cough: Bayview) via 10,500 homes and an infusion of 24,465 residents with which to jelly-fill those donuts. And still key to this very plan: a 49ers stadium, located in Hunters Point rather than its current Candlestick spot.

Will it be enough to keep the 49ers in the city, even as they negotiate with Santa Clara on moving their stadium there? That remains to be seen- if the Hunters Point stadium falls through, Lennar and the city will simply fill in the hole with more housing and offices. Construction on Phase II - an estimate, mind you - could go from 2010 through 2023. During that span of time, 10,000 trees will be planted, and 336 acres of new and rehabbed park and open space will be created (including the football stadium). The tab for all this: $2 billion.

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Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:14:10 -0600

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Moving Forward: 1415 Mission, With Green Wall in Tow

November 17th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

The 117-unit project at 1415 Mission was approved yesterday, with a few strings attached, including an exploration to better transition the building's height to its neighbors to the south, and to explore building a vertical green wall. The pitched battle to chop the height of the building in half, led by a petitioning neighbor, focused particularly on two points of contention: the lack of "transition" in heights between the north side of Mission Street and the south side, and the wind impacts of the tall building - which in this area seems to be a hot topic given the endless gusts of wind.

First, having discovered a petition in opposition to 1415 Mission as it was proposed, the lawyers and architects for the project pulled together their very own petition with 70 names, patting themselves on the back for the "truly notable" amount of outreach they did with the community. There was indeed a very long list of supporting organizations, but dissenters noted that the block on which 1415 Mission resides averages 25 to 30 feet in height, while the project is a singular 130 feet. The problem, as deftly summed up by the city's zoning administrator: Mission Street is a primary transit corridor, making height and density key, but the spot also abuts the relatively flat Western SoMa, which would cause a "dramatic drop in height" - or as one neighbor called it, "like standing on the edge of a cliff and falling off." The Planning Commission ultimately decided that "we cannot build something at 40 feet because there's a 20 foot building next door and keep doing that over the entire city in these types of areas," noting that the height was "totally appropriate" for this particular location.

The problem of wind, however, was less clear cut. Two studies did confirm that the overall impact of the building on the local wind situation would be more or less negligible. A planning commissioner did quibble over a change in the way wind studies are done, and whether the newfangled computer way can be reconciled with the old-school way of doing wind studies. But we digress. It was noted, again, that 1415 Mission is 600 feet down from the wind current around Fox Plaza and AAA, and that this building would have a pretty hard time getting in on that action from where it stands.

Finally, a purely aesthetic issue over the project's south-facing wall. Tall as the building would be in comparison to its neighbors, its blank property-line wall suggested something of a foreboding presence. Heller Manus acknowledged the challenge, saying that some ideas floated to lessen the brutalist look were digital media displays, supergraphics, or a vertical green wall. The Planning Commission dug that last idea, and requested that the developers explore it further - before giving them the green light and sending them all home for the night.
· Misunderstood 1415 Mission Actually Has Much Love [Curbed SF]
· Too Tall, Too Wind Tunnelly: 1415 Mission Faces SoMa Wrath [Curbed SF]
· Rendering Update: SoMa's 1415 Mission Gets a New Chassis [Curbed SF]

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Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:13:27 -0600

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Life After the Storm: One Hawthorne Braces for Launch

November 17th, 2009

The SF Business Times has a harsh dose of truth for SoMa's One Hawthorne in today's issue: "Not only will One Hawthorne be the only new tower to open in 2010, it will still be the new kid on the block in 2011, 2012 and likely even in 2013." (Rentals must not count.) Anyway, developer Ezra Mersey's whistling a cautiously optimistic tune- citing the deep valley in the Case-Shiller home price index, he says "we are on the other side." Meaning the EHDD-designed, 165-unit high-rise probably won't have such a tough go of it when it opens for sales come January. According to the SFBT, One Hawthorne will be taking a more "intimate" approach to the luxury space, with a "smaller, more subdued vibe" than, say, the Infinity or Millennium Tower, the cool kids down the hall. Units should start in the $400Ks for a junior 1-bed, with 3-bed penthouses landing somewhere north of $2 mil.
· Condo tower rising over San Francisco [SFBT]
· One Hawthorne Teaser: A Hundred Reasons for One, Well, You Know [Curbed SF]
· Construction Update: Rebar Rises at One Hawthorne [Curbed SF]

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Rent Check: Corner 2-Bedroom in the Paramount

November 17th, 2009

The luxury rentals at the 43-story Paramount in SoMa seem like ancient history now, but lest we forget, they're still relatively new on the scene. Not that they should have a complex about that or anything- a Craigslist ad for a 2-bedroom there today announces boldly that you'd "be living in The Paramount, the tallest, most dramatic luxury rental in the history of San Francisco." Which is probably at least a notch or two higher than, "If you lived here, you'd be home by now." So a corner 2-bed unit with all the luxury amenities, doorman, valet services, etc.: $4,028 a month.
· Corner two bedroom available NOW [Craigslist]

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Facebook, Curbed SF: Together At Last

November 17th, 2009

Because not everyone's on the Twitter, nor should they be, damnit- click the button below and become a Curbed SF fan on Facebook, so you can get updates while on the stalk. Go ahead, we know you're already logged in anyway.

