Silicon Valley Real Estate Blog

Belmont Terrace is a 158-unit townhome complex in Sunnyvale, which like its neighbor the Expressions of Sunnyvale, is located to the south of Central Expressway and west of Mathilda Ave., towards Mary Ave.  It’s across the street from the Gardens of Sunnyvale townhomes.

[ Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats ]
[ Recent Transactions | Neighborhood Transactions | Schools | Map ]
[ What's Available in the Area | Other Notes ]

Continue Reading »

Sep.03.2007 [ Filed under: Sunnyvale ] Comment Here »

The Imperial Avenue townhome complex is a 56-unit development in the Monta Vista district of Cupertino.  Originally built to be relatively inexpensive, with square footage to fit a growing family, these townhomes are still some of the least expensive homes in high-end Monta Vista.

[ Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats ]
[ Recent Transactions | Neighborhood Transactions | Schools | Map ]
[ What's Available on Imperial Ave. in Cupertino | Other Notes ]

Continue Reading »

Aug.31.2007 [ Filed under: Cupertino ] Comment Here »

Higher interest rates for jumbo mortgages is a story for another day, but it does color how home owners should read what I’m about to write.  In July, Mountain View experienced a 14% jump in the median for single-family homes from 2006 to 2007.  There was also the fact that the percent of list received went from almost full value (99.28%) to 104.4%.

Like many other places in Silicon Valley, like Sunnyvale and Cupertino with their Eichlers and San Mateo with its older homes near downtown, among others, Mountain View has its share of older homes.  Many of these homes come on larger lots that give ambitious owners room for expansion.  One of this month’s Median Homes illustrates that potential.

Mountain View is a unique environment because of the money from one local company in particular and it was a competitive summer season — as you’ll see, though, not every property experienced the same level of interest.

[ Median Home 2007, 2006 | Market Snapshot | How Much Home Can I Get? ]

Continue Reading »

Aug.29.2007 [ Filed under: Market Updates, Mountain View ] 2 Comments »

Santana Row is a mixed-use development that brings the urban lifestyle many people expect from big cities, with shops, restaurants and bars within walking distance, into Silicon Valley.  There are 219 homes there, across three buildings: The Villa Cornet, The DeForest Building, and The Margo Building.  Homes range from pied-a-terre flats to open lofts and townhomes.

[ Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats ]
[ Recent Transactions | Neighborhood Transactions | Schools | Map ]
[ What's Available at Santana Row ]

Continue Reading »

Aug.25.2007 [ Filed under: Santana Row ] Comment Here »

The City of Sunnyvale released its 2007 Resident Satisfaction Survey, which highlighted that 93% of respondents felt that Sunnyvale was a good or excellent place to live.  84% thought the same of their neighborhood.  This chart was taken directly from the PDF document which Sunnyvale provides from the National Research Center.

I thought it was interesting that those folks in the 9% difference didn't like where they were living all that much, but still liked Sunnyvale as a whole.  (Usually people who don't like one prefer their neighborhoods over city itself.)

That satisfaction rating puts Sunnyvale in the 81st percentile nationwide.  Not bad.  People didn't think highly of the city as a place to retire (26th percentile) or — shockingly — as a place with access to "affordable quality housing" (24th percentile).  It is the "Heart of Silicon Valley" after all.

But where Sunnyvale excelled in the survey was in "openness and acceptance towards people of diverse backgrounds" (95th percentile), "quality of police services" (93rd percentile), and value for tax money spent (94th percentile).

Aug.25.2007 [ Filed under: Silicon Valley News, Sunnyvale ] Comment Here »

The Montebello Cupertino, located at the intersection of Stevens Creek Blvd. and De Anza Blvd., is home to over 200 homes ranging from one-bedroom condominium flats to 1700 square foot, 3 bedroom townhomes.

This is a popular complex in Cupertino and, during a traditionally busy summer, seven units (one currently pending) at the Montebello have been sold over the last three months.

Have a look at my complete notes on the Montebello Cupertino, or jump right to its:

[ Strengths | Weaknesses | Threats | Opportunities ]
[ Recent Transactions | Neighborhood Transactions | Schools | Location and Commute ]
[ Available Condominiums in the Montebello Cupertino ] 

Aug.21.2007 [ Filed under: Cupertino ] Comment Here »

20830 to 20955.  Whole Foods in Cupertino moves across the street tomorrow to its new, larger location.  Whole Foods corporate calls it "Northern California's flagship store" and the Merc is calling it "California's largest".

People who have been going to the old location at 20830 Stevens Creek Blvd. may have also been greeted by a friendly local student who was handing out flyers redirecting people to Whole Foods in Campbell and Los Altos. 

