This was the day when, in 1906, San Francisco changed forever, with a 7.8-magnitude earthquake and subsequent fires leveling most of the city. Photography from that grim two-or-three day span presents an almost apocalyptic vision of the past. What we have here (preserved by institutions like the SF Public Library, US Geological Survey, and UC … Continue reading A Photo Tour Of the Great Earthquake
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When Is San Francisco’s Real Birthday?
We’re about a month away from the city of San Francisco’s 173rd birthday…depending on who you ask. The modern city of San Francisco first incorporated on April 15, 1850, and thus many locals observe 415 Day. (See what they did there with the area code?) But that is not the only relevant date in city … Continue reading When Is San Francisco’s Real Birthday?
What Exactly Is a Modern House?
Last year marked the 100th anniversary of the Schindler House in LA, often hailed as the “first modern home” in California history. Of course, when critics say “modern,” they’re not referring to just the standard meaning of such terms–obviously a home cannot be both “modern” and a century-old at the same time. So what exactly … Continue reading What Exactly Is a Modern House?
Neighborhood Guide: Mission Bay
Even longtime San Franciscans can take Mission Bay for granted. Although both the city and housing watcher have tagged it as a hot up-and-coming SF neighborhoods for years, it still lingers a bit beyond everyone’s expectations–and assumptions. But that can mean good news for those interested in getting a piece of the action now–provided you … Continue reading Neighborhood Guide: Mission Bay
Do San Francisco Housing Prices Ever Drop?
While having lunch with a friend recently, she put forth a potentially disarming question: Have San Francisco home prices ever actually gone down for any significant period? Not just wobbly month-to-month dips, but a real drop? Her tone was one of almost unvarnished disbelief: She was of an age where she could not remember SF … Continue reading Do San Francisco Housing Prices Ever Drop?
Making Sense of SF’s Stupid Housing Measures
It’s an election year (as usual), and San Franciscans are voting on housing (as usual), and if you can’t make sense out of what you’re being asked to vote on then we can hardly blame you. This year’s two most hotly contested housing items have almost identical names and are in direct opposition to one … Continue reading Making Sense of SF’s Stupid Housing Measures
Do “Haunted” Houses Really Sell For Less?
The real estate game is full of superstitions, as befits a business where so much of your success depends on invisible market forces and the whims of buyers and sellers. When the spooky season rolled around last year, we examined the longstanding rumor that homes with sinister addresses, like the numbers 13, 666, or 44 … Continue reading Do “Haunted” Houses Really Sell For Less?
Neighborhood Guide: Liberty Hill
If you’ve ever been driving down a stretch of Mission and found yourself suddenly taken by an unusually gorgeous cluster of homes, odds are you just stumbled on Liberty Hill, one of San Francisco’s most historic but oddly still overlooked neighborhoods. This redoubt is only about two blocks by three blocks, bounded by Mission Street, … Continue reading Neighborhood Guide: Liberty Hill
Maximum Overbid: Great Highway, Great Payday
Your eyes are not deceiving you: 2136 Great Highway Highway is indeed the listed address for this week’s top overbid home, and this of course is due in part to the fact that there are two Great Highways in San Francisco, side by side no less. You could be forgiven if that fooled you, but … Continue reading Maximum Overbid: Great Highway, Great Payday
Forgotten Neighborhoods: Sherwood Forest
Sometimes a San Francisco neighborhood falls into obscurity because times change, or demographics change, or in some case there just wasn’t really enough to distinguish the area in the first place. But some neighborhoods were just always the odd ones out, and how and why they’ve endured even to this degree remains a bit of … Continue reading Forgotten Neighborhoods: Sherwood Forest
Maximum Overbid: First-Time Sale Goes Way Over
This week’s top overbid is the overweeningly handsome 300 Twin Peaks, a four bed, four bath blue number that sold for $3.15 million after two weeks on the market. According to CoreLogic, this place has never sold before: The last sale (in 1988) was for just the land, coming out to $637,500; the house itself … Continue reading Maximum Overbid: First-Time Sale Goes Way Over
Soaring Eichler Condo Sales Kinda-Sorta Breaks Record
Back in June we gandered at these mammoth penthouses roosting atop an Eichler tower at 999 Green Street, on sale after the deaths of previous owners Charles and George Shultz–more on that here if those names don’t ring an immediate bell. Now both of those penthouses have a buyer and even a record to go … Continue reading Soaring Eichler Condo Sales Kinda-Sorta Breaks Record
Maximum Overbid: The Photos Really Do Matter
It was another downbeat week for oversells, at least compared to the surreal highs we’ve been used to for the past 12 months and more. For all that, the top seller this week, 150 Morningside, still landed more than $2.4 million and only needed a round dozen days on the market to seal the deal. … Continue reading Maximum Overbid: The Photos Really Do Matter
An Entirely Sympathetic Guide To San Francisco Eyesores
The news broke this week that Claes Oldenberg, one of the artists behind Cupid’s Span, the roughly 60-foot bow and arrow sculpture along the Embarcadero a few blocks from the Bay Bridge, had died at the age of 93. Although Oldenberg was acclaimed during his lifetime, and Cupid’s Span is reminiscent of much of his … Continue reading An Entirely Sympathetic Guide To San Francisco Eyesores
SF’s Top Neighborhoods Are the Marina, Noe Valley, Richmond, and the Sunset…For Now
The spring quarter (April through June) in SF was an exercise in uncertainty, as everyone sat around waiting for a big drop in housing demand and prices…one that never quite came before June closed out. Now, other housing resources will tell you which cities, counties, or districts sold the most or the most expensive homes. … Continue reading SF’s Top Neighborhoods Are the Marina, Noe Valley, Richmond, and the Sunset…For Now
Maximum Overbid: Summer Slowdown Speeds Right Back Up
Looks like last week’s slow week for overbids was just that: A slow week. This week on SF’s housing front everything is right back to the business of business as usual, with a top overbid that not only cracks 150 percent of the asking but also buried its previous record sale price. 1530 44th Avenue … Continue reading Maximum Overbid: Summer Slowdown Speeds Right Back Up