Sound the Alarm! Engine 44 Roars Onto Market, Asks $6.898M
The restored firehouse at 3816 22nd St. has been on the market before, from 2008 to 2010 (back in the economic slump when it was more difficult to sell a property—you know, in the days when falling down shacks weren't bid up). Back then, we wrote about it in pretty laudatory terms, using phrases like "kind of gorgeous" and "definitely tricked out" and even "stunning-ass house." In those dark real estate days, it started at $6.375 million, but after three years the price was slashed to $4.8 million. Now it's back on the market and a lot of things are similar. For one thing, its asking for $6.898 million. For another, this is still a stunning-ass house. Engine 44 started life in 1909 as a fire station that served Noe Valley and the Castro. It was remodeled as a private home in 2007, but it retains some scraps from the old days: the brass fire pole, copper stable doors, and zinc doors. Those old features are surrounded by modern fabulousness.
For Real? Craigslist Ad Creates an Alternate Reality Rental
no really this is the weirdest bathroom & pillow photoshopping I've ever seen http://t.co/Rqjdg7IlbVh/t @meghanhade pic.twitter.com/R8CnyeGKlx
— Burrito Justice (@burritojustice) September 28, 2015
We don't know what to think about this Craigslist ad. The listing sounds interesting, if a little weird. It promises things like a bedroom the "size of a cabin on a train or a sailboat with a built-in bed and desk" and another bedroom that "works for some people as a bedroom but not for all." What is really confusing to us are the clearly (and poorly) Photoshopped pictures that appear to add throw pillows, plants, and a fire in the fireplace to the space—not to mention "improvements" the kitchen and bathroom.
What $10,000/Month Rents You in San Francisco
Welcome to Curbed Comparisons, a column that explores what one can rent for a set dollar amount in various San Francisco neighborhoods. Is one man's studio another man's townhouse? Let's find out! Today's price: $10,000.
↑ In Presidio Heights, $9,900/month gets you a lovely 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom flat on flat, tree-lined Clay Street. The building is Edwardian inside and out, and has many architectural highlights like boxed ceilings, built-ins, bay windows, hardwood flooring with inlays, and decorative tiles in the one of the bathrooms. Laundry and parking are included, but there's no mention of the pets policy.
Wonderfully Wacky Noe Valley House Looks for $2.995M
The technicolor dreamhouse at 4280 Cesar Chavez Street certainly won't be every buyer's taste, especially in its current very bright state. From the outside, the home is a dark, almost boring grayish brown that gives no hint of what lies within. But inside, there are fluorescent storage areas, a stainless steel kidney-shaped kitchen island, a bright purple bathroom, and a red spiral staircase that curves down to the equally colorful backyard. Even the fire pit out back is covered in tiles of various shades of blue. The house just came on the market asking $2.995 million. Noe Valley Fixer Takes a Rare Big Price Cut Down to $1.699M
In recent months, there have been seemingly no boundaries to the demand for fixer-uppers, especially in prime neighborhoods like Noe Valley. A Noe Street house in need of renovations went for $2.8 million, a former hoarder house in nearby Glen Park snagged $1.525 million, and a beat-up Mission duplex grabbed $2.35 million. All of those sales were well, well over asking. So when a four-bedroom house on Noe Valley's Douglass Street went up for sale for $1.995 million, there was every reason to believe that the price could pass the $2 million mark. Instead, after two weeks on the market, the house has taken a big price cut down to $1.699 million. Noe Valley Flip Loses Fake Stone Facade, Gains $3.142M
Back when 931 Sanchez Street sold for $908,000 in 2012, it was a squat, ugly two-bedroom with just 942 square feet of space and one of those fake-brick exteriors left over from the middle of last century. All of that has, of course, now changed. The former ugly duckling was totally transformed by flippers into a glossy four-bedroom house with an open floor plan, a flat fireplace, and a glassed-in deck. It's not the fanciest flip we've seen, especially in Noe, but that didn't matter to buyers who splurged well beyond the $3.499 million asking price to purchase the house for $4.05 million. Noe Valley Condo at the Center of the Universe Asks $1.25M
We realize that the exact location of the center of the universe is a subjective thing; but would anyone object to saying that a home located at 981 Dolores St. and within steps of Noe Valley, the Mission District, Muni, Bart, and Dolores Park is an arguably fantastic place to live? Suffice it to say the walk score is 96.
What $7,300-$8,000/Month Rents You in San Francisco
Welcome to Curbed Comparisons, a column that explores what one can rent for a set dollar amount in various San Francisco neighborhoods. Is one man's studio another man's townhouse? Let's find out! Today's price range: $7,300-$8,000.
