Steve Holderfield's Real Estate Blog

Image by 401K via Flickr

Did you know that if you are upside down on your home and process a short sale, that the amount that the bank forgives is scheduled to become taxable in 2013?  That means that, for example, if the bank forgives say, $100,000 in order for you to sell you home, that $100,000 would be taxed at your tax rate.  For a person in the 25% tax bracket that means they would owe $25,000 to Uncle Sam.  If you are having trouble making your payments, I can think of no better reason to do a short sale in 2012.  Contact us today.  You do have options!

Image by Getty

There are 2 answers to this question. 1. Home values are likely to fall another 4 to 5%. 2. It depends on many factors. Most economists seem to agree that 2012 is likely to be a flat to slightly down market in terms of values. However, we do seem to be hitting the bottom in terms of the the dropping values. Also, the number of foreclosures in the California has dropped over 14% in the last year. The number of successful short sales rose 25% of all sales in California last year from 18% in 2010. It is expected that the number of short sales to continue to rise in 2012. The other wild card is next year’s Presidential election which could bring much needed certainty back to businesses and the financial markets which could positively affect job growth. So 2012 will be fun to see unfold. If you or somebody you know needs to buy or sell any Real Estate, please contact me with a name and phone number. I’d be happy to bring my over 30 years of real estate experience to the effort. Have a great New Year!  More info here: http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2011/12/28/what-s-in-store-for-housing-in-2012

Related articles

• Popularity of short sales is growing (bottomline.msnbc.msn.com)
• Foreclosure still taking toll on home prices (avidlawblog.wordpress.com)
• O.C. Realtor leader eyes slow housing recovery (lansner.ocregister.com)
• You: Real estate unit projects 18% rise in condo sales in ‘12 (japantimes.co.jp)

http://economistsoutlook.blogs.realtor.org/2011/09/28/financial-industry-corporate-profits/

Why? Uncertain regulation by the Feds. Our current administration needs to, in my opinion, find ways to provide confidence in our markets and the future. Unfortunately, I think this means the need to cut the government spending back to the Clinton levels. We just cannot sustain the current spending levels. Another thing that could be done is to get rid of all this overregulation and red tape… Let’s start bt appealing Obama Care!

Related articles

• Federal Reserve to Hold Hearings on Capital One / ING Merger in San Francisco, Washington and Chicago (prnewswire.com)
• Banks nearly double mortgage fraud filings (marketwatch.com)

The Italian District of San Francisco which is more commonly known as North Beach is bordered by Chinatown and Fisherman’s Wharf, in a valley between Russian Hill and Telegraph Hill.

Famous Washington Square is overlooked by the equally famous  Saint Peter and Paul’s Catholic Church.  the square is one of the few open space public parks in The City.  North beach is home to many fun and authentic Italian resturants, delis and bars.  There’s usually a crowd at Washington Square and local characters abound.

I remember having late night nighcap at Washington Street Bar and Grill after a Giants game.  I have a bunch of fun memories frpm North Beach.  For example, I make a semi annual olive oil and Italian spice run to Little City Market located at 1400 Stockton St. (between Vallejo St & Card Aly) in North Beach… This is an authentic Italian butcher shop that also makes great sausage and has some of the best Sicilian Olive oil in the world.  Highly recommended.  

The stinking Rose prepares Italian dishes containing large quantities of garlic.  It’s a must see attraction for dinner.

 North Beach has many sights to see like this shot of the Transamerica Building from the crosswalk on Columbus. 

 Whether it’s fine dinning, vintage architecture, ineteresting people, authentic Italian cooking ingredients or just a nice stroll through the park, the Italian District of San Francisco has a lot to offer.   

 Related articles

• Campanula: North Beach’s small-plates newcomer(sfgate.com)
• Broke-Ass Stuart’s Tour of North Beach: Ethan Kanat just profiled Curbed SF… (sf.curbed.com)
• San Francisco’s North Beach Wins Yahoo! Bus Stop Derby(ycorpblog.com)
• The State of North Beach(blogcongusto.com)

usrealestate.com

If you ever driven down Market Street towards the water, you’ve probably noticed a San Francisco landmark, the San Francisco Ferry Building.  Here’s a link to a map: Map.  The clock stopped when the Loma Prieta earthquake hit on on October 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m. PST and stayed that way until repaired awhile later.  It was a gentle reminder of what we all went through that day, here in the Bay Area.  The present structure, designed by local San Francisco architect A. Page Brown, opened in 1898, replacing its wooden predecessor, and survived both the 1906 earthquake and the 1989 earthquake with amazingly little damage. Until the completion of the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge in the 1930s it was the second busiest transit terminal in the world, second only to London’s Charing Cross Station. It served as the embarcation point for commuters to San Francisco from the East Bay who rode the ferry fleets of the Southern Pacific and the Key System. A loop track existed in front of the building for streetcars. A large pedestrian bridge also spanned the Embarcadero in front of the Ferry building until the late 1940s.

