Archives for February 2008

Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures – MUNI's "Old" "New" Busses (1947)

February 29, 2008 By Luba

MUNIâ€™s First â€œGreenâ€ Bus
Welcome back to Photo Friday – my little way of taking a break from San Francisco Real Estate and instead blogging about our great City’s past instead. All photos are published with permission from the San Francisco History Center and San Francisco Public Library.
So this last week, Curbed SF, WHAT IM SEEING dot com and SFist all mentioned MUNI’s latest Green/Wi-Fi concoction.
I still haven’t really figured out the benefit of wi-fi on a (usually crowded bus) but maybe I’m just not as technologically advanced as MUNI’s new target audience. (I just hopethat the MUNI drivers don’t get too distracted by the new wi-fi and start mowing down even MORE innocent pedestrians.)
Regardless, this isn’t MUNI’s first “New” bus.
Back in 1947, MUNI introduced its first trackless electric bus.
The newscopy on February 1947 read:

“THE NEW–This new trackless trolley, first of 16 such to be ordered for the E Line, will go into service to replace the old ‘enter at center’ streetcars now on the line.”

According to the SFMTA site, June 8, 1947 was the “last day of streetcar service on Muni’s E streetcar line, with trolley buses and motor buses taking over service the next day and full trolley bus operation shortly thereafter. This was the first post-war conversion of a streetcar line to trolley bus service – the E-line conversion had been planned several years before, but had been delayed by the war effort. (The E and R trolley bus lines were combined, and the new service was called the E Union-Howard. The E line was re-designated the 41 line in February 1949, a time when much of the Muni-Market Street Railway consolidated service was renamed.)”
The original E Line was The E Union – a streetcar route that ran from the Ferry Building to the Presidio via The Embarcadero, Washington/Jackson, Columbus, Union, Larkin, Vallejo, Franklin, Union, Baker and Greenwich into the Presidio. [Wikepedia]
As always, I hope you enjoyed this week’s Photo Friday and the random bit of San Francisco history it provided you with. Hope you have a great weekend!

Your Favorite SF Real Estate Blogger Has Updated Her Website

February 28, 2008 By Luba

Here’s another shameless plug from me… (and I’m ok with admitting I may not be your favorite San Francisco Real Estate Blogger, but just let me pretend, OK?)
Every San Francisco Realtor has to have a website and I’m no different.
My SF real estate blog is more of a hobby, and less of a “real” Realtor website. I mean, yes, it’s a presence on the web and all, but it lets me post info I think people will find interesting as well as random information that I find interesting. Some of it is related to San Francisco real estate, and some of it isn’t.
Sometimes I write posts in the middle of the night that sound brilliant when I’m writing them, and are much less so the next day when I’m reading them. And sometimes I write posts that seem boring to me, but later I find that people find them extremely interesting and useful (I swear, I’m not making that up – though the person who said that might have been blowing smoke up my butt).
I let a little more of my personality peek through in these pages. I try to let readers get to know me, who I am as a San Francisco real estate agent, and who I am as a person.
But in addition to these pages, I also have a website, www.LubaSF.com. That’s my “official” San Francisco Realtor website, as opposed to this, unofficial, sometimes filled with very random things, website.
And because I thought my old site was frankly dark and dreary, I decided to give it a facelift. So, today, without too much ado, I’ve decided to let you folks know that my new site is up and running and with most of the kinks finally worked out.
If you liked my old site, the same info is still there, and should still be just as accessible – but this one just is just sort of an “Extreme Makeover” version – it still is the same resource on the inside, but just looks shiny and has been nipped and tucked in (hopefully) the right places.
Anyhow, I hope you stop by and take a look, browse some properities, find out about buying or selling a home, sign up for Zephyr MLS Direct, Sign up for “sfnewsletter“, or just drop me a note to say “hi” and let me know what you think of the new site.
And I hope you find the revamped site useful. It’s not just an advertising tool, but a resource I hope you’ll come back to time and again for your SF real estate needs.

San Francisco Real Estate Fast Facts: Single Family Home Sales January 2007 vs. January 2008

February 27, 2008 By Luba

Here’s the latest Fast Facts update from the SFAR. Updates are provided almost weekly and each week is a different sector of the market (ie. Condos, Single Family Homes, 2-4 unit dwellings, etc.).

Check back next week for more statistics..

