Category Archives: Landmark

Finding the Season in San Francisco

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I lived here for nearly a decade before I realized that – yes – San Francisco has an Autumn.

I grew up in Virginia, where Fall hits you in the face every which way you turn. And then I lived in Sun Valley, Idaho, where a magnificent display of red, orange and gold in September is topped off with sugary white by late October.

It’s more subtle in our city. The sun burns more gravely in its journey from bay and ocean. The sound of crows and ravens fill the air. Dry leaves skitter across sidewalks. Persimmons and pumpkins appear at produce stands.

For a bigger eyeful of Autumn, you can drive north or east for a couple of hours. But it’s also possible to feel Fall more intensely during a visit to Golden Gate Park.

I walk in the park as often as my schedule allows, and am always astounded to find myself mostly alone. Every square inch of teeny-tiny Dolores Park is jammed with people, dogs, kids, Frisbees, 12-packs, guitars, drums, boomboxes and every form of marijuana on weekends, while Golden Gate Park stretches peacefully out to the Pacific like a perfectly smooth picnic blanket.

You can visit the museums (the deYoung or the California Academy of Sciences), or the Japanese Tea Garden, or the Children’s Playground. You can stroll around Stow Lake and up to Strawberry Hill. Or dally in the Shakespeare Garden. Or circle Spreckels Lake. There are trees and plants everywhere starting to change into winter attire.

Although, hands down, the best place for feeling the season (whether Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter) is the Strybing Botanical Garden. The walking is easy and there are innumerable spots where you can sit and reflect, or eat a sandwich, or watch the kids run around in the grass.

Best of all, it’s FREE to San Francisco residents. When was the last time YOU were there? Wait! You’ve never been? Well, check it out now…

Cynthia Cummins is a Top Producer and Partner at McGuire. For info on SF real estate visit http://CynthiaCummins.com. This article was re-posted at McGuire.com.

“Must Haves” You Might Not Need

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Guess what? There are some things on your “must have” list that aren’t must-haves.

You don’t need a dishwasher. Seriously, some of the your most productive and creative ideas can arise while doing the dishes (or taking a shower – what is it about water and creativity?). I’ve lived without a dishwasher for 7 years and I don’t miss it. In the time it takes to rinse and load, you can wash the dishes by hand.

You don’t need a garage. Because you don’t need a car! At least not in San Francisco. You can walk, use public transportation, take advantage of Uber or Lyft, call a taxicab, use a car-share service for the occasional errand, rent a vehicle for that out-of-town weekend, ride a bicycle, drive a scooter, or arrange carpools. All of which costs less than a vehicle and its upkeep, and much less than the additional funds needed to purchase a house with parking vs. without parking. (Even with a job that requires regular use of a car at all hours of the day and night, I’ve survived without a garage. And I live just a half block from Dolores Park – epicenter of one of the worst neighborhoods for street parking EVER.)

You don’t need a wood-burning fireplace. Some big candles and a faux mantelpiece substitute very nicely and you won’t be filling the air with Presto-log exhaust or smoke.

You don’t need an en suite bathroom. You can accomplish everything you need to accomplish in a bathroom located in a hallway. Put a lock on the door if privacy is a concern.

You don’t need private outdoor space. Have you seen the condition in which most outdoor-space owners keep their outdoor space? We’re talking dry grass, wilted and rambling plants, bicycle storage, layers of city soot, moldy mushy lemons, dead plastic toys, cigarette butts from that party last February. Note the numerous, well-maintained and inviting public spaces in San Francisco.

You don’t need a remodeled kitchen. Fabulous food can be prepped on a cutting board on a two-foot-wide sink-side Formica countertop and cooked on an electric Kenmore stove that doesn’t vent to the exterior. If you want something grilled or odiferous, go to a restaurant. San Francisco has more eateries than any other city in the United States.

You don’t need to be in a top floor condo. I’ve lived on the top and on the bottom and, trust me, noise travels both ways. If you’re on top, you have an added responsibility to tread gently. Trying to avoid making unwanted noise can quickly become as annoying as hearing unwanted noise.

Naturally, there are exceptions. Maybe you’re a secret agent working on a top-secret project that’s vital to our nation’s security and, therefore, you must have a garage for Spymobile. Maybe you’re a Red Witch from Game of Thrones whose job requires that a wood-burning fire be available 24/7 for flame-reading what the Lord of Light has in mind. Maybe you’re Jacques Pepin and you can’t get your knife on over Formica.

But if you think it through, many of your must-haves can be eliminated. And “doing without” can be refreshing and freeing. In a city where real estate always involves compromise, cutting down on required features makes all the difference.

Cynthia Cummins is a Top Producer and Partner at McGuire. For info on SF real estate visit http://CynthiaCummins.com.