A Long, Strange Listing

Could it really be?

Yes, 3309 Pacific (click for details via Redfin) has been for sale now in parts of each of the past 5 years, 2005-2009.

It's the beacon in the fog. The Rock of Gibraltar. Old Faithful.

3309 Pacific is, quite simply, always for sale.

Wonder why?

Have you seen 3309 Pacific? We'd bet a large segment of MBC's readership has seen it, based on market exposure time alone.

If you have, you know that this home is pretty large (4br/5ba, 3500 sq. ft.) and a bit off-kilter. (The slanty photo from the listing seems apropos.)

Memories are hazy now, but here's what we recall: Some huge spaces. Dark in parts. Kitchen surprisingly small, but updated between 1984-1994, roughly. Vast split-level master. Old marble. Cool hideaway bonus room/office on top of the A-frame, maybe illegal, with treetop views. Split-level back yard overwhelmed by cinderblock. Very strange first-floor nanny/guest quarters near driveway with original bath and glass doors opening to street.

Your recollections may match, or differ. (Please share.)

Around about Summer 2005, 3309 Pacific went up for the first time. (That we noticed.) Your blog author's parchment-paper records from way back then show a start price of $1.799m. Weathering may have smeared the ink a bit, but that sure looks like a "799."

No one was having it at that price.

'05 rolled into '06. The price was down to $1.599m, and the property even posted as pending. But the escrow failed, and it seems the property rented out.

Come Fall 2007, the home was offered again at $1.590m. No takers.

The current version of the listing started up in early 2008. That's '08. And the price was $1.489m. The price glided softly to $1.399m in July '08, and $1.375m by September.

Despite that relatively recent activity, MBC was thinking of writing off this listing as deadwood. Once and so often there's a weird artifact of past MLS data entry that just hangs around. The home is not for sale, or maybe it never was, or maybe it only ever existed in our imaginations anyway. (The MLS is only as good as the data agents input.)

Lo, this week, 3309 Pacific pinged again. A little cut to $1.349m showed signs of life.

And, once again, this listing showed its uncanny, long-term knack for being priced just a step behind the market.

There may be a silver lining. This listing, which we're all guilty of treating as wallpaper for the past 4 years, does have some new language:

Highly motivated seller wants to talk to you!

Yes, we'd imagine the motivation could grow, over time, as a rolling stone gathers moss. Er, as a snowball... well, pardon our metaphors, you get the picture.

It looks like 3309 Pacific might be ready to end the trip and hand over the keys. Now, where did you park the down payment?