Category Archives: West Portal/Forest Hill

Check Out District 4 Before You Flee SF for the Suburbs

Sheltering in place in a small flat with no outdoor space in a dense urban area has not been the ideal scenario this year. But before you decide to leave San Francisco behind because you can’t find the space you need, consider neighborhoods west of Twin Peaks.

Miraloma Park, Sherwood Forest, Ingleside Terrace, Forest Hill, Westwood Park, Diamond Heights—these are just a few of the neighborhoods in what we Realtors call “district 4” in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). These areas offer predominantly single-family home inventory and a more suburban feel, with yards, plenty of trees, and wide sidewalks. You’re also geographically central, with Stonestown Galleria, Ocean Avenue and West Portal retail nearby.

Here are a few of my favorite single-family homes in District 4 that are currently on the market. Give me a shout at eileen@insidesfre.com | 415.823.4656 if you’d like to chat about any of these homes:

451 Yerba Buena
Westwood Highlands
3BR/3BA, 3194 sq ft, 2 pkg
$2,375,000

451 Yerba Buena Avenue is a lovely English Tudor-style home with an awesome park-like yard, three bedrooms/two baths on the same level, gourmet kitchen and family room/bath down. Westwood Highlands has well-manicured, wide streets that aren’t packed with people, so you can go out for walks and not necessarily have to wear your masks constantly. [Listing courtesy of Berkshire-Hathaway Franciscan] Continue Reading

Just Listed: 210 San Marcos in Forest Hill

Just Listed: 210 San Marcos in Forest Hill

My new English Tudor-style single-family home listing at 210 San Marcos is located in bucolic Forest Hill. It’s a wonderful property for buyers who want a quiet, forested setting in an architecturally cool house that’s far enough away from urban chaos, yet close enough that you can stroll down to one of two different Muni stations, as well as West Portal’s restaurants and shops.

My two favorite features of 210 San Marcos are the “catslide” slate roof and the garden with its beautiful brickwork. The house is move-in ready, with remodeled kitchens and baths, spacious bedrooms upstairs and excellent guest quarters downstairs. There’s also a very cool mezzanine level for your hobby or office space.


Forest Hill attracts buyers who want to connect with nature while not living too far from the city’s conveniences. And 210 San Marcos absolutely fits the bill. List price is $1,995,000. We’ll be open this weekend on Sunday from 2-4, so please stop in and visit me!

Check out our property Web site here for more details and photos.

Just Sold: 146 Granville in West Portal

Just Sold: 146 Granville in West Portal

Congratulations to my clients on the purchase of their spacious, Mediterranean-style single-family home on a prime block in the popular West Portal neighborhood. Only a few blocks from the heart of the West Portal retail area and the Muni line to downtown, 146 Granville has lovely period details throughout, along with ocean views from the living room and master bedroom.

The floor plan features three bedrooms all on the upper level, with a master bathroom and split bath in the hall. A real bonus is the lower level with family room and bath that has a separate entrance to the street. There’s also a garden with walk-out access from the dining room.

List price was $1,595,000, feel free to contact me for sale details.

Much thanks to Parie Bon at Wells Fargo Private Banking, David Antman at Zephyr Real Estate, and Chris Matthews/Christine Lim at Old Republic Title for a smooth escrow!

What You Could’ve Bought: For Under List Price

Properties in San Francisco generally sell for more than their asking prices. But there were some recent sales that bucked this trend—particularly ones involving homes in the $2M+ range.

Keep your eye on the market as we move toward the Fall. We’ll be getting an inventory boost right after Labor Day, and those “leftover” summer homes may turn out to be great buys.

In the meantime, here are a few homes that recently sold for under their list price:

1325 Lake Street
Lake Street
List Price: $3,000,000
Sale Price: $2,275,000
First Listed: Sept 2017

A large, traditional home in need of a facelift, 1325 Lake was first listed last Fall for $3M, and the price gradually went down from there. The house has a great location near Mountain Lake Park and Laurel Village. This is a good example of a property with good bones that current or future owners can take to the next level, it just took a bit of time to find the right buyer—at a price that will allow for solid renovations. [Listing courtesy of Compass] Continue Reading

What You Can Buy: Forest Hill

The charming, Carmel-esque neighborhood of Forest Hill doesn’t often have much inventory. It’s a geographically small area, with low turnover and homeowners who love where they live. Most of the homes have fantastic period detail, with styles such as Tudor, Spanish Mediterranean, Arts and Crafts and Edwardian.

World-renowned architects like Julia Morgan, Frank Lloyd Wright and Bernard Maybeck have designed homes in the neighborhood. Located in the center of the city, Forest Hill is a stone’s throw from the West Portal retail area, and is served by its own Forest Hill Muni station to downtown.

You typically will get more for your money in Forest Hill as opposed to, say, Noe Valley. The houses are large and are ideal for buyers who need a lot of space. The average home price over the past year was around $2.4M. And here’s a tip: The closer a home is to the Forest Hill Muni station or the West Portal area, the more chance there will be of a high overbid. Continue Reading

Buyers Exceed Seller Expectations with Extreme Overbids

Buyers Exceed Seller Expectations with Extreme Overbids

It’s one thing to list a property lower than the targeted price, but 95% of the agents I know who do significant business in San Francisco (including myself) don’t typically list a property for hundreds of thousands of dollars less than expected. So it boggles my mind when I see extreme overbids of 50% or more.

