Former KPIX anchor, vineyard owner seek nearly $11M for Pac Heights home 

Former KPIX anchor Kate Kelly Klein and her husband, Rodney Strong Vineyard owner Tom Klein, have listed their longtime Pacific Heights home for $10.65 million, according to their agents, Joe Lucier and Stacey Caen of Sotheby’s. 

The empty nesters recently downsized to another home in the same neighborhood, the agents said. 

“They absolutely wanted to stay in this particular neighborhood because of the walkability,” Caen said, referring to the stretch of Pacific Heights known as the “Golden Triangle” for its proximity to private schools, parks and Union and Fillmore street shopping and restaurants.

They also have another home at their Sonoma vineyard, which produces Cabernet Sauvignons, but the 6,500-square-foot 1908 home at 2525 Vallejo Street had been their primary residence since 1998, when Kelly Klein was a fixture on the local CBS affiliate. They paid $2.6 million for the four-story, five-bedroom home with four full and two half-baths, according to property records.

The home sits on an extra-wide lot and is square, which makes it stand out in a city full of rectangular properties, Lucier said. It also has three large terraces, including one with bay views directly off the living room on top of the one-car garage and one off the top-floor pentroom, which has a wet bar and office. 

Other than the buildout in the attic, the original layout has not been altered much, though the Kleins added more windows to bring in more light and showcase views. Since the pandemic, upscale buyers have veered back towards more formal homes with distinct separations between spaces and rich fabrics and colors rather than open floor plans with little ornamentation that resemble “a white cube,” Lucier added.

The Kleins updated the kitchen and baths over the years, including adding sinks salvaged from the Folger estate in Woodside for the primary bathroom vanities. But they brought in Caen to lead a two-month-long refresh of the entire property — including paint, flooring and fixtures — before listing it this week. 

The agents declined to reveal the budget for the renovations, but said they believe it will pay off because buyers this spring appear to be particularly discerning. While fixers at a lower price point are selling as well, there’s a definite premium for move-in ready.

“Time is of high value in the San Francisco Bay Area,” Lucier said.

There’s also a “dead zone” in the market right now with limited homes priced between $9 million and $13 million, Lucier said, which is one reason they decided to price it at $10.65 million. There are few direct comps for a home as “stately” as this one, and “the market is still recovering,” so they also decided on a price point that would “incentivize active buyers,” he said. 

“The sale of this home will signal that blue-chip properties and Pacific Heights have weathered this downturn better than any other houses in San Francisco,” he said.

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