Tiny 384-square-foot house in Silicon Valley comes with big $1.7M price tag

A Silicon Valley house not much larger than a shack is selling down the road from Apple’s headquarters. The cost: $1.7 million.

The unidentified owner has listed the 384-square-foot house at 10036 Carmen Road, in Cupertino, about five miles from Apple Park, the San Francisco Standard reported.

The price works out to $4,440 per square foot.

The one-bedroom, one-bathroom house, built in 1948, sits on nearly a fifth of an acre at the end of a cul-de-sac. It’s the cheapest single-family home in town.

The listing describes the property as “cozy,” with the front door opening directly into the kitchen, which doesn’t include an oven or range. Which is directly linked to the bedroom. Which is connected to a covered outdoor patio.

A “powerhouse of possibilities” awaits for any buyer who pays the right price, a marketing brochure says. That’s because the backyard has 7,841 vacant square feet available for redevelopment.

Compass real estate agent Faviola Perez, who represents the seller, said the house was originally a hunting cabin — now flanked by towering homes with three-car garages, which in the past year have fetched up to $4 million.

In just the first weekend of open houses, Perez welcomed more than100 interested buyers.

Some wanted to build an entirely new dream home in the backyard. Others envisioned expanding the tiny cabin into a larger house. 

“This area is so highly sought after,” Perez told the Standard. “Somebody has just got to be willing to roll up their sleeves a little bit to unlock the whole value of that property.” 

The current $206,912 assessed value of the property equates to $2,419 in annual property taxes. A $1.7 million price tag, by comparison, would demand a nearly $20,000 annual property tax bill.

— Dana Bartholomew

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