“Tucked on a quaint street with blooming Magnolia trees,” the 857-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bath unit #526 at 99 Rausch was purchased for $1,265,000 in June of 2019, establishing a new “comp” for other neighborhood sales and valuations at $1,476 per square foot, which was in-line with the other 111 units in the building.
“Offering luxury living at the doorstep of the vibrant, dynamic SOMA,” with walls of glass, an open living area, top-grade appliances and a private terrace, with a deeded parking spot, EV charging and a walk-in storage unit as well, not to mention a whole host of building amenities, including a rooftop deck, bar and lounge, 99 Rausch #526 just returned to the market priced at $849,000, a sale at which would be “at asking” according to all industry stats and aggregate reports but down 33 percent on an apples-to-apples basis from mid-2019 at roughly $1,013 per square foot.
If you think you know the market for modern SoMa condos and comp(arable) buildings and units, now’s the time to tell. Keep in mind that the one-bedroom unit #502 in the building which was last listed for 26 percent its 2019 price, having been purchased for $1,410 per square foot, was “delisted” without a reported sale two weeks ago despite the fact that the widely misreported index for “San Francisco” condo values is “still up 1 percent!” over the same period of time.
There are streets in S.F. that could be accurately described as “quaint”, but few of them are in SOMA and I don’t think this is one of them.
As far as Apt 502, at the top of that thread I predicted that “the “low ball pricing to incite bidding war” gambit” wouldn’t work and that ultimately the listing would be removed from the MLS before I switched to guessing $516k if it actually closed. I should have stuck to my initial gut reaction.
This block of Rausch is actually quite nice and a diamond in the rough – at least this part of Soma. That doesn’t insulate it from the neighborhood problems, but by comparison, it doesn’t have the other issues that nearby streets and alleys have.
From the photos, it’s abundantly clear a single man lives there. Also, since when is a small balcony called a “private terrace”?
since when is a small balcony called a “private terrace”?
Since full price, it seems. It may be transformed into “just like an extra room!”
by the time the next diminuation comes.
What do the demographics of the current owner have to do with anything?
For one thing, the apartment is a two bedroom, two bathroom unit, so if haighter’s deduction is correct, he bought more home than he really needed (the purchase in June of 2019 was pre-pandemic and the increased demand for WFH space). Probably because that owner thought two bedrooms would appreciate more.
The photo of the home office with the height adjustable standing desk indicates this is probably someone with an office job highly susceptible to disruption by coming widespread AI adoption or perhaps the layoff waves in the tech sector late last year and earlier this year.
Or
It’s a modern day version of the Odd Couple: one had a tidy bedroom with the clothes in the closet, and the other keeps his in the living room (because the BR is too much of a mess to find anything in…let alone get a photo of).
Oh I just love playing Ellery Queen!!
🙂
Nothing. I’m just commenting on the grim state of the decor in the unit.
The SOMA value proposition of living “close to work” has evaporated. Four years ago, this neighborhood was widely perceived to be in the process of becoming a vibrant live-work area. Now it faces the prospect of a long rebuilding.
I have said it here before, but these units were designed to be sold *once* to a highly paid 20-something tech worker looking for the first rung on the property ladder. The likely buyer has changed to a more value-oriented small household willing to contend with limited services in the area for the duration of their ownership. Does the building even have parking? I can’t see a garage entrance on Street View.
Brahma is right. This one sells for less than $1,000/foot.
The article calls out a deeded parking spot, with EV charging.
Not sure about that. Plenty of companies are moving back to 2-3 days a week in the office. If you’re single, you probably want to be in the middle of the action seven days a week.
Lol, what “action” are you referring to?
SOMA is not my cup of tea either, but for a 20 or 30 – something who is single, it’s centrally located to a lot of things, including offices and nightlife stuff.
San Francisco sees largest YOY increase of office visits than any other American city.
San Francisco also saw increased demand in office space, according to a report last month by commercial real estate group VTS. …
San Francisco’s vacancy rate as of the second quarter of 2023 was at nearly 32%, a record high that shows no signs of slowing down.
Well which is it ??
Uh huh. And the last sentence of that piece says that San Francisco had the most drastic decline in in-office workers compared with before the pandemic, the highest of any other major American city.
If you’re starting from the lowest level…
It’s undeniable that the trends are pointing in the right direction. It still has a long way to go though to break even with pre-pandemic office/ downtown population. We’ll see what happens. If/ when Gavin runs for the White House, he’s going to have to get very aggressive at cleaning up the messes across this state.
We’ll see what happens
Yes we will; don’t be bashful about reporting in. As for Gavin, by my calendar he won’t be in any position of authority when the next WH scrimmage is scheduled, so he needn’t worry about actual…you know…. results
“If/ when Gavin runs for the White House, he’s going to have to get very aggressive at cleaning up the messes across this state.”
Also, there’s the possibility that highly-liquid(figuratively and literally) retirees from planet Norbulon will descend upon SF by the billions very aggressively (figuratively and literally) in search of
piedstentacles a Terra.Surely the Gavster will try to take his greasy shtick to DC, but it won’t entail “cleaning up the messes across this state,” because those messes are the product of national policy, and largely beyond the remediative capabilities of localized caudillos.
Good luck with your Hail Mary.
There IS a pretty big underground parking. Entrance is up Rausch St. I have lived there (as a renter)
We’re getting there, but much more progress to be made.
When will realtors learn that raising expectations (private terrace), only to dash them (skimpy balcony), only leads to disappointment on the part of the buyer. You have to wonder what else they’re trying to oversell.
“Offering luxury living”….huh? What is luxurious about can lights and dull white box rooms devoid of any interest or charm. Maybe they are referring to the luxury of hot running water and electricity.
i’ll take “white box rooms” with central air conditioning vs. suffering through another fire season in an edwardian (that may or may not have been retrofitted to code) for the sake of “charm.”
I’ve been keeping an eye on #502 since the initial post. I still think the market price in this neighborhood is $800-something / sq ft, which is really tough if you bought at $1400+
i will venture to guess $815K.
This neighborhood is significantly worse than it was in 2019. IMHO, You would have to get a very good deal to consider living there.
The seller would have to be motivated to give you a very good deal to live here. Your guess amounts to $951 per ft.² and I don’t see it actually trading at that low of a level. Even if you are correct that the neighborhood is significantly worse than it was in 2019 it does not mean that the seller has to agree to take a loss that large.
Why not? Look what they paid for it. That would be a good result at $950 / sq ft. It all depends how badly they want out.
Assuming we are both talking about the 857 per ft.², two-bedroom, two-bath unit 526…it was purchased in June of 2019 at $1,476 per square foot. A sale now for $951 per ft.² would represent a 35.6 percent decrease on an apples-to-apples basis from mid-2019.
As mentioned in the final ‘graph in the post above, the previous unit in this building featured on ss (unit 502) failed to trade at a 30 percent decrease from its 2019 price. This seller would have to be highly motivated indeed to take an even bigger hit for unit 526.
what choice does the seller have if no one wants to pay his price, besides wait out the market and the street conditions.? and is he in a position to wait.
That neighborhood has taken several steps back over the last few years.