The Marina’s newest addition- 1598 Bay

1598 Bay, welcome to the Marina.

You’re a stones throw from Safeway (read:Dateway), the Marina green is basically your backyard and you have front row seats to fleet week every year.

The walkability of the area- Chestnut and Union street is within a 10 minute walk (or 1200 steps if you only speak Fitbit).

There are, of course urban legends about the Marina being home to the ‘bro’s’, how it’s ‘frat central.’

I won’t lie, they do appear on full moon nights or when there’s a special on 6 packs at Dateway ( beer not abs, but honest mistake). But apart from loud drunken slurring ,they do no harm really.

If you make it past the numerous distractions in the area – like panoramic views of Golden Gate bridge, to Off the Grid at Fort Mason, 1598 will be worth it.

There are 28 homes in the development, ranging from 1 bed’s to penthouses.

However the developer is only releasing 17 units, and ‘holding’ onto 11 (once you see them you’ll want to hold onto 11 as well).

1598 does stand out amongst the early 1900’s Marina homes, but besides being brand spanking new, the biggest difference: CONCRETE & STEEL!

Why am I getting so excited about raw materials? The website states ‘superior noise attenuation’ aka : SILENCE!

The developer wanted maximum ceiling height- and wooden beams would cut out 3-4 inches of ceiling height, but not being able to hear your neighbours binge watch game of thrones till 4am is priceless. (Yes all 7 seasons, it was brutal)

The floor plans in the development maximize on usability, be it in the smart galley kitchens leading to the living rooms or the half baths and storage closets they’ve added to most of the floor plans. There’s wooden flooring throughout, Bosch kitchen appliances and air conditioning for the full 4 days of blistering heat we get.

Each unit also has a parking space included, with electric car charging capability, (that Tesla isn’t going to charge itself!) The building is also wired for fiber optic internet- because this is the future people!

Ranging from floor plans of one bedrooms, cozy two bedrooms and expansive 3 bedrooms – the first floor/ street level, particularly in the rear of the building is dark, and isn’t priced too differently to the other floors, but they do give you a nice patio to compensate for the lack of light.

The bathrooms are all spacious with marble flooring and high quality finishes- the larger units are fitted with the highly coveted oval bathtubs, to soak your bitcoin stress away. ( Hodlers carry lots of tension in their necks )

The rear units are my favourite, PH 400 to be precise. The penthouse units are absolutely stunning. And I don’t use that word casually.

Ten foot ceilings, skylights, balcony, fireplace, wine fridge and Thermador kitchen with Samsung W/D (Apple won’t mind). Where do I sign?

Of course, like everything in life, 1598 comes with a price tag.

Where else can you say ‘Darling, I’m in the wet room’, and you’re not even making a dirty joke.

The one bedrooms , smallest at 664 sq. ft start at $849,000 and go up to 1.25M, the two bedrooms starting at 910 sq. ft can cost you up to 1.55M and the 3 bedrooms , the largest at 1,546 sq. ft are priced at a cool 2.45M/ 2.7M for the PH.

HOA dues depending on square footage start from $750 PM and climb to around $950 PM – but there’s no gym or pool in sight. (But do you really need a gym, with Crissy Field a hop skip and a jump away, quite literally).

It is a expensive monthly charge but you do get access to a shared roof deck with basically a postcard view of the bay, (3 bedrooms units get a private patio) with a BBQ and sun loungers, for those 4 days I mentioned earlier.

If you can afford the prices 1598 is definitely a great addition to the Marina, especially as an investment it makes a great rental opportunity- it can fetch higher rental incomes compared to the older buildings in the surrounding areas.

However, nothing is perfect, there is talk of a development directly behind 1598. This was opposed by the developers and is still in limbo. A more immediate drawback is cell phone network. I had zero network in most of the building and overheard other’s too having the same problem.

So you could potentially be cut off from the world at 1598 Bay, but do you really care?

Especially if you’re at the center of it.