Upper East Grande Dame Due for a Facelift

Noteworthy new listings….

Built in 1894, 2044 Garden Street ($3.895 million) is one of the Crocker Row houses, with the genteel public rooms you’d expect—the living room and dining room are classic. Upstairs lies a conundrum, however, as you can see in the floor plan. (I vote to turn Bedroom 4 into a bath for Bedroom 3, give Bedroom 5 the bath at the end of the hall, and let Bedroom 2 be an office.) The whole house and backyard need a redo, but the potential for something timeless is huge. Can you tell I want it?

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The 1904 house at 501 E. Pedregosa Street ($4.15 million), where the Upper East blends into the Lower Riviera, has tremendous curb appeal: the curved row of windows, the front porch, the steps leading diagonally from the corner…. And inside has been redone to nice effect by owners who paid $1.75 million in October 2020. (According to the listing agent, they’re not flipping—they’ve simply decided to live elsewhere.) My only concern is that the house next door has windows looking down on the terrace.

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The photo below is only one we get for 915 Via Rosita ($15.95 million), so it’s hard to know what to make of the property. The house was built in 2010 on 1.64 acres, and there’s a guest house, but the lot is oddly shaped and not in the best part of Hope Ranch. Even taking into consideration the dramatic rise in the neighborhood’s home values, and even if the house is in turnkey condition, I find the price tough to swallow.

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The price of 643 Ricardo Avenue ($3.495 million) also caught me by surprise. Sure, that part of Alta Mesa has seen some big closings lately—such as 745 and 826 Dolores Drive—but those were in much better shape. Visiting the property, however, makes a strong case: what you can’t tell from the photos is that the house is at the edge of a small knoll, with yard (and views) around three sides. It’s a neat spot. (P.S. You need to feel pretty good about yourself—or be nearsighted—to shower in front of a full-length mirror.)

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1526 Monte Vista Road ($5.995 million) is a 1920 house in the Hedgerow with three bedrooms, each with en suite bath, and a guest house. (Too bad about all those the split-ductless HVAC units, though.) Bet it closes within a fortnight.

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And a few others worth checking out:
••• 1628 Chapala Street ($2.15 million): Sweet 1926 cottage with a funky floor plan.
••• 3820 Sterrett Avenue ($2.695 million): Newly fixed-up three-bedroom near Foothill Road and N. Hope Avenue that’s already in escrow.
••• 1527 Crestline Drive ($1.6 million): 1963 Bel Air Knolls house looks like a mortuary from the front, but it has midcentury grooviness here and there (below).
••• 5220 James Road ($2 million): 1961 three-bedroom steps from More Mesa.

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