Of Interest

Get There!

by Jennifer | Friday, 11 January, 2013

I get around town. A lot. This involves three things: driving, parking and walking.

A long time ago, I shared with you the parking meter card thing, but the city has mucked that up by using different kinds of meters, only some of which accept the cards. But now the City has a program using an APP called PaybyPhone. It also works with Android and Blackberry, but I use it on my iPhone. (If you don’t have a smartphone, you can place an actual telephone call to them.) Each meter has a number on the back (in very large type) and side and you just type in the number and go. It even reminds you when the meter is going to expire and you can add more time where allowed without returning to the car. Long line or long lunch – no problem!

They charge 45 cents extra each time you use it, which might seem like a lot but considering the THOUSANDS I am saving in tickets it seems a small price to pay.

ONE CAVEAT – BEWARE: you must register the license plate of your car to use this because it doesn’t actually put time on the meter, just in an online system that the ticket folks can see. (I learned the hard way when I used it with a rental and got a ticket.)

Also, one of my goals in 2012 was to walk more. And the result is that sometimes I walk far from where I need to get next and I am either tired or out of time to walk back. Sometimes I use the great MUNI app and take the bus but when things are really tight or the bus doesn’t come, I use UBER on my phone to magically summon taxis and black cars to retrieve me. This has given me a level of freedom I didn’t have before to squeeze in an extra walk and I am really enjoying it.

It’s the little things as they say… they make city living easier and more productive for me and I hope they do for you as well.

Let your supervisor know if you are sick of the pants-free parade

by Jennifer | Thursday, 4 October, 2012

I know I am. I do not enjoy seeing George Davis’s altogether every time I am near Castro & Market. It makes my son uncomfortable and, you know what? Me too. At an appropriate public event, I don’t mind if people are nude or scantily clad, but this daily parade of the pants-free should be stopped. It’s bad for the city as a whole and for the health of the generally very inclusive Castro neighborhood specifically.

Natalie Rome of Paragon is quoted in the Chronicle today as saying that George and his band caused a couple to steer clear of the area. I had the same thing happen this summer as well. To read the Chron article, click here.

Supervisor Scott Weiner has proposed a ban on public nudity. While it might be better if a supervisor with a different last name sponsored the legislation, his name may help the whole thing catch on. My thanks to you Scott for taking a potentially unpopular stand and talking about what we’ve all been trying to ignore lately. To contact your supervisor to let them know you support (or do not support) the measure, click here.

Warren Buffet on Housing

by Paragon Specific | Wednesday, 29 February, 2012

In an CNBC interview on February 27th, Warren Buffett said the following when asked whether he’d recommend people buy stocks or houses right now:

“If I knew where I was going to live for the next five years or 10 years, I’d buy a home and I’d finance it with a 30-year mortgage. It’s a terrific deal…

If I had a way of buying a couple hundred thousand single-family homes… I would load up on them. And I would take mortgages out on them at very low rates… [With] a 30-year mortgage… it’s a leveraged way of owning a very cheap asset now. That’s as attractive an investment as you can make.” And in his latest letter to shareholders: “Housing will come back – you can be sure of that… Every day, we are creating more households than housing units. People may postpone hitching up during uncertain times, but eventually hormones take over… Fortunately, demographics and our market system will restore the needed balance…”

Watch Out for Those Flashers

by admin | Wednesday, 1 February, 2012

One CLIK wrote last week that she’s been “flashed all over town.” I was initially concerned but I started giggling when I realized she was talking about all the red light cameras. Running a red light is going up to $436. She has kindly passed along this article on the shockingly high new traffic and parking fines that went into effect this month.

Apparently handicapped zone parking violations are going up to $976 and so is stopping in a bus loading zone. Nearly $1000 to drop someone off when the buses don’t even use them half the time? If you’ve ever been on tour with me, you know I fearlessly use driveways and double park but am terrified of ramps and hydrants. I fear you will all be forced to follow my example or risk bankruptcy.

To read the article, click here. And thanks, you know who you are, for sending this along.

