Having staved off a foreclosure sale by way of a bankruptcy filing in 2017 and then sold for $3.7 million in early 2018, the very first ‘Top Chef’ home at 3159 Baker Street in San Francisco has since been “updated” a bit, including a refresh of its kitchen.

And the six-bedroom, nearly 4,700-square-foot “grand Marina home” is now back on the market with a $4.375 million price tag, positioned as an “opportunity to own in one of the most prestigious areas” in San Francisco.

If you think you know the market for grand Marina homes or the market in general, now’s the time to tell.

23 thoughts on “Updated Top Chef Home Back on the Market”
  1. Does anyone know if this dimpled stucco finish is an original thing, or something people did later? I see them from time to time and always wonder. Definitely something I’d get rid of, but maybe not if it’s considered historically accurate.

    1. It’s a period stucco finish, and I think most contractors either don’t know how to do it or can’t be bothered to do anything other than a flat rough finish (which I find really boring). I was very impressed a few years ago when a house near me was taken down to the studs inside and out and afterwards they found someone to put that stucco texture back on.

      1. There are a few craftspeople in the Bay Area who are very good at matching legacy stucco finishes. Window installer companies usually know who they are. They are worth hiring because a bad stucco patch job just looks terrible and is literally cast in stone.

    2. I find the facade interesting with character and definitely worth saving (especially in an era where home buyers strip all character out and just want a bland box)

  2. It loses significant value by being surrounded on three sides by road, one of them a major arterial. It must be noisy and generally not safe for young kids. The yard is also approaching non-existent. If my budget is $4M, I’m definitely going in another direction.

    The only way I could talk myself into this is it appears, from Street View, that there might be the potential for an in-law unit or two, in which case you could make a killing from AirbnB in that area. The other scenario is someone who goes up to Sonoma every weekend and wants easy bridge access.

    1. The location is tough, but I think that’s why it’s priced where it is. There’s a small backyard and a roof deck, but I think the noise from Richardson might make it tough to enjoy. Safety-wise, it’s fine. Anyone who lives here is going to be walking north up Baker or east down Francisco, unless they need to cross Richardson to go into The Presidio.

      If you really need a 6/4 and 4,680 sq. ft. of living space, you’re probably not going to find it in most parts of the Marina or Cow Hollow.

    2. An intersection at a major arterial, with a bus stop! All the idling, honking, bus BEEEEPs and PSSSHs one could possibly want…

      1. Yes. Living on a bus line would seem to be a good idea due to convenience, but the noise factor outweighs it. MUNI lines often only take a break for about 5 hours from 12AM-5AM. Sleep is impacted, 365 days a year. Not good.

    3. On the bottom level there is already a “guest suite” that features two bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchenette, so you could get your AirBnB revenues from day one. Perhaps the seller already made one of those ubiquitous TikTok videos bragging about their “passive investment” cash flows and the purchase served its purpose.

      From SFGATE’s story on the same Former Top Chef property:

      Listing agent Alana Shi said the seller put the house on the market because they have other homes in the area and no longer need it. She said the home’s layout is particularly good for young families.

      It seems obvious to me that someone with multiple homes in the area doesn’t “need” yet another one, and the seller is just attempting to reduce the costs of carrying their investment or trying to cash out.

      Should have put it on the market in late 2021. A savvy buyer (and no, I don’t claim any expertise in pricing in this neighborhood) won’t pay over asking for this.

      1. Before I read the link, I thought it was a reference to THE Brian Wilson (no offense to Giant’s fans if most of the world has no doubt as to which one is which)
        I’m not sure I’d want either one as a neighbor, tho.

          1. I think having a celebrity as a neighbor is just problematic: there’s always the poterntial for unwanted attention that wouldn’t be there with a “normal” person. That’s not to say, of course, that every celebrity is a bad neighbor – and even less that non-celebs are (all) good ones – but it’s my perception. Hardly scientific or deeply held.

          2. Being neighbors with a celebrity would actually be pretty cool, especially if you got to know them even just superficially waving. I could think of 1000 other neighbors that would be much worse, with #1 being a busybody NIMBY.

  3. This location is horrible and in no way will reflect the overall market or grand homes in the marina as Socketsite states. Who on earth would want to buy a luxury home on Richardson street and bounded by two others? As always, this site picks and chooses horrible homes and ignores many homes that get snapped up immediately.

    1. We’ve been following 3159 Baker Street for over a decade. And while we missed the part where we stated that it’s reflective of “the overall market,” as you mischaracterized, the overall market is made up of various segments, the tail ends of which tend to be more volatile and frequently act as canaries in the coal mines. Which brings us back to the luxury home on Richardson Street which traded for $3.7 million five years ago.

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