Newsletter - RealSmart Group

FALL 2014
A QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF REALSMART IDEAS
Newsletter
GROWTH IN RWC GOING
PRECISELY AS PLANNED
The housing market is alive and well in Redwood City. Per Zillow data, the median value of
a home in Redwood City currently sits at
$1,051,000 - a year-over-year increase of
13.4%. As recently as September of 2011, the
median home value in Redwood City was listed
on Zillow at $694k. That’s a 51% increase in
just over three years. Why do we care about
Redwood City? As a real estate investor, you
look to buy in the path of progress and there
has been a lot of activity in Redwood City.
Google recently acquired over 1 million square
feet of office space (with the ability to build 1
million additional), Box.net leased over
300,000 square feet for their new headquarters downtown, and developer Jay Paul just
announced plans to build 1.4 million square feet
of office on the old Malibu Grand Prix site.
Coupled with Stanford’s continued expansion
just off Woodside Road, Redwood City is
booming.
Not long ago it was referred to as ‘Deadwood
City’; so where did all of this demand come
from? The answer lies in 2 words – PRECISE
PLAN. Of course many other cities are experiencing growth and building, but not at the
fervent pace of Redwood City. This is a direct
result of the city officials passing the Precise
Plan back in 2011. The Precise Plan, simply put,
identifies every single parcel of land (within the defined zone) and specifically lays
out what the city will allow to be built on
the property with very clear and transparent guidelines. The guidelines are so clear,
in fact, the 300,000+ square feet of space
currently being built in downtown for
Box.net received entitlements and building
permits in under 9 months! To put it in
perspective, it can sometimes take longer
to get a permit than to build a new house!
While cities like San Carlos and Menlo Park
are struggling to attract commercial
developers to bring jobs closer to their
town, developers are clearly happy to work
in Redwood City. Is all this development
such a good thing? We think yes, but head
to downtown Redwood City and decide for
yourself.
Bryan Jacobs
RealSmart co-founder
[email protected]
IN THIS ISSUE
REALSMARTGROUP.COM
BOOMING RWC
BARCLAY FIXER MIXER
MICRO-APARTMENTS
A CASE FOR CORK FLOORS
MORTGAGE UPDATE
FEATURED NEW LISTING
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FIX & MIX
MIXING
IT UP
AFTER
BEFORE
The Fixer Mixer for Barclay was held
mid-September. Work wasn’t entirely
finished at the time of the mixer, but it was
a blast all the same! If you didn’t get a
chance to see the finished product, check
out photos at www.2617Barclay.com. You
can also find the video from the fixer mixer
at:
realsmartgroup.com/BarclayFixer
When it was all said and done, the house
looked gorgeous. It went from dull and
outdated to modern and vibrant.
It
immediately attracted a lot of interested
buyers and it sold shortly after going on
the market.
WHAT’S NEXT?
We’re hard at work on our fixer property on
Iris Street in Redwood City. As soon as we
lock down a date for the next Fixer Mixer,
we’ll be sending out invites!
“LIKE” REALSMART ON
FACEBOOK
TO GET MARKET
UPDATES & LOCAL
REAL ESTATE NEWS.
FACEBOOK.COM/REALSMARTGROUP
Camilo Perez
RealSmart Realtor
[email protected]
THE MICRO-MOVEMENT
A PUSH FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING
As Bay Area residents know all too well, finding affordable housing is
becoming increasingly difficult. The recent tech boom is flooding the market with
home-buyers and renters who can afford a larger monthly housing expense than an
average bay area resident, and their deep pockets are driving prices through the
roof. The median price for a single-family home in San Francisco and San Mateo
Counties broke a million dollars this year, and rental prices are higher than they
have ever been.
Fortunately, there is a glimmer of hope for people who are ready to sacrifice
square footage for affordability. Micro-houses and apartments, which can be as
small as 180 square feet, are gaining popularity in densely populated metros where
affordable housing is becoming a thing of the past. These mini-abodes are devising
creative ways to maximize precious space - Murphy beds that fold up and leave
behind a dining table, banquette lids that open up for extra storage space, and
shelves covering every inch of vertical space.
Seattle is at the forefront of the micro-apartment movement, with
somewhere around 3,000 of them already built. But in San Francisco, where the
micro-trend hasn’t gained quite as much momentum, you'll have less options.