Curbed SF on Facebook

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The Right to Have Pets: The city's animal commission wants to...

November 17th, 2009

The city's animal commission wants to "give San Francisco tenants the right to have pets." Landlords currently have the right of refusal, typically putting pet owners in a difficult position when apartment hunting. Now, one commission member has taken the whole debate up a notch, calling it a "civil rights issue." Hyperbole: thoroughly achieved. [SF Appeal]

PriceChopper: Apple Pie House Takes a Big Tumble

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:12:36 -0600

PriceChopper: Apple Pie House Takes a Big Tumble

November 17th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Then: $1,550,000
Now: $999,000
You Save: $551,000, or 36 percent

Extreme choppage: this almost overly cute 1-bedroom apple pie house north of Lake had already lost a couple hundred G's when last we checked in June. The new price is now a solid third lighter than its very ambitious debut asking price of $1.5 million. That was then, of course, and this is a very sobering now. Will this be the last price chop before 31 21st finds an owner, preferably with pie-baking inclinations?
· 31 21st Ave [Redfin]
· That's Rather Lovely: Pastels in the Richmond [Curbed SF]

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Ready to Take the Plunge: On that note... if what a...

November 17th, 2009

On that note... if what a planning commissioner said yesterday is true, then the Argenta at Mid-Market is considering going back to its original plan of selling condos soon. The luxury newcomer at 1 Polk St. went entirely rental late last year, shaken by the state of the real estate market. Try and try again, as they say. [Curbed SF, previously]

Comment of the Day: "I have a greater civil right…

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:11:47 -0600

Comment of the Day: "I have a greater civil right...

November 17th, 2009

"I have a greater civil right not to have to mingle with potentially deadly allergens in my apartment buildings than some selfish doofus has to find a home in my building for his dander-ridden death-beast. I am a vigorous champion of renter's rights and rent control, but this is just WAY too far and infringes on the rights of other human tenants." [The Right to Have Pets]

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Friday PM Linkage

November 17th, 2009

[No regrets, via Twitter/Richmond SF Blog]

· Portland's "greenstreet" sponges: a model for SF? [Streetsblog]
· Porta-Potty pyro returns! [SFGate]
· Senior housing, wrecked by meth abuse [NYT]
· What if: non-NOLA cities under water [BLDGBLOG]
· Tuesday's Oakland rally for more construction [SFBT]

Rendering Reveal: Orange Sherbet Homes on Natoma

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:10:59 -0600

Rendering Reveal: Orange Sherbet Homes on Natoma

November 17th, 2009

In the wake of Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects' just-launched Mission Walk comes a 55-unit family housing project being steered toward this empty lot at 474 Natoma in SoMa. The project, by Bridge Housing, is financed by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and features a rooftop deck, parking garage, and a central landscaped court. The units in the building will go from one- to three-bedroom units, and be available within certain income restrictions, specifically for families with 80 percent to 100 percent of the area median income.

1st Time Homebuyers Tax Credit revised to help SF purchasers

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:09:59 -0600

1st Time Homebuyers Tax Credit revised to help SF purchasers

November 17th, 2009

The $8,000 credit was scheduled to expire on Dec. 1 2009 but will now be in effect through the end of June 2010. Homebuyers must sign a contract before April 30 and close by June 30, 2010. The income limits were also raised: Single buyers can now earn up to $125,000 and still get the full credit while a married couple can earn $225,000.

The bill also made more homeowners eligible to claim the credit on their taxes. First-time buyers - those who have not owned a home in the past three years - still qualify for an $8,000 rebate, which was previously mostly useless for San Francisco due to the previous income cap of $75,000 (which put most out of the running for a minimum SF purchase). However now people who want to trade up can also qualify. Those who have owned and occupied a residence for at least five years out of the past eight can claim a $6,500 tax credit if they close on a purchase by the end of June.

