Re: the rental discussion we had last week - my studio apartment that I rented for $995 (and now pay $1011 on) will be renting for $1295 once I move out. The market for studios and jr. 1-bedrooms is tighter than I thought.
I think that is mostly because rents went so far up in the last few years overall, not lately. When I was looking 18 months ago, studios in coveted neighborhoods were $1200 or so already.
All the 1 br in-laws (which is most of the apt stock) in my neighborhood have now all come down by at least $100 since Thanksgiving. They are running at around $1400.
As for Bay Area housing: [link]
DataQuick also reported Wednesday that the median home price in the nine-county San Francisco Bay area fell 44 percent, from $587,500 in December 2007 to $330,000 last month. That's the lowest since March 2000, when it was $320,500, and marks a 50-percent decline since the peak of $665,000 in the summer of 2007.
Most of the Bay Area sales took place in the East Bay counties hit hardest by foreclosures. The median home price fell 50 percent to $252,000 in Contra Costa County, 37 percent to $338,000 in Alameda County and 42 percent to $213,500 in Solano County. By contrast, it dropped 16 percent to $616,500 in San Francisco.
Interesting to note -- my neighborhood in Alameda county is still higher than average. So location, location, location. I think the factors that are helping my neighborhood -- a school kids can walk to, larger than average lots size, and just a general old fashion talk to your neighbors over the fence feel.
Ignoring the scary real estate talk.
Erika! I'm watching The Wire. I'm about half-way through Season 2 right now but I've got all five.
Awesome...I'd get a toaster, but you know the shit wouldn't work anyways.
Please come over to Premium and share your thoughts...we can pull out the orange couch for you.
Interesting to note -- my neighborhood in Alameda county is still higher than average. So location, location, location.
That is what I thought when we put our house up for sale. Very kid friendly neighborhood, schools nearby, shopping within walking distance and the beach was 2 blocks away.
Bitter much? Me? Eh.
tommyrot, the author of the article seems to assume that an attorney could stop the governor. Short of resigning as Genson did, if the governor wants to go public, the attorney can't prevent it. Advise against, yes. But not prevent.
If it helps knowing at all, from figures I saw recently that is pretty standard for almost all the counties in the Bay Area (apart from SF).
In November, a friend of mine backed out of a luxury loft condo in Dogtown and lost a chunk of his downpayment. (He decided that "up and coming" might not come up very quickly in the current economy.) The asking price of the unit has dropped TEN TIMES what he lost. We're calling this a "win".
This will be interesting:
WASHINGTON -- House Democrats renewed their effort to force former White House aide Karl Rove to testify in a probe into Justice Department controversies, presenting a challenge to President Barack Obama, who will have to decide whether to defend his predecessor's legal arguments. >[link]
Prices in our neighborhood have come down on the properties that were fixer-uppers or those that didn't fit with the neighborhood (two McMansions have been on the market for well over a year). But the cute, wee bungalows like mine still go quickly, and prices haven't gone down much at all.
Hee, Frisco is so dang cute!
I am a bit terrified to find out what my home is worth now although really the number is pretty theoretical to me. It's not like we are going to sell, we aren't even poised to refinance any time soon.
My town is full of entry-level condos/townhouses for the first-time buyer, so there are a lot of subprime borrowers here who are going under right now. The few luxury condo complexes are doing much better.
My apartment complex is raising their rents a bit. I got my unit in May 2006 for $750, and a B&N co-worker and her boyfriend got the same unit in a different building a few months ago for $850 (mine's gone up to $775).