Fast Facts

Single-Family Homes

District 1	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	7	7
Median Selling Price	1,000,000	1,250,000
Average DOM	47	66

District 2	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	20	21
Median Selling Price	788,000	830,000
Average DOM	54	56

District 3	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	4	9
Median Selling Price	774,500	960,000
Average DOM	58	60

District 4	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	27	11
Median Selling Price	871,000	1,155,000
Average DOM	57	56

District 5	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	13	17
Median Selling Price	1,180,000	1,530,000
Average DOM	66	48

District 6	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	2	3
Median Selling Price	1,250,000	2,050,000
Average DOM	111	60

District 7	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	7	9
Median Selling Price	2,647,500	3,350,000
Average DOM	63	38

District 8	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	2	0
Median Selling Price	1,241,500
Average DOM	43

District 9	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	13	10
Median Selling Price	1,025,000	792,500
Average DOM	41	45

District 10	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	48	20
Median Selling Price	676,500	561,500
Average DOM	66	100

District 11	January 2007	January 2008
Number of Sales	21	14
Median Selling Price	750,000	615,500
Average DOM	59	48

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Get Your Own Damn Agent

February 24, 2008 By Luba

So I was at this open house today. I was holding a listing open for a fellow Zephyr agent.
While I was at the open house, I found myself talking to a gentlemen there that looked remarkably familiar. I came to find out that I had actually gone to camp with him at the YMCA here in the City. I guess when you’ve grown up in the City, you’re bound to run into people you’ve met while growing up.
Anyhow – I am digressing from the point of my story – back to the point. This guy from camp (who is now grown and ready to buy some SF real estate) has been poking around at open houses for almost a year now looking to buy a place. The thing is, he’s out there on his own trying to navigate the San Francisco real estate jungle all alone. He has no one to guide him, no one to negotiate for him, no one to fight for him, no one to give him a heads up on a pocket listing that’s only available to other agents, no one to analyze his needs and help him to find the right place that he can call “home.”
So, I did what any good agent would do – I spent 20 minutes trying to convince him to get out there and get himself an agent.
I mean, he seemed like a nice enough person – I’d love to work with him – but not every agent is for every person, so my goal wasn’t to have him work with ME, my goal was to convince him to find SOMEONE that would help him.
He even mentioned a really nice agent from Cashin that he had met the week prior – but hadn’t thought to give him a call. If you’re reading this (and you know who you are) – call the Cashin guy! Call me! Call anyone! But don’t go at it on your own!!!
And I wasn’t planning on turning my little chance encounter with someone I remember as a kid I went to camp with into a blog post, but when I got home, I ran across this article in today’s Chronicle – Looking for a House? Find a Buyer’s Agent First. It reiterated every single point that I harped on for the 20 minute conversation with him – and then some.
Buying a home is a daunting task, and if you don’t have the advantage of working with a buyer’s agent, it’s like floating in the ocean without a life raft. Sure – you might be able to swim, but for how long before you just get swallowed up by the waves!
If you’re reading this now and you or someone you know is thinking about buying a place without an agent- STOP!
Get your own damn agent! He or she will help you to nagivate the ins and outs of the San Francisco real estate market, and get get you into the best home you at the best price for you.
And if you need help finding an agent, check out this blog post I did a while ago on How to Choose a Buyer’s Agent.
Of course, you can always call me, and if we all feel that we’ll work well together, then I’ll be happy to help you find a place in the City to call “home”. You know where to find me. 🙂

San Francisco Natural Hazard Maps

February 24, 2008 By Luba

Someone asked me about these today – so I thought I’d throw a few maps up here for readers that are curious about the location of natural hazards in San Francisco. Click on the map for a bigger view, and to be taken to the source of the map.
San Francisco Liquefaction Map

San Francisco Natural Hazards Map

My personal favorite, which is sort of a hazard because building a house on water is never a good idea, is a map of all of the creeks, marshes and landfill throughout historical San Francisco. This map is from the 1890’s. As with the others, click to see the map full size, and to see the source.

San Francisco Historical Creek Map

And finally – if you’re curious about the last little rumble you felt – check out this map which will show you the size and magnitude of the most recent earthquake.

San Francisco Recent Earthquakes

San Francisco Property Spotlight – 1352-1354 Castro

February 23, 2008 By Luba

Welcome back to the “San Francisco Property Spotlight” brought to you by yours truly.
Full disclosure – this is partially a shameless plug for one of my listings. However, it’s just a damn amazing property to boot, and a good example of a not-so-bad market in good old San Francisco.

1352-1354 Castro is a mixed use “diamond in the rough” with 2 residential and 2 commercial units. The place needs a fair amount of work, but it’s located at the super prime corner of Castro and Jersey.
The “for sale” signs went up on the property less than a week ago, and the property only hit the MLS 1 day ago. Even so, many of you have expressed an interest in the place.
After just 1 day on the market, weâ€™ve already received an offer. (And they say the market is crap â€“ hah!)
But the seller isn’t ready to look at it just yet – instead, we’re fast tracking the sale and have moved the offer date up!!!
The seller will review offers this Wednesday, February 27th at 12noon.
If you have questions, please donâ€™t hesitate to contact me.

Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures – My Dog Powder (1997-2008)

February 22, 2008 By Luba

View the Entire Flickr Set of Photos here

Welcome back to Photo Friday – my little way of taking a break from San Francisco Real Estate and instead blogging about our great City’s past instead. All photos are published with permission from the San Francisco History Center and San Francisco Public Library.
This week’s post really has nothing to do with San Francisco history, except that this all happened in San Francisco. Most of the photos just aren’t that old, or historical, except for the fact that they are part of the history of my life. I tend to not share things that are very personal on my blog, but this time, I thought I’d make an exception.
Those of you that know me know that I love dogs. I have been called the crazy dog lady, and I probably am.
I have three amazing dogs. They’re put bull mixes that my boyfriend and I rescued many many years ago. There names are Powder, Lace and Ohm. Powder and Lace are sisters and Ohm is Powder’s puppy – she was an accident that happened when a boy dog we had rescued came home and had his way with our girls, leaving Powder with a litter of 5 adorable puppies, and Ohm’s the one we kept. Powder was an amazing momma dog. In fact, Powder was an amazing dog in every regard.
Powder passed away at home this Wednesday night, the 20th.
My heart is absolutely broken and there’s a void there that I know no other dog will ever be able to fill. But I thought sharing my love for her with readers of this blog would somehow help ease the pain of this loss a little – and would let other people know just what an amazing dog she was.
Powder was my first real dog. From the moment my boyfriend brought her home with her brother and sister (my boyfriend’s mom later took the brother), Powder picked me to be her human. We named her Powder because she was soft and fluffy like powder.
She was sweet and loving from the moment she opened her eyes. She was goofy too – in a sweet and gentle kind of way. She adored her sister Lace, and when she had a litter of puppies, she was the most caring and nurturing momma dog I have ever seen.
From puppyhood, we knew she was amazingly smart. She not only responded to all of the basic commands, but picked up extra random words. She would pick up her pace when you told her to “hurry.” She would wiggle with excitement when I would tell her that I “Love Powder” and she’s wiggle with even more excitement when I’d tell her that I “Fat Love Powder.” She also had this little underbite, and occasionally, her lip would get stuck in an awkward position that made her look like a monkey – and when I’d tell her she was a “Monkey Mouth”, she’d quickly lick her lips to fix her lips.
Powder was even sweeter than she was smart. She was an incredibly loving dog – not just to my boyfriend and me, but to strangers (kids and adults alike). She was also remarkably loving to her sister and puppy. She would constantly kiss them. When those two got in trouble for not listening, she’d lay next to them and give them kisses as if to say “it’s ok”. She looked after both of them as if they were both her own pups. She made them feel the world wasn’t so big and scary. For that matter, I think she made me feel the world wasn’t so big and scary. I could always count on her to give me a reassuring kiss or cuddle when I had a hard day. She made me feel loved every moment that I was with her.
Powder also had a sense of humor. I know, you non-dog people probably think that’s nuts, but it’s true. When I’d sneak up and her and spook her, she’d do this funny wiggle, skip movement that was just like a laugh. She’d wag her little nub (she had no tail) and would run over to give me a kiss. She knew what was funny.
I could go on and on about how special Powder was. In my eyes, she was perfect. I know for a fact that she was perfect for me. It’s hard to say “was”. It’s hard to believe that she’s gone. I look around my house that I just moved into and even though the other two dogs are here, the house just feels empty. In fact, without Powder, my house just doesn’t feel like a home.
But, no matter how empty and sad and lonely and crushed I feel today, a friend sent me a little saying that made me feel just a wee bit better:
“I think not how sad it will be when you are gone, but rather how empty it would have been had you never come.”
Powder made my life full and complete for 11 short years. She left me with a lifetime of memories that will warm my heart each time I think of her and the smart, goofy, sweet or loving things she did. I’ll likely shed a tear each time I think of her, but I wouldn’t trade a moment of the joy I had with her to erase the pain and sadness I feel right now.
If you have a dog, a cat, a pet you love dearly – give them an extra cuddle today. Let them drool on the couch. Take them on a extra walk. Don’t get upset when they scratch up your floor. When they’re gone one day, you’ll never regret the extra little leeway you gave them or the extra little bit of love they got. In fact, it’ll be those moments that will make you feel like somehow, they are still there with you.
To my little Monkey Mouth Powder Momma – I love you dearly. I’ll always love you. No dog will ever come close to bringing me the joy you brought me. While I can’t believe that I’ll never get to see you, pet you, kiss you or cuddle with you again, I know that you’ll always be in my heart and because of that, you’ll always be with me. I miss you more than you know. May you rest in peace knowing that you truly were (and in my heart are) the perfect dog.