Federal Housing Tax Credit [NAHB]

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Oh My (And Bank Owned) At The Odeon On O'Farrell

November 17th, 2009

Purchased for $800,000 in December 2006, Odeon (181 O'Farrell) #508 was taken back by the bank. It's been listed at $601,400, a sale at which would represent a 25 percent drop in value over the past three years. Also...

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Affordable Housing Requirements For Rental Development Challenged

November 17th, 2009

A developer's recent legal challenge of the affordable housing requirements imposed by the City of Los Angeles in order to gain approval for a new market rate residential rental development "raises the question about whether the affordability requirements for new...

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Mission Walk (330/335 Berry) Lottery Redux: Second Round Soon!

November 17th, 2009

While the lottery earlier this year attracted four times as many applicants as there were available Mission Walk (330/335 Berry) BMR condos, you might not be out of luck after all. From the folks at BRIDGE Housing Corporation (emphasis...

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Motivated Seller Seeks Motivated Buyer For Mutual "Advantage"

November 17th, 2009

From the flyer for 999 Greet Street #2802 making the rounds amongst the brokerages by way of a tipster: "Very Motivated Seller! (Seller has tax advantage if sold in 2009!)." No word on exactly what advantage (other than yours...

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The Grand Plan And Aesthetics For Candlestick/Hunters Point

November 17th, 2009

The full Candlestick Point-Hunters Point Shipyard Phase II Development Plan Draft Environmental Impact Report is now online in six volumes and thirty-eight parts. The overview: The Project proposed by Lennar Urban includes a mixed-use community with a wide range...

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From Rendering To Reality And On The Market For 1327 7th Avenue

November 17th, 2009

The rendering above, the reality below, and it's on the market for the eleven residential condos and ground floor retail of 1327 7th Avenue between Judah and Irving. The two-bedrooms have been priced from $1,175,000 for the 1,272 square...

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Views From The Top (And A Renovation Below To Boot)

November 17th, 2009

While they seem to be selling the views (from the roof), the interior of 1724 Grant Street has "been renovated from top to bottom" (kitchen, baths, etc.) as well. Purchased for $2,705,000 in March of 2007 (and then remodeled),...

Emerald Fund Hosted Weigh-In on New Park @ 333 Harrison

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:09:13 -0600

Emerald Fund Hosted Weigh-In on New Park @ 333 Harrison

November 17th, 2009

Emerald Fund is hosting a neighborhood conversation, to solicit ideas and commentary for their new park and mixed use development at 333 Harrison Street.

The event is being moderated by Isabel Wade and Corinne Woods of the Neighborhood Parks Counsel and is a great way to weigh-in on this new Green housing and a new public park on the top of Rincon Hill in San Francisco

Tuesday December 8th
6-8pm at One Rincon Hill Hospitality Room - 425 1st Street @ Harrison.

Voters Speak: No Billboards for Mid-Market!

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:34:14 -0600

Voters Speak: No Billboards for Mid-Market!

November 10th, 2009

Status quo rules the day: the signy district of Mid-Market yore will remain just that, as voters yesterday spiked Prop D by a sizeable 8.18 percent margin. Fifty-four percent voted no on the measure to allow signage on buildings between 5th and 7th. "We always thought it would be very close," said Warfield owner and Prop D booster David Addington, who'll now have to make do with no signage in his quest to remake the two slummy blocks. Meanwhile, the next measure down the alphabet, which proposed banning an increase in ads on street furniture (like Muni bus shelters) and city-owned buildings, passed by a solid 57 percent.
· San Francisco voters defeat sign district plan [AP]
· Election: Mid-Market Billboard Prop Fails, All Others Succeed [SF Appeal]
· Mid-Market's Billboard Fight Hits the Air [Curbed SF]
· Mid-Market's Man With a Plan: So Crazy It Might Work? [Curbed SF]

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Monday PM Linkage

November 9th, 2009

["Muni Bus Interior, Circa 1947," via Curbed SF Flickr photog Troy Holden]

· Embarcadero fireboat station to get $2M rehab [SF Examiner]
· 2012 sticker: real or more guerrilla marketing? [SFist]
· Glassy honeycomb disguises solar panels [Fast Company]
· Joe puts Villa Montana up for sale: $49M [SFBT]
· 18 Bayview condos unveiled in reinvigoration project [SF Appeal]

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No Little Plan: California currently has a plan under...

