Decaying Palo Alto Fixer-Upper A $5 Million Realty Check For Silicon Valley
PALO ALTO (KPIX) -- The price of real estate in the Bay Area is generally stratospheric but KPIX found a Peninsula fixer-upper that reminds us all: there's no end in sight.
The home, built almost a century ago, sits on a ten thousand square foot lot on Waverly St. in Palo Alto. The interior needs a lot of work.
But this decaying structure in the heart of Silicon Valley could be your dream home ... if you've got a spare $5 million lying around.
Miles McCormick, who works in residential real estate sales, believes that -- for those who can afford to live around here -- this house is a deal ripe for the picking.
"It's not an outrageous price, it's a price one would expect," McCormick told KPIX 5. "There is so much money in town and there is not a lot of need for mortgage and people aren't leveraged."
McCormick says if wealthy tech lords don't swoop in, spec builders could snap it up. A brand new home in this area, with all the bells and whistles could sell for double the purchase price.
"(Buyers) have paid $5 million, if not more, for a lot this size -- even smaller -- and then will tear it down and build a (new) house and sell it upon completion," McCormick pointed out. "There are comps to support -- easily -- $10 million. Easily," he added.
While most people would tear down the existing building, McCormick says about a quarter would try to restore at least some of it.
The property is in a prime location on a tree-lined street close to Stanford University campus, within walking distance of downtown Palo Alto.
