tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-370513772024-02-19T00:48:53.142-08:00Tour de San Francisco (real estate)The Tour de San Francisco is my version of the great cycling race, where I tour through our nano-markets around town, because in San Francisco, it truly does come down to the block. This is a side project. Check <a href="http://thefrontsteps.com">theFrontSteps.com</a> for daily real estate insight.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-7941447843451445672011-04-07T22:19:00.001-07:002011-04-07T22:24:46.282-07:00Crashed And Burned!Obviously, it's been a while since I've done a stage of the tour. I started this way before video was easy to do, Facebook was merely a blip on the radar, and Twitter was (what was it?) There are many ways to share knowledge and get advice on neighborhoods and I just ran out of time to get to the next hoods. I still know WAY more about San Francisco neighborhoods than 99% of agents in this Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-10539465043915701082009-01-16T08:07:00.001-08:002009-01-18T20:19:50.729-08:00Stage 52, Duboce Triangle (5j)(Click Image for Larger View)Vienna might have the Bermuda Dreieck, but not only does San Francisco have the yuppie watering holes in the Marina oft referred to as "The Triangle", but we have our very own district that is actually cut out like a triangle as well, Duboce Triangle. It is perhaps the only district in San Francisco which has a name that matches it's shape.If you look at the map Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-33840436838850466852009-01-08T20:50:00.000-08:002009-01-08T22:55:49.168-08:00Stage 51, Clarendon Heights (5h)Has it really been four months since the last stage of the Tour? Wow! Well then...on with things.Every time I drive around these nano-markets and really take a close look at the homes and all the different streets, properties, and people living in these tiny little areas that make up the larger city we call San Francisco, I'm reminded just how great this city is, and how unbelievably unique Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-2803607764039736342008-08-28T17:12:00.001-07:002008-09-05T15:13:22.812-07:00Stage 50, Corona Heights (5g)Nestled into the eastern slope of the ridge that runs from Twin Peaks northward, Corona Heights is in a class all by itself. The streets are windy, narrow, steep, quiet, very quaint in places, and extremely busy in others (17th, Market, and Clayton come to mind.) You'd almost think that if there were not homes here, there would be vineyards tucked into the hillside that enjoyed the moisture fromUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-6057377284845395862008-06-06T10:05:00.000-07:002008-06-06T10:54:59.097-07:00Stage 49, Buena Vista Park (5f)My goodness it's been a long time since we've done a stage. Good thing this is a relatively small district and we can ease back into the flow of the Tour de San Francisco (real estate). Today brings us to a very green (buzzword these days) part of San Francisco...Buena Vista Park. How did it get it's name, well...the park!One Entrance to Buena Vista Park near DuboceAs you might be able to Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-67650646042733757162008-04-11T12:02:00.000-07:002008-04-15T22:06:22.691-07:00Stage 48, Parnassus/Ashbury Heights (Cole Valley) (5e)Ooh la la! Before we begin telling you about one of our favorite areas in all the city for numerous reasons, let's first make something clear. We always refer to the SFAR disctrict map when talking about neighborhoods, in order to keep things consistent. However, we must say, a large portion of this area is commonly referred to as Cole Valley.The homes in this area sell very well. They are Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-66257318850876635262008-03-06T20:44:00.000-08:002008-04-15T22:08:02.308-07:00Stage 47, Twin Peaks (5d)Here we are again, another week, another stage. This time we take a trip into the hills of Twin Peaks (History). Going from last week's Stage in Noe Valley, we almost felt lost. Like we'd gone to a different planet, state, or city. It was like we took a step back in time to the 60's. Turns out, it's just another reason San Francisco and all of its tiny nano-markets are the way they are.Here's a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-21965767706428868222008-02-29T08:42:00.000-08:002008-04-15T22:08:18.751-07:00Stage 46, Noe Valley (5c)Here we are again for another stage of our tour. We've been through quite a few neighborhoods, and have quite a few more to go. Today we venture into Noe Valley.We wonder if the Castro had anything to do with this rainbow in Noe.Generally speaking (we kind of have to) Noe