November 9th, 2009

California currently has a plan under way to cobble together a framework for future development in the state. Called Vision California, the first step involves bundling together various regional plans, which "rarely have teeth," and then posing a number of what-if questions that might help to guide a hypothetical statewide plan. "For instance: If townhouses and bungalows are built instead of large single-family homes, how much agricultural land will be saved? If new housing is placed near existing jobs and shopping, rather than in distant subdivisions, what will be the effect on a household's transportation expenses?" This, and other beard scratchers, will be the topic of study at Berkeley-based Calthorpe Associates. [SFGate]

Flashback: Planned Archstone Rentals in SoMa

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:32:44 -0600

Flashback: Planned Archstone Rentals in SoMa

November 10th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Way back in 2007, the SF Business Times reported that rental developer and Fox Plaza owner Archstone was about to buy the big Golden Gate Transit parking lot on the northwest corner of 8th and Harrison in SoMa. The parcel would go for $35 million, and that particular era of San Francisco construction would have made it look very attractive indeed for something like the above: up to 720 rental units designed by Kava Massih Architects for the 3-acre site. Fun fact: at one point, Target was looking into the lot too! ('Course, if things go well at the Metreon, they'll get their San Francisco store anyway.) At the moment, there's nothing in the housing pipeline indicating a project at 350 8th, so perhaps Archstone's (wisely) waiting for a thaw in the market.
· Archstone Smith makes play to build SoMa rentals [SFBT]
· Fox Plaza's Baby Brother Passes the Wind Test [Curbed SF]

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Exploratorium, Embarcadero-Style: This is it, sort of! Following...

November 10th, 2009

This is it, sort of! Following a thumbs up from the Port Commission, the Exploratorium's plan to dial U-Haul and move to a bigger house on piers 15 and 17 has also been officially rubber stamped by the Board of Supervisors. Now it needs approval nods from two more commissions: the State Lands Commission and San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission. The project was designed by EHDD Architecture, or more specifically Marc L'Italien, who just got ink last week on Curbed for heading a Berkeley studio on the Bay Bridge condos. [City Insider, previously]

Too Tall, Too Wind Tunnelly: 1415 Mission Faces SoMa Wrath

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:31:47 -0600

Too Tall, Too Wind Tunnelly: 1415 Mission Faces SoMa Wrath

November 10th, 2009

A 14-story, "affordable upscale" development at 1415 Mission in SoMa would be way too tall for the neighborhood, say online petitioners, and they've gathered 93 signatures as of today to say as much. Developer R&K Investments and Heller Manus architects plan a 130-foot-tall building at 10th and Mission, but nearby residents and workers have dug in their heels, saying that the building would block light and views, and in one case "absolutely interfere with the way I do my job." The petition insists instead that "the proposed building, whether commercial or residential, should not exceed 65 feet in height." Concerns for the wind tunnel effect also abound (as with the nearby Fox Plaza addition), though the recently released environmental impact report calls the building's total effect a wash, claiming the wind speed would "increase at 10 locations, remain unchanged at six locations, and decrease at 11 locations." Verdict: pending, though considering the cumulative effectiveness of online petitions in general...
· Height Opposition to 1415 Mission [Petition Online]
· Rendering Update: SoMa's 1415 Mission Gets a New Chassis [Curbed

CityPlace: 7 Juicy Stories of "Value" Retail for 2012

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:24:58 -0600

CityPlace: 7 Juicy Stories of "Value" Retail for 2012

November 10th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

It's coming! CityPlace, the five-story mall brought to Mid-Market by Urban Realty, which is also the landlord for Ross just up the street. The draft environmental impact report went up yesterday, describing in full detail the project, which will be located at 947 Market St. CityPlace will require the demolition of three currently vacant buildings, and will actually have seven levels of retail, including a mezzanine and basement level, plus two underground parking levels. Urban Realty's also considering a frontage on the building's backside facing Stevenson St, with an area reserved for small stands, like newsstands or flower kiosks. The building design, by Gensler, is shooting for LEED Gold.

A few of the project's goals are in order, then:

· Create lots of new retail space with "large floor plates" to draw in "value-based retailers." There's been talk, let's say, of a Target going in here, but with the bull's eye on the Metreon now, the story may be a little different.

· Increase pedestrian activity in the Mid-Market area

· Build a "high-quality building with contemporary architectural design that reinforces the 90-foot streetwall height of the most significant buildings"

• Provide off-street parking for big shopping trips

If everything gets the thumbs up, construction's planned for spring 2010, for occupancy to begin in summer 2012. David Addington's going to be so excited.

UPDATE: Three hot new renderings!