But it’s easy to rationalize a crazy selling price in a hot market with inventory that doesn’t meet the demand. Here’s a look at the latest head shakers for 2018 so far:

100 Teresita | 4BR/2BA, 1833 sq ft | Miraloma Park
List: $1,199,000
Sold: $1,950,000
62.5%+ Continue Reading

The Most Overbid House ‘Hoods in San Francisco Right Now

Buyers have had no qualms about dramatically overbidding for single-family homes in West Portal, Westwood Park/Highlands, the Central Sunset, Ingleside Heights and Miraloma Park this year.

Those neighborhoods are seeing an average overbid of 20 percent. West Portal actually had five homes sell for between 30 and 50 percent over list price this year.

The selling pattern within individual neighborhoods is a useful data point for sellers when it comes to setting a list price—and for buyers as they decide how much to offer for a property. The traditional pattern in San Francisco has been to list low and sell for more. In general, single-family homes in popular neighborhoods and at price points under $2M tend to get the highest overbids.

I did a quick analysis on the single-family home market and flagged the neighborhoods that are experiencing the highest levels of overbidding. Here are the hot spots now, according to the average overbid percentage year to date:

West Portal 22%
Westwood Park/Highlands 21% Continue Reading

What You Could’ve Bought: For Under The List Price

The selling pattern in San Francisco continues to be list low, sell for more. However, it doesn’t always work out that way for some sellers. Properties that sell for under asking typically have spent a good chunk of time on the market, and are often in the multi-million dollar price range. But that’s not always the case. Here are a few examples of homes that didn’t have a fast path to a signed contract:

1290 Portola
West Portal
List Price: $2,198,000
Sale Price: $1,724,000
Days on Market (DOM): 91

This large, stately home was in easy walking distance to the West Portal retail area. But its busy location on the corner of Portola and Dorchester scared more than a few buyers away. Not a bad deal here; the house has three bedrooms on the same level and a nice, big kitchen. Continue Reading

What You Can Buy: My Picks for This Week

Inventory is starting to hit the market, and I’ve been scouting around for properties for my buyer clients. In between, I get to see properties that aren’t quite a fit for my buyers, but would work for my blog readers who may be house hunting. Here are some cool properties in varied price ranges. If you’re interested in taking a look, give me a shout at 415.823.4656 and we can schedule a showing just like that.

500 Masonic #2 / NoPa
2BR/2.5BA, 1220 sq ft, 1 pkg
$1,299,000
500masonic_2
The two-level condo at 500 Masonic #2 has what many buyers are looking for—two bedrooms upstairs, an open kitchen/dining/living space, in-unit laundry, and secure garage parking for up to two cars (tandem).
Pros: Large, deeded rooftop space easily accessible from the elevator. Smaller, seven-unit building. 94 Walk Score!
Cons: One bedroom and the main living space front Masonic, which is a heavily trafficked street. (Note that a major streetscape improvement project is planned.) Continue Reading

Coming Soon and Off-Market Opportunities: August 19, 2015

Here are my picks for upcoming and off-market listings this week:

12 Winfield / Bernal Heights
2BR/1BA top-floor condo, 1 pkg
$899,000

355 Buena Vista Ave East #506W / Buena Vista-Ashbury Heights
1BR/1BA, 855 sq ft, 1 pkg
$788,000

555 Filbert St / Telegraph Hill
3BR/2BA renovated, top-floor TIC, 1 pkg
$1,695,000 Continue Reading

Coming Soon and Off-Market Opportunities: August 12, 2015

Here are my picks for upcoming and off-market listings this week:

147 Day #4 / Noe Valley
1BR/1BA top-floor condo, 1 pkg
$749,000

1670 Kirkwood / Bayview
Two 3BR/2BA flats, built 2001, 2 pkg
$899,000

1562 Portola / West Portal
3BR+/2.5BA, 2777 sq ft Craftsman house
$1,695,000

471 Munich / Excelsior
3BR/1.5BA barrel front house + inlaw unit, 1 pkg
Price TBD Continue Reading

Good Deal: 115 San Pablo in St. Francis Wood

Good Deal: 115 San Pablo in St. Francis Wood

I was reviewing sales in Noe Valley today and came across the final selling price for 752 Elizabeth. This was a 3BR/2BA, 1440 square foot house with a two-car garage and cute garden that was listed for $1.5M. The seller received 17 offers, and the home sold for $2,150,000 in an all-cash transaction. (About half the offers were for cash, by the way.)

This kind of market activity tends to scare buyers off—and with good reason. The reality? Unless you have cash or a hefty down payment and can go into contract with no contingencies and a fast close, you can’t compete in high-demand neighborhoods like Noe Valley. A successful house hunt, as a result, will largely depend on how flexible you can be with respect to location and amenities. Continue Reading

The Most Competitive House Markets in San Francisco Right Now

If you’re aiming to buy or sell a single-family home in San Francisco, it’s important to take note of the selling patterns in the city’s various neighborhoods. You’ve probably read my blog post from earlier this week on the hottest condo markets, but when it comes to overbidding on houses, the landscape looks slightly different.

The neighborhoods where buyers are overbidding most intensely are varied, and there are many. Continue Reading

Contact Eileen for Real Estate Help

Eileen Bermingham

Corcoran Global Living

415.823.4656

eileen@insidesfre.com

DRE# 01352627

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