Berkeley | $1.295 million
A 1979 modern-style house, on 0.1 acres
This three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bathroom house is in the hills of Berkeley, half a mile from the Berkeley Rose Garden and the adjacent Codornices Park, which has tennis courts and a softball field. U.C. Berkeley’s main campus is five minutes away by car, as is the start of Grizzly Peak Trail and its sweeping views of San Francisco and the Bay. A public elementary school is also within a five-minute drive. Berkeley High School is 10 minutes away.
The Downtown Berkeley BART station is 15 minutes away by bus. By car, San Francisco is 40 minutes away, and San Jose is an hour and 15 minutes away.
Size: 1,784 square feet
Price per square foot: $729
Indoors: The house sits on a steep lot, with steps leading from the driveway up to the front door. At the back of a foyer with tile floors, another set of steps lead up to the main level.
The living room has high, wood-beamed ceilings and wide windows that overlook the neighborhood. A wood-burning fireplace and the bookshelves that flank it divide the living room from the dining room.
Next is the kitchen, with stainless steel appliances, including a dishwasher and a range with an electric cooktop. On the other side of a breakfast bar is a den, where a set of glass doors open to a deck. A powder room is directly off the dining room.
The home’s three bedrooms are off a hallway that begins in the foyer. The primary suite is carpeted and has a full bathroom with a double vanity. One of the other two bedrooms has access to a patio. Also off the hall is a laundry room, and on the other side of that is an updated bathroom with gray tile.
Outdoor space: A wide balcony wraps around the main level, with views of nearby treetops. From one side of the balcony, steps lead to an elevated deck lined with built-in wood benches and covered by a pergola. At the street level is a one-car garage.
Taxes: $16,188 (estimated)
Contact: Mark Hardwicke, Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Reliance Partners, 510-501-0713
Philo | $1.298 million
An 1874 farmhouse, on 4.4 acres
This two-bedroom, two-bathroom house was taken down to the studs in 2024 and outfitted with a new steel roof and new HVAC, electrical and plumbing systems. The area is a winemaking hub, and the town of Boonville, 15 minutes away by car, has a general store, coffee shops and several farm-to-table restaurants. Greenwood Creek State Beach, on the Pacific, is half an hour away and the center of Mendocino takes 45 minutes.
Ukiah takes an hour by car and Clear Lake takes an hour and 40 minutes. The Bay Area cities are two-and-a-half hours away and Sacramento is a three-hour drive.
Size: 1,166 square feet
Price per square foot: $1,113
Indoors: Set back from the street, the house is behind a wood gate and has a red brick pathway leading to its porch.
The front door, inset with stained glass, opens to a living room with hardwood floors and porch-facing windows. An inset metal stove is topped by a simple wood mantel.
Through the living room is the combined dining room and kitchen, where the floors are made of Spanish-style tile. In the dining area there’s a suspended rattan light fixture and a set of wide doors that open to the deck. The kitchen appliances are by Bertazzoni, the range hood is made of Venetian plaster, and the countertops are quartzite.
One of the two bedrooms is off the dining area, with doors to the deck and the patio beyond. The bathroom next door has a walk-in shower and a Calacatta Viola marble sink. The other bedroom, off the living room, fits a king-size bed. Its en suite bathroom has a walk-in shower, a schoolhouse-style sink and checkerboard marble tile floors.
Outdoor space: Directly behind the main house is a wood deck that faces a stone patio with a pergola for shade. Around the corner is a garden with raised planter boxes, and at the far end of the patio is an outdoor bathing area with a claw foot soaking tub. Other structures on the property include a greenhouse, two barns and a workshop. Plantings include a fruit orchard. Several parked cars fit in the driveway, where an electric car charger is installed.
Taxes: $14,412 (estimated)
Contact: Todd Sheppard, Sotheby’s International Realty — Wine Country—Sonoma Brokerage, 707-235-6870
Mill Valley | $1.295 million
A 1951 cottage, on 0.2 acres
This three-bedroom, two-bathroom house was built by Gerald Kott, a developer known for storybook cottage-style homes. The house is 10 minutes by car from the center of town and from Muir Woods National Monument. Trails to the top of Mt. Tamalpais are within a 20-minute drive. Muir Beach, known for its gentle waves, is ten minutes away.
San Francisco International Airport is 45 minutes away by car, as is downtown Oakland. Driving into Santa Rosa takes around an hour.
Size: 1,552 square feet
Price per square foot: $834
Indoors: From the street, steps lead to this home’s front porch, where a bright-red Dutch door opens to the living room. Here, the ceilings are trimmed in wood, a bookshelf is built into a corner and a fireplace with raised hearth has a brick surround.
Between the living room and the kitchen is a dining nook in front of patio-facing French doors. In the kitchen are butcher block countertops and blue cabinets. A window above the sink offers a glimpse of Mt. Tamalpais.
The primary bedroom is on the second floor, atop steps that begin in the dining nook. The bedroom’s ceilings are high and pitched, and a set of doors open to a balcony. Next door is a smaller bedroom and this level also has a full bathroom.
Another bedroom, big enough for a queen-size bed, is on the first floor, along with a bathroom that has a combined tub and shower and a white porcelain pedestal sink.
Outdoor space: The red brick patio, beginning on the side of the house and continuing around to the back has ample space for dining and grilling. The sloped lot has space for a garden, a detached one-car garage and room for another car in the driveway.
Taxes: $16,188 (estimated)
Contact: Mike Murphy and Kathleen Clifford, Compass, 415-359-3975
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