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It looks a lot better than the market rate housing at the corner of [Franklin and Hayes]! I guess the developer wasn't trying to maximize his profit.

That is really banal even by Mission Bay standards.

There doesn't seem to be a big advantage to BMRs in a city with rent control. If you want to be here just lock up someones apartment for likely much less when you you factor in both the mortgage payment and the HOA fees.

Only risk is somehow you will be evicted at some point

Rent Control applies only to pre-1979 buildings. No landlord under rent control will ever upgrade a unit to the finishes that you'll find in a new for-sale unit (not to mention higher R-factor, etc.). Not that I'm promoting BMR's, just sayin'.

So aside from finishings, why would anyone want to buy a BMR unit? You're not allowed to make a profit when you sell, correct? I like the idea, but I just don't see the value.

Let me translate this to the Bolshevik:

"Comrades! Welcome the new proletariate peaceful heaven! People's living-units are now made possible thanks to the divine intervention of our supreme council! Feast on your flooring! Devour your dishwashers! Berlin Wall to come soon!"

lolcat - BMR owners are allowed to make a profit when they sell. The resale price of a BMR is based on the increase in the consumer price index from the year you buy to the year you sell. The formula basically guarantees appreciation. Whether it will sell is another issue.

I believe the advantage to a BMR over renting would be that, at some point in the future, you get to stop making payments.

From the outside at least, these look really nice. I can see why they are oversubscribed.

A 3 br for 300K translates into $1,300 mortgage, $300 property tax, and maybe $1000 HOA. Knock off $300 in tax deductions, and you end up with $2300 for a new construction 3br, which is a steal.

Your appreciation is capped, but I'm pretty sure the non BMR appreciation will be capped by Mr. Market for the foreseeable future.

tipster, where do you get $1000 monthly for HOAs?

What the oversubscription is telling you is that, for "qualified buyers with incomes up to 80%-100% of the area median" the marketplace has failed to provide adequate supply in the buyer's price range.

Do the BMR limitations ever run out? Or will the price be forever locked with the consumer price index?

Sorry Brahma, what the oversubscription is telling you (or at least what you should be hearing), is that price controls create shortages. (Think long gas lines in the '70s.) Those who are suffering the most are those who are just over the area's median income. If some units in a project are BMR, the remaining units must be OMR (over market rate), and guess who pays that overage?

For a 3BR, HOA's are $468 - $515

http://www.homebricks.com/Default.aspx?DN=6ff8b9ba-f5bc-4aab-89f1-996c029e6779

This project is the BMR portion of the deal the master developer, Catellus, cut with the Redevelopment Agency. The entire project is BMR and has the number of units that would have been built in the aggregate of all the Mission Bay condos. Arterra and the other condos along Berry have no BMR component - this is all the for sale BMR there will be in Mission Bay.

does anyone know what is going into the vacant lot next to Mission Walk on Berry St.?

Is it safe to assume whatever it is has been delayed or not starting construction anytime soon?

Correction: Mission Walk is not oversubscribed. As of Nov. 12, more than half of the homes are in contract. From the initial round of applications, some applicants didn't meet the income qualifications, or were unable to secure a mortgage, or there was a mismatch between the applicant's household size and size of available units (for example, a one-person household is not eligible for a two-bedroom unit). The developer and the SFRA anticipate that a second application round will open up in the next few weeks, primarily for two-bedroom homes. Interested first-time homebuyers should contact 415.495.HOME (4663) or visit http://www.homebricks.com to be placed on the interest list for Mission Walk.

[Editor's Note: Our apologies for the confusion (and cheers): Mission Walk Lottery Redux: Not Oversubscribed After All.]

"I believe the advantage to a BMR over renting would be that, at some point in the future, you get to stop making payments."

For 38 year old renters I am not sure how great a deal this is

68 years old and finally free!

IMHO master planning with BMR all in one project instead of a little bit in a bunch of buildings is the way to go where possible. BMR residents are not treated as second class citizens and cannot have HOA fees increased for amenities that market-rate residents want.

So the other development w/out BMR units kick some coin to this kind of development? Seems like if I was a developer I'd rather not have any BMR units when looking at my bottom line.

How would it all work for them to lump the BMRs into a discrete development? Sounds interesting.

^^ Pretty much. Don't know this for a 100% fact, but I think the way Catellus did it here was charge a premium to the developers buying the "no BMR required" lots and selling at a big discount the BMR dedicated lot to Bridge.