San Francisco Russian Hill house at 30 North View Courtroom promoting for $488,000 however you may’t transfer in till 2053
SAN FRANCISCO — A three-bedroom house in San Francisco's Russian Hill neighborhood is for sale for a bargain price – just half a million dollars.
However, there is a catch: you may not be able to move in for 30 years.
It is a unique offering that attracted a long line of potential buyers last week.
“My husband came in and said, 'You have to look out the window. There's a line running from the house to the middle of the block,'” said Ilia Smith, a neighbor.
The 1,100-square-foot home at 30 North View Court in San Francisco has three bedrooms and two bathrooms, and the price is definitely raising eyebrows among neighbors.
“I don’t know what to think about it,” said Ilia Smith.
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“This was a big surprise to all of us on this street,” said her husband Tim Smith.
According to the ad published on Zillow, the house is rented and is to be sold as is.
The buyer cannot move in until 2053. That's another 30 years.
“Thirty years. I don’t think I’ll live to see that,” said Ilia Smith.
“The new owner would have to buy the house on a very long-term lease, which is currently being offered to a private individual,” said Tim Smith.
According to the ad, the current tenant will continue to live there and pay the same rent each month. The current tenant pays $417 in rent per month.
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ABC7 News went to the Park North Real Estate office in hopes of speaking to the two brokers listing the property. No one was available for comment.
We then spoke to a lawyer specializing in tenancy law.
“For some reason they gave this person a 30-year right to possession. I've seen that before. That's a pretty sloppy way of doing estate planning. 'I want to leave this person some security so they don't have to worry about where they're going to live.' That's how they can do it. I think they should have done it differently,” said attorney Steven MacDonald.
MacDonald says the house is being sold as is – take it or leave it.
“It's a very, very unique buyer who is willing to accept a big discount – maybe two-thirds. Maybe you pay $1 million for a $3 million house and wait 20 to 30 years before you can move in.”
For those willing to wait, it's a bargain.
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