San Francisco real estate in the Balboa
Terrace area consists of exclusive homes. This elite bastion
of southwest San Francisco real estate offers buyers elegant
homes in residential style neighborhoods. There are two neighborhoods
of note in this part of San Francisco and they are St. Francis
Wood and Westwood Park. The neighborhood of St. Francis Wood
is one of the most elite areas of San Francisco while
Westwood Park offers unique and more affordable
homes.
St. Francis Wood The homes in this neighborhood of Balboa Terrace
are secluded from the street and have that special quality touch of
underground wiring. Here you will find ample homes with landscaped
streets and frontage. These beautifully landscaped meandering lanes
lead to discerning homes on a magnificent scale. John Galen Howard,
a noted architectural designer of the early 1900s who was heavily
involved in the reconstruction of
San Francisco after the earthquake of 1906, designed the gateway and the
unique fountain in the rotunda style plaza of St. Francis Wood. Frederick
Law Olmsted, considered the founder of American landscape design was
responsible for laying out the streets and lanes of this prestigious
neighborhood giving this residential area a touch of Europe with large
home plots, tree lined lanes and extravagant structural designs. The
porticoes and gardens of this vibrant area of San Francisco emulate
the elegance of similar neighborhoods in Italy during the Renaissance
period.
The homes here were designed by a number of noted architectural artists.
The foresight of planners here created a community sought after by
many. The creators of this residential park barred the establishment
of businesses, masked utility connections by burying them under the
sidewalks and designed wide welcoming boulevards allowing trees to
be a significant part of the community. A public opinion poll taken
in 1998 indicated that the residents of St. Francis Wood were among
the most satisfied citizens in all of San Francisco.
Homes here range in price from $800,000 to $4,500,000.
Westwood Park The unusual assortment of homes you will find
in this residential area, situated in the old Sutro Forest, consists
of more than 600 homes all constructed during the decades of the 20s
and 30s. These cottage-style homes are bounded on the north by Monterey
Boulevard, on the east by Phelan Avenue, on the south by Ocean Avenue
and on the west by Faxon Avenue.
Among the many talented architects that helped with the reconstruction
and expansion of San Francisco is Charles F. Strothoff. He designed
almost five hundred of the more than six hundred quaint homes in Westwood
Park. The primary expansion in the Westwood Park area came about in
the building explosion that took place after the WWI.
These San Francisco area homes followed the popular bungalow style
design. During the early 1900s this was a very trendy style for homes
in American communities. This style of architecture filled a number
of demands; it provided distinctive yet practical design elements
with an
artistic flair. Design and construction methods also helped
keep costs low. Individual family homes were what America was looking
for then. They were tired of the cookie cutter look of tract homes
where one design is repeated over and over. In Westwood Park each
family was allowed to have a uniquely individual home that was a place
they could be proud to call home. With the expansion of the use of
the automobile for family transportation and due to the expansion
of a transportation infrastructure in San Francisco, area neighborhoods
like this flourished.
This beautiful neighborhood is considered one of the show places of
San Francisco and is looked at as a shining example of a contemporary
American home-based living. Surrounded by tall eucalyptus trees, here
fresh winds blow in from the Pacific offering an invigorating environment
for residents. This neighborhood is built on a moderate but noticeable
slope that rises toward to Monterey Boulevard to the north. Westwood
Park is almost totally made up of curving streets offering this community
that since of being in the country.
