Aquarium of the Bay
A commercial enterprise that never made money is about to become a non profit. The deal has been consummated and now fully owned by The Bay Institute Aquarium Foundation. The $9.5 million deal means the 65,000-square-foot aquarium at Pier 39 will become a non profit center for education and research of the San Francisco Bay ecosystem. Impressive that a deal made in tough economic times, took a tourist trap and turned it into a community asset.
Its now a nature center dedicated to the conservation of the San Francisco Bay. The defunct commercial enterprise still attracts 600,000 visitors a year and now this population will support sustainable research to keep the bay a flourishing and healthy living resource for all of us.
The Aquarium is a huge endeavor, it is 50,000 square feet of exhibition space, including 300 feet of acrylic tunnels holding more than 700,000 gallons of filtered bay water. 20,000 marine life including sharks, bat rays and eels. You can take walking tour through the acrylic tunnels and see marine life all around you. Quite cool.
Partnering up with Monterrey Bay Aquarium, UC Davis and the California Department of Fish and Game, the aquarium will work on fish breeding and aging studies. New programs including a lecture series, marine workshops, tagging and tracking programs, exhibits, classes on pollution, freshwater diversions, fish contamination and species sustainability. This was supported by private loans, donations and municipal bond money......Thank you San Francisco.
Howard Bell
www.yourpropertypath.com
Your Property Path News Brief
This is the Anniversary of the 06 Earthquake
The Exploratorium will display a large-scale Jell-O model of San Francisco for just one day, Jell-O doesn't last long. Firefighters will host a costume ball where the best bustled skirts, top hats and other turn-of-the-century clothes win prizes.
1906 Great Earthquake and Fire Exposition at Pier 48 is sponsored by the San Francisco Fire Department Historical Society 1906 Earthquake and Fire Parade. April 18, 10 a.m.
A parade begins at City Hall and proceeds down Market Street
And, of course....Lottas Fountain Every April 18, 4:30-5:30 a.m. Market Street, at Kearny, Third and Geary streets a meeting in remembrance of those lost and found at Lottas fountain is replicated. Its the centerpiece of the city's events and a true memorial to those who came before us.
After the earthquake in 1906, the fountain, one of the few structures still standing on Market Street, became a central meeting place for San Franciscans. People gathered round Lottas fountain to meet and find friends and family. Notes and messages were left in the hopes of rejoining loved ones.
In celebration of San Francisco's 1906 earthquake, a few survivors, the mayor and San Franciscans in period costumes will sing, from the heart, a not so perfect rendition of the song "San Francisco"....
Howard Bell
www.yourpropertypath.com
http://yourpropertypath.blogspot.com/
The Tenderloin
94102
Known to early San Franciscans as St. Ann’s Valley, this once-placid piece of real estate provides us with a fascinating microcosm of urban history as we follow its turbulent passage from quiet respectability to entertainment center to vice-ridden streets,to its present partial reinvention as “Little Saigon”. Source: The Uptown Tenderloin Historic District Organization
Three blocks of Taylor Street will become an arts district. Taylor, at Ellis, Eddy and Turk will be developed into a community of live- work artists and community gallery in an area that has seen tough times. In New York, SOHO, Tribeca and the lower east side have been rehabbed and new vital neighborhoods were created by a vanguard of city and private agencies with a vision.
Here's Whats Happening in the Tenderloin.
The Gray Area Foundation will offer exhibits, music and a resident-artists program using a grant from the City. It is taking over a vacant 4,000-square-foot building and will an arts gallery, artists' studios and a new-media lab. Adjacent buildings will house arts related stores and the nearby liquor store will be converted into a cafe. What is important here is that neighborhoods be revitalized in ways that wont necessarily displace people. This kind of development is people friendly.
There are some power houses involved in the project and it is already transforming the area near Market and 6th.
The San Francisco Arts Commission is in talks with Shorenstein Hays Nederlander to convert several floors of above the Golden Gate Theater into artists' studios and office space for arts-related nonprofits.
Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development is involved and so is the The North of Market Neighborhood Improvement Corp, involved with bringing the arts to low-income communities.
Thanks for Reading
Howard Bell
A web site of over 450 articles related to real estate focused primarily on property management.
http://yourpropertypath.blogspot.com/
Snap News updates real estate markets and all things of interest to property owners and real estate professionals
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According to the research firm Reis. 58 of the 79 markets they track are showing negative rent growth led by declines in New York at 1.9%; Miami with a decline of 1.8%; and San Bernardino, Calif., down 1.4%.
Based on market conditions, even strong markets like San Francisco can expect continued softness in rent rates and increasing vacancy rates. Rent rates are important. You can call them cash flow, cap rates or GRM, but they are the best most sensible way to price an income property. Showing a consistently low vacancy rate at is the very definition of less risk.