· CityPlace [Website]
· Remember CityPlace? It's Still Coming to Market Street [Curbed SF]
· New Mall Could Do What Board of Supes Couldn't [Curbed SF]
· Storefronting: Mid-Market Retail Renderings Revealed [Curbed SF]

Rent Check: Junior 1-Bed at The Metropolitan

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:23:12 -0600

Rent Check: Junior 1-Bed at The Metropolitan

November 10th, 2009

The Metropolitan in Rincon Hill. Built by Crescent Heights and designed by HKS and Heller Manus, the complex has 342 units and round-the-clock security, gym, pool, theater, roof deck, et cetera et cetera. For a junior 1-bed penthouse with a revolving flat screen TV: $2,300 a month. The unit's also "partially furnished with lovely items" whose identity, we presume, you'll discover once you open the mystery door. (P.S. HKS was the architect of record.)
· Gorgeous View Penthouse at The Metropolitan!! [Craigslist]

Cathedral Hill Hospital’s Going In for Another Hearing

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:22:20 -0600

Cathedral Hill Hospital's Going In for Another Hearing

November 10th, 2009

The New Fillmore reports that the Cathedral Hill Hospital - taking the place of Cathedral Hill Hotel, which just closed this past weekend - returns to a commission hearing later this month to take another shot at getting approval. Last month, the hearing stretched into the witching hour when neighbors of the proposed project commented long into the night. Among the arguments against: "the proposed scale and scope of the Cathedral Hill project will overwhelm our neighborhood and gridlock the Van Ness corridor." But California Pacific Medical Center has their own ammo: 7,000 signatures on a petition to build, baby, build. Their take: the project will be green, it'll have a new Women's and Children's Hospital, it'll create a shit ton of jobs, and it'll involve a rebuild of St. Luke's in the Mission, all without a dime of taxpayers' money - though, to be fair, the St. Luke's point did take a little prodding from the city.
· The New Fillmore [Website]
· Cathedral Hill Hotel Will Be a Hospital in 5 Years [Curbed SF]
· California Pacific To Build Hospital To Build Hospital [Curbed SF]

Rent Check: Rear of Courtyard Unit in Dogpatch

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:20:43 -0600

Rent Check: Rear of Courtyard Unit in Dogpatch

November 10th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

A rear condo in a complex with four units and a central courtyard, 2646A 3rd St. has 2 bedrooms and 1 bath. The setting's properly known as Dogpatch, but if renter prefers, "Tales of the City" is also acceptable, as per the Craigslist ad. The kitchen features more blond wood than anyone could possibly ever need, but the patio might just make up for that. Monthly (we're rubbing our eyes too): $1,900?!
· Newer condo, radiant heat, patio [Craigslist]

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Petitioners Line Up Against SoMa’s Mak Hotel for Bringing Cops

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:19:57 -0600

Petitioners Line Up Against SoMa's Mak Hotel for Bringing Cops

November 10th, 2009

The former Kink.com porn studio and planned 15-story three-star hotel at 942 Mission is planning on moving ahead "at a rapid pace," but so far it's had its day at the Planning Commission pushed back a couple times in a row now. The Mint Developers project has already grabbed a go-ahead from the Planning Department, which declared it "could not have a significant effect on the environment," but it seems certain parties are seeking a rollback of that decision. What's the beef? Perhaps a super secret spy cam will tell us!

In the below video, left on Curbed SF's front porch this morning, petitioners go door to door in what looks like an SRO, warning about an "expensive high-rise hotel" that will "displace people like you and I." The signature seeker goes on to say, while referring to 942 Mission, that people like "you and I aren't going to have any place to live around here," though one must assume the video doesn't take place in the abandoned porn studio. Then, (and perhaps here's the kicker!) the Mak Hotel would also ominously "create more of a police presence" in the Mission and 6th area.

It's not obvious who the petition seekers are in the video, but our scout blames the "appeal to the ghetto" indirectly on a Tenderloin housing advocate who "wants to stop any development in the tenderloin area. He will keep the area a ghetto if it's the last thing he does, as long as he doesn't live there himself." Friends are so hard to come by these days.
· Goodbye Porn Studio, Hello Hotel Renderporn [Curbed SF]
· Sleep Among the Ghosts of Porn Actors! [Curbed SF]

PriceChopper: The Mission’s Carriage House Two-for-One

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:18:15 -0600

PriceChopper: The Mission's Carriage House Two-for-One

November 10th, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Then: $1,295,000
Now: $1,199,000
You Save: $96,000

The 4-bed house plus carriage house on Capp Street previously featured on Curbed's That's Rather Lovely is now approaching its 2006 sell price of $1,085,000. As commenter wrote back in September, "I think it is overpriced for what it is and it seems ... zestimate seems to agree ($1.1)." Close, so close! Will Capp Street's carriage house combo special dip below 2006, meet it, or sell at its new price?
· 428 Capp St. [Redfin]
· That's Rather Lovely: 4-Bed, Plus Carriage House in the Mish [Curbed SF]

