San Francisco real estate tips, trends and the local scoop: "Plug In" to SocketSite™
“The U.S. title-insurance industry faces increasing pressure from regulators to justify the fees charged to consumers for ensuring they have clear ownership of their homes.” ∙ Title-Insurer Fees Draw Scrutiny
“The decision to select a British firm to renovate 50 United Nations Plaza has provoked controversy as the project was made possible by the $130 billion federal stimulus fund for…
“CBRE says that downtown San Francisco’s availability rate for office space has now cracked 20 percent. It predicts that the city “will soon pass its all-time availability rate of 20.6…
“The Port of San Francisco is preparing to reduce its minimum required lease payments to help fill vacant space and compete in San Francisco’s flailing office market….Under proposals due to…
“The average 30-year rate dropped to 5.2 percent from 5.32 percent, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac of McLean, Virginia, said today….The 15-year rate averaged 4.69 percent.” ∙ U.S. Mortgage Rates Drop…
“The Painted Ladies charmed her. The de Young wowed her. But Liesbeth van der Pol also savored a part of San Francisco that many locals ignore – Mission Bay.” (Chief…
“The residential real estate market improved ahead of the end of the past seven contractions, with home construction starts beginning to climb an average of seven months before gross domestic…
“The Strata, the first development on the still-unopened new Fourth Street, has leased 103 apartments in 90 days…four apartments a month above leasing goals, although Urban Housing Group has slashed…
“With many developers predicting that highrise development of any sort won’t work economically for another five years, public agencies are struggling with a development model in which private builders pay…
“Starting July 2, California homeowners who think the market value of their home as of Jan. 1, 2009, is less than its assessed value for 2009-10 can ask their assessor…