In light of recent “Shake Ups”…

by Paragon Specific | Saturday, 22 October, 2011

click to enlarge

What’s in the planning pipeline

by Paragon Specific | Wednesday, 5 October, 2011

Click here to view what is in the San Francisco Planning Pipeline.

Common Mistakes Buyers Make in Multiple-Offer Situations

by Paragon Specific | Monday, 3 October, 2011

1. Not having your agent do a full comparative market analysis of the property: a clear-headed assessment of what fair market value is.

2. Not making a list of the strengths and weaknesses of the property, to keep in mind during the negotiations or perhaps to even use in the negotiations.

3. The flip side of #1 & #2: Getting too excited and making a purely emotional decision. When buyers see that other buyers want the property, the “value” of the property soars in their mind, which is why the highest prices always result from either multiple bidding or the fear that others will be making offers. A good listing agent does everything he or she can do to manipulate this fear. This is the flip side of why values decline after longer days on market: If someone else wants it, it’s very valuable; if no one else wants it, there must be something wrong with it and it can’t be so valuable.

4. Not setting your walk-away price before getting starting with the negotiating. At some price point, the deal is no longer worth doing, no matter how great the property.

5. In one’s urgency to make the deal, not including sufficient contingencies to perform thorough due diligence. I’ve seen homes that look perfect turn out to have $250,000 in pest damage; if one wrote the offer without the appropriate inspection and investigation contingencies, one might win the deal, but wake up to a house with very unpleasant surprises waiting.

6. Having an agent that is more interested in making the deal (and collecting their commission) than making you the best deal; having an agent who doesn’t know the market values in the area; having an agent who doesn’t know how to negotiate (sadly common).

7. Not learning as much as possible about the seller, the property and the listing agent as possible: needs, wants, circumstances, style of doing business

8. Not making sure that there really are competitive offers, because sometimes the listing agent will blow smoke about “expecting multiple offers.” You can even have your agent write two (or more) offers at different price points, with clear instructions as to which one to submit depending on the final number of offers received by the listing agent.

9. Throwing in the towel when told that the seller is only countering another offer(s). If you want the property and you’re willing to pay more, one can always throw in another offer during the seller’s counter offer process with others.

10. Not asking for back-up position if you lose in the bidding. Sellers will often put a second buyer into back-up position at the same price or even a lesser price than the accepted offer. If the first deal blows up, then the back-up offer is immediately elevated into accepted position. Deals blow up all the time (probably about 10% – 15% of the time) for a wide number of reasons and one can find one is buying the house they wanted at an acceptable price after all. (Buyers in back-up typically have the option to cancel that position at any time, so they can continue to look for another home. It really is a no-lose proposition.)

From the IRS: Ten Tax Tips for Individuals Selling Their Home

by admin | Monday, 22 August, 2011

“IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2011-15, August 8, 2011

The Internal Revenue Service has some important information to share with individuals who have sold or are about to sell their home. If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may qualify to exclude all or part of that gain from your income. Here are ten tips from the IRS to keep in mind when selling your home.”

Click here to continue.

Great Online Resources for Living in San Francisco

by Paragon Specific | Saturday, 30 July, 2011

San Francisco & Bay Area…

Restaurants, wine, arts, sports, nightlife, neighborhoods, schools, farmers’ markets, things to do with kids and dogs, biking, hiking, transit, real estate, maps, remodeling and renovation tools, and other online resources.

Chronicle’s Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants & Map

Chronicle’s Bargain Bites Restaurants & Map

Chronicle’s Best Breakfast Places

Best of Bay: Dining & Entertainment & SF Magazine Best of Bay

Chronicle’s Top 100 Wines & 20 Great Wines Under $20

Everything Within Walking Distance of Your Home

103 Things to Do with Kids in San Francisco

Things to Do in SF & Free Things to Do

Places to Go with Dogs

San Francisco Biking Resources & Bay Area Hiking Trails

Paragon Real Estate Market Monthly Update

San Francisco Real Estate Market Trends Overview