Home Buying

See inside the crumbling San Francisco home that sold for nearly $2 million

The listing describes the home -- which survived the 1906 quake, among others -- as "the worst house on the best block."

The home was described as "the worst house on the best block" on the listing. Todd Wiley

By Kelly Garrity -- Boston.com correspondent

January 24, 2022

1 minute to read

A 2,848-square-foot San Francisco home with two parking spots and a backyard may sound like the thing of dreams for buyers in the city’s Noe Valley neighborhood.

This home is more like a nightmare, which is ironic because doesn’t have a bedroom. This didn’t stop a buyer from scooping it up for $1,970,000 —nearly double the $995,000 asking price. The listing for the 122-year-old single-family at 320 Day St. touted the property as a “contractor’s special,” calling it “the worst house on the best block.”

A rundown kitchen has blue floors that are stained and yellow walls. There is very broken looking stove in the background, and several old cabinets along the left wall. — . – Todd Wiley

The home was featured on the popular Twitter account @ZillowGoneWild, where responses varied from dismay and disbelief to cool acceptance.

“How do any actual humans live in San Francisco?” one Twitter user replied. Another claimed the eerie-looking building appeared to be haunted.

Others kept it short and simple: “Yikes.” “Disgusting.”

“A beautiful old home that survived 122 years, two world wars, and several major earthquakes. But won’t survive this generation,” one Twitter user lamented.

An empty room has several windows on the left and back walls. The floor is stained in the paint is chipping off the walls. — . – Todd Wiley

Others were less skeptical of the high price tag, noting a condo complex built on the lot could draw in triple the cost of the crumbling home.

“There will be two $3mill condos for sale on that lot in a year,” one Twitter user said.

Based on the prices of other homes on the street, the post may not be too far off. A two-bedroom, one-bathroom home at 318 Day St. is valued at $2,202,600, according to Zillow. The median sale price of a home in the Noe Valley is $2,050,000, according to Redfin.

The home was initially under contract for $1.4 million, the Associated Press reported, but a bidding war brought on by a complex conservatorship pushed the sale up toward the $2 million mark.