SF Real Estate Blog Reader Asks – I Try to Answer

February 22, 2008 By Luba

Occasionally I get a question from a reader of the blog that’s worthy of sharing with the world – I thought this one was worth sharing. Hope you think so too…
Q. Hi Luba,
As a potential first-time homebuyer, I enjoy reading your blog and getting to understand the SF market. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on buying a condo in a high rise vs. a more “typical” SF flat in a 2 or 3 unit building. From a resale perspective, do you think that one is more desirable than the other? Or are they about equal?
Thanks for your thoughts.
E.S.
A. Hi E.S.,
First – thanks for the kind words about the blog. I try to provide useful information (at least most of the time) and am glad to hear some people are enjoying it. 🙂
Now – to answer your question….
My answer won’t be as straightforward as I would like to provide, but here it goes.
My gut instinct is to say that condos in more traditional buildings tend to have a higher resale value – but, that’s because they’re in neighborhoods that are already somewhat established where there is little to know inventory. High rises on the other hand seem to be going up at a rate faster than the speed of light – or something like that. Most are going up in neighborhoods that aren’t really established communities as of today, but will likely be in the next 5-10 years as urban planners create more corridors that offer more amenities to residents. That being said – new developments are definitely popular. As the inventory is created, it gets bought up – with some developments getting bought up faster than others. If you plan on reselling quickly though, you’re taking a gamble. In Mission Bay, buildings like the Beacon saw a drop in value from the original purchase price within a year or two of people buying their units. But, 3 years later, prices are slowly creeping up again as the neighborhood begins feeling more, well, established for lack of a better word.
I guess to sort of summarize, over the long term, I think appreciation will somewhat balance out between traditional condos and high rise new developments. Essentially, it’s a rather close call. I think if your question is more related to which one you should look into buying, I think it’s going to depend on a lot of things, from timing of the purchase, to your future plans, to your lifestyle, to your style preferences – and above all else, which place you’ll be happiest in. A home is a huge investment, but it’s also a “home”, so you want to be sure that above all else, you’ll be happy living there!
Let me know if you have any other questions! I’m always happy to be of assistance!

I Was Quoted in the Examiner – Sort Of

February 19, 2008 By Luba

So I picked up the Examiner real estate section over the weekend, and there on pages 4 and 5 is an article about Sunset District Doelger homes. And I was quoted in it!
OK – so if you look close, you don’t actually see my name – instead you see “Zuba Muzichenko”, but I swear that I don’t have a sister (or brother) named Zuba, and that I really did talk to Larry Rosen of the Examiner about Sunset Doelgers – I even confirmed with him, and he apologized for renaming me. I think he found me from a previous post I had done about the “infamous boxes“.
Anyhow – for your reading enjoyment, I’ve copied the article into a PDF here.
Once Scorned, Doelger Homes Now Prized for Mid-Century Design

San Francisco 2nd Greenest City in the U.S.

February 19, 2008 By Luba

I swore there was another poll that rated SF has the Greenest City in the U.S. Either it was wrong, and we are greenest, or we need to step it up a notch to beat those folks from Portland, Oregon.
This recent poll ranked us as number 2. Oakland, Berkeley, and Sunnyvale where other SF Bay Area cities that made the top 50.
Per Popsi.com‘s website, this is how their rankings work:

We used raw data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Geographic Societyâ€™s Green Guide, which collected survey data and government statistics for American cities of over 100,000 people in more than 30 categories, including air quality, electricity use and transportation habits. We then compiled these statistics into four broad categories, each scored out of either 5 or 10 possible points. The sum of these four scores determines a cityâ€™s place in the rankings. Our categories are:

Electricity (E; 10 points): Cities score points for drawing their energy from renewable sources such as wind, solar, biomass and hydroelectric power, as well as for offering incentives for residents to invest in their own power sources, like roof-mounted solar panels.

Transportation (T; 10 points): High scores go to cities whose commuters take public transportation or carpool. Air quality also plays a role.

Green living (G; 5 points): Cities earn points for the number of buildings certified by the U.S. Green Building Council, as well as for devoting area to green space, such as public parks and nature preserves.

Recycling and green perspective (R; 5 points): This measures how comprehensive a cityâ€™s recycling program is (if the city collects old electronics, for example) and how important its citizens consider environmental issues.

I guess 2nd ain’t bad – but common folks, let’s aim a little higher next year! 🙂 It’s not like we’re not close – Portland came in at 23.1 points, and we came in at 23. You can do it!