An 81-year-old San Francisco resident was told she had to leave her home.

As the San Francisco Chronicle first reported, a note was posted on the door of Rosemarie Benter’s Page Street condo on April 20, telling her she had three days to vacate the premises.

Benter said she bought her home decades ago, but a loan she took out to pay her property taxes created a chain of problems that led to her home being sold in a foreclosure sale. Benter told NBC Bay Area that she will not go out without a fight.

An 81-year-old San Francisco woman has been told she must vacate the home she has lived in for more than three decades. Kris Sanchez reports.

“Yes, I’m a tough old bird,” said Benter on Sunday.

Benter said she has lived in the Victorian home in San Francisco’s Upper Haight for more than three decades. She explained that she was able to initially own the house on a “joint lease” and then retain ownership when the unit was split into condominiums.

Benter said she took out a reverse mortgage on her property back in 2007.

Currently, Benter said, she’s dealing with a variety of health issues, including arthritis and the effects of a recent stroke. In July 2021, Benter said she sought help paying for her healthcare costs and property taxes. Benter said she was put in touch with a realtor who pressured her to sign papers to use her home to take out a loan.

Originally, Benter said she was told the loan would be $8,000, but the loan turned out to be more than $9,000 and then went up to over $13,000, including interest and fees.

“I was repeatedly told, ‘No, no, no, no one is going to kick you out for an eight thousand dollar bill,'” Benter said.

Then, in February 2023, Benter said, “There was a knock on my door, I think it was around 11 a.m., and the man said, ‘Hi, I’m here to repossess your house.'”

“And I said, ‘What do you mean?'” Benter recalled, “he said, ‘If you don’t have thirteen thousand dollars to pay this debt, it’s going to be sold in 29 minutes.'”

Benter said her home was sold at a foreclosure sale to the highest bidder.

An attorney for the buyer released a statement to NBC Bay Area on Monday.

“My client’s intention is to reside in this property, but if Ms. Benter wishes to buy it back, my client is willing to negotiate,” said attorney Joanna Kozubal.

Darren Orr, an attorney with the nonprofit Legal Aid for the Elderly of San Francisco, is now representing Benter. Orr explained that Benter contacted the nonprofit after the foreclosure sale and his team attempted to reverse the foreclosure, which they believe was based on a “completely unscrupulous and predatory loan.”

Benter said she was surprised to find the eviction notice on her door on Friday. She said whoever delivered the notification didn’t call her or ring her doorbell to let her know. Benter only found out about this from a reporter.

The statement states, “Eugene Gardner has acquired the property by escrow and title to the property has been duly completed.” The notice is signed by Kozubal.

Benter said when she saw the news, she panicked. “I was like, ‘This is it, Monday morning they’re going to show up with a sheriff and a truck and get me out of here.'”

But Orr explained that the scenario Benter envisioned was unlikely to materialize Monday, and that several other procedural steps would have to happen before Benter could be formally deported.

“Legally, we would expect that [Gardner] will seek eviction and unlawful detention to try to evict Ms. Benter as soon as possible. We will of course defend Ms. Benter in this lawsuit and we certainly hope to be successful in that,” Orr said.

On Monday, Orr said Benter will file a lawsuit against the broker and lender she worked with, as well as the new buyer. He said this lawsuit will prompt the court to find Benter as the rightful owner of the condo and seek damages for the damage caused to her.

Benter said she still hopes she can spend the rest of her life in her home.

If that’s not possible, she has no idea what she’s going to do.

“I can’t live on the streets and afford nothing,” she stressed.

The post New Purchaser of San Francisco Rental Tells 81-Yr-Previous Resident to Go away – NBC Bay Space appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

A San Francisco mansion once owned by the star of “National Treasure,” Nicolas Cage, has found a buyer.

The home had last been listed for $9.95 million, and is now in “pending sale” status, The Real Deal reported.

The buyer also has an option to purchase an adjoining lot for an additional $3 million—which could push the final price upward.

Located on Russian Hill, with iconic views of the San Francisco Bay and Alcatraz Island, the historic home was the subject of a popular painting. However, it had a hard time landing a buyer.

Built in 1914, the four-story Tudor Revival initially came on the market in 2017 for $12 million.

Later that year, the price dropped to $10.95 million and stayed at that price through 2020. This March, the price was further discounted to $9.95 million.

