San Francisco’s housing market is always crazy, but lately it has been straight-up unhinged.
Buyers with wads of AI money are competing for a record few number of houses, driving up prices at a speed even obsessive real estate watchers can’t track. The Standard’s real estate reporter Emily Landes describes the situation as a frenzy.
She joined our podcast “Pacific Standard Time” to explain why in February, single-family homes sold for an average of 16.5% over the asking price, bringing the median home price in the city to nearly $2 million. And then she did something truly diabolical: She asked hosts Emily Dreyfuss and Jesse Alejandro Cottrell to play a little game called “What did it sell for?” With only a brief description of a recently sold home and its list price, could Jesse and Emily guess what it went for? Let’s just say they didn’t exactly ace it. Can you do better?
Check out the listings below and make your best guess at each home’s sale price. Good luck!
Round 1: Pacific Heights four-bedroom home
This midcentury modern, single-family home is just over 4,000 square feet, with four bedrooms and four baths, and sits on a 3,000 square foot lot. There’s a grand foyer, an updated kitchen, a possible fifth bedroom or library, and a roof deck with panoramic city and bay views. The primary suite has views of Alcatraz. Parking is two side-by-side spots in an enclosed garage with EV charging.
It came to market at $7.75 million.
Round 2: Lower Haight / Duboce Triangle tenancy in common
This TIC unit on Pierce Street, where it dead-ends at Duboce Park, is the top floor of a two-unit Victorian. It has two bedrooms, one bath, a formal dining room, a separate office, and a sunroom. There’s one-car tandem parking shared with the neighbor downstairs, plus a shared washer/dryer and storage. It came to market at $899,000.
Round 3: Luxury downtown high-rise
This entry-level unit in one of San Francisco’s most prestigious towers boasts sweeping views of the Bay Bridge. The 666-square-foot unit has one bedroom and one bath. The kitchen and family room flow together, and there are premium built-in appliances, plus a spa-like bathroom and in-unit washer/dryer. Building amenities include a fitness center, dining room, lounge, conference room, and wraparound terrace. Valet parking is available — for an additional fee.
It came to market at $1.075 million.
Round 4: Noe Valley Victorian
This classic family-size Victorian in one of the city’s hottest neighborhoods has three bedrooms (all on one level — a rarity in San Francisco) and two and a half baths. There are 10-foot ceilings, a formal entry, a formal dining room with original built-in hutch, structural upgrades throughout, a deck off the third bedroom, and direct garden access from a lower-level flex space. The house is on a 2,850-square-foot lot.
It came to market at just under $2.6 million.
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