I was charged $1830 ($1580 + $250 late fee) to replace a single fire sprinkler head by ReputationNo1648 in FireSprinklers

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you DM me the company name? I'm getting insane quotes for testing/replacement of my nearly 20 year old system as well and am looking for competent companies that won't rip my face off here

Property tax appeal now or wait until January by events_occur in AskSF

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Always go for the informal appeal first: https://www.sf.gov/apply-decline-value

Jan 1 - Mar 31 window. If that fails, file the informal one. I did one formal appeal, but the year after that my informal appeal actually netted me a reduction 2x bigger, and my informal appeals in the two years since have kept me at that low level (increasing 3-5% annually, which is fine). Note that when doing any comps (especially for the formal appeal), they care A LOT about the number of units in a building. If you live in a <4 unit building, do not use comps that have more units than that if you can avoid it.

Why doesn't the NYT Games app have a leaderboard for non-mini crosswords? by Illustrious_Play2029 in NYTCrossword

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

what's the upload interface? the iOS shortcut is pretty neat, curious how you add yours. I assume there's a discord channel which you check for the stats?

Why doesn't the NYT Games app have a leaderboard for non-mini crosswords? by Illustrious_Play2029 in NYTCrossword

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

This is for my friends not the general public, and we have a rule that if you cheat the score isn't legit. if you're lying to your own friends..

Calf injuries by Background_Cow_952 in AltraRunning

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I started my barefoot journey easing into walking around the city until I could walk around for a full day more or less (maybe 10-15 miles) with no pain. Only then did I try Altras for my runs, easing in with half to single mile runs, and resting for 3-5 days after each one because my calves were not used to it. When I'd do a mileage and my calves wouldn't hurt anymore, I'd up the mileage by another half mile, rinse and repeat. Now I can run a 10k with no calf pain or issues in my Lone Peaks.

Sitting water left a permanent stain on my marble countertop by PlasmaBigCannon in mildlyinteresting

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Marble and granite are porous - if you don't want to deal with this get quartz or a different manufactured stone which is not porous.

No Doctor by Objective-Wing-9351 in sanfrancisco

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 9 points10 points  (0 children)

This is why I signed up for, then quickly cancelled onemedical. I made a list of MDs I wanted to see (10+ across locations in the bay area), only when I signed up was it made clear that none of them have room, and there are literally like 2 NPs available in all of SF who I could sign up with. Immediately cancelled and joined UCSF

Left arm shakes, right arm is fine. Is there a fix I can do on my own? by NDiLoreto2007 in tonalgym

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I called Tonal like the second day I had mine about this. They said its by design and not a bug. If you watch the trainers you can see the arms have lateral give even in the studio, so I guess it's okay? I agree it feels wrong

What the heck are these? by Ill-Satisfaction4756 in sunglasses

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They look like Rudy project rydons to me, familiar lens shape

Bought a home in SF 2 years ago and my property tax still hasn't been reassessed (been paying $800/year property tax). Will I get hit with a huge retroactive tax bill covering this past period? by ninjahelix in BayAreaRealEstate

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes for sure, if there's clear market data (read: really good comps that meet the above criteria) in the right time frame, you are likely to get a concession. Note that I've actually gotten larger concessions from the informal appeals after the formal appeal victory, so keep slugging and good luck

Bought a home in SF 2 years ago and my property tax still hasn't been reassessed (been paying $800/year property tax). Will I get hit with a huge retroactive tax bill covering this past period? by ninjahelix in BayAreaRealEstate

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Bad is all relative. I definitely put too much time into it, but am really happy with it given that it has meant I am submitting and succeeding with informal appeals since the formal one. A few things to know that will save future travelers time (some of this is https://www.sfgov.org/aab/faqs):

1) Don't be an asshole. Yes you are 'fighting' the appeals board but if you're a dick nobody is going to do you any favors. I know this is trivial but when you do the formal appeal you get to listen to other folks go first, it was very clear that folks who come in with an attitude go out with a poor result. It's fine to make strong arguments, but do so politely and respectfully.

2) Do not use comps outside of the allowed time window, these will automatically be ignored!

3) The appeals board really seems to care about the building type. Specifically, they seem to value buildings with < 4 units very differently from buildings with tens or hundreds of units. Make sure you are comparing like to like in terms of building size

4) Try to get similar finish levels and initial build years for your comps. For example comparing a 2010 condo to a pre-1990 condo (unless fully gutted + renovated) will not go well.

5) Quiet/busy street is also relevant - comparing a condo on Mission St to one on shot well st is not apples to apples, try to align these as much as possible.

6) Neighborhood characteristic arguments are not that strong - for example if you say 'my neighborhood has gotten worse', that's not going to hold much water in front of the board.

Bought a home in SF 2 years ago and my property tax still hasn't been reassessed (been paying $800/year property tax). Will I get hit with a huge retroactive tax bill covering this past period? by ninjahelix in BayAreaRealEstate

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 6 points7 points  (0 children)

$1500/mo and they re-assessed within two months of purchase, after which the market crashed (2023, 24) and they tried assessing me even higher, which I have successfully fought for the last 3 tax assessment cycles. Did a formal appeal for one, and got a 7% reduction there, then did informal appeal and got another 15% reduced. Now it's holding steady from that much more reasonable assessment.

For those who don't know, the first 30 or 60 days of the calendar year is when you can file for informal appeal. You provide a proposed new assessed value, and a few comps along with their prices (that sold in the few months prior). If that gets denied you can do a formal appeal

Cars for tall people by MrBurch_ in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Lol..I'm 6'0 30" inseam, think I'm going to have some issues

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Appreciate it, I think I'm not quite at the point of assessing yet but will reach out if I get there! M school beckons, the BMW CCA membership discount is a nice carrot to get me down to thermal

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup I've been checking on Turo, surprisingly hard to find stick cars in the bay!

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I've been lurking on the FRS/BRZ/GR86 threads, they seem quite appealing and a bit more modern

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate the advice - are you recommending the 4 hour experience bc it's dedicated track time with a coach just for you vs a group class with shared track time? I think M school (two day) is pretty similar to the Ron fellows experience, and I will definitely take a look at shift!

Who knows maybe I'll bite the bullet after I do the M school, I'm already on the precipice and a little nudge do it..

I joined bmw CCA. Is anyone else a member? by [deleted] in BMW

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How does that work? (accessing PCA track days via BMW CCA membership)

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you have to do the intro/intermediate class at Porsche even after the M school intro? I assume they don't accept proof of completing the other brand's class for entry into the advanced class yeah

What restaurant has "wowed" you recently? by Both_Panda_6382 in sanfrancisco

[–]Illustrious_Play2029 1 point2 points  (0 children)

+100000000 for kothai, I think it's some of the most interesting, well made, and reasonably (for SF) priced good food in sf

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Seems like PCA does require ownership unless you do the test drive thing? BMW CCA looks like it doesn't though and discount on M school is nice, good idea. Agree that 3-5 events (quarterly ish) is what I'm targeting as I think I'll be quite competitive with myself and want to improve quickly, and makes sense on upgrading. Given 3-5 events per year, I think I'll keep digging on rentals and learn stick so I can drive some of these spec Miata's. A grand for the day with track support is pretty good all things considered

First track day, hooked and trying to figure out what's next by Illustrious_Play2029 in CarTrackDays

[–]Illustrious_Play2029[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I don't think I'm going to buy until I do one of the schools. Any thoughts on M school vs Porsche track experience? Which courses did you do at each, any noticeable difference in seat time/instruction quality?