How many short sales and bank owned properties are there in the west valley?

Sometimes I get calls from people wanting to get a "steal of a deal" on higher priced Silicon Valley real estate by purchasing short sales and bank owned properties in  areas with great public schools like Cupertino, Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos, and Almaden Valley.

Unfortunately for bargain hunting home buyers who are seeking premium school districts in Santa Clara County, there just aren't that many of them. 

It's very easy to find distressed properties for sale in less expensive areas. In fact, for the first quarter of 2009, 95% of all sales in the Alum Rock area of San Jose, which is one of the poorest areas of Silicon Valley, were either short sales or bank owned properties. 

It's a different story in most of the expensive west valley markets, though. We see far fewer of these in places like Palo Alto or Los Altos (or Los Gatos, Monte Sereno and Saratoga).  There's a very direct correlation between the best  public schools, low crime, higher income, and higher education levels of homeowners with lower numbers of foreclosed homes. 

Here are the numbers of available homes for sale, which I've culled from our MLS, without further elaboration:

MLS Area - info as of 5/3/09	Type	Active Listings	Short Sales	Bank Owned
16 (Los Gatos/Monte Sereno)	SFH	200	11	4
	Condo/TH	52	5	1
17 (Saratoga)	SFH	172	10	2
	Condo/TH	20	1	0
14 (Cambrian Park)	SFH	129	28	11
	Condo/TH	38	12	4
13 (Almaden Valley)	SFH	124	6	3
	Condo/TH	19	2	0
18 (Cupertino)	SFH	162	2	1
	Condo/TH	62	5	0
15 (Campbell)	SFH	155	26	11
	Condo/TH	70	17	5

So, bargain hunters, what CAN you do to maximize your potential in this market?

Easy: don't go after the turnkey home.  The perfect home with everything remodeled is getting lots of attention because most buyers want exactly that.  Aim for the home that needs updating and remodeling, though, and you will have a far better chance to make a great deal because you won't be trying to outbid every other buyer.