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Looks great, but why no street view....

Here is what Google maps suggest the street view is:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=695+arkansas+st+%2Bsan+francisco&sll=35.308848,-99.630624&sspn=0.009771,0.023432&ie=UTF8&ll=37.757755,-122.397952&spn=0.009466,0.023432&t=h&z=16&iwloc=addr

Stunning house and property. A little close to the projects for $3 million.

Observer,

The barely visible Google street view is so late 2007.

Mapjack, and you'll never go back.

http://www.mapjack.com/?73ymWhJCcFFD7CAA

Drag your mouse sideways on the picture to see side to side.

#3M for a potrero hill house? the house might be very nice but potrero hills is not a desirable location. Potrero hills cannot support this kind of price. It's better to get a fixer upper in a nicer neighborhood (pac hts, russian hill, nob hill) than paying $3M for a potrero hills house.
IMHO.

and no one has even mentioned the pool! And on this cold and foggy day, too.....

How much does a pool in SF reduce property value? I guess the answer to that question is, how much does it cost to get rid of the sucker...

I only hope it has a southern exposure, and is sheltered from the wind.

Another property, on Carolina, recently went into contract @ 3Mil in Potrero Hill rather quickly. As for the pool, well, this is one of the sunniest parts of the city after all. You'd be surprised how many nice days there are over there. Regardless, it's probably not a negative. Not for everybody either. Then again neither is $3M. There was another $3M property on Edgewood in Parnassus Heights with a similarly attractive pool that did rather well about eight months ago or so.

"potrero hills is not a desirable location...It's better to get a fixer upper in a nicer neighborhood (pac hts, russian hill, nob hill)...."

I'd much rather live in Potrero Hill than north of California St., for many reasons. But I'd prefer north slope Potrero Hill.

Thanks for the reminder tipster, I love Mapjack but until they catch up and map some more cities it is pretty much useless.... google is like starbucks it is everywhere.

Now back to talking about the pool :-)

Extremely ugly building outside. Why build like this?

Potrero Hill not a desirable location? Who are we kidding here? I beg to differ. New Whole Foods recently opened in the area - things continue to change. Supposedly, the public housing on the hillside it in the initial phases of moving towards being torn down and replaced with mixed-use. 695 Arkansas is an extremely unique property - will appeal to someone looking for something as such, pool and all. As well, Potrero does enjoy some of the sunniest weather in the city.

I'm the owner. Here are some other particulars:

- OPEN HOUSE is today 2-4pm. Come today, because there may not be another.
- The front (and a *lot* else) has been updated very recently, so photos you see of the front on google are outdated.
- Lot is 8100 square feet, and the deck around the pool is spectacular. Of the 8100 square feet, 5600 are perfectly level. That's 56x100 - huge for SF.
- It's really an amazing house for parties, one of the best I've seen in SF.
- Weather there is the warmest in SF. In 2004, the average high temperature from May to October was 7-8 degrees fahrenheit higher than the "official" SF temperature, recorded in Duboce Triangle.
- It is on the North Slope.
- The Potrero Hill projects are slated for reconstruction in the near future, and they will end up mixed use, so they will improve a lot. Here's a link to the story: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/12/BALFVI2P5.DTL&hw=public+housing+potrero+hill&sn=001&sc=1000

A pool? In SF? BRRRrrrr.... freezing ALL year round (not just in winter and summer).

Pool is usually over 80 degrees Fahrenheit (has solar heating) between late May and early October.

Yes, this is a tropical place. My landscape architect said he saw tropical plants here (before we renovated) that he sees nowhere else in the Bay Area. Seriously...

And oh - practically zero wind, unlike places at the top of ridges in Potrero Hill that are very windy.

Thanks for chiming in Mike! good to see the owners on here.

it's a very nice place. out of my budget for sure... but nice.

perfect pimped out pad for a rap star and his b--ches in the pool. this looks like a scene straight out of "New Jack City", but alas in S.F. however I think chances are the tub will be filled with potentially naked young boys :-)

Here are a couple of other benefits (yes, I gush, I *love* this place...):

- A park with tennis courts, basketball court, children's playground, ball field, and dog walk area is next door.
- Parking is amazingly plentiful. I've parked in front of my house every day for years (we've used the garage for storage), and on most days, fifty or more cars can park on the street right on the block. That's because we're next to a park...

"- It is on the North Slope."

Most folks don't consider 22nd St to be North Slope.

"Most folks don't consider 22nd St to be North Slope."

I have always thought of 20th St. as being the app. cut-off for N. Slope Pot. Hill. Good luck Mike, you might need it, especially if you are hoping to convince folks that the city will tear those projects (a few blocks from your place) down any time soon. Again, good luck.