After the bridges opened, and the new Key System trains began running to the East Bay from the Transbay Terminal in 1939, passenger ferry use fell sharply. In the second half of the twentieth century, although the Ferry Building and its clock tower remained a beloved part of the San Francisco skyline, the building interior declined. Over the years, the ticketing counters and waiting room areas were partitioned into office space. The formerly grand public space was reduced to a narrow and dark corridor, through which travelers passed en route to the piers. Passengers had to wait on outdoor benches, and the ticketing booths were moved to an area on the pier.

With the construction in the late 1950s of the Embarcadero Freeway which passed right in front of the Ferry Building, views of the once-prominent landmark from Market Street were greatly obscured and pedestrian access to it became somewhat of an afterthought. When this double-decker elevated structure was demolished in the aftermath of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and replaced with a ground-level boulevard, the barrier, both literal and psychological, between a significant portion of San Francisco’s historic waterfront and the rest of the city, was now gone, and access to Justin Herman Plaza and the foot of Market Street, which the Ferry Building had been such an integral part of for so many decades, was restored.

Here’s a video from after the 1906 Earthquake: video.

Located at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge is a real piece of history.  Fort Point, located literally under the bridge guards the entrance to San Francisco Bay. Fort Point was built between 1853 and 1861 by the U.S. Army Engineers as part of a defense system of forts planned for the protection of San Francisco Bay. Designed at the height of the Gold Rush, the fort and its companion fortifications would protect the Bay’s important commercial and military installations against foreign attack. The fort was built in the Army’s traditional “Third System” style of military architecture (a standard adopted in the 1820s), and would be the only fortification of this impressive design constructed west of the Mississippi River. This fact bears testimony to the importance the military gave San Francisco and the gold fields during the 1850s.

Although Fort Point never saw battle, the building has tremendous significance due to its military history, its architecture, and its association with maritime history.

In the years after the Civil War, Fort Point became underutilized and was used intermittently as an army barracks. The pre-Civil War cannons, so valuable when they were originally installed, became obsolete and were eventually removed. During World War II, the Army remodeled Fort Point for use as a detention barracks, though the building was never ultimately used for that purpose. During the 1920s, the property was used by the Presidio for housing unmarried officers and different military trade schools.

In the late 1930s, plans for the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge also involved plans for the demolition of Fort Point. Fortunately, Chief Engineer Joseph Strauss recognized the architectural value of the Fort and created a special engineer arch which allowed the construction of the bridge to occur safely over the Fort. During World War II, Fort Point was once again used as temporary housing for soldiers. After World War II, the movement to preserve Fort Point for its historic and architectural value began to grow. Over the next 20 years, support for the preservation movement waxed and waned. In 1959, a group of retired military officers and civilian engineers created the Fort Point Museum Association and lobbied for its creation as a National Historic Site. On October 16, 1970, Fort Point became a National Historic Site.

Many times, when the waves are just right you will see surfers enjoying the waves right near the historic fort.

Here’s directions to the Fort:

http://www.nps.gov/fopo/planyourvisit/directions.htm

And here;s a google map:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&utm_campaign=en&utm_medium=ha&utm_source=en-ha-na-us-sk-dd&utm_term=directions

The golden gate bridge is probably the most popular of San Francisco’s many landmarks.  One of the many fun memories I have is of a July 4Th holiday when we rode our bikes from Marin over the bridge and around the waterfront all day and then we took the ferry back to Sausalito to sit and watch the fireworks over the Bay.  Fantastic.

Golden Gate Bridge Facts

Golden Gate refers to Golden Gate Strait—a name that originated around 1846.

The Golden Gate Bridge’s 4,200 foot long main suspension span was a world record that stood for 27 years. It is still the second longest in the United States after the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge which links Staten Island to Brooklyn in New York.

The bridge’s two towers rise 746 feet making them 191 feet taller than the Washington Monument.

The five lane bridge crosses Golden Gate Strait which is about 400 feet, or 130 meters, deep. Simple yellow markers are used to switch the center lane so that there are three lanes into San Francisco for the morning commute and three leaving The City in the afternoon and evening.

Tolls are only collected on the way in (going south). The toll on the Golden Gate Bridge increased to $5.00/4.00 FasTrak on September 1, 2002. There are no carpool lanes on the Golden Gate Bridge.

You can learn more facts at the Golden Gate Bridge official site. 

