Los Gatos, California
Los Gatos real estate, neighborhoods, condos, houses, homes, market trends, history, events, lifestyle, parks, events, businesses, home, Mary Pope-Handy
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Mar. 25, 2008
We won't have the March stats (or first quarter statistics) for the Los Gatos residential real estate market for another week or two, but I wanted to provide a snapshot of the realty market to keep you updated.
As of this morning, there were 149 single family homes available (as "status 1") for sale in the Town of Los Gatos (zip codes 95030 and 95032). There were also 28 pending sales of single family homes (so an 18.7% ratio). As before, approximately one home in five is selling right now.
Breaking it down by price point (but all areas), in the under two million dollar range, there were 86 homes available and 20 pending sale - so a 23% ratio. Homes are selling better in the more moderate price ranges. Looking lower at the up to and under $1.3 million, there were 41 for sale and 8 pending (19.5%).
Looking at just the $1 to $2 million range, there are 25 for sale and 5 pending (20%) in the Campbell Union High School District, and 41 for sale and 13 pending in the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District (30.2%).
The sweet spot in today's Los Gatos real estate market, then, is the moderately priced house "in the schools". Any home that is nicely improved, staged, marketed, and above all priced well can sell in today's market, though - it's all about positioning for the current market conditions.
Oct. 5, 2007
Most mornings, the alarm goes off in our Los Gatos home at 6:30am. I find my way to
the coffee pot, flip it on, and sit down at my desk to see what emails may have come in overnight. My home office looks
out to a small front courtyard; ours is a pseudo-Spanish style home and the view to the street goes through a small
covered archway that connects one part of the U-shaped house with another.
As I sipped on my coffee and waited for the email to load today, a shadowy four-legged creature meandered across the
archway roof. It was in siloutte - all shadows as the sun hadn't risen high enough to illuminate it. A cat? A squirrel? A
possum? It sported a long snout and a fairly thick tail. Seemed to be a racoon. While I was still processing the
possibilities, a second animal waddled right behind.
They were so
cute!
I squealed with delight at these cartoonish animals so close. Jim and I hustled outside to catch a better view of them.
The dog treated this like a four-alarm fire and raced around the house barking, and even when we returned inside and told
her to hush, she wouldn't abandon her duty of announcing a huge danger. The neighbors must have wondered.
After about 10 minutes and the return of calm, I got a second viewing as one of them retraced its steps along the crest of
the arch in better light and a second one snuggled under the overhang between the archway and the bedroom wing. It was so
funny to look up and see the racoon eyes studying me from under the eaves!
In truth, they're adorable as visitors but we wouldn't want them to stay. I'm not sure how
they got there, or what they expected to find on my roof. Perhaps a neighbor leaves pet food outside that attracts them?
Or maybe they like one of our fruit trees? I don't know. We have seen possum in the peach tree, squirrels everywhere and
sometimes a rat tries to take up residence with us. Never before racoons, though. I hope they nest somewhere else in
Belwood...and just come back to visit once in awhile.
Sep. 24, 2007
Today the typically pleasant,
normal September weather returned to Los Gatos after several gloomy and unseasonably cold days took hold of us. It was too
nice to stay indoors so in the late afternoon, I grabbed the leash and asked our aging black lab, Bella, if she wanted to
go for a walk.
She limps now, but moves fast at the sound of food or the promise of a walk. We were out the door quickly.
After a stroll down Bacigalupi Drive, greeting neighbors and other dog walkers and pedestrians, we returned home to a
really beautiful site. The moon was just about full and it was almost exactly between two palm trees straight ahead of
me.
Getting Bella inside, I grabbed my Canon Power Shot out of my car and brought it outside, only to find the rechargeable
batteries had died.
Got new ones off the charger and snapped a few shots. They didn't look good in the tiny little window of the camera and I
was afraid that the impact would be lost. I took about a half dozen shots and then the batteries died again. Grrr. But I
got what I needed.
It wasn't until I
uploaded the pics to my computer that I could see if this would work or not. I think it does come across - though still
not as breathtaking as when I saw it "live" today.
Here I think the moon looks so much like a ping pong ball suspended between two palmy paddles.
Another beautiful evening here in Los Gatos.
Sep. 8, 2007
In contrast
to much of Silicon Valley, the Los Gatos market is continuing to experience appreciation and is a fairly
"balanced" market overall.
I. Single Family Homes
Compared to last year, August's closed sales of single family homes were
smaller in number (off 6.5%) but up in price (median up 35.9%, average up 23.7%). Inventory is
far lower than last year too - listings were down 26.4% from last year. The lower inventory is helping to keep this market
balanced, as opposed to the buyers' market it is elsewhere.
Compared to last month, August's closed
sales of houses in Los Gatos were down 6.5%, listings were up 6.2%, and prices were up noticeably (4.8% for the
median and 7.2% for the average).
II. Condos and Townhomes
The condo market is somewhat similar in The Cats, with the numbers of
listings and sales falling, inventory shrinking, and prices rising.