Valley is one of the most popular home buying destinations in all of San Francisco. It is in large part protected by the wind Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-57425816986197086822008-02-13T22:41:00.000-08:002008-02-15T09:12:25.249-08:00Stage 45, Haight Ashbury (5b)Is it just us, or does that district outline look like a pistol? Maybe we'll call this the pistol district. Moving on....Haight Ashbury. Wow, what a spot with so much history, and so much to see. This is where our job gets tough. On the map we've been referencing for this entire tour we see the entire pistol district, however, you must break it down even further. It should look something Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-65328080516365345102008-01-31T22:56:00.000-08:002008-02-07T11:36:11.850-08:00Stage 44, Glen Park (5a)It seemed like we'd never get out of District 4, but alas, we made it to District 5. What a journey it has been. Welcome to Glen Park.As you may have realized by now, we aren't historians, and we aren't typically hip to the bars, clubs, restaurants of these areas, rather we focus on the real estate. Here are a couple good weblinks for both a brief history and a much more detailed history of Glen Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-84105117177693057842008-01-25T09:25:00.001-08:002008-01-25T09:31:11.456-08:00Stage 43, Rained Out!It is a bummer indeed, but we'll hopefully be back next week. Too much rain out there at the moment. Feel free to browse the archives, scroll down the page, or check out theFrontSteps.com for more San Francisco real estate insight.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-30284889170859270692008-01-10T20:34:00.000-08:002008-01-11T09:15:50.395-08:00Stage 42, West Portal (district 4t)(You can click on most images and they will display in a new window and display larger.)This week, we take a step into our last district 4 subdistrict, West Portal. To start things off, it is always nice to get to know a little history of the area you are considering buying into or selling out of. There is a lot of good reading there and of course the Wikipedia history of West Portal can provide Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-41479665561433967362007-12-06T22:23:00.000-08:002007-12-07T10:25:44.634-08:00Stage 41, Sunnyside (district 4s)(You can click on most images and they will display in a new window and display larger.)My goodness, it's been a while since our last stage. If you were to drive the districts of our city in the order that we have featured them on this tour, you'd be amazed at how truly different one is from the other. This week is no exception. If you drive from Westwood Park into Sunnyside your world is going Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-73449152774681913792007-11-16T08:35:00.000-08:002007-12-07T10:25:23.666-08:00Stage 40, Westwood Park (4r)My goodness it's been a while since our last Stage. Sorry. It appears the market is not as bad as you'd think. ;-)Continuing our Tour this week, we sneak past the gates of Westwood Park, get a neighbor's take, and of course throw some photos in to give you the visual. To kick it off, you owe it to yourself to read up on the history (http://www.westwoodpark.com:80/history.htm). It's a very short Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-53669611311176870652007-10-25T07:56:00.000-07:002007-10-25T22:17:50.041-07:00Stage 39, Westwood Highlands (4p)Way back when we did some of our first stages of this tour, we received a great insider account for Westwood Highlands, and its time has finally come to make it to our pages. We really enjoy reading them and receiving any information about your area you'd like to share. Just send it to info@sfnewsletter.com, and we'd be happy to post it along with our stage. Without further adieu, from "M.O.":"Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-11034524155409179582007-10-19T08:35:00.000-07:002007-10-25T21:34:58.240-07:00Stage 38, Mount Davidson Manor (4n)Do you ever wonder why we don't post when it's raining? Because we want to deceive readers into thinking the weather in San Francisco is sunny and warm all the time. No really, it's because we're out representing clients on purchasing and selling many of these homes, so we just get busy, but it is always refreshing to get out and do some more of the tour to again open our eyes on how great our Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-48373929905262315372007-09-27T20:25:00.000-07:002007-09-28T12:56:49.262-07:00Stage 37, Monterey Heights (4m)We don't have any idea who it was who decided how and why to break the city up into all the different districts we have, but they sure as hell did a good job. It is