Apparently, global warming has hit Potrero Hill but spared the rest of The City. (Someone get Lloyd Lindsay Young on the phone right now.)

My guess is that the asking price is $3,000,000 for Potrero Hill because there's an oil well on the property. That's it, isn't it? Come on, admit it! There's got to be an oil well in there somewhere!

It only matters if you get mineral rights with the purchase. And then there would be the SF permitting process...

Attempts at being caustic and humorous are coming off as stupid and petty. At best.

Potrero Hill's freezing? Don't think so. Having lived in the Marina, Laurel Heights and now SOMA (verging on Potrero), I would conservatively estimate that it's 10+ degrees warmer on the average sunny day. As for those fearing fog, you need to come south of California Street sometime to see how the rest of us roll. I see the fog cresting the hills, but it rarely makes it to my 'hood.

Mike: Great spot. Well done. Don't put any stock in the puerile commentary here. These people just keep repeating themselves.

Mike doesn't need to convince anyone the projects are going to be razed - it's already in the works.

'puerile commentary' - good one, amused - love it!

"'Most folks don't consider 22nd St to be North Slope.'

I have always thought of 20th St. as being the app. cut-off for N. Slope Pot. Hill."

Agreed.

"Mike doesn't need to convince anyone the projects are going to be razed - it's already in the works."

Just read the article cited above. Hope it happens, but note...the same people living there now ARE COMING BACK. And who in their right mind is going to buy housing in the middle of that? Not I.

"Here are a couple of other benefits (yes, I gush, I *love* this place...)"

Mike, if you love your place so much, why don't you just keep it?

And here’s where we add a little perspective.

We’re currently running around 10,000 different readers a day. Not unique visits, or page views, but readers. The majority of which already own homes, with the majority of the minority in the market (in one way, shape, or form).

A handful (or even a bunch) of readers don’t like the design, location or price of a house, development or neighborhood? Or God forbid dare challenge a professional’s opinion? Then please feel free to disagree, debate or defend. But do so with facts - not personal attacks - and perspective.

Now back to 695 Arkansas. And as always, thank you for plugging in.

If you define "north slope" as having clear views to the north, then there are plenty of places between 20th and 22nd that have great northerly views.

I'd rather live in this house than the one of California for $3M. Thanks to Mike for stepping up and providing more details.

OMG, I am in love with this house! Our budget is only $2 Million, but I plan on having a serious talk with my husband tonight. I knew the haters would be out in full force, but Mike know that you have a fan here and I am VERY picky!

If Bridge Housing is involved in the plan to rebuild Potrero Hill projects, that gives me a lot more confidence that something very good will happen. I still wouldn't hold my breath though...it can take a long time for all the pieces to fall into place.

Generally in these rebuilds, everyone moves out, then people have the right to move back in if they meet some kind of basic qualifications, but under a management company (Bridge in this case) that is a lot more effective at enforcing rules and weeding out the bad apples. My impressions of all the Hope6 projects to date is that they've ranged from pretty good to wonderful compared to the previous conditions.

Only in San Francisco do they say: "Our budget is only $2 Million"(!)

@curmudgeon:

While I don't know enough about the Portrero situation to assess probabilities, what concerns me about the pricing for this place (and others in "transitional" SF neighborhoods like the mid-Market area) is that they seem to already be priced with the asumption that the area will improve/become safer.

In other words, a buyer is assuming all the risk (as slight or large as it may be) that the area will remain static or decline, while being unlikely to reap a similar reward if the area improves.

Just my $0.02...

I rented this house for a year in 2000/2001 and I can make a few observations about the property:

It was rented in 2000 nicely furnished including artwork, cleaning service and pool service for $6,500/mo. At the time we rented it, the owner claimed to have passed up an offer for $2.4M in 2000, but had a change of circumstances and sold in 2001 (as I recall) for $1.85M. Renting in SF can be such a bargain.

At that time, all of the fixtures appeared to be early/mid-90s, and kitchen, bathrooms, fireplaces have been redone since. There do not appear to be any significant changes to layout. The pool, doors, stone flooring, etc. were all in place at that time, and the "effect" was similar.

This is a stunning house to entertain in. During summer, the doors onto the pool expand the space significantly, and with extra tables brought in a sitdown dinner for 40+ or cocktails for more is possible. The weather is significantly warmer at this site than elsewhere in SF, lots of sun and very little wind. And, there were established beds of orchids around the pool at that time that lasted for months out of the year. The pool is stunning visually, absolutely. However it is small and more appropriate for a quick dip or kids than for swimming. That said, it does make for a very unique entertaining space.

