Burned Silicon Valley home's $800,000 price tag raises eyebrows

The home was gutted by a fire two years ago

A Silicon Valley real estate agent is defending the price of a fire-ravaged home that is listed on the market for $800,000 (£565,000).

The San Jose house, which sits on a 5,800 sq ft lot in California's San Francisco Bay Area, was the site of a major fire two years ago.

The listing, announced on the agent's Facebook page, quickly drew criticism.

San Francisco housing prices have risen dramatically in recent years due to proximity to nearby technology firms.

"Unchecked free market capitalism," one commenter complained.

"Posting a dumpster with a roof in Facebook for 800,000 is begging to get trolled," another social media user wrote.

But Willow Glen Charm real estate agent Holly Barr said the land is what makes the property so valuable, as well as its proximity to nearby technology companies such as Facebook and Google.

"If you are in the market you know real estate you know that this is what it's worth and the buyers set the price," Ms Barr told KTVU-TV.

She added that she has already received several offers, and predicts that a bidding war may break out soon.

Rick Smith of Santa Clara County Association of Realtors told the station: "I'm not surprised at all."

The median price for a single-family home in the area is $1.4 million, he noted.

According to NBC News, houses in San Jose gain nearly $571 in value every day due to rising costs and fewer homes for sale in the area.

Over a year, that equals over $200,000 in new equity, the news outlet reports.

Sacred Heart Community Services spokesman Darren Seaton told the network that he fears that the high cost will hurt more than just homeowners' wallets.

"A home looks like it makes more than a schoolteacher here in San Jose," Mr Seaton told NBC.

"As housing continues to skyrocket, it's going to make it more difficult to survive in Silicon Valley."

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