PriceChopper: Secluded 4-Bedroom Place in Pac Heights

PriceChopper: Secluded 4-Bedroom Place in Pac Heights

October 2nd, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Then: $4,295,000
Now: $4,095,000
You Save: $200,000

This 4-bed, 4-bath house at 2333 Octavia in Pac Heights is big on price, but equally big on square footage. Well, sort of: it's got 4,204 square feet spanning three stories. Price chopped $200k, will the "commodious family room" find itself some owners filling its commodiousness soon?
· 2333 Octavia St [Redfin]

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Picking Up CitiApartments' Crumbs: The churn over at mega-landlord CitiApartments—...

October 2nd, 2009

The churn over at mega-landlord CitiApartments- they've lost dozens of properties to banks now- is turning out to be a gold mine for property owners who have wanted in on more of the market but have been shut out in recent years. According to the SFBT some 30 of the properties that CitiApartments once owned (and had to give up to their lenders) have now been sold at a discount of 25 to 40 percent of what they were bought for. And thus heralds the birth of the baby Citis... [SFBT, via SocketSite]

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Ferry Building Brainstorm: Floating Gardens, Trees and More Vendors

October 2nd, 2009

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The Ferry Building has become a shining example of successful adaptive reuse ever since it was turned into a bustling foodie marketplace, but the vast gray space behind it is said to reflect San Francisco's ongoing challenge in reengaging its waterfront. As part of the Architecture and the City Festival, an urban power team made up of SPUR, GOOD magazine, AIA SF, and CEO for Cities hosted a powwow last night where they stuck city groups and idealistic designers together in a room to see if intractable problems could be solved in a couple hours. Easy peasy, right? The proposal above, for a flexible and greened space behind the Ferry Building, is inspired by ancient Greek agoras and is the brainchild of Surfacedesign, Inc.

Mobile, collapsing kiosks would bring vendors in to keep the space active during off-market days, and large planters with trees and "floating gardens" would tickle the water's edge. When brought up to discuss the design, a partner from Ferry Building developers Wilson Meany Sullivan wasn't so sure about the viability of the floating gardens, but he raved about everything else: the mobile kiosks ensure the space can be kept open for other uses, while the trees bring life to the water's edge without impeding views of the bay- not to mention add more space for sitting (or making out, as the case may be).

While the designs were all purely a collective exercise in the so-called power of "design," above design included, GOOD magazine notes that some of their forced collaborations down in L.A. have unexpectedly begun to bear fruit.

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The Bayview's "Toxic Soup": Despite a plan to remake the...

October 2nd, 2009

Despite a plan to remake the neighborhood as a green tech hub, might the toxic leftovers of Bayview/Hunters Point prove to be beyond cleaning? A couple scientists are quite worried about the possibility: "As early as 2010, the Navy's, and the City and County of San Francisco's intent, is to accept a series of segments of parcel D in what's called an ‘early transfer' - technically a ‘dirty transfer' - of property. ... Lennar Corporation ... announced they will consider residential development on this radiation-impacted property to be a viable option. That is absolutely frightening." Back in July, the city announced a dramatic anchor for its Hunters Point green tech hub: the U.N. Global Compact Center. [Fog City Journal]

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Not On The Market: Creepy Presidio Hole

October 2nd, 2009

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

You might think that the Presidio is all classed up, now that the Walt Disney Co is strutting around. But do not be fooled! There is still plenty of sketchy creepy icky weird danger. We were on our way to check out the tree removal by the Pet Cemetery yesterday when we stumbled across this hole - or, more accurately, our phone fell into it. ACK. Actually, if you don't mind sharing a bunk with raccoons, it looks like a cozy little den, and certainly less drafty than the nearby secret tree platform. (Shhh!) So, what would you pay per square foot?
· Presidio's Disney Museum Treads Meekly Where CAMP Died [Curbed SF]

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First-Time Homebuyers' Tax Credit About to Fade Away

October 2nd, 2009

The tax credit for first-time homebuyers- created as part of the federal stimulus- is about to expire, which has a few people who were sucking from its teat anxious get it renewed for another year. Those people include the real estate industry at large, including California's, which as we all well know has been littered with foreclosures and still has a weak market. One proposal on the table would increase the $8,000 tax credit to $15,000, which one estimate says would double its cost from $15 billion to $30 billion. Critics of the program have noted the tax credit mainly subsidizes people who are already going to buy houses (85 percent of the tax credit recipients), rather than spurring sales that wouldn't have otherwise occurred. Proponents, however, aren't few, at least in Congress: there have been more than 20 bills put forward to extend or expand the tax credit.
· First-time home buyer tax credit set to expire [Curbed SF]

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Tuesday PM Linkage

October 2nd, 2009

["attractions of the next world," via Curbed SF Flickr photog sharkie624]

· Container craze: mini office spaces [Inhabitat]
· L.A.'s freeway-side robot school [Arch Paper]
· A bit beyond the green roof: housing of the future [WebEcoist]
· N-Judah fail whale is all about failing in style [NJC]
· Boston company buys Michelle Kaufman's prefabs [Arch Paper]

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Comment of the Day: "Let me guess, that's the ‘half-bath'...

October 2nd, 2009

"Let me guess, that's the ‘half-bath' or some fraction thereof?" -doc [That's Rather Hideous: A Toilet Liberated From Bathroom]

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Rent Check: No One's Gone Crazy at One Rincon Hill

October 2nd, 2009

A reader just pointed out to us a 2-bed, 2-bath One Rincon Hill penthouse unit on the 58th floor renting for $2,000 on Craigslist, and we admit for a second there it seemed like the laws of real estate physics had ceased to apply. Things couldn't be that bad, could they? Not even at the loneliest tower of them all? And they're not- remember, apartment hunters, to arm yourself with the "flag" link when browsing the wild and woolly world of CL. Those out-of-country landlords who welcome dogs and cats and rent at a third of market rate can be nasty. But just to get a good reality check going, here's that penthouse for real: 1,600 square feet, no pets, one parking spot, gym, pool, and $6,500 a month with $7,000 deposit. Reality check: complete.
· 58th Floor Penthouse Suite: Luxury Living w/ Magnificent Views [Craigslist]
· From One Rincon Hill's 53rd Floor: Panoramics and Design [Curbed SF]
· One Rincon Hill: We Didn't Really Promise to Pay [Curbed SF]

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Let There Be Wind Turbines: The city's urban wind power task...

October 2nd, 2009

The city's urban wind power task force, which last we checked included the infamous proprietor of the Sunset Idea House, is recommending wind turbines be built at Twin Peaks, Treasure Island, the Civic Center, Ocean Beach, the zoo, parks, and the airport. The special spots have been so named after a yearlong study to figure out what places in the city have the most wind potential. Said an assemblyman: "Now if we could just harness the hot air that comes out of City Hall and the Capitol." Hey-oh! [SF Gate, previously]