amazing how crossing one side of the street to the other can literally change the way a neighborhood feels, what the homes look like, and how much "stink eye" the residents throw your way when we're taking pictures of their homes. NotUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-16207724778738322852007-09-20T20:15:00.000-07:002007-09-20T22:48:52.948-07:00Stage 36, Sherwood Forest, 4kSherwood Forest is near the top of Mt. Davidson, looking down onto St. Francis Wood. Homes in this area, like many parts of the city, are pretty darn nice. The views up on Lansdale to the south and east are incredible, by the way. Up towards the top of the hill on streets like Robin Hood, Lansdale and Dalewood the homes are very similar to those found in Miraloma Park. Down the hill towards the Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-25029874041804189462007-09-06T21:53:00.000-07:002007-09-07T09:25:19.748-07:00Stage 35, Forest Hill Extension (4j)As with every stage we've done so far, we are continually blown away with how different each area is from the other. As Realtors we have been around this city countless times, seen oodles of property, been lost on more than one occasion, but still there is so much to discover it is not even funny, and when you're touring with the goal of sharing with others, you look at things differently than Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-3976019439710131372007-08-16T20:27:00.000-07:002007-08-17T10:39:23.234-07:00Stage 34, Miraloma Park (4h)Lots of pictures below! Miraloma Park is quite possibly one of the most diverse (talking properties) districts we have toured as of yet. Geographically, it is the largest of the sub-districts in district 4. You get a taste of Glen Park, Balboa Terrace, Diamond Heights, Parkside, and Forest Knolls all wrapped into one. As you'll see from the pictures, there are Tudors, Mid-Century Moderns, 80's Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-90151186046568153282007-08-10T10:07:00.001-07:002007-08-16T21:57:46.031-07:00Stage 33, St. Francis Wood 4gSt. Francis Wood carries the mystique and aura of Pacific Heights, but is in a totally different part of town, has different weather, and an entirely different feel. Unfortunately for most, if you're looking to get into St. Francis Wood, plan on paying a ton, and competing with several other buyers. It is very quiet (unless you're on Portola, or St. Francis Blvd), has tons of tree-lined streetsUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-25926715761635353282007-07-13T07:42:00.000-07:002007-08-16T21:55:07.683-07:00Stage 32, Midtown TerraceAhhh, Midtown Terrace. So nice. So quiet. Great views from many of the homes. Suburban feel, but still in the city. Homes are well taken care of, and the magnetism from Sutro tower can't be topped. If you enter this district from Clarendon onto Dellbrook you'd think you were driving into Muir Woods...lush green Eucalyptus and ivy everywhere. Hang an illegal left and climb La Avenzada and Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-16914248802450635072007-07-05T19:42:00.000-07:002007-07-09T19:29:25.464-07:00Stage 31, Ingleside Terrace (4e)First impression: lots of dead grass in Ingleside Terrace. We're not sure if that is a drought thing, or a neighborhood thing. We get around in this town (don't laugh), and we can honestly say, we have not seen as much dead grass on front lawns in the city as we have in this area. Maybe it is because they have really big front yards and lots of space. Not sure. Anyway.....Ingleside Terrace [Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-55513120782675748032007-06-21T17:00:00.001-07:002008-02-21T09:39:56.076-08:00Stage 30, Forest Knolls (4d)Forest Knolls is so unbelievably different from any other area in the city, it just blows us away. Homes don't appear to have been built before 1950, there are duplexes, multi-unit, single family, town homes, and condos. They are very "boxy" and have that mid-century look without the mid-century charm like we saw in Diamond Heights. Views can be had from just about any street, Crestmont to the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37051377.post-74692166661920818142007-06-14T21:12:00.000-07:002008-02-21T09:40:10.112-08:00Stage 29, Forest Hill (4c)As much as you thank us for doing this Tour, we have to thank you too. We are, ourselves, learning a ton about the nano-markets of our city. We knew they existed and knew about a lot of the properties and areas anyway, but now we're looking at them differently. So thank you for keeping us motivated to write this...stuff. ;-)Last week, our eyes were opened as to how many mid-century gems were Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0