Purchased for $9.7 million in July of 2017, the nearly 6,900-square-foot, six-bedroom Pacific Heights at 3149 Washington Street, which had been completely restored and remodeled to yield “unparalleled luxury and refinement,” with multiple living, dining and outdoor spaces; a guest suite, sauna and home theater; and a two-car garage, returned to the market priced at $11.25 million seven months ago.

Reduced to $10.4 million this past November, a sale at which would have represented total appreciation of just 7.2 percent over the past five years for the luxury home in a rather established neighborhood, while the widely misreported index for “San Francisco” home values was up nearly 50 percent over the same period of time, the list price for 3149 Washington Street has just been further reduced to $9.895 million, a sale at which would be 2 percent over its mid-2017-era price.

It’s amazing how many buyers suddenly appear to have “simply overpaid” in 2017 and the years since.

21 thoughts on “Refined Pac Heights Home Reduced, Nearly to Its 2017-Era Price”
  1. The number of buyers who can afford a ~$10mm home in SF who don’t already have one (that they are also probably looking to unload) is a very short list. This one is going to have problems.

    1. Agree. This has at least another $1-2 million to go (down) before it sells. Local and national economy, and SF-specific conditions have changed dramatically . Increasing interest rates will devalue all sorts of assets (watch equity values over the next 24 months). Sellers that think things will quickly turn back positive — and therefore only accept small step reductions in price — are going to keep incurring carrying costs and ultimately get burned on price. Smart sellers will realize that a quick sale in today’s market (whatever it may be) will provide a better outcome than hanging on and selling over the next couple of years. (If you don’t need to sell for 5+ years, then who knows…but wouldn’t expect much appreciation for a while.)

    1. Agreed. Island sinks are never a good idea, even as the second sink. But truly a terrible idea as the primary sink.

      This kitchen has a very underwhelming amount of counter space for a $9M house.

      1. I have a feeling the residents of a $9M house use the counters more for opening Doordash than for cooking food from scratch. Or, at least the private chef probably won’t complain about the lack of counter space.

      1. U not the sharpest tool in the shed…. It’s the main reason why it is selling lower per sq ft than comps. U want to deal with the drop off traffic and loud kids right across the street?

        1. He’s saying that if indeed the home is selling for a lower price per ft.² than comps due to it’s location across the street from San Francisco University High School, that discount was priced in the last time the home changed hands, if not well before. That is, unless the traffic is somehow worse and the teenagers at the High School appeared there in the last six years.

          If the home’s value just kept up with inflation, the amount it’s worth now would be just over $11.9 million.

          1. It means that during a bull market considerations like proximity to a school are not discounted. However, when the market turn, buyers become more discriminate,

          2. Exactly and that persona would have seen this accurate point cycled through the website several times. This site’s performative stalwarts never fail to disappoint / entertain. That said, living near a school has its perks too. It’s nice to have a chill block all summer long. It’s nice to have a chill block evenings and many weekends. Often schools open their outdoor facilities, basketball courts, etc, as well.

          3. For those who may be confused by the strange, shifting rhetoric of real estate marketing or puzzled by the unprovoked ad hominem rebuke, let me try to clarify the contention here in non-marketing language:

            On the way up during an historic asset bubble, the negative pricing impact of defects like traffic noise (or poorly-designed kitchens) are swamped by the speculative mania, and organic (i.e. live-in) buyers are driven by fear to buy now or be priced out forever. After the historic asset bubble collapses as a consequence of the ending (let alone reversal) of central bank monetary policy that had greatly distorted asset market values, all price drops can be attributed to those previously disregarded defects, and not to the ending (let alone reversal) of the monetary policies that blew the asset bubble to being with.

            Got it?

          4. Again a misuse of the term ad hominem. Try a factual synopsis. Here’s another. None of these things should matter whatsoever. Being on here solely to hate on things is nothing.

        2. “U not the sharpest tool in the shed”

          That seems a little too “to the man” to be a good faith argument.

          ‘Being on here solely to hate on things is nothing.”

          Look! A squirrel!

          Thank you for the lesson in rhetoric and critical thinking.

  2. Across the bridge, to the north, I’m noticing some new listings here reflecting shockingly low asking prices.

  3. Based on the most recent compass SF market report, there is 13 months of supply of $5M-10M homes and 35 (!) months of supply of $10M+ homes. (Months of supply defined as how long it would take to sell current listings based on the average number of homes sold in past 6 months.) I suppose heirs may be willing to wait a while to realize their inheritances (though they should prefer to get it sooner), but families with homes in those price ranges that have a need/desire to move are pretty stuck. The number of wealthy folks clamoring to move into or within SF is dramatically different now than it was during the 2016-2022 period.

  4. Fair, though I’m more skeptical about seasonality being a driving factor at these price points. Not all, but many of these houses need to be renovated before they are likely to be moved into, so I don’t think people are lining up to buy in April or May to move in during the summer. (And many of the sellers are passed away or in retirement homes, so they aren’t timing a sale with the end of the school year either.)

    1. You make a good point. Especially when it comes to homes in SF D 7, 8, larger scale homes? Many of them need extensive work in order to be updated to contemporary living functionality. Also, what’s the time stamp for $10M sales anyway? It isn’t as if many move any given quarter at any time, ever.

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