Compared to last year, the closed sales were down by a whopping 66.7%, listings were down by 23.5%, and
prices were up strongly (28.2% median, 15% average). Normally, sales do fall off in August, so we expect to see a
month to-month drop, but to see a drop from one August to the next is very noteworthy.
Compared to last month, sales of townhomes and condominiums were down 69.2%
and listings were up 18.2%. Prices skyrocked though, up 45.7% for the median and 30.1% for the average.
III. Give me the Cliff Notes Version
For both single family homes, townhouses and condos, this summer has been a whole lot better a time in which to
sell than the year before. Inventory is down, prices are up. Sales are down tremendously, but fewer homeowners
are trying to sell now than a year ago. If you could not sell your home last year, try again - things are much improved!
Just make sure your price is realistic and the condition is top-notch.
Often the Los Gatos market follows a fairly predictable pattern for inventory, sales and
appreciation: in January there are more buyers than sellers, and prices get pushed up. This inequality of
supply and demand tends to remain (most years) through late spring or into summer as inventory rises.
Some years the balancing point is in May, others in July - it varies. By summer,
though, usually there are more listings than buyers and prices quit rising. In the second half of the year,
prices may be stable, they may drop slightly, or they may do some dropping in August and rising again between Labor Day
and Halloween, when we get a second burst of folks who want to get in before the year ends. Often inventory shrinks in
winter and again in late summer. In the first graph above, you can see that pattern roughly played out.
Where are we now? It is early September and if the market follows what is typical (which is what
we are seeing now), we will have a very healthy market this month and next. For buyers, there's usually more selection as
houses come on the market. For sellers, there's a renewed interest among buyers and well-priced, well-staged, and
well-marketed real estate sells well. Now is a good time to both sell and to buy in Los Gatos.
If you would like more information on the market (both condos and single family homes in Los Gatos,
Saratoga, San Jose and around Silicon Valley), please see my online
Silicon Valley real estate market report. Or call me at 408 204-7673 for a private and confidential
consultation.
Sep. 5, 2007
Each week, I
get inquiries from people who are thinking of buying a home here in Los Gatos or in Saratoga, San Jose or elsewhere in
Silicon Valley. Some of them are fairly local, and some are potentially relocating here. Sometimes they want to "start the
process" by having me show them homes. That's usually not the best way to proceed.
The trouble with starting by viewing homes is that such a buyer may or may not be looking in the right price range -
potentially wasting the time of everyone involved (themselves, their agent, and the people who clean up and leave their
home for an hour or two so they can see it). Open house viewing, of course, is another thing - it can be an easy way to
zip in and out of houses with little inconvenience to anyone. It can provide a sense of neighborhoods and what homes are
going for. But the home buyer could, of course, be looking at the wrong price range with this approach. Look too low, get
discourged. Look too high, and when the price range is later reset to what is realistic, everything will look awful.
So what is the most efficient way to investigate the possibility of home buying?
For most people, it's best to start with the budget. How much do you want to spend? What will be
comfortable for you and still help you to meet your needs? Often that's not the same thing as how much you
can spend.
That said, "it all depends". It depends on how much cash down you have, what kind of loan you are comfortable with,
qualify for or can accept.
There
are a few simple rules of thumb that can be a starting point. Some folks say that you can afford to buy 3-4 times your
annual income. So if you are making $50,000 per year and your spouse or home buying partner is making $75,000 per year,
together you'd qualify (using this rough rule of thumb) for $375,000 to $500,000. That won't buy you much in Silicon
Valley, so often people will use loan products that enable them to get more home for the budget by doing interest only
loans (the most common now) or a loan that's fixed for a few years and then converts to adjustible (with a lower interest
rate than a 30 year fixed loan).
Typically, if buyers come to me without having spoken in detail with a lender, I suggest that they speak to a
lender soon after our first meeting - I know lots of experienced, ethical lenders who will assist them in
choosing a loan type and setting up their target price range. Once that is established, they can start the
paperwork submission process and are free to go shopping - and if they find the ideal home, they are far closer to being
able to write an acceptable offer than if they were house-hunting "blind" to their true financial picture.
Getting the financing set upfront has several benefits to the buyer: no wasted time looking in the wrong price range, not
having to make the loan choices under pressure (once a home has been located and then the loan has to fit the home), and
the ability to line the financing up in advance so that the sellers will prefer to deal with them because the loan is not
nearly as much of a question.
To start with the budget, find an
excellent lender. There are many good ones, but not all lenders are equally good (or ethical, or experienced). If you're
thinking of homebuying in Los Gatos, Saratoga or San Jose - or anywhere in Silicon Valley - don't just pick a name out of
the phone book. Instead, call me and I'll happily give you the name of a good lender (or more if you want more).
Like a good Realtor, a good lender is your partner in homebuying. It's important to find the right match and to get the
ball rolling early in the process. You'll save time and heartache by lining your financing up early on.
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