A couple of weeks ago I was introducing some buyer clients of mine to various neighborhoods in Los Gatos and Cambrian Park to give them a general feel for the area, real estate prices, home styles, and so on. 

We drove into the Las Astas area, off Lark Avenue, and decided to pop into an open house at 208 Las Miradas Drive, which was being hosted by the listing agent, Jim Meech of Alain Pinel Realtors. The setting is quite nice and also unique, so I asked him if I could blog about this property. After consulting with the homeowner, he gave me the green light.

Why blog about this house?

As you can see from the photo above,this house enjoys the proximity of many beautiful, large trees. It is a lovely setting.  Inside, it's evident that the owner has updated and remodeled the home - the kitchen is beautiful and features slab granite countertops, for instance. The layout is nice, with both a living room and a family room.  Finally, a major plus of this home and neighborhood is unseen: this property enjoys the highly regarded Los Gatos School District.

All of this is well and good, but it's not the reason for this post.  What's unique and worth blogging about, as I see it, is the precise location of the home.   The lot backs up directly to the much beloved Los Gatos Creek Trail.

Being situated directly on the trail provides a number of benefits.  It's quick access to Lake Vasona County Park,  to town, a shortcut to schools (without busy streets to cross), and of course it's a buffer from other homes.  Rather than seeing windows and rooflines behind the house, residents enjoy a canopy of trees.

Details on 208 Las Miradas Drive:

It's a compact, well laid out ranch style home with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a family room as well as a living room.  The living areas are "open", which makes the house feel larger than its nearly 1300 square feet.  The lot is approximately 6900 SF but it, too, feels larger.  There's a 2 car garage and extra room on the side of the home for boat or RV parking.

This property is offered at $889,000.

For more information, please contact Jim Meech at Alain Pinel Realtors: 408-718-3116 or jmeech@apr.com.

(This post is not paid advertising - I simply liked the house & location and wanted to share the info with my readers and hope you find it of interest. -mph)

16125 Francesca Court, Monte Sereno, CA

Sale Pending!  Under Contract in 24 Days!

Recently I had the pleasure of listing one of the nicest homes I've seen, with a comfortable blend of old style quality craftsmanship and contemporary amenities. It will be open this weekend, and I invite you to stop by! 

Some of the basic details on this lovely home:

Home size appx 2971, Lot size appx 9000. Built 1992. Offered at $1,865,000.

4 bed, 3.5 baths. Three car garage. Air Conditioned. Corner Lot. Traditional, Victorian home on the outside, but warm, classic and contemporary on the inside!

MLS # 80901346.

Quality detailing abounds in this home. Here, you'll find clear, leaded glass windows, hardwood floors, tall & classic baseboards, elegant crown moulding, many built-ins, recessed lights, beautifully crafted mantles (3 total), and more.

The gourmet kitchen is state of the art with Thermador range, fan, oven, warming drawer and microwave oven, Kohler sinks, SubZero refrigerator, slab granite countertops, cherry cabinets and a gorgeous, oversized island, bay window, and hardwood floors.  The kitchen is open to the family room and nook and offers access to the rear yard through the family room.

The master bedroom suite is breathtakingly memorable! Leaded glass windows surround the bed area and cascade colored light through the panes, which act as prisms. With a vaulted ceiling, two triple closets with organizers, a fireplace and bookshelves and media niche too, there's nothing lacking in this remarkable room!

The master bath is recently remodeled and includes a large steam shower, vanity with double sinks, many built in cabinets, a high ceiling with mouldings and a skylight or sun tunnel to bring light in all day long.

There's much more!  Please visit www.16125FrancescaCourt.com for more information. See the slideshow. Visit the virtual tour. Pull up more pics! 

Close to downtown Los Gatos.  Los Gatos Schools. 

Links for more information:

More details at www.16125FrancescaCourt.com

Link to More Photos of 16125 Francesca Court

Link to Virtual Tour of 16125 Francesca Court (with music)

Map to this home.

Open house notes: I will be holding it open on Saturday Jan 31st 2009  from 1:30 to 4pm, and Sunday, Feb 1st, 1:30 - 4pm, a colleague of mine will be holding it open. Please stop by!

Blossom Manor is a highly popular residential area in Los Gatos which is close to shops, parks and the highly acclaimed Los Gatos schools.  There are many gently winding roads, a few very minor hills and some perfectly tree lined streets. It's a tidy area where homes old and new all tend to be well kept.

Where is the Blossom Manor Neighborhood?

Located in east Los Gatos, Blossom Manor is bordered by Blossom Hill Road, Los Gatos Boulevard, Los Gatos Almaden Road, and Longwood Drive. Below, please find an enhanced map of the area. I added the location of the shopping centers (3 grocery stores between them, many restaurants, coffee places, video rental, Noah's Bagels, drug store, banks, etc.) and I added the two nearby public schools for this neighborhood of town. (Google can add schools but adds all of them as dots - but no names.) To see the live Google map and be able to zoom in and out and pan the area generally, use this link.)

There are many shops, stores, and restaurants along Los Gatos Boulevard, and especially at the intersection of Los Gatos Boulevard and Blossom Hill Road, but also at Los Gatos Blvd. For instance, there are three grocery stores all within a few blocks: Nob Hill, Lunardi's and Whole Foods are all along the border of The Manor.. Restaurants run from upscale (Viva)  to grab & go (Chinese take out) with everything in between (new Los Gatos Cafe, Jamba Juice, High Tech Burrito, Japanese food, a chocolate shop)..