Current SF Values off Peak Values - 4th Edition

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:15:22 -0600

Current SF Values off Peak Values - 4th Edition

November 10th, 2009

Neighborhood or District	Property Type Price Range	Avg $/sq.ft. at Peak Value	5/1/09 - 10/30/09	Change from 4/1/09	Today
Bayview*	House $300k - 800k	$507/sq.ft.	$280/sq.ft.	- 5%	- 45%
Ingleside/ Hghts / Oceanview*	House $400k - 800k	$580	$444	- 1%	- 23%
Excelsior/Portola*	House $400k - 800k	$600	$450	- 1.5%	- 25%
Central/Outer Richmond **	House $700k - 1.4m	$569	$488	-	- 14%
Inner Mission**	Condo $500k - $800k	$621	$496	-	- 20%
Central/ Outer Sunset**	House $500k - 900k	$626	$501	- 6%	- 20%
Miraloma/ Sunnyside**	House $500k - 1m	$677	$550	- 8%	- 19%
Hayes Valley/Alamo/Nopa***	Condo $500k - 900k	$684	$559	- 7%	- 18%
SOMA**	Condo $500k - 900k	$689	$562	+ 2%	- 18%

Bernal Hghts***	House $500k - 1m	$651/sq.ft.	$567/sq.ft.	+ 2%	- 13%
St Francis Wd/W. Portal/Forest H **	House $800k - 2.5m	$687	$585	-	- 15%
Noe & Eureka Valley's***	Condo $500k - 1m	$751	$613	- 9%	- 18%
South Beach***	Condo $500k - 1m	$785	$640	- 6%	- 18%
Potrero Hill**	House $700k - 1.4m	$753	$648	-	- 14%
Russian/Nob/ Telegraph Hills***	Condo $600k - 1.2m	$798	$692	-	- 13%
Noe & Eureka Valley's***	House $800k - 1.5m	$891	$707	- 6%	- 21%
Pacific Hghts/ Marina (Dist 7)***	Condo $600k - 1.2m	$809	$733	- 4%	- 9%
Most Expensive North SF Areas***	House $1.5m - $4m	$975	$797	-	- 18%

Key to Estimated Peak-Value Period for the Chart Below:
*Peak values estimated to have been reached 1/1/06 - 6/30/06
**Peak values estimated to have been reached 1/1/07 - 6/30/07
***Peak values estimated to have been reached 1/1/08 - 6/30/08

That’s Rather Hideous: San Jose Marbleopolis Edition

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:02:35 -0600

That's Rather Hideous: San Jose Marbleopolis Edition

November 3rd, 2009

Burbed has already burned this $1,688,000 5-bedroom "Mediterranean Villa" in San Jose pretty hard, so we'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Suffice to say that someone took very seriously some advice from a certain SNL sketch: "Put marble columns in your house, that place is gonna look like a mansion!" Oooh. La. La.
· 6456 Guadalupe Mines Rd, San Jose [Redfin, via Burbed]

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The Trick-or-Treat List: Winner of Zillow's best neighborhood in...

November 3rd, 2009

Winner of Zillow's best neighborhood in which to go trick-or-treating this Saturday: Presidio Heights, based on some complex alchemy involving sexy things like Walk Score, population density, and crime data. Among other things, Zillow says, the neighborhood "tops our Index because of high home values (read: better, bigger candy)." These guys have their priorities in the right place. The next four neighborhoods: Noe Valley, the Richmond, Haight-Ashbury, and the Sunset. [Zillow]

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ConstructionWatch: Zen Rentals Next to LGBT Center Get Going

November 3rd, 2009

Hard to believe, but the very large, very vacant site at 1844 Market St, next to the LGBT Center, has actually been stirring for a few months now: dirt movers, a crane, the works! This, after snail's pace progress on the empty lot finally halted at one point and went toward a strange "ramshackle cabana" installment, as we reported in July of last year. A quick refresher: developer BayRock Residential and Christiani Johnson Architects are bringing an eight-story, 113-rental-unit building to the site, complete with ground-floor retail and "Zen Garden, roof deck with city views and lush courtyards." This past spring, the SF Business Times reported that BayRock was eager as hell to unload their failed Trader Joe's condo project on Van Ness and Sutter- having chopped their asking price for the site from $18 million to a paltry $8 million.
· Construction Watch: Condos to Cabanas at 1844 Market Street [Curbed SF]
· Coming Soon: Monastic Condos on Upper Market [Curbed SF]

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Listing Inflation: Alcove Makes a Junior One-Bedroom

November 3rd, 2009

Catch another fine specimen of Listing Inflation? To the Curbed Inbox with you!

