theFrontSteps – San Francisco

Real Estate, Insight, Statistics, Gossip, & News…With a Twist and Some Flavor

Entries for July, 2008

Lolspeak step aside, “Realspeak” is here to stay!

It’s been around for a while, and seems to be creeping in more often, so we’re now officially declaring Realspeak a new language. Huge reduced! Elegant column front gate & stepping stones lead to this gorgeous&quality rmdled Merced Manor hme. Hugh Gourmet chefʼs ktchn w/island,hi-end stnless steel applnces,granite cntr,chrry cbnts & blt-in wineculr.3bd/2.5ba upstairs w/jaccz [...]

Wondering about the recently signed Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008?

So are we, but we found some answers: H.R. 3221, the “Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008,” passed the House on July 23, 2008, by a vote of 272-152. On Saturday, July 26, 2008, the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 72-13. The President signed the bill on July 30, 2008. The [...]

Installing ultra low-flow toilets at point of sale

We recently caught wind (through Realtor Advantage Online) that As reported almost two years ago, San Francisco’s Public Utilities Commission is planning to propose an ordinance that would mandate the installation of ultra low-flow toilets in residential properties at point of sale (i.e., before properties are sold). [A] former aide to soon-to-be Senator Leno, is [...]

Changing the SFAR district map, speak now or forever hold your peace

We love to share the inner workings of our real estate system with you, and especially love to give you a voice, so we’ll consider YOUR comments on this thread as OUR voice and forward the entire link to the San Francisco Association of Realtors for review. The District/Subdistrict Map published by the San Francisco [...]

Can you say matchy-matchy (3525 Clay)

Need we say more… – Don’t panic. It appears to be limited to just the bedrooms and one bathroom. Nothing a little paint, scraper, and mallet couldn’t fix. After that, you’re left with a great house. -www.3525clayst.com

Quote du jour: “…as the gas prices go up…”

Every so often we have to take from email conversations and post to the site. This from a recent email exchange we had with a client that just recently purchased an A+ unit in an A+ location right about when the market started to turn (south). Despite the gloom and doom, we friggin’ love where [...]

You like dags? “Sexy, dog-friendly” condo awaits (1944 Green St.)

Ahhhh…San Francisco real estate is so much fun isn’t it? Our market is inundated with agents (4000+ at last count), there’s a growing number of real estate bloggers out there trying to separate themselves from the pack, and the amount of Realtor “marketing” hitting our Inbox is out of control. We like to call this [...]

An apples to apples in Sunnyside? It looks that way.

519 Foerster sold for over asking and 75K more than it last sold for in 2005. (Here’s the link, 519 Foerster not [editor is back in town] cleaned up): It looks like there was a paint job, and maybe a new floor in the kitchen, maybe not. The 2005 listing advertises a “new home.” This [...]

“The MLS is an unfair monopoly” — but is it?

I posted this yesterday but it really should have gone in its own thread:   The MLS isn’t just “what sold and when.” If you think about it, all the information is available to anybody. It’s just that the MLS stores and categorizes the information in a particularly useful way. Now, since the information is [...]

New data coming soon…

Check it out! As Realtors, we get a nifty little report (Advantage Online) sent to us from the very San Francisco Association of Realtors we sometimes criticize. (Hey! We’re allowed to vent.) And like countless other real estate blogs in SF, we bring some of the data to you. Well, SFAR has teamed up with [...]