The master suite is fantastic complete with fireplace, but was the only full-size bedroom at that time. There were two other rooms we used as smaller bedrooms, but really were not ideal as they were quite cramped. I don't see square footage anywhere in the listing, or photos of new rooms so I'm doubtful the livable space has been expanded. The orientation is definitely toward the common / entertaining spaces. Great for a single or couple; we were 3 single people and the layout was not designed for that.

The house is immediately adjacent to a park (buffer of fenced in driveway and garden as part of the lot). At that time, I didn't consider it to be an advantage as the park mostly attracted folks from the other side of the hill and was covered with litter. I did not feel safe walking in that direction. This point on the hill was a turning point, where the neighborhood was ok to the north and a ghetto to the south. Being next to the park also made the house feel exposed. Honestly in one year, we did experience a break-in, and my car was stolen from in front of the house and stripped. Again, this was in 2000 so it may be different now.

The photos speak for themselves; it is a stunning property and worth a look. I've just mentioned a few drawbacks as I'm sure that the current owner and agent can point out all the advantages, as they should.

Jeez. If you don't even know that Potrero Hill gets more sunshine than other parts of the city you're really making yourself look bad. We don't have a whole lot of ambient heat in this climate. Sunshine = warmth. Think about it ...

I live on (and love) Potrero Hill, but the crime is really beginning to bother me. Last week there was a mugging at 19th & Pennsylvania (North Slope, no question) by 4 guys with a shotgun who fired shots at their victims as they ran away. Two more shooting incidents (no one hit) at the same corner later in the week. This house is much closer to the projects & in an area with a lot more action (check the crime maps). P/hill does have the best views & the best weather in the city, but do these people stretching their $2m budget to buy a $3m house know what they are getting into?

Ghetto-Fabulous!

It's delightful in the 'hood! And you could be living there for only three large.

I beg to differ. There is nothing Ghetto-Fabulous about that house. The lines are clean, simple and modern. Not gaudy at all.

I'll respond to Foolio's post.

With regard to interior space, the house has two more bedrooms than it did back when he stayed there (area above old garage and old garage), as well as a very spacious new garage.

Also, as I said earlier, the back yard has been substantially expanded and most of the interior has been updated.

As regards crime there, I never recall anything ever happening to anyone I know like what happened to you since I moved in there in 2001. As far as real damage or loss, I know of a few petty car break-ins - that's it.

I definitely believe the neighborhood has been getting steadily better since 2001 when I first moved in there.

Hey Mike

People also laughed at me when I bought 2 homes on De Haro Street several years ago. Now they all think I got a great deal!

I hope you get what you are asking, since my projects on De Haro will be asking $2.3MM and up sans the pool.

BTW, I almost bought the project across the street from you.

"I definitely believe the neighborhood has been getting steadily better since 2001 when I first moved in there."

Hmmmm. I am not surprised. You are the seller, right?

I also live on Po Hill (24th/DeHaro), and can say from much experience that it's warmer and sunnier by far than most of the rest of the city.

In particular, this property is on the leeward (east) side of the hill -- even one block west of there and you get much more wind.

In summary, this is as high up on a hill as you can get without getting a lot of wind, and probably the warmest spot in SF. Color me jealous.

Anyone still unconvinced that Po Hill can be warm should visit there today.

Until a year ago I lived about 6 blocks from thsi house. The poster above is right, the park there is scary and at night I would not walk by it if I had to. You can actually hear the projects at night, yelling, cursing, you name it. It looks like a beautiful house but the ambiance leaves something to be desired.

I live a few blocks down Arkansas-and no way would I walk by that park at night. Block by block the closer you get to the projects the worse it gets- and if you look at the crime maps you will see more violent crime as you go closer to the projects. I agree the house is beautiful but that is a long fence that could be hopped in the dark and completely exposed to that park.

looks like it dropped out of contract. it's back on the MLS at $3M and on tour tomorrow (5/6) as new (of course)

oops - guess it wasn't on the mls orginally. anyway, it is there now:

695 Arkansas

Now for rent for 12,000/mo:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/apa/776218991.html

Offer this guy $6K as a rental, and explain to him that you will "preserve his asset" until he waits for the projects nearby to be "reconstructed" (see "Posted by: Mike Lanza at April 8, 2008 12:57 PM"). It was rented for $6500 at the peak of the tech boom in 2000, and so is worth less in nominal dollars today. Offer to pay in cash. I mean, who is going to pay $12/mo to live in Potrero Hill?