The new location at 20955 Stevens Creek Blvd. has their "bread breaking" ceremony on August 22 at 8:45am.  Daily hours are normally 8am to 10pm.

Aug.21.2007 [ Filed under: Cupertino, Silicon Valley News ] Comment Here »

The Expressions of Sunnyvale is a gated townhome and condominium community just south of Central Expressway and east of Mary Ave, neighboring the Gardens of Sunnyvale complex at La Mesa Terrace and the Belmont Terrace townhomes. 

Two townhomes recently went pending at the Expressions of Sunnyvale, one on Asilomar Terrace (closing August 31) and one on Alpine Terrace (closing August 27). 

View my complete notes on the Expressions of Sunnyvale neighborhood, or jump directly to its:

[ Strengths | Weaknesses | Threats | Opportunities ]
[ Recent Transactions | Neighborhood Transactions | Schools | Location and Commute ]
[ Available Townhomes and Condominiums in the Area ]

Aug.19.2007 [ Filed under: Sunnyvale ] Comment Here »

It's not world famous for it's homes or real estate.  Folks outside Silicon Valley know it as the birthplace of the iPhone.  Apple, Symantec, and a very large portion of HP — to name a few — call it home.  To locals, Cupertino is synonymous with the school system.  The Cupertino Union School District has 24 elementary and middle schools, 19 of which are ranked by the California Department of Education as 10 out of 10 statewide. 

And that doesn't account for the elite Monta Vista High School, as well as Lynbrook High School or Homestead High School (as part of the Fremont Union High School District shared with Sunnyvale and other cities) which all rate 10 out of 10 statewide as well.

The real estate in the Cupertino part of Silicon Valley commands a premium over other cities in the area.  The darker lines on the chart show what the median price of condos and townhomes, and single-family homes in Cupertino.  The faded lines show what the median home prices are in Santa Clara County as a whole. 

The difference between the two types of lines is the premium you pay in housing prices to live in Cupertino.  How much is that premium and how has it changed over the last decade?

Continue Reading »

Jul.26.2007 [ Filed under: Cupertino, Market Updates ] Comment Here »

It was as if they were made of gold.  You know a school district cares when they track every registration form that leaves their office for planning and budgeting purposes.  The result?  Saratoga Unified School District's API score of 952 out of 1000 is second in Silicon Valley only to Los Altos, which edges out its southeastern cousin at 960.

And it's that time of year, when parents who want or have to make a move are packing their kids into the trusty family automobile and hauling them to find Silicon Valley real estate in the right school districts.  Saratoga is seeing no shortage of activity with 40 closed sales in May 2007 compared with similar numbers of 37 and 35 in the two preceding years.

That doesn't seem like news until you combine the slight increase in sales with the dramatic decline in new listings year-over-year.  With only 48 new listings in May 2007 — a 10-year low where the average is 80.6 over that period — there's been a 16.6% increase in Saratoga median home prices from May 2006 to 2007.  But the market isn't completely stacked towards the seller in all market segments.

Continue Reading »

Jun.29.2007 [ Filed under: Market Updates, Saratoga ] 2 Comments »

The long-awaited tear down of Sunnyvale Town Center's main building, in favor of building a more open and walkable layout, has begun.  Target and Macy's are open during this deconstruction effort but the parking lot in front of the west side Macy's entrance is currently closed.  You can find more information about Sunnyvale's revitalization plans in the Sunnyvale neighborhood section.  Pictures below.

Continue Reading »

May.15.2007 [ Filed under: Sunnyvale ] Comment Here »

They found it.  Sort of.  Sure, most of the buzz in the area goes to Santana Row and Westfield's Valley Fair, and it gets overlooked when driving to eBay's distinct presence on the other side of San Jose's border.  Add the fact Campbell doesn't carry the obvious prestige its neighbor to the south, Los Gatos and it's easy to think that the city is just easy access to 280, 85 and 17.

Campbell is a hidden gem of Silicon Valley real estate — a place with an undeservedly brusque reputation, relatively inexpensive homes, a strong town center at the Pruneyard, and an improving historic downtown area.  Yes, there are pockets of Campbell which a lot of folks are put off by, but builders are betting on a very bright future there as evidenced by the Onyx and Park Town Place developments. 

The two schools Campbell Union High School District, Del Mar High and Branham High, recently received their first California Distinguished School award.  And the numbers say that Campbell is completely hidden no longer.  But that big spike in townhome and condo prices isn't what most people think.

Continue Reading »

Apr.30.2007 [ Filed under: Campbell, Silicon Valley News ] 1 Comment »