This Berkeley Listing Really Checks the Boxes – 2431 McKinley Ave.

What are most buyers looking for in a Berkeley home for a large group, whether family, friends, or multi-generation living?

Our new listing at 2429 – 2431 McKinley Ave in Central Berkeley — a Spanish-style 4 bedroom home with a detached ADU — could be the perfect case study of what “checking the boxes” means.

Whether you live in San Francisco and are curious about living in Berkeley or you’re renting in Berkeley and are ready to set down roots, here’s the list of what you’re getting with the beautiful 2431 McKinley:

• LOCATION: Central Berkeley has the word central in its name for a reason. Because it is! It’s in the flats and close to everything. For commuters to San Francisco (via BART and bus) or even if you’re working at home and want to be close to restaurants, great grocery stores like the Berkeley Bowl and Trader Joe’s, gyms like YMCA and numerous schools for all ages (including UC Berkeley). McKinley Avenue is a block West of Martin Luther King, which crosses town all the way to the highway to Oakland, the South Bay and San Francisco. Yet with tall leafy trees, it feels world’s away.
• SPACE FOR FLEXIBLE LIVING: With a 4 bedroom house (around 2600 sq ft) and a detached ADU that is thoughtfully separated with a redwood fence and gate, there is an opportunity for “separate togetherness.” The ADU dweller can come and go as they please. Or the new owner can remove the fence and have one large back area along with making the ADU feel more part of the home experience.
• INDOOR / OUTDOOR / OPEN FLOORPLAN FLOW: Does everyone you know talk about living in Italy or Spain? This home, where the originaly 1925 house was lifted in 2003, has the very high ceilings, curved plaster walls, ample windows, and glass patio doors that might make you think you are in a Mediterranean country. It’s hard to make spacious and cozy work hand in hand, but somehow the people who created this modern Berkeley-style villa did it.
• STORAGE SPACE: Beyond the ADU is a tall custom built shed with racks that can store an amazing number of boxes, bikes, and stuff. The house itself has lots of closets for things, something flippers and developers often forget…we all need an entry closet to hang our coats.
• CHARACTER WITH MODERN COMFORTS: You often find in houses that people have flipped that they are checking the boxes for “what people want” when in fact people don’t necessarily want that. We gave the home and ADU a refresh using Compass Concierge (a loan paid out of escrow) with new paint, refinished floors, new fixtures, staging and other updates. Sometimes it’s hard to believe, as a homeowner, that those things are necessary. But they are, to attract the most buyers who want a “move-in ready” house.
• CONDITION: Most agents in the East Bay guide their clients to have a Pest inspection and Home inspection report done, as part of the disclosures. That way more buyers might be inclined to make offers, knowing the house’s condition without having to invest in their own reports (or of course they can also order their home, by having an investigation contingency). You hear the phrase “lovingly cared for.” That really does describe how the owners of 2429 – 2431 McKinley updated and cared for their property. The updates, maintenance, and materials used over the years tell a story that buyers can get behind.
• COMMUNITY: I thought I lived in a tight-knit community (in Rockridge) where neighbors get together for parties and look out for each other. But I’m jealous of McKinley Ave residents! Cello concerts with neighbors setting up chairs on the corner, holiday events in the street, and a neighbor party at our listing where it seemed everyone knows each other…that is a wonderful surprise to find in the “big” city. Someone invited me in for lunch. It felt like traveling in Europe long ago when things like that happened.
• OFF-STREET PARKING: Even if a neighborhood has ample street parking, no one can deny the convenience of being able to pull into a driveway.
• LOW MAINTENANCE GARDEN: The California dry garden style landscaping with a mature olive tree, oak tree, and redwood, bring home the charm of California living while preserving water and time, from having to garden.

What doesn’t it have? Bay views. If that’s #1 on your list, reach out for some ideas of some fabulous locations and homes that put Bay views first.

For East Bay home buyers, being able to get a house that checks the boxes means you’re looking for what everyone else is. That means competition. For home owners thinking of selling, you’ll find yourself evaluating what you can change to check more boxes vs. doing less and appealing to fewer buyers.

The “Berkeley Basecamp” is a great case study for buying not only a place that checks the boxes but has location at the top of the list. They say you can’t move a house (unless it’s one of those antique places you buy for $1 move and move).

Ponder what you want in a location. 2431 McKinley makes a great Berkeley barometer.

Get in touch with any questions !

Listed by Susie Wyshak & Amanda Brunato, Compass Berkeley