California poster, please go away.

Actually, I would argue based on the L.A. houses pictured in the links that we have gone a few steps beyond the excess which we used to ridicule in Californians.

Anonymous wrote:I would not buy that house for that price.

I am totally baffled by the Pasadena-obsessed poster. Who cares about what's happening in California when we're talking about Bethesda?? Start a new thread if you want to wax on and post endless links to listings across the country!

Poster here, the point of the posting is not to promote Pasadena, California (I love DC!), but to point out that house prices in Washington are getting ridiculously high.

I used to laugh at my friends who lived in California about the prices they were paying for their houses, and now I find that we are doing the same here in DC.

To illustrate how Washington prices have increased, I explored what we traditionally consider one of the country's most expensive housing markets (Los Angeles), and compared what you can get for your money in near-in, beautiful communities in both places. I had to make the case for the comparable, California communities so that posters would recognize them as "equals" to Bethesda and McLean.

Remember those Silicon Valley ramblers that we used to laugh at a few years back when they were listed for a million? Well, look who is laughing now that we list our Bethesda or McLean ramblers and Cape Cods for $1.5 million. The days when we here in DC could say that we were getting so much more for our money here than in other major U.S. metropolitan area, are over. We have essentially become that which we used to laugh at (California), with increasingly and prohibitively expensive close-in neighborhoods, and suburban sprawl out towards more affordable housing.

Anonymous wrote:I would not buy that house for that price.

I am totally baffled by the Pasadena-obsessed poster. Who cares about what's happening in California when we're talking about Bethesda?? Start a new thread if you want to wax on and post endless links to listings across the country!

Totally agree.

I would not buy that house for $20.

I would not buy that house for that price.

I am totally baffled by the Pasadena-obsessed poster. Who cares about what's happening in California when we're talking about Bethesda?? Start a new thread if you want to wax on and post endless links to listings across the country!

And people sincerely wonder why sprawl is so rampant. Because so many people are unwilling or unable to play the "close-in" housing game at these prices.

Anonymous wrote:teardown for over a million. fucking lol.

It sounds crazy but it's happening in Edgemoor and other close-in neighborhoods.

Anonymous wrote:teardown for over a million. fucking lol.

Amen to that brother!

teardown for over a million. fucking lol.

Washington area housing prices have finally reached California levels.

I have researched five communities, two immediately outside Washington, DC (Bethesda, MD, and McLean, VA), and three immediately outside Los Angeles (San Marino, CA, South Pasadena, CA, and Pasadena, CA).

All of these communities have excellent public schools (except perhaps Pasadena, CA, which has only two elementary schools with greatschools ratings of 8, but a number of excellent private schools); good walkability (except perhaps McLean, VA); easy access to public transportation; and a short commute to their respective metropolitan centers (20 minutes to downtown DC or LA).

A previous poster mentioned the GreatSchools.org ratings, so I compared them out for four San Marino and South Pasadena in the LA-area, and McLean and Bethesda in the DC region. The public schools in all four communities have very high ratings and compare favorably to one another.

South Pasadena, CA Public Schools (all 9s and 10s)
http://www.greatschools.org/search/search.page?q=S...%20Pasadena&state=CA&st=public

San Marino, CA Public Schools (all 10s)
http://www.greatschools.org/search/search.page?q=San%20Marino&state=CA&st=public

McLean, VA Public Schools
http://www.greatschools.org/search/search.page?q=McLean&state=VA&st=public

Bethesda, MD Public Schools
http://www.greatschools.org/search/search.page?q=Bethesda&state=MD&st=public

Using the Edgemoor listing in Bethesda as a target, I researched homes in the $1,500,000 range in San Marino, CA, and South Pasadena, CA. They illustrate the point that Washington-area housing, in comparable communities with a close-in commute to downtown, walkable neighborhoods, and good public schools, have reached California-expensive levels.

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/280-Saint-Albans-Ave-South-Pasadena-CA-91030/20692480_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1551-Diamond-Ave...sadena-CA-91030/20696164_zpid/

http://www.movoto.com/real-estate/homes-for-sale/C...ta-Vista-Ave-202_A12091689.htm

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1625-S-Euclid-Av...Marino-CA-91108/20699682_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1885-Robin-Rd-Sa...Marino-CA-91108/20704049_zpid/

If you are willing to send your children to private school in Pasadena (which generally have less expensive tuition than the DC-area private schools), then there are also a number of good houses in a comparable $1,500,000 price range in Pasadena, CA. I have also included greatschools.org link to the well-rated Pasadena public elementary schools.

http://www.greatschools.org/california/pasadena/2786-Hamilton-Elementary-School/

http://www.greatschools.org/california/pasadena/27...undamental-School/?tab=reviews

Also included the following excerpt from an article referring to one of Pasadena’s private schools.

“Q. What about hot West Coast schools outside the Bay Area?

A. Polytechnic School in Pasadena, which is just down the road from California Institute of Technology, is having better luck placing its children at elite schools than Phillips, Exeter and Andover. Lakeside School, which is the alma mater of Bill Gates and Paul Allen, belongs on this list too.”

Following is the list of Pasadena housing.


http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/425-Plumosa-Dr-P...sadena-CA-91107/20879065_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/520-W-California...sadena-CA-91105/20860030_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1230-Brookmere-R...sadena-CA-91105/20694441_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1571-Oakdale-St-...sadena-CA-91106/20869085_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1460-Old-House-R...sadena-CA-91107/20880981_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/685-Linda-Vista-...sadena-CA-91105/20856227_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1335-Cresthaven-...sadena-CA-91105/20769671_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2121-Monte-Vista...sadena-CA-91107/20874058_zpid/

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/675-Linda-Vista-...sadena-CA-91105/20856229_zpid/

DC is an increasingly expensive metropolitan area to live.

There is no sure thing as a house in Edgemoor for $500-$700. Agree with pp, they are at least 1 million.

Teardowns in Edgemoor are at least $1 million. There is now way they're $500 to $700K.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it is a teardownn. They need to drop the price $100,000. It's too chopped up inside. Sandy Spring could put a new house on that lot and sell it for $2.9 million.

Haha builder scam of the century , they use modular and cost more than other stick built. They are really raping people but no one sees it. They try to do nice finishings to hide the standard haven home modulars.

Jeez you really have no idea what you are talking about. They do a few modulars and they are really well done. But most of their stuff is very well designed and well built. Especially in edgemoor.
Any this house is destined to be a tear down. Sorry op -

yes I do , they said one million to build a house. I calculated all the costs based on my haven homes price sheet , added high end finishings with labor and came up with a huge number that was over 50% profit.

How do you figure 50% profit if it costs around $1.5m for the property, $1m to rebuild, and the result is worth $2.9m? That seems to cut it close at breakeven point.

I was referring to my own personal experience when I was asking for builders cost to build a house and they said 1 million, I KNOW the spec sheets for their modulars and can subtract out the difference in what the builder is pocketing which is way over 50%.

Also the teardowns are not 1.5 million they are more like 6-700.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live nearby, so obviously I'm in the walkability camp with you as opposed to your DH's preferences. That said, though, this house is overpriced. A developer will buy it as a teardown. I really hope it won't be yet another Sandy Spring cookie-cutter piece of crap.

It appears the Sandy Spring homes are custom homes on steroids, but by no means cookie-cutter, whereas the featured home is a cookie-cutter house that was turned into a piece of crap through ugly additions.

Sandy Spring houses are "custom" as opposed to spec, but they're derivative and dull.

Much of the 1950s housing in Bethesda is even duller, and when ugly additions are tacked on, those homes look even worse. You have a giant blind spot if you don't recognize that.