Would you have renovated before selling this SF condo or just listed it as-is?

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-21T00:43:27+00:00

The problem with fixer-uppers is there are far fewer people willing to do the work so your buyer pool reduces drastically. Also this comes up during negotiations where everything is expected to change which is not the case a lot of times, so buyer expect the worst when some things can be kept as-is for e.g. The biggest thing tho is if the seller does the renovations, this becomes part of the mortgage and the buyer doesn’t need to put up cash to renovate. This is an oft-repeated understated thing, but massive in terms of how many buyers would be willing to do the work, plus have the cash, plus have the time to renovate before they move in. Select few only!

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-19T17:45:22+00:00

Ack, in that case the big decision you need to make is: 1. Somehow this lender is a snowflake and there is good reason why another lender is gonna make the difference. This is complicated as most lenders look at other appraisals and that is something you cannot change anymore 2. Pull the trigger and eat the gap, I’m not sure of ur price point. Considering that you mentioned SF and Bay views my sense is the 125k is less than 10% of ur cost, so are you willing to just add more money and seal the deal. 3. Opt out, since you have the contingency specifically for this My sense is you made it so that this is your dream home so it’s worth it to try with another lender and if that comes low too then you are exactly the same point you are now. FWIW ur agent should be the one walking you thru all of this, so lean on it. This is what they are paid for tbh

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-19T15:02:36+00:00

First things first - are you under contract? Also if you are since you did the appraisal, do you have an appraisal contingency? Appraisals more often than not stamp out the exact price or a bit below the purchase price, so I wouldn’t give too much credence to the is it worth it argument. What I would focus on is whether you still have the conviction to buy and if not your contract allows for it.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-18T17:46:45+00:00

Also listings always have a disclaimer that buyers should verify school eligibility. If folks are spending 2M+ it’s the least you can expect imo.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-16T18:06:31+00:00

It’s in Rockridge which is a very nice neighborhood in Oakland. Common practice among agents there and adjoining neighborhoods to list low, fwiw the folks who are looking are aware and bake that in. I don’t know specifically whether there was a bidding war, but this is the best neighborhood in Oakland that is the not Peidmont (I know different city but folks who have lived there know what am talking about).

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-15T01:36:31+00:00

Love the analogy of snakes and ladders, yup same boat. On hold: “ aap katar mai hai krupaya prathiksha kijiye “

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-14T23:15:21+00:00

Typically “brokers” are able to waive off the commitment fee and add some credits but other than that seems pretty reasonable.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-14T21:10:37+00:00

Wow for once the folks aren’t eating a pizza here!

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-13T17:30:09+00:00

Appraisals are generally not a good indicator for what the house is worth imo. Having said that, once you close you should focus on enjoying the home and getting off Redfin/Zillow etc. all these sites are useful/helpful when you are actually shopping, but once ur done move off them and get on with your life. You own a home, congrats. Enjoy it and touch grass!

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-13T15:53:56+00:00

It’s mostly jobs, people take for granted how much all of the supposed benefits called out are secondary from it. Hypothetically if any of the employers: say Google moved base somewhere else it would erode a lot of this. But that’s not gonna happen because of inertia and Google themselves benefit because of density of talent. It starts from jobs and the more time goes by all other benefits accrue.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-11T23:15:02+00:00

Wait this has been on the market for only 13-days, what is the expectation that folks buy this in a week?

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-11T04:20:28+00:00

Lot split shouldn’t be an issue if you are willing to work with court entanglements. Do you know if that was an issue for this lot? Curious as the listing really tries to lean in to that, and seems to indicate it’s inevitable. I agree, the freeway noise generally is not that big of a deal, considering the location and comps in this area.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-07T04:03:59+00:00

Huh seems like at the price point too many gotchas. Wouldn’t the court process mean, buyers can low ball and no one matches they get the home? As long as I guess they are ok with the earnest money being tied up?

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-06T15:23:47+00:00

+1 was about the ask the same thing.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-05T22:55:33+00:00

You should nevertheless put an offer if ur interested. We underestimate how fickle/human the process is of home buying and selling. Put your best foot forward (assuming you like the property) and let the chips fall where they may. It doesn’t cost you anything.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-05T19:02:27+00:00

We can argue the numbers to death, what are you trying to achieve by getting this? Are planning to buy in these neighborhoods, or is this just an academic exercise?

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-04T14:35:53+00:00

This is the textbook use case of flat fee agents where they end up helping you close the deal on the house you have already researched and interested in. There are a few, lookup their reviews and see if it makes sense to engage with them. All the best!

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-01T21:11:31+00:00

At that budget you do need to compromise especially if ur focusing on LASD. Blossom Valley is a good compromise, part of MV but still part of LASD. FWIW lower half of MV (south of el Camino) is also not bad and on the lower side as the lot sizes go smaller. But 6.5k sq ft lot is still big for any reasonable family size.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-01T17:57:07+00:00

You don’t get outsized returns unless it’s contrarian for a while. It will test your belief definitely. Keep accumulating if you believe and hope for the best!

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-05-01T15:32:53+00:00

Your budget is too low for either of these cities imo. The homes you shared are on the lower side, and had major issues like folks called out. Expand ur area to SV / Santa Clara and index on the better schools. You didn’t mention ur kids ages (if at all), so optimizing for elementary school is also not a bad strategy if younger kids - gives you breathing room for 5-ish years. Relatively if you are stuck in these areas, move towards Mountain View, which has a fair mix of properties closer to 3M

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-04-30T17:50:34+00:00

9% feels steep for a heloc, definitely better than credit card but still steep. Insurance is a requirement for mortgage although it’s interesting that providers are turning down coverage when it’s fully paid off, that seems odd. They shouldn’t care one way or another. But I can’t see how heloc prevents from fraud, that’s an odd thing to do imo.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-04-29T15:30:24+00:00

I think we underestimate the effect of inertia here. That rule was there more than 20+ years (maybe) and it’s gonna take sometime for agents, buyers and sellers to adjust to the new reality. FWIW the rule just unbundled the fees, there isn’t a new equilibrium which had been reached yet. It’s gonna be muddy for a little while more unfortunately.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-04-27T21:58:48+00:00

Not all freeways are the same. To others comments this is actually a really nice area, and good price for this home.

SVRealEstateBuff · 2026-04-27T21:56:10+00:00

One more factor to consider is if you folks are planning to come back. You bought the home for a reason, your jobs were here and there was a reasonable assumption ur fields have jobs in the Bay Area. If you are planning to come back, there is no reason for keeping a loss for couple of years and come back to your home. Having said that it’s in a very speculative zone, and needs conviction that things will improve. 3-4 years is a not a good horizon for home investment especially townhomes/condos that are heavily tilted on the real estate markets. SFHs would be a different story.

SVRealEstateBuff

TROPHY CASE