Habitat for Hermanity: Your Real Estate Infotainment...Where Housing Hilarity Ensues! San Francisco Bay Area Realtor Herman Chan

NYC guy lives in 78 sq ft apartment. I have seen coffins bigger than this!

8/5/2011

It is no secret I am no fan of McMansions (Seriously, who needs 8 bedrooms 8 bathrooms, unless you are running a brothel!?) As a big fan of small spaces, I've blogged several times about living small here at Habitat For Hermanity, as well as penning articles for Chic Tip & Frontiers Magazine. But when I came across this NYC architect who lives in a 78 sq ft apartment, I couldn't believe my eyes! I've seen coffins bigger than this place! It's like living in a dorm room the size of a walk-in closet.

Alas, he pays a mere $800/mo for rent. Can you blame the guy? Where else can you live in the Big Apple for that little? Kudos to you Luke Clark Tyler! I know I couldn't do it.

Claustrophobes need not apply, but would any of you ever live in 78 sq ft? If you have, please share pix!

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Talk about Downsizing! Family of 3 lives in 320 sq ft home

7/9/2011

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Watch how this family of three lives in a 320 sq ft home. I applaud this family. In these lean times, they are living within their means (Gee, what a novel idea!). They honestly seem happy...then again, who wouldn't be with no mortgage! It's a commentary of the past few years of American excess & just how flawed the "bigger is better" mentality is. It's revealing how sparsely we can live. We are so spoiled with space in the USA, compared to many parts of the world where it is not uncommon for a family to live in teeny-weeny abodes.

The only way I would live in 320 sq ft with someone is if that someone is a goldfish! I would especially NOT live in tight quarters like this, if I were a girl. I mean, when it's packed like sardines, you brush up against someone and next thing you know, you're knocked up! Trust me, it happens!

Do you live in a small space? Is the tradeoff between economic stress & smaller space worth it?
PS: If you dig cozy living spaces, check out this blog about Small Places!

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You think a freeway behind your yard is bad? Well how about above it?!

7/4/2011

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This building in the Shanxi Province of China was built under a freeway 15 yrs ago. How that happens, I dunno! How did it bypass permits, assessment, appraisals, building codes, liability,...oh, wait, it's China. Minor details!

On the bright side, the government now has deemed it unsafe & will demolish it. The current denizens are being re-located somewhere hopefully less precarious. Perhaps by a railroad station, airport runway or military firing range? Anything is a step up from this disaster waiting to happen!

Read more here at M.I.C.

Now, just for kicks, how would a real estate agent market a place like this?

Unique location!
Easy freeway access
Convenient for commuters. Just hop off the roof
Can't hear any street level noise
Keep cool under the shade.
Ideal for smog aficionados
Great for buyers who do not believe in earthquakes

Share any suggestions you have! I'm trembling with anticipation

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Disabled Vet’s Home Woulda Brought Down Property Values, Says HOA

7/3/2011

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I've heard of hellish HOA's but this takes the cake! After becoming mute & partly paralyzed serving our country in Iraq in 2008, a non-profit named Homes For Our Troops wanted to build Sean Gittens a home. Nice gesture right? (I mean, the man practically sacrificed his life for his country.) Well, apparently not, per the HOA!

The Knob Hill (aka Snob Hill) Homeowners Association allegedly blocked construction over a litany of flimsy excuses like the house was too small, or required paperwork was incomplete, or most disturbingly that Gittens' house would "drag down the value of their homes." I don't know what is going on here (Racism? Classism? Veteranism?) , but this soldier put his life on the line for us and all this HOA cares about are their property value?!

Read the full story here on AOL.

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Tether Ball Pole, Laundry Pole...or Something Sinister?!?!

6/25/2011

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I was showing this $936,400 foreclosure to my clients. Coveted location, built in 1937, hardwood floors, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, all seemed honky dory...until we peered into the backyard and gasped in unison!

Is it me, or does this remind you of a lynching apparatus?! Yikes! I'm sure it's nothing that sinister but it's odd how the same thought flashed through our minds! If it were my listing, I would have had it removed before hitting the market. Who wants buyers imagining what (or who) dangled on that thing!?

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Real Estate Round Up: Zsa Zsa, Weiner pics & Gang Banging Grandma

6/11/2011

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Zsa Zsa Gabor's mansion is officially up for sale. It's listed by my friend Christophe Choo, who got Zsa Zsa to reduce the asking price from a celestial $28M to a now more reasonable stratospheric $15M. Good job Chris! [ Curbed LA ]

Photos of Weiner's Queens home that was just yanked off the market. Ummm, is it me, but do all Congressmen live so pedestrian? I will be so in awe if John McCain also has Monogram pillows & baby blue walls. And more importantly, what kind of realtor leaves a blue sponge and pet food bowl in the kitchen pic?! [ Huffington Post ]
Would you take this sweet kind grandmother to be a ghetto gang banger in her golden years!? She's facing eviction b/c that's what her landlords alleges. Wouldn't be surprised she's gotta rent control unit & her landlords want her out! Tsk tsk! [ Gawker ]

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Ask me about Real Estate...because I drive a Camry

6/10/2011

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This stuff kills me! As I was parking behind this car, my client & I looked up, read the bumper, exchanged glances...and then started cracking up!

This poor agent probably believes it was a marketing stroke of genius to emblazon the rear end of her car with such a bland call-to-action. Bless her heart for trying....I guess.

If she only knew:
Clients are snickering at her because she comes off as hokey, cheesy & corny. She might as well be hockin' Mary Kay. Real estate professionals cringe because it reeks of desperation and amaturity (yes, I just made up that word).

Besides, what does she expect someone to do upon seeing her ad? Ummm, there is no contact info. So what am I supposed to do: get outta my car, run up to her window, and knock knock knock?!

Do you think this is an effective marketing tool? Or does it make her look like a darn fool?

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It is the Revenge of the Homeowners!

6/6/2011

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These buyers in Naples paid all cash for their house, but the clowns at Bank of America tried to foreclosure on them anyways. Even though the courts decided Bank of America was in the wrong, BofA still wouldn't pay the buyers' attorney fees (a measily $2534). So buyers brought in lawyer, moving trucks and armed deputies to try and foreclose on the local BofA branch! (More details here at AG Beat.) Hooray for those buyers! And shame on Bank of America! Tsk Tsk!

Well at least the owners didn't try to bulldoze their own house like this guy from last year. Remember this webcast?

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We got plugged on Real Estate Megasite SF Curbed! Yeah!

5/28/2011

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Yesterday's post about the 2 faced Berkeley listing got mentioned on real estate behemoth site Curbed! What a great way to kick off my Memorial Weekend!

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2 Homes for the price of 1...but ummm it is the same house!

5/27/2011

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What a deal! Not only do you get a dated brown shingle home on the outside, but wow you also get a white post-modern curvy condo inside. (giggle)

My initial theories on this listing:
1. Must be a Mixed Marriage: Exterior by Berkeley Hippie & Interior by SOMA Yuppie
2. The house (& probably owner) is schizophrenic
3. The person who designed the inside has something against right angles.
4. It's not just mental cognizant dissonance , it's rental cognizant dissonance
What are your theories for how this dubious design came about?

If I've said it once I've said it a million times, please match outside architecture with inside decor. (If you missed the memo, revisit my webcast here!)