Pages

Tuesday 8 August 2017

Couple Buy A San Francisco Street with 38 Mansions On It For Just $90,000 After Its Board Didn't Pay $14-A-Year Property Tax

San Francisco couple buy a street with 38 mansions on it
A savvy couple have snapped up the best property deal in San Francisco, buying a gated street with 38 mansions on it for a mere $90,000. Tina Lam and Michael Cheng now own the roads, sidewalk and other previously public areas of Presidio Terrace, a cul-de-sac that has played home to Nancy Pelosi, among other notable figures. That's come as a shock to the residents of the street - where homes cost an average of $5.1 million - who lost the property when the governing board failed to pay a $14-a-year property tax, SF Chronicle reported.

Presidio Terrace, the most prestigious street in the city, was for sale because of a mere $994 in back-taxes, fines and interest
Presidio Terrace, the most prestigious street in the city, was for sale because of a mere $994 in back-taxes, fines and interest
Lam, who was born in Taiwan, and Cheng, originally from Hong Kong, came across the deal in April 2015 when looking for property bargains in San Francisco, where the median home value is now $1.2 million, according to Zillow
They discovered that the private street had been put up for a city auction because its property homeowners' association hadn't paid the annual $14 county property tax in 30 years. 
Presidio Terrace, the most prestigious street in the city, was for sale because of a mere $994 in back-taxes, fines and interest.  
The couple - who live in San Jose, 45 miles away from San Francisco - put their winning $90,100 bid down without even checking out the property first. 
Over the past two years the residents of the gated street have gone about their business, unaware that the asphalt, sidewalks, manicured islands, plants and palm trees surrounding them were now owned by the couple. 

Pricey: Homes on the street cost an average of $5.1m. The homeowner's association didn't pay the taxes because the bills had been sent to an accountant they hadn't used since the 1980s
Pricey: Homes on the street cost an average of $5.1m. The homeowner's association didn't pay the taxes because the bills had been sent to an accountant they hadn't used since the 1980s

And if Presidio Terrace's occupants weren't interested, then perhaps others from outside the gated community would snap up the deal instead.
The locals only found out that they'd lost their land on May 30, when they were contacted to see if they were interested in buying it back.
They learned that the reason the homeowner's association hadn't paid the bills was that the city's notices had been going to an accountant who hadn't been employed by the street since the 1980s.
They were not pleased.

House minority leader Nancy Pelosi and other notable former residents of the street include San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto, and Senator Dianne Feinstein and her husband, financier Richard C Blum.
House minority leader Nancy Pelosi and other notable former residents of the street include San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto, and Senator Dianne Feinstein and her husband, financier Richard C Blum.

No comments:

Post a Comment