4 PENHURST Ave Daly City, CA 94015

Price: $549,000

Last sale:

Loss if sold for asking: $446k or 44.8%

This is one of the cheapest homes in Daly City in terms of price per square foot.  It is now down to 2002 prices.  It is a short sale so it may take a while for the deal to close.  It is a large home in a very convenient neighborhood.

911 9TH Ave San Mateo, CA 94402

Price: $575,000

Last sale: 1/5/2006 for $999k

Loss if sold for asking: $424k or 42.4%

I first mentioned this home in the post about multifamily properties. Now it is down another $300k. This is another short sale. It is in a decent neighborhood near Central Park and you could rent out half of it so it might almost be worth it if you can secure financing.

Here is the math.  Suppose you put 20% down and finance 460k, which is still a conforming loan in San Mateo, then at 5% the mortgage is $2469 a month.  Then you need to add around $600 a month in property tax and another $70 to $100 in insurance.  If you have a tenant on one half of the property then you could collect rent of $1500.  Add in some tax deductions and this place is almost cheaper than renting.  Of course, there are utilities and maintenance costs, too.

This is a bank owned property now selling for $399k. The following is the listing Dale sent in from 2007:

Considering that they bought this house in 2006 for $830k, I guess they were just trying to cover their costs. Unfortunately it ended in an epic fail.

Loss: $431k or 51.9%

Price: $229,900

Last sale:

Loss if sold for asking: $359100 or 61%

This little shack is currently owned by HSBC.  It is incredible that someone actually bought this for $589k a few years ago.  This is not exactly in a good neighborhood.

1519 DAY Ave #D San Mateo, CA 94403

Price: $325,000

Last sales:

Loss if sold for asking: $115,000

This is a short sale in San Mateo.  My husband used to rent a very similar looking one bedroom apartment in Belmont for $1200 a month.  So I think this condo is still too expensive with a price to rent ratio of 22.5 and an HOA of $337.

1940 STAFFORD St Redwood City, CA 94063

Price: $407,900

Last sale:

This bank owned property was first purchased in 2002 for $490k with two loans of $392k and $98k.  That’s right, that’s equivalent to  a 0% down loan.  And then in 2004 it was refinanced again with an adjustable loan of $520k and it seems like there was a transfer between family members.  And then in 2006 it was refinanced again with two loans of $612,000 and $76,500 for a total of $688,500.  So basically this family took out around $200k from this little house during the boom, and finally it went into foreclosure so the last lender is looking around a loss of $280k.  It seems like it was a good deal for this particular family because they practically got to live in this house for more than 4 years for free.

3904 HACIENDA St San Mateo, CA 94403

Price: $925,000

Last sale:

Loss if sold for asking: $165,000 or 15.1%

This home is in a fairly nice area of San Mateo.  It is a short sale at about the median price per square foot.  The lot is also a fairly good size.

Price: $1,298,000

Last sale:

Loss if sold for asking: $2000 or 0.2%

In any other place, this is just a post war rancher that will probably sell for $200k or less, but here in Burlingame it’s $1.298 million.  There doesn’t seem to be much to justify this price.  The current owner took out a $960k adjustable loan in 2005, and perhaps it’s adjusting soon.  Anyway, this home is overpriced even for Burlingame.  A comparable property that’s larger than this home is at 1641 Albemarle Way and is around $300k less.  Both properties have open homes this weekend on 1/25 from 1pm to 4pm.

Price: $849,000

Last sale:

Loss if sold for asking: $411,000 or 32.6%

This is a large home that’s a short sale.  It seems that the previous owners really lucked out because they bought it for $723,000 with a conventional 80% loan and then sold for 1.26 million to the latest owners.  I guess there are winners and losers in everything.

1341 BEACON Ave San Mateo, CA 94401

Price: $549,900

Last sale:
Jul 07, 2008 Sold $767,748 -9.9%/yr Public Records
Dec 29, 2006 Sold $900,000 17.4%/yr Public Records
Loss if sold for asking: $217848 or 28.4%

I absolutely love the realtor’s description of this listing: “Ideal for trades person or contractor. .. try the fha rehab loan to make this a true castle that will fit the entire kingdom! Large lot has room for a boat or RV also!” I’m not sure what kind of kingdom that would be, but I guess everyone needs a dream.
It is currently owned by Greenpoint Mtg Funding Inc and there will be an open house this Saturday 1/24 from 1pm to 4pm!