In 1902 the Thomas Edison company shot a movie (No.37) from a passenger train going from the Cliff House and Sutro Baths along the cliff at Lands End to the Golden Gate. Of course, this was before the Golden Gate Bridge was built so you won’t see it in the movie.

Th golden gate bridge connects San Francisco to Marin Countyand the picturesque little town of Sausalito.  Walking or biking across the bridge is a windy experience with breath taking views of The City and Alcatraz Islandand the Pacific.  It’s well worth the effort.  You can get to the Golden Gate through San Francisco’s Presidio.  Here’s a map.  And, here’s some history about the bridge.

San Francisco Cable Car system began serving the public back in 1873.  The San Francisco Cable Cars are the only remaining system in the world!  The cars still work as they originally did.  They have no motor or power of their own. To move forward, the gripman squeezes the grip which grasps the moving cable under the slot in the street. To brake, the gripman releases the cable and the brakeman brakes. The two communicate by ringing bells.  San Francisco’s Cable Car system is but a fraction of what it once was.  Here’s a map of the entire system as it was fully developed in 1893.  Here’s a map of the system as it exists today.  Here’s an interactive map of the San Francisco Cable Car system as it exists today.   Riding the Cable Cars in San Francisco is a lot of fun and an activity that I recommend you do while being accompanied with small children… makes it even more fun!  It is a unique San Francisco activity that I highly recommend. 

Fares

Buy tickets for the San Francisco cable cars at the turnarounds or from the conductor as you board. You have to pay again every time you ride and there are no transfers. If you plan to make more than two rides a day, buy a Muni PASSPORT instead of paying every time you ride. It’s good for unlimited San Francisco cable car rides, the Market Street F-Line streetcar and all the city-run buses. 

You can get tickets and PASSPORTS at the attended booths at the turnarounds at Powell and Market (near Union Square) or Hyde at Beach (just below Ghirardelli Square). You also get a 7-day MUNI passport when you buy a San Francisco CityPass, a good deal if you’re also going to visit some of the attractions they bundle together. 

If there’s a long lines to get on, send one person to buy tickets while the rest of your group gets in line. If you plan to buy tickets from the conductor, it’s best to have correct (or near-correct) change. As of early 2009, tickets were $3.00 each way (reduced to $1 for seniors over 65 years old and disabled persons, off-hours only). Children under 5 years old ride for free. 

      

Cable Car with Alcatraz in the background

 

Cable Car with the Transamerica Building in the background

 

Cable Car Closeup

 

Two Cable Cars pass each other at the top of Lombard Street

 

Cable Car with the Transamerica Building in the background

 

Ride a Cable Car and have some fun!

 

Union Square is one of my favorite locations in the City.  Whether it be during the Holidays or having dinner in a nearby restaurant or drink after a baseball or football game, Union Square has something for everyone.  Here’s a map to the famous square: Map.

History

People come to Unions Square form all over the world for the world class shopping, fine restaurants, 4 and 5 star hotels and the nearby theatre.  Union Square has a rich and interesting history.  In 1847, the City of San Franciscocommissioned Jasper O’Farrell to lay out a design for streets and parks for the city.  Two squares were chosen to be public squares, Washington Square in the Italian District and Union Square just off Market Street.  Both were later deeded to the City by Colonel John Geary to be held in perpetuity for park purposes. Early maps of San Francisco depict both parks as unnamed spaces reserved for public parks.  Union Square was named on the eve of the Civil War (1861-5) as a demonstration of support for the Union.  

By the early 1880’s, the Square had become the center of a really nice, upscale residential district.  There were three churches that faced into the square, Calvary Presbyterian, Congregational and Trinity Churches.  

The dramatic 90 foot high Corinthian column in the center of the square was erected in 1903.  The obelisk was dedicated by President Roosevelt that same year.  The monument is a memorial to Admiral Dewey’s naval victory in the Bay of Manila during the Spanish-American War, (1898).  The top of the granite column is adorned by a bronze statue of the goddess of Victory and was sculpted by Robert Aitken.  The goddess was modeled after a young Alma de Brettville Spreckels who met and later married Adolph Spreckels, while modeling for the bronze.  

By the turn of the century, the area began to morph into more offices and stores, as the residential homes and churches were replaced around the Square.  After the devastation of the 1906 earthquake, Union Square became  San Francisco’s premiere shopping district and it still is today.  Union Square was forever changed to it’s present character through the cinstruction of the Hotel Saint Francis in 1908.  It was, and remains the tallest structure (13 stories) facing the Square, and as a backdrop for the Dewey Monument, you are immediately notified that you are in a special place.  In recent times the Square has been re-developed to house some restaurants and coffee shops, but the natural topograhy has been maintained.