Whether or not these apartments can be made more affordable in the SF
bay area remains to be seen, but with number of single-person households growing
steadily, it is entirely possible that micro homes and apartments will see a spike in
demand in the coming years. That's what developer Patrick Kennedy of Panoramic
Interests is banking on at least. He is currently building a high rise micro-apartment
complex at 1321 Mission St. in San Francisco, and once complete it will be the first of
its kind in the City by the Bay. It will feature 160 micro-units which Kennedy says are
"affordable by design".
A CASE FOR CORK:
Karen Vega
Cork, mostly known for its use in wine bottles or as a bat-filller for baseball RealSmart Co-Founder
great Sammy Sosa, is also a highly sustainable, biodegradable and recyclable [email protected]
flooring option that deserves a lot more attention. Relative to hardwood and tile, (650) 363-2808
it is fairly inexpensive, and some types of cork floors are finished and molded in
such a way that they can actually mimic the geometric details of wood or the
smoothness of tile. It does have a distinctive look that might not be for everyone,
but its varying styles and colors allow it to fit into virtually any design scheme.
Cork is made from the bark of a species of Oak tree that is endemic to Southwest Europe and Northwest Africa. The bark is stripped from the trees - in a
process that is harmless to the tree itself – and typically regrows within 9-12 years.
Each Cork Oak can be harvested for its bark around 12 times during its 150-250
year lifespan, and if my calculations are correct, that is about 11 more times than
that same tree could be harvested for hardwood during its lifetime. The process
is actually very interesting; if you’d like to see for yourself, search ‘the origins of
cork’ on Youtube.
When it comes to floors, cork is probably most popular in the kitchen,
or in areas where you spend a lot of time standing up. This is because it
is naturally a shock-absorbing and resilient material, making it a lot
more comfortable to walk on than other popular kitchen floor options
like hardwood and tile. This also makes it less likely that glass and
dinnerware will break if dropped on it.
Another plus to cork floors is that they are naturally rich in suberin,
a hydrophobic wax-like substance that helps fight mold, mildew and
insect infestation, all of which are maladies that can easily befall hardwood floors.
Unfortunately, cork does have its drawbacks. It can be scratched
and nicked easily, and heavy furniture can leave permanent indentations
in the floor if no furniture pads are used. Nevertheless, cork is a great
alternative to hardwood or tile floor - it's easy on your pocket and the
Cork Oaks stripped of their bark
environment.
AN ECO-FRIENDLY FLOORING OPTION
MORTGAGE UPDATE:
DELAYED FINANCING
YOUR MORTGAGE TEAM
George McFaden
NMLS # 344084
[email protected]
Laurie Musielak
NMLS # 253971
[email protected]
The 2008 financial crisis saw an immediate and dramatic tightening of
mortgage loan requirements. However, over the past couple years the
market has shown significant signs of recovery, and loan requirements
have begun to look a little bit more like what we were used seeing prior
to 2008. This is evident in the re-emergence of a few products that
had virtually disappeared up until about a year ago. Products like
mortgages with loan-to-value ratios of 85-90%, Lender Paid mortgage
Insurance, and mortgages to borrowers who are shouldering
debt-to-income ratios of up to 50%.
Interestingly, an entirely new loan program that didn’t exist
prior 2008, has emerged. The program, called Delayed Financing,
addresses a situation that was not prevalent in 2008. It allows a buyer
to make an all-cash payment on a home and then turn around the next
day and refinance. Until earlier this year, there were seasoning
requirements in place preventing this practice. This new program
provides opportunity for people who don't want to pay all cash, but
need to include this kind of term in their purchase offer, to be competitive in the current real estate climate. For specific details on this
program, email George or Laurie.
THE REALSMART TEAM
BRYAN JACOBS - REALSMART CO-FOUNDER DENNIS VORRISES- REALTOR
BRE # 01129660
BRE #01406502
KAREN VEGA - REALSMART CO-FOUNDER
BRE # 00930844
TODD WEIDMER - REALTOR
BRE # 01320934
CAMILO PEREZ - REALTOR & CONTRACTOR
BRE # 01875711
SHELLY NORMOYLE - TRANSACTION COORDINATOR
BRE # 01332984
ROBERT TRALLER - MARKETING COORDINATOR
www.realsmartgroup.com
REALSMART GROUP
50 EDGEWOOD ROAD,
REDWOOD CITY, CA 94062
(650) 363-2808
FEATURED LISTING
230 IRIS STREET
REDWOOD CITY
IRIS FIXER
OON!
S
G
N
I
COM
Our latest fixer is nearing
completion and we can’t
wait to show it off. We
completely gutted the
house, and rebuilt and
reframed the walls so that
the home would have an
open floor plan. We’ll be
working on it through the
holidays but we hope to
have it ready to sell early
in the new year.