How to Rent Your Property Faster
Determining the Right Rent
A rental price that is below market may rent very quickly and now you are receiving less income for the length of the leases. In a rent control environment you may suffer from that below market mistake for many years because now your future increases are based on a lower base.
If your price is too high then you may wait one to three or more months before you finally succumb to accepting a lower market rate. If it takes three months for reality to dictate, you have effectively given up 25% of your annual rental income on that unit. Hardly worth waiting for your best price.
Finally, The sale price of a property can be measured in a variety of ways. The Gross Rent Multiplier or GRM uses income (rent) to arrive at value. For example, If similar properties, in your area is selling for a GRM of 10 and you have under-estimated the rent by $100.00 or $1,200.00 annually. GRM methodology would suggest that you have reduced the immediate sale price of the property by 10 x $1,200.00 or $12,000.00. Always rent and manage with one eye towards marketability.
Pricing the Unit
Leasing agents lack bench marks. Real estate agents have the MLS. Owners still have to determine the marketplace for rent rates. So....you have to be creative. I like to use two sites to find an approximate comp. Its good to use more than one source to measure the market. Craigs list is very helpful, so is apartment.com. With these tools, you can approximate local comparable rates by searching for similar size units in your area. Then, if you like, you can drive by or call to get a better sense of the amenities available. Price your vacancy accordingly.
Managing Rents in a Rent Controlled Environment
In San Francisco as well as many other cities,rent increase are mandated for many owners. The rent board determines the annual allowable rent increase - this year its 2.2%. If you have to reduce rent by $100, to rent your vacancy, consider how long it would take to recoup that loss, If your base rent was $1500 now lowered to $1400. At $1400, assuming maximum annual increase of 2.2% it might take you four years to get back to a base rent of $1500.
Some Tricks
keeping the higher base rent in tough times
1. Keep the rent at $1500, but offer gift certificates or other amenities. A rent reduction to $1400 is a $1200 annual loss. Perhaps an offer of a new notepad from Assus ($350) is attractive. If this worked, you would have kept your base rent at $1500 and saved $ 1150 this year and in forward years.
2. Offer one months free rent. Never make this the first month, since you may find yourself with a tenant that doesnt pay in the second month either and now you have a squatter. Tenants are open to this and it allows you to preserve your base rent.
3. Increase your market depth by considering pets, you can reduce risk by asking for a pet deposit in addition to the security deposit. be sure not to exceed 2 x rent for unfurnished or 3 x rent for furnished rooms.
4. A really great idea is to offer amenities that improve or increase the value of the unit. Amenities that tenants cant take with them such as: stackable washer/dryers or microwaves, or dishwashers. Tenants really do like the added convenience and it adds value to the unit. A good win-win choice.
5. Section 8 housing credits. Many in San Francisco dont accept section 8 prospects because of the extra paper work. It requires an additional layer of rules and contracts.
6. Maximize your marketing presence by using Craigs List and an internet listing company such as apartments.com
7. Consider hiring a property management company to do the leasing for you. If it saved you just one month, because of their expertise or visibility, you would be ahead of the game.
Thanks for Reading
Howard Bell
A web site of over 450 articles related to real estate focused primarily on property management.
http://yourpropertypath.blogspot.com/
Snap News updates real estate markets and all things of interest to property owners and real estate professionals
Your Property Path Amazon Store
http://astore.amazon.com/yourpropertypath20-20
super deals on agent open house tools We hand picked Amazon for the tools you need
San Francisco May Legalize Pot
We Need the Money
Tom Ammiano, supported by Sherrif Hennessey and Betty Yee who is chair of the State Board of Equalization all think that pot is a money maker. The idea would be to regulate it, just like other alcohol and cigarettes.
According to the Chronicle, an analysis done by the State Board of Equalization concluded that the state could collect an cool 1.3 bilion in new tax revenue. They envision a $50 per ounce tax on retail sales of pot. This same analysis also concludes that the price would drop by half and consumption would increase by as much as 40%.
Would we be able to smoke pot in bars.....can you imagine the conversations....all the while, munching feverishly on gold fish and salt pretzels. Maybe this one is best left alone.
Thanks for Reading
Howard Bell
A web site of over 450 articles related to real estate focused primarily on property management.
http://yourpropertypath.blogspot.com/
Snap News updates real estate markets and all things of interest to property owners and real estate professionals
Your Property Path Amazon Store
http://astore.amazon.com/yourpropertypath20-20
super deals on agent open house tools We hand picked Amazon for the tools you need
Howard Bell PFP CCRM is the founder/editor of yourpropertypath.com 450 articles on property management Howard is a property manager in San Francisco and holds a certification in financial planning
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