Ms. San Francisco Real Estate (Janice Lee)

PRINCETON, N.J. -- For the second straight year, more Americans name real estate than stocks, gold, savings accounts/CDs or bonds as the best long-term investment. Real estate leads with 31% of Americans choosing it, followed by stocks/mutual funds, at 25%. Meanwhile, gold dropped to third this year,  a significant change from 2011 and 2012 , when it was the runaway leader. The percentages of Americans choosing real estate and stocks are steady this year compared with 2014. This follows three years, from 2011 to 2014, of increasing partiality toward both investments as the housing and stock markets recovered and gold's appeal waned. The public's preference for gold fell five percentage points in the past year, bringing its overall decline since 2011 to 15 points, the largest shift seen among the five investments tracked. Savings accounts and bonds consistently have been lower on the list, although those identifying savings accounts as the best investment reached 19% in 20

A:  The Inner Sunset. I’ve always said if you buy anything, buy it here. It’s been a secret for some time. People are starting to understand what a gem this place is. I start my day with a run up to Golden Gate Heights or into Golden Gate Park. I’m 30 minutes or so from downtown on the N Judah Muni line. I’m 20 minutes to the beach. There is easy access to Interstate 280 and a short drive to the airport. When I have visitors stay, they spend all day enjoying the de Young Museum, theCalifornia Academy of Sciences or the Conservatory of Flowers, all in Golden Gate Park. Inventory here is low. There are currently only three listings available and the average sales price over the last six months averages about 13 percent over asking. But prices are still manageable here and have room to grow. The average sales price is still slightly under many other San Francisco neighborhoods at $1.1 million. The homes are spacious and backyards have room for gardens. UCSF is also here, prov

JUST LIST! 853-855 Lombard Street San Francisco, California For More Information Janice Lee 415-832-9151 International President's Premier Top Producer, Top SF Realtor Investment Specialist JaniceFLee@gmail.com Two remodeled flats on Lombard Street in San Francisco's coveted Russian Hill. The recently remodeled vacant top floor, three bedroom two bath flat is gorgeous with period details intact! The freshly painted home offers a warm and welcoming living room that flows nicely into the formal dining room with partial water and city views is ideal for entertaining. The remodeled open kitchen features quartz counters, new gas stove and stainless steel appliances. Spacious renovated bathrooms offers custom tiling, new lighting, and vanity. Partial TransAmerica building views from back bedrooms. Walk in closet in master bedroom. Refinished hardwood floors, recessed and modern lighting, double pane windows and in unit laundry complete the top floor flat. Newer

If death and taxes are the two true givens in life, there probably should be a third: the bucketful of tax breaks Uncle Sam throws out every year to encourage more Americans to buy a home. From being able to write off virtually all mortgage interest, not only for your primary home, but for a second home as well — up to $1.1 million of debt (when you include home-equity loans) in most cases, to being able to write off your property taxes, homeowners have opportunities for dozens more federal income tax deductions than renters. In fact, only 21 states and the District of Columbia offer renters any kind of tax breaks or credits — generally credits for property taxes. Americans took $68.5 billion in mortgage interest deductions (MID) alone in 2012, according to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), saving Americans who owned homes about $1,900 a year, on average. This is particularly beneficial to first-time home buyers whose early monthly payments in a 30-year loan are mostly o

If you're a tenant with large space requirements on the Peninsula, your options have just opened up, big time. SoftBank Corp. has formally put all of its San Carlos offices at 1 and 2 Circle Star Way on the market for sublease, real estate insiders tell me, following a U-turn in strategy after Softbank-owned Sprint's bid to acquire T-Mobile fell apart last year. The 200,000 square feet of space between the two buildings joins another large Peninsula sublease opening: DreamWorks'193,000-square-foot project at 1400 and 1500 Seaport Blvd. in Redwood City's Pacific Shores office park. That space became available after DreamWorksannounced in January that it was shuttering the longtime Northern California studio. JLL is handling the DreamWorks listing, while Newmark Cornish & Carey is marketing the space for SoftBank. Sublease space has not been a major factor in the region's real estate landscape during the current economic cycle. However, the SoftBank availa