It's a pretty cushy Nob Hill location. It's got $805 a month homeowners dues, but it's also got a 24-hour doorman, a swimming pool, a jacuzzi and all that. So what gives? For $420,000, buyer gets a "JR1BR with a lrg alcove," as seen above. Just to clarify: a make-out nook passes for the bedroom part of a junior one-bedroom at 1177 California. Duly noted.
· 1177 California St #230 [Redfin, via Curbed Inbox]

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Solar Tree: Given the flap over a solar...

November 3rd, 2009

Given the flap over a solar panel installation on an Upper Haight couple's home, it makes total sense that an entrepreneur would want to get into the business of solar panels that are more aesthetically pleasing- and less, say, "embarrassing." That's why photovoltaics engineer and industrial designer real estate agent Greg Strang of Burlingame invented the "Electrisitree," a small tree that converts sunlight hitting its plastic-looking leaves into usable energy. Did he succeed? We'll leave the verdict on this one to the wise, invisible hands of the free market. [SF Examiner, previously]

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CitiApartments Boss Wrote Bad Checks in Vegas Too

November 3rd, 2009

Will there ever be an end to the sordid tales of CitiApartments First Apartments? It seems the managing director of parent company Lembi Group, Walter Lembi, has been allegedly passing bad checks. Oh, about $298,500 worth. Gambling in Las Vegas. The sort of thing one might not expect from a company that's returning tenuous deposit checks to its tenants, or withholding them altogether. (That deposit money's got to go somewhere, and what other place should it go than the gambling fancies of its boss!) Anyway, the county attorney's office is on the case with Lembi's attorney, and Lembi has until Sunday to comply - after which a nationwide warrant would be issued for the man. Dreams of white bronco chases: go.
· Real estate leader's name on bad-check warrant [SFGate]

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Wednesday PM Linkage

November 3rd, 2009

["Cause for Concern," via Curbed SF Flickr photog Troy Holden, aka the artist formerly known as Plug1]

· 69% would live with ghosts for cheaper rent! [Consumerist]
· The Bay Bridge is closed! Why it's the "right move" [Bloomberg]
· And now BART might even run overnight [SF Appeal]
· Arnold's letter: 1 in 8 billion chance it was accidental [Eye on Blogs]
· Aerial San Francisco: shots from a Cessna "Skylane" [Laughing Squid]
· P. Hill murder/suicide house sells [SF Schtuff]

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PriceChopper: Frankenstein in Forest Hill

November 3rd, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Then: $2,199,000
Now: $1,979,000
You Save: $220,000

The casual observer should probably be forgiven if, say, he or she stumbles on a house like 21 Castenada Ave. in Forest Hill (built this very year!) and mistakes it for an exurban McMansion destined to meet an untimely end in foreclosure. Those balcony railings. The baby pedement pediment. The mustard yellow paint job. What to say! But then said observer walks in and finds a South Beach loft. In need of an intervention? Perhaps. Deeply confusing? Definitely. (The "green roof" is an interesting twist, though.)
· 21 Castenada Ave [Redfin]

Thursday PM Linkage

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:01:20 -0600

Thursday PM Linkage

November 3rd, 2009

["333 Market," via Curbed SF Flickr photog Jeremy Brooks]

· City bused 4,000 homeless back to hometowns [SF Examiner]
· Halloween report: the Richmond is spooky [SF Appeal]
· BART chronicles: people sitting on floor [IBA]
· That Koolhaas hotel fire in China: repairs are under way [AP]
· Hyatt Regency Embarcadero: love/hate for 13 [SF Citizen]

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Gavin: Yes on Signs: It's not quite the 11th hour,...

November 3rd, 2009

It's not quite the 11th hour, but the previously silent Gavin has come out in favor of Mid-Market's Prop D, the measure to allow signage on Market Street between 5th and 7th. The mayor's support, however, may not make much difference come Tuesday. As City Insider notes: "He has notoriously short coattails and has trouble seeing his picks gain favor among voters." Oh, but he's so suave, that Gavin. [City Insider, previously]

The California Connection(s) To Tishman Speyer’s Manhattan Flop

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:59:44 -0600

The California Connection(s) To Tishman Speyer's Manhattan Flop

October 25th, 2009

As a plugged-in reader notes, Tishman Speyer's led 2006 investment of $5.4 billion in Manhattan's Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village continues to head south with all equity investors likely being wiped out. Amongst those equity investors, the California Public...

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Mayor Newsom Double Dips For SF General Hospital Addition

October 25th, 2009

Mayor Newsom double dipped on the ground breaking circuit this week, first for the SFPUC building on Wednesday, and yesterday for the 448,000 square foot San Francisco General Hospital addition which is scheduled to open in 2015. ∙ 525...