↑ You want ornate? This epitome of grandeur clocks in at 3,450 square feet and has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. It's a Pacific Heightsflat in a building built in 1898, and it looks as though it's been impeccably cared for ever since. There's even a "reception room that was originally imported from Paris." The rent? A cool $8,000/month. There's laundry in the 3-unit building, pets are negotiable, and parking's available if you want to shell out an additional $500/month.
Last Week's Biggest Sales: Noe Valley Fixer Scores Nearly $1M Over Asking
Listed for: $4,350,000Received: $4,725,000
Size: 3-bed, 3-bath co-op
Location: 2288 Broadway St., Pacific Heights
The skinny: Co-op boards are very particular when it comes to letting folks buy in, so color us impressed to read that this apartment was listed and sold in less than two months. It's a corner unit in a building that seeks out the very wealthy, so it's no surprise that it received $375,000 over asking. The apartment boasts a landscaped terrace that's "big enough for large scale entertaining," and comes with 2-car parking.
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Noe Valley Fixer Sells for $2.8M, Nearly $1M Over Asking
When a big, old Victorian fixer-upper in the heart of Noe Valley listed for $1.898 million back in June, we had a feeling that it would easily crack the $2 million mark. The house received six offers, all over asking, and was in contract after just eight days. We've now gotten word that it has sold for $2.8 million. Yes, that's nearly $1 million over asking and a gigantic price for a house with a vintage kitchen, an unfinished attic, and a dirt backyard. According to listing agents Kevin Ho and Jonathan McNarry, the buyer is an investor who paid all cash and plans to redevelop the house. Decrepit Cottage on Mostly Vacant Noe Valley Lot Asks $1.599M
It's usually not surprising to see run-down homes sell for big prices in Noe Valley—after all, this is a neighborhood where flippers can renovate a home and turn it around for four times more than they initially paid. But the latest Noe teardown to hit the market is one of the most dramatically decrepit we've seen, and it's asking a huge $1.599 million. The existing structure is a 640-square-foot, two-bedroom cottage at the back of the lot with crumbling walls, a rusted bathtub, and basically no kitchen left. The cottage was built back in 1907, and this is the first time ever that it has gone up for sale. 
Rebuilt Noe Flip Rakes In $4.85M, Nearly Four Times Old Price
Back in March, a totally rebuilt Noe Valley home landed on the marketasking $4.995 million, almost four times the price it last sold for in 2012, when it had three bedrooms and a well-kept but by no means chic vibe. Shoot forward to 2015, and we're looking at a reborn five-bedroom swankfest with sleek everything, cavernous spaces, and a big dose of floor-to-ceiling glass, which does open up the views nicely. The master bedroom also got a lovely back deck.
Weekend Open House Report: Noe Valley Edition
Location: 234 Valley St. at Church St.Size: 4-bed, 3.5-bath, 3,804-square-foot single-family home
Price: $3.895M
Pitch: "234 Valley is a beautiful, custom home, in an excellent Noe Valley location, just steps from restaurants, shops and public transportations. This spectacular house has a full floor dedicated to entertaining that opens onto an expansive deck and garden for the complete indoor/outdoor living experience. This home masterfully features four spacious bedrooms, and three and half luxurious bathrooms. There are three bedrooms, an office and a large family room in the main house plus a spacious one bedroom garden unit. State-of-the-art systems include Nest Thermostat, in-ceiling speakers, radiant heat, intercom system. Deep landscaped backyard. Large 2 car pkg."
Open House: Sunday, 1 to 4pm
Ornate Noe Edwardian with Awkward Basement Sells for $4.1M
The stately Edwardian at 29th and Church in Noe Valley feels like the setting of an off-kilter upstairs-downstairs dramedy, with an unusual combination of country club-style decor upstairs and drab, drop-ceilinged office space downstairs, in the basement. Completed in 1910, the four-bedroom house was certainly designed for another mode of living: The kitchen is a tiny box fit only for a servant—definitely not modern-day entertaining—and there's an old Wedgewood stove parked in the dining room. The upstairs boasts intricate woodwork, a beautiful green-tiled fireplace, and hand-painted ceiling murals that, up close, look more like freehand studies than finished work. The downstairs reverses course completely, with institutional carpet, fluorescent lights, and a smattering of exercise equipment that could be a halfhearted attempt to show its potential as a gym. When we dropped in on the open house in April, we weren't sure what to make of it all.
Revamped Noe Edwardian Doubles Price without Losing Its Soul
Big remodels of Noe Valley Edwardians often involve cans and cans of white paint and the removal of all period details in favor of sleek modern finishes. That isn't the case for 769 Elizabeth Street, which has emerged from a big renovation with at least some of its character intact. The home was purchased back in 2012 for $1.603 million. We're not sure that it was flippers who bought it, since it was purchased with a fixed conventional mortgage and not cash, but whoever the sellers are, they set about giving it a big transformation that added 815 square feet of space. It is now back on the market asking $3.2 million, a big flipper-style increase of $1.597 million. SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER
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