As San Francisco grew, more and more automobiles came to the City.  Parking became a problem for the Square’s retailers.  The Union Square Garage Corporation.  This corporation lobbied the City for years for permission to build the world’s first underground parking structure.  The matter was taken all the way to the California Supreme Court and a decision to grant the permission for the structure to be built under a lease for the use of the land under the public park was finally granted.  Three years of research and design followed, and on May 31, 1941, ground was finally broken for the garage, which is still in operation today!  I parked there yesterday!

In 1997 the San Francisco Prize Coalition and the City of  San Francisco announced a competition for the redesign of Union Square Park.  It was named ”Toward a More Perfect Union: An International Design Competition for the Future of Union Square”.  They received 309 entries from 10 countries and 20 states.  The winning entry entitled “All the Square is a Stage” sought to transform the Park from an imposing, seldom used urban space into an inviting park that could be used by all the inhabitants surrounding the area.  The design is notable for its easy access, a cafe with lots of open air seating, and a symphony-sized stage that will serve as the center point for a week of concerts celebrating the completion of this project in July of 2002.

I actually love to just hang out at Unions Square.  I don’t know if its the history, the shopping, the people or what. I jus=t really love it there.   Take a stroll there sometime.  There’s at least one of everything there for you to see and enjoy!

The Palace Hotel, Originally called The Bonanza

There are a number of grand hotels in the City that we will visit before this blog is done.  Our first is the Palace Hotel located located here: Map.  The original Palace Hotel (was originally known as the “Bonanza Inn”) boasted 800 rooms and was at the time of its opening the largest hotel in the Western United States.  Many claimed it was the largest hotel in the world! The Bank of California financed the hotel.  The hotel offered many modern novelties like an intercom system as well as four over-sized hydraulic elevators referred to as “lifting rooms”. The most notable feature of the hotel was the Grand Court that served as an entry area for horse-drawn carriages. A few years before the catastrophic 1906 earthquake the Grand Court was converted to the palm filled “Garden Court”.

1906 earthquake

Like many buildings in San Francisco, The Palace survived the initial shaking of the earthquake, by the late afternoon it had been consumed by the fires that raged throughout the City. The famous tenor, Enrico Caruso (who had sung the role of Don José in Carmen the night before) was staying in the hotel at the time of the quake.  The event was so terrifying, he swore to never to return to San Francisco.

The construction of the original Palace included an elaborate and state-of-the-art defense against earthquakes and fire which included a 630,000 gallon cistern and 4 artisan wells in the basement.  The cistern was located under the the Grand Court, and there was seven roof tanks holding 130,000 gallons of water.  The hotel’s employees fought the fires off, but when the water ran out, the hotel began to burn. 

The Palace Hotel was completely rebuilt and opened as the “New Palace Hotel” on on December 19, 1909.  The hotel continued with the prominence as the original hotel soon and just as important to the City of San Francisco as its predecessor.  The Palace has hosted many of the City’s great events. The rebuilt hotel is plainer on the exterior than the original Palace, the new “Bonanza Inn” and is in many ways as elegant, grand and a site to behold on the inside as the 1875 building. The “Garden Court” (also known as the “Palm Court”) — which occupies the same area that the Grand Court did in the earlier structure — has been one of San Francisco’s most prestigious hotel dining rooms since the day it opened. Equally famous is the Pied Piper Bar(overseen by its famous Maxfield Parish painting of the same name) which is located just off the gleaming polished  .The Ralston Room, named for co-founder William Ralston, is off the main lobby to the left.

Hotel Events

The hotel served as the stage for several important events. Kalalaua, the last reigning king of the Hawaiin Islands, died at the old Palace Hotel in 1891. In 1919, Woodrow Wilson gave speeches in the Garden Court in support of the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations. In 1923, Warren G. Harding’s term as President ended suddenly when he died at the Palace Hotel, in Room 8064, an eighth floor suite that overlooks Market Street. In 1945, the Palace Hotel hosted a banquet to mark the opening session of the United Nations.

Modern Renovations

The Palace Hotel was updated and renovated in 1989 to 1991.  The current owners have a proposal pending add a 60 story, 204 to 207 m (669 to 679 ft) residential tower to be called the Palace Hotel Residential Tower The hotel is presently owned (since 1973) by the Kyo-Ya group, a large hotel and resort company based in Hawaii and Japan.

Palace Hotel is an architectural statement from days gone by that’s well worth you time to stop in and look around.  It’s style and elegance are unparalelled in the area… There are a few others we’ll explaore, but The Palace is in a class really by itself!  Drop in and look around.  You won’t regret it.