Extreme Home Makeover

How a "Brady Bunch" House Became the Gem of the Neighborhood

Here's the story..... of a well kept home that was owned by the same person since it was built in 1968. The original owner was a 90 plus year old woman who meticulously kept it clean and maintained throughout the years, but "style-wise" the house was stuck in the "Brady Bunch" era. The interior boasted shag carpet of various shades of brown in the living room and bedrooms, autumn gold linoleum in the kitchen and baths, avocado green appliances (as clean as if they were never used) bubble glass light fixtures, pop-corn acoustic ceilings, dark wood paneling, and double-layer fabric drapes on every window. The exterior, of course, was done in gold-beige stucco with dark brown wood accents and a triple layer shake roof. The entry porch was enclosed by a wooden structure painted dark brown and covered by sheets of gold bubble plexiglass to shelter visitors from the rain. And the spacious yard was filled with nothing but juniper shrubs and ice-plant. I'm certain in it's heyday, back in 1968-1970 the home was the gem of the neighborhood, but for the 21st century it was in need of an "extreme home makeover".

Well, the 90 plus year old woman sold the Brady Bunch house to a young family who bought the home to live in and remodel little by little. Its best qualities were the location, the ocean view, and the manner in which it was lovingly cared for throughout the years. Before they moved in, they had the popcorn ceilings scraped, paneling removed, floors redone in cherry wood and travertine, new lighting and paint. They spent the next year finishing the interior with decorative touches like crown moulding, expanding the master bath, adding a closet, creating an access from the garage into the house, adding new appliances and granite counter tops in the kitchen and more. The following year, the roof and all of the windows were replaced, copper rain gutters were installed, limestone pillars and windowsills were added, the deck was re-built, the front entry was redone, the yard was redesigned and landscaped, and the neighbors cheered! In fact, they were even a little inspired. All around the neighborhood you could see all kinds of home improvement projects going on. Well, the time has come for the hard working family to set their sights on a new project so they are selling this beautiful home and hope to find a buyer who will love and enjoy it. An "extreme home makeover" helped a "Brady Bunch" house reclaim its true calling as the gem of the neighborhood.

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To Have Your Cake and Eat it Too

When looking to buy on the coast, the big dilemma for many buyers is deciding whether they want a home where they can be happy just looking at the water or do they really want to walk to the beach every day. Finding a home with a panoramic ocean view that is close to the beach is like having your cake and eating it too. This is sometimes tough to do in Cayucos and Morro Bay, unless you can afford to purchase an oceanfront property, because of the layout of the areas and the restrictions of the neighborhoods.

In the Beachtract neighborhood of Morro Bay, which is located West of Highway 1 down by the sandy beach, the homes are within a block of the water, but the city does not allow second stories so most of the homes do not have ocean views. It is rare to find these single level homes positioned so you can look down the street toward the water or built in a manner where the windows are angled toward the ocean. There are, however, several higher priced homes in this neighborhood, either on the ocean at over $2 million or across the street from the beach with ocean views; so you have to pay to get the cake. By the way, there's a great buy right now on a darling one bedroom in that neighborhood listed for $600,000....No view, but close to the beach.

Across Highway 1 from the Beachtract neighborhood is where you find the homes with the best views, but then you sacrifice having the close proximity, although you can still walk to the beach by crossing the highway at one of two stop lights with crosswalks. The higher up the hill you go in this North Morro Bay neighborhood, the better chance you have of getting a more spectacular, panoramic whitewater view and keeping your view from being blocked by other homes that may build up some day. The homes that are higher on the hill are often more expensive because of these views, along with the cost to build reinforced foundations. They usually have two or even three levels and stairs are often a drawback for some buyers, especially those seeking to purchase for future retirement. An elevator is usually a plus. Alternatively, if the home is built on the downslope side of the hill, the living level is at the street and the rest of the home, i.e. additional bedrooms, is downstairs. This is an optimum floor plan because you can drive into the garage, walk directly into the living level, enjoy the panoramic views without stairs and everything else goes down instead of up.

The Harbor tract is also built on a hill with views of the harbor. The Cloisters has newer homes, some are two-story with views, and it is a flat neighborhood on the West side of Hwy. 1 with dunes separating the neighborhood from the ocean. And the Heights, which is sort of a deceiving name, is the downtown area of Morro Bay near the golf course, state park and Embarcadero. Homes in the Heights are also very desirable because of the proximity to all of the activities in town, i.e. shopping, restaurants, the festivals etc. and many have views of the water and harbor. These neighborhoods, except for the Cloisters, are not very close to the sandy beach.

The layout of Cayucos is somewhat similar to Morro Bay in that the numbered streets are closest to the beach and although two story homes are allowed, there are restrictions as to height. The numbered streets area is flat and you cannot build above your neighbor and get a panoramic view of the ocean. All of the homes in the numbered streets are within a block and 1/2 to the beach and are West of Hwy 1 and some do have views of the water, but unless you are oceanfront, they are not panoramic. The best views, however are those up on the hill in Cayucos, either in town or in South Cayucos on the East side of Hwy. 1. Because Cayucos is primarily a "beach town" anywhere you are in Cayucos is a fairly easy walk to the beach.

So, when thinking about what is important, a panoramic ocean view or being really close to the sand, unless you plan to buy an oceanfront you may have to consider choosing one criteria over the other. However, if you can compromise a little bit on each, there is a way, by finding the right spot and the right house in the right neighborhood, you can have your cake and eat it too.

State of the Market

Here is a brief summary of the current state of the market in Cayucos and Morro Bay. For Cayucos there are currently 52 homes for sale which is quite a bit more than usual compared to the past couple of years. The least expensive home is listed for $549,000 and the most expensive is an oceanfront listed for $4,950,000. 24 of the 52 homes are priced over $1 million and the average list price is $1,389,481. The average time it is taking for a home to sell is 147 days. There are 3 beachfront homes currently on the market. The good news for buyers is that there is plenty of inventory to choose from which is unusual for Cayucos, and with the competition among sellers, buyers can get a better price than they've been able to in the past. Even so, the values are showing that it is still a very desirable little beach town.

Regarding Morro Bay, there are currently 85 homes for sale including condos. The least expensive is a condo for $325,000 and a single-family home for $397,650. At the top of the market in Morro Bay is a home listed for $3,000,000 on 20 acres and there is one oceanfront home for sale listed for $2,650,000. The average list price is $936,970 and it is taking 142 days to sell a home in this market. Morro Bay has more homes that are affordable as far coastal property goes and we are seeing the lower end of the market sell fairly quickly. Buyers are starting to come over to the area now that tax season is over. This is the time of year that sales begin to pick up and I am very optimistic it will turn out to be a good year over all. Right now, however, we need to reduce our inventory little by little to balance out the market.

My New Blog

Welcome to my new blog about real estate on the central coast of California. I have been a Real Estate Agent in Cayucos and Morro Bay for about 7 years and I am excited to share what is happening in today's market. I will be writing my thoughts, sharing ideas and experiences and posting information a few days a week and hope you will find it interesting and helpful. Please visit often and send me your questions and comments. Thanks!

Sunset over Estero Bay