While the prime location was a huge selling point, it needed a refresh. Renovations were recently completed, with updates including a modern kitchen with new counters and cabinets, refinished flooring, a redone powder room, and exterior paint.

Artful abode

After the renovation, the 6,305-square-foot home maintains much of the original architecture.

The front entrance has a Gothic stone archway. The main floor includes a library with a wood-burning fireplace, a formal dining room with leaded glass windows and original wood detail, and an elegant living room with windows overlooking the bay.

The second level features the primary suite, with two dressing rooms and a large bathroom. There’s an additional en suite bedroom and a mirrored wet bar on this level.

Updated abode

(Realtor.com)

Living room

(Realtor.com)

Newly renovated kitchen

(Realtor.com)

Dining room

(Realtor.com)

Russian Hill residence

(Realtor.com)

The third floor has two more en suite bedrooms with vaulted ceilings. A lower level has a family room, bonus room, wine cellar, and one more bedroom and bathroom.

The property also comes with a two-car garage. If the buyer picks up the adjacent lot, a guesthouse or office could be added to create a true compound.

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Watch: Zoe Kravitz Buys Former Cider Mill—Peek Inside the Rustic Retreat

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As for the Cage connection, the star apparently picked up the place and the next-door lot for $9.4 million in 2006. He sold both properties in 2008 at a loss, for $8.5 million, the Real Deal notes.

Mark Levinson of Compass holds the listing.

Cage’s cribs

The movie star had previously owned a grand Victorian in nearby Pacific Heights, which he sold in 2005 for $3 million.

The renovated 7,000-square-foot abode came back on the market again in 2018 for $12 million. After some price cuts, it sold for $5.9 million, less than half of its original asking price.

That home still has some Cage touches: The actor added stained-glass panels featuring underwater scenes with octopuses during his stay.

Stained-glass dating to Cage’s time in the Pacific Heights home

(Realtor.com)

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SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO – A large mixed-use project in South San Francisco that will include a new Safeway store is advancing the purchase of a select lot for development by a real estate company.

Steelwave, a seasoned developer acting through a subsidiary, has purchased a large lot at 180 El Camino Real in South San Francisco on which the project is to be built, according to documents filed with the San Mateo County Real Estate Agency.

The subsidiary paid $ 98 million for the package and bought the 14.5-acre site from Shamaim LLC, according to district documents filed on Dec. 28.

Newmark brokers Steven Golubchik, Nicholas Bicardo, Edmund Najera, Jonathan Schaefler and Darren Hollak arranged the real estate transaction, the commercial real estate company said.

“180 El Camino was one of the few remaining opportunities to grow in South San Francisco,” said Golubchik, a Newmark vice chairman and head of the real estate company’s Northern California Capital Markets Unit. Golubchik added that the property had received “robust” interest from potential buyers.

The Steelwave entity completed the property purchase through a cash deal, according to the county records.

According to the planning documents of South San Francisco, one of the heart of the project will be a new Safeway store.

“The revitalization of this property has been in the works for many years, but it’s worth the wait,” South San Francisco Mayor Mark Addiego said in a prepared announcement.

The new Safeway store will be approximately 63,700 square feet, city officials said.

An existing mall on the site, known over the years as the Spruce Shopping Center, located on the southeast corner of El Camino Real and Spruce Avenue, has stood vacant in recent years.

Steelwave is also planning several buildings consisting of offices and research sites on the site adjacent to the Safeway business location.

The office and research buildings are expected to have a total area of ​​750,000 square meters, according to a very tentative proposal submitted to the city council.

With the exception of the Safeway store, 19,500 square feet of retail space could potentially be part of the project.

Steelwave is coordinating the exact plans for the office and research space as well as the additional retail locations outside the Safeway store.

Construction of the new Safeway store is slated to begin this spring and be completed in the summer of 2023, officials from South San Francisco said.

The development area is within 2 miles of the San Bruno BART station.

Residents of South San Francisco have been waiting for the retail complex to be modernized for several years, but earlier proposals had not been implemented as an actual project.

“The new Safeway will anchor and stimulate positive improvements in the area and provide our residents with more shopping and dining options,” said Mayor Addiego.

180 El Camino Real in San Francisco, a development site for a mixed-use office and retail project, concept. (Google Maps)

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