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Former Thirteen Million Dollar Mansions And New Comps To The South

October 25th, 2009

While a plugged-in reader reports that 200 Manzanita down in Woodside "that sold for $13.8mm back in 2000 just sold for $8mm (after trying to get more than they paid and following the market down for three years)," according to...

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One Word: Target. Okay, Four: Target At The Metreon?

October 25th, 2009

While Tavern on the Green's bankruptcy likely killed an outpost in San Francisco's Metreon Center, the San Francisco Business Times reports the center's makeover might not be the only big thing in the works: Metreon owners Westfield and Forest...

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<strike>Dark</strike> Light Passage At 1360 Montgomery: Outside And Atop

October 25th, 2009

Designed by Irvin Goldstine and built in 1937, the Art Moderne Malloch building at 1360 Montgomery played a role in Dark Passage starring Bogart and Bacall. Originally twelve apartments, the building was subsequently converted to condominiums. And while the...

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430 Main/429 Beale Development Delayed

October 25th, 2009

Approved by Planning with a 6-1 vote in May, according to a plugged-in reader the Board of Supervisors voted 10-2 10-0 in favor of an appeal of the 430 Main/429 Beale project. As such, the proposed six-story and 113-unit...

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A Potentially Bitter Apple In Lower Pacific Heights: 3016 Pine Returns

October 25th, 2009

As a reader notes, 3016 Pine Street is back on the market and is now listed for $2,350,000. On the market six months ago asking $2,595,000 before being withdrawn, purchased in July 2006 for $2,725,000. As another plugged-in reader...

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CitiApartments Is No More! Well, Sort Of...

October 25th, 2009

A plugged-in tipster reports: Just finishing up escrow on our first condo purchase and trying to get out of...CitiApartments. This morning called them and a receptionist answered "First Apartments how can I assist you?" First Apartments? I asked her, is...

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Actual San Francisco Foreclosures Up 31.6% QOQ (Down 6.8% YOY)

October 25th, 2009

Bay Area Notices of Default (NODs) in the third quarter of 2009 rose 25.2% on a year-over-year basis, up 72.0% in San Francisco proper (from 353 to 607). NOD activity in San Francisco increased 3.1% from the second to...

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Take Two To Stimulate New-Home Purchases In California

October 25th, 2009

"Last week, the California Senate passed a bill 35-1 that would provide $30 million in tax credits to about 4,000 additional new-home purchases [up to $10,000 a piece]. The bill now moves to the Assembly floor, which could take it...

Coming to the Mission: Pimp My Auto Body Shop

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:58:34 -0600

Coming to the Mission: Pimp My Auto Body Shop

November 3rd, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

This nine-unit adaptive reuse project was approved last week for 3135 24th St in the Mission, a former auto body shop. Planning commissioners dug Y.A. Studio's "innovative" design, which - beyond simply tacking two more floors on top of the existing two-story structure - allows for flats, two-story units, and three-story units. (One commissioner even suggested the project be used as a "prototype" for similar ones around the city.) Also, according to the project sponsor, computer modeling shows that the "roof line is invisible" to the average-height person, set back from the street frontage as it is- the kind of thing that tends to set preservation-minded heads nodding in approval. The neighborhood appears to be pretty stoked about the ground floor, which is set for what's being called the Mission Independent Retail Collective, a sort of small business incubator modeled after ActivSpace at 18th and Treat. Fun fact! The previous owner of the project (and auto shop) was known to locals as the Mad Russian, and he could apparently fix up a mean body. Construction's planned for January, to be finished within a year.
· From Auto Repair Shop to New Housing [Mission Loc@l]

City’s Homebuyer Loan Program Is Running Out of Dough

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:57:39 -0600

City's Homebuyer Loan Program Is Running Out of Dough

November 3rd, 2009

The Mayor's Office of Housing has joined the banks in tightening its purse strings, or putting its plastic in the freezer, as it were. As a result, potential homebuyers who would otherwise be eligible for the city's loan program are getting frozen out. The downpayment assistance loan program, which offers loans for first-time homebuyers who are within a certain range of the city's median income, is "running low" on funds- and is "therefore restricting limited funds to stabilize those communities with the greatest need." One prospective buyer was caught off guard recently: "My husband and I were in contract for 26 days when we were floored by the Mayor's Office of Housing's announcement that it will no longer be offering downpayment assistance to individuals who make between 100 and 120% of area median income. We had to back out of our contract and are no longer going to be able to afford a home in San Francisco."
· Downpayment Assistance Loan Program (DALP) [MOH]