Home of a Hundred Thousand Welcomes

Maureen Clanin only has 30 minutes to herself each morning before work. But a stroll through the forests of Pebble Beach down to Spanish Bay cements the peaceful feeling of her neighborhood into her day.

"It''s beautiful and quiet and we have the deer walking through the front yard," Maureen says.

The property owned by Maureen and husband John, known as >"Cead Mille Failte," (Gaelic for "hundred thousand welcomes"), has generous front and back yards enlarged by a greenbelt maintained by the Pebble Beach Company.

The yellow house peeks out behind the arms of an old oak, in a neighborhood known for its access to golf and all the cities of the Peninsula.

"It''s the least expensive home in the Country Club area," says Realtor Sheila Collins. "And it really has eye appeal from the street."

The interior of the home has a graciously sized living and adjacent sun room area, separate dining room, plus two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a kitchen with room for a table.

But it wasn''t always so charming.

"The place had been rented for ten years when we moved in," John explains. "It needed a lot of maintenance."

John and Maureen ripped out red shag carpeting hiding oak floors and peeled shiny red vinyl paper from the walls.

"At the time, we were people who didn''t have two sticks to rub together," says John. "But we redid everything we could."

Over the next thirty years, the Clanins continued home improvements, including tiling over cement walls in the bathrooms, changing out older windows with high-quality, double-paned Marvin windows, and upgrading the kitchen. Shingles were replaced with wood siding. Much of the roof was replaced several years ago. The rewards of their efforts have been many.

"This house has just been a nice, cozy thing that''s been fun to work with and improve over the years," Maureen says.

Another real joy of the house is the large grape-stake fenced backyard, which also includes another separately fenced yard adjacent to it. Windows and sliding glass doors draped with hanging vines off the bedroom lead out onto the patio next to the house. Deer have been coaxed to chomp on the nearby golf courses rather than on the Clanin''s apple tree. Still, even in a paradise like Pebble Beach, dominion over nature isn''t completely possible.

"The gopher goes with the house," John says. "No extra charge."

Price: $790,000. 1044 Sawmill Gulch Rd., Pebble Beach. Contact: Sheila Collins of Coldwell Banker at 626-2243.

La Casa Fina

Pretty money gets you not only an address in the Gatsbyesque row of homes on Pebble Beach''s 17 Mile Drive with views of Point Lobos, but also a brand-new, almost 12,000-square-foot, six-bedroom, seven-bath home: "La Casa Fina."

With three levels to work with, the mansion incorporates an entire floor devoted to recreation. There''s a huge game room, a 5,000 bottle wine cellar, a bar, lounge, home theater, gym, and a four-car garage. On the main floor is the top- of-the-line kitchen, living, dining, and family rooms, library and two-level entertainment hall. Plus two guest bedrooms in case the detached guesthouse is full.

An elevator connects the three levels, which are appointed with cherry, maple and mahogany cabinetry, custom glass, travertine, slate and marble floors and columns. To take that Pebble Beach chill out of the air, the home sports seven fireplaces and its own sauna.

If desire strays past the gated grounds, the Lodge at Pebble Beach is only a short walk past the fountains, pond, and waterfall on the property. Mature oaks and pines lend privacy to the estate which sits on nearly two acres.

Price: $15 million. 3349 17 Mile Drive, Pebble Beach. Contact: Jan Williams, at 626-2242.