All we need is love!
However you celebrate this day, I hope your heart is full, and you feel loved!
On this day when more roses are sold than on any other day of the year* I have Roses on my mind, with two new listings with Rose addresses!
I’m delighted to be able to enjoy roses in bloom in my own garden right now, along with daffodils, whose appearance I have always used as the harbinger of our real estate market. Male agents often say the market opens after the Super Bowl (or Superb owl…) and now we can all agree that the 2026 market has opened!
It’s a pleasure to be sharing my first listing of the year with my new business partner, Ambrish Chitnis. We are proud to have listed a delightful brown shingle in a remarkably convenient North Berkeley location, right at the beginning of the Gourmet District, and also near Live Oak Park, at 2012Rose.com You can see lots of photos, as well as a virtual tour and floor plans there.
It has two spacious bedrooms with lots of original wood trim, and special nooks, a gracious living room with an enormous window seat and box beam ceiling, an updated kitchen with new counters and sink, and a seating area that is beyond charming! This is a home waiting for those who want to leave their car at home and take advantage of a remarkable location so near to all the amenities on Shattuck Avenue, and Monterey Market area, or the top of Solano Ave. And it’s just a mile or so to the UC campus. In typical “price to entice” fashion, it’s listed at $1,035M, though the seller paid $1.33M in 2021 at the peak of the market. He has subsequently invested quite a bit…but if we priced in the high $1.3M range, especially for a home without a garage or off-street parking, it would likely be off-putting to buyers. We are hoping that the vintage details and fantastic location will inspire enthusiastic offers!
Normally I would invite you to come visit with me on one of the two Sundays it will be open (Februrary 15th and 22nd, 2-4 pm). However, I have just reached the one-month mark after knee replacement surgery. So fingers crossed that in another month or so you might see me out and about, and maybe, just maybe, I will have gotten strong enough to leave the walking stick behind! My partner Ambrish will be hosting the Sunday open houses.
My second Rose listing is a really special one, an historic nine-plex by esteemed architect Henry Gutterson, nestled along the shared garden and public path Rose Walk, designed by Bernard Maybeck. 2501-2527 Rose Walk is truly a remarkable property! There are four duplexes completed in 1936, a separate cottage with a spacious private deck, the first structure of the complex from 1925, plus nine garages on a 20K sq. ft. lot adjoining Codornices Road. The website RoseWalkComplex.com includes a video tour which I narrate, and will give you a visit to both interior spaces as well as the lovely exteriors and the garden. If you know anyone looking for an investment opportunity of a one-of-a kind property, it’s listed at $6.395M (below the purchase price in 2023 of $6.8M), I hope you’ll let me know. There is one unit held vacant in order to make showings easier, while the other eight units and garages are rented. It’s truly a remarkable and beautiful property!
So far the market appears to be generally strong, and inconsistent, a combination that continues from last year. Buyers appear to be encouraged by a slight decrease in mortgage rates, and the seasonal increase of inventory. The question for listing agents like me is whether buyers will take action when they see a home they like now, or will they hold out for listings as close to perfect as possible. We all know there are no “perfect” homes, nor humans. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t lovable examples of both!
*And here’s some fun data: Supposedly 250 million roses are produced and sold worldwide for Valentine’s Day each year, with roughly 150 million to over 200 million stems sold in the U.S. alone! As the single largest holiday for the floral industry, red roses dominate sales, making up about 75% of the total, with peak demand supplied primarily by Colombia, Ecuador, and Kenya.
Extra love to those who have read to this point!
Home is Where the Heart Is!
Arlene
Left: The Rose Walk Complex, a 9-plex I’ve listed above Euclid Avenue in North Berkeley
Right: a view from an upper unit of the Rose Walk Complex, listed for $6.395M
The Good News Department!
Each month I will share something positive that uplifted my spirits, and I hope will raise yours as well.
For me, watching figure skating at the winter Olympics is a real treat. There were some tragic moments and disappointments in the individual events this year for US skaters, but their team efforts were remarkable. Such a joy to see each of their contributions, especially seeing the gorgeous performances of ice dancers Chock & Bates, and the electrifying skating of Ilia Malinin. Golden performances for sure!
Betty Reid Soskin was a local treasure. The beloved national park ranger, civil rights pioneer and co-founder of Reid’s Records in Berkeley died in December, at the age of 104. She was the mother of Bob Reid, a local singer songwriter, who cared for her in her later years. She will be honored at the Kaiser Center for the Arts in Oakland on Saturday, March 1 at 2 pm. The event is free, but seats must be reserved, and only balcony seats are still available. For more information about her, and to reserve seats.
Great Local Performances active now, or coming up soon!
Improbable Fiction by Alan Ayckbourn, Directed by Angela Mason. now- Feb 28.
Presented by the Masquers Playhouse in Point Richmond. Highly recommended by friends!
A self-help writers’ group meets at the home of Arnold, a genial unmarried gent who dreams of creative endeavours more liberating than the translation of foreign instruction manuals. After the group dismisses his suggestion of collaborating on a piece of writing, Arnold finds himself transported into the story that might have come from the collaboration.
Masquers Playhouse, Pt. Richmond. General admission tickets $35; senior and student ticket discount at $30. Tickets available here.
Lunar New Year Celebrations of the year of the Horse: The official Chinese New Year’s day is February 17th. The San Francisco parade will take place on March 7th, 5 pm – 7 pm. Click here for details on the parade.
Or for a beautiful expedition, visit Filoli now through Feb. 28th. On the final day you can also enjoy performance by Winne Wong on traditional Chinese instruments. Filoli plants over 75,000 bulbs each year, mostly imported from the Netherlands, for remarkable displays of daffodils and tulips!
How Shakespeare Saved My Life, now through Sun 1 Mar
This presentation was has gotten great reviews! Written and performed by Jacob Ming-Trent. Directed by Tony Taccone. World premiere, in Peet’s Theatre. Closed captioning: every matinee through Feb 26 Audio description: Feb 28 matinee. Postshow discussions: Feb 17 — guided by members of Berkeley Rep’s artistic team. Docent-led postshow discussions: after all matinees. For ticket information.
Vajra Voices—Peformances Feb. 28 in Berkeley and March 1 in San Francisco, 7:30 pm.
The Bay Area’s soul-stirring women’s vocal ensemble—bridges 11th-century polyphony with American traditions of devotional singing in “Aquitania to Appalachia: Our Ancient Belonging.” The ensemble will be joined by the inventive multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Shira Kammen, also a dear friend and client of mine! Their concerts are stirring! SFEMS makes its offerings accessible with Pay What You Can tickets. For tickets.
Arlene Baxter
arlene.baxter@theagencyre.com
15107171799
Lic. #1209552