A Little History of The Manor

Before the Manor was developed, it was a fruit orchard (I believe apricot and prune). The lots were generous, about a quarter acre or so in most cases. It was a county area, not part of the town of Los Gatos but having a Los Gatos mailing address, which is still the case today for some of it.  The homes that were in this county area have 5 digit addresses.

Because the area was somewhat rural and was in the county, it was not on the sewer system. Yards had septic tanks to handle sewage. (When buying in the area, it's good to find out if there is a buried septic tank still in the yard.)

Newer streets in Blossom Manor are Cherrystone Drive, Cherrystone Court, Lilac Way and a ittle of Cherry Blossom Lane, which are part of the Stonehedge development. These streets look and feel a little different then the rest of the neighborhood and were built being part of the town of Los Gatos, so have sidewalks, curbs, gutters, and uniform looking trees linking the streets. Also they have a private cabana club - a pool for the folks whose homes are part of Stonehedge. Many of these lots are closer to 8000 SF than a quarter acre. These homes have 3 digit addresses (e.g., 123 Street Name Drive).

What Are Homes Like in Blossom Manor?
What Does It Cost to Live in Blossom Hill Manor?

The original homes in the older part of the Manor offered 3 to 4 bedrooms, a living room with brick fireplace, sometimes a small family room or formal dining room area that had the backside of the fireplace used as an indoors barbeque, 2 tiled bathrooms and an attached two car garage.

Today, most homes average around 1800 to 3000 square feet and sell between the low 1 million range to about  $2 million range or $650 per square foot to $750 per square foot on average. Homes do go higher or lower but they are the exception. It is possible to find a home in the neighborhood but which borders a busy road selling for around $1 million to $1.1 million, or a tear-down (or big fixer upper project) in that price range, and it's also possible to find a completely new, super sharp, very large home with all high end amenities offered at $2.2 mil but those are the extremes.

Also, there are a few duplexes around the edge of Blossom Manor. They can be found on Blossom Hill Road, Camilia Terrace, and Los Gatos - Almaden Road. These are not often on the market, but they make good investment properties for all the same reasons why homes in the Manor are ever desireable.

Have a look at some photos taken the last week in October, 2008:

It's Often About the Great Los Gatos Schools

The schools are a major reason why this neighborhood has enduring popularity: Blossm Hill Elementary, Fisher Middle School, and Los Gatos High School all serve Blossom Manor students.  Fisher is about a mile away and Blossom Hill is just a few blocks. The schools for the younger kids are close enough to walk or ride a bike so the convenience factor is very high. Combine that with outstanding API scores and a huge amount of parental involvement and the appeal is clear!

Other Things to Know About the Manor

Downtown Los Gatos has lots of charm and fantastic shops. This area of east Los Gatos though, where Los Gatos Blvd meets Blossom Hill Road and also Los Gatos-Almaden Road, is where a lot of the "practical living" stuff takes place in town. This is the area where you'll find Trader Joes, fast food (mom and pop varieties as well as chains), Affordable Treasures, car part shops, pet supply stores, and the everyday things that families need from grocery stores and banks to Peets and Starbucks.

From Blossom Manor to Vasona Park it's about a mile. From the Manor to a freeway entrance (85 or 17) it's about a mile. To downtown Los Gatos, it's about two miles. Everything is close.

The issue of county vs town areas has been hotly contested in recent years. Some neighbors who are in the county want to be made part of the town. Others feel the opposite. Feelings are strong because of a number of factors. One is the less restrictive nature of improvements, remodeling and rebuilding homes in the county (the town tends to be pickier). Folks who want to tear down and rebuild would often prefer to work with the county so they have more leeway in what they want to do. On the opposite side, some folks prefer more conformity - and perhaps less of the "monster house" effect that can happen.

Another factor may be policing. The town of Los Gatos and city of Monte Sereno are served by the Los Gatos - Monte Sereno Police Department. But the county pockets in Los Gatos and elsewhere in the county are usually serviced by sheriffs, not police, and their turf may be so large as to make response times slow and coverage difficult.

Voting may be a reason why some want to become part of the town of Los Gatos. Living in the Manor but not being able to vote on local polical representatives may be very frustrating for some.

In terms of natural hazards, there may be a little of the Shannon Fault running through one corner of the Manor, according to the Barclay's Locaide. The locaide is not always correct and at least a couple of times I've sold homes that appeared to be on fault zones when in fact they were not. The JPC company, which provides geologic and natural hazard reports, has geologists on staff and can tell you, when you buy their report for a particular property, if the home is truly on a fault (or has other natural hazard issues)or not and can explain the ramifications of it.  Do not simply rely on the maps in the locaide. Whether buying or selling in Blossom Manor, this is an important thing to understand.

If you would like to discuss or plan buying or selling a home in the Blossom Manor neighborhood of Los Gatos, or anywhere in or near Los Gatos, please contact me today!



Mary Pope-Handy
Mary@PopeHandy.com  408 204-7673

                 Open House Saturday August 9, 2pm to 4pm
               
          Great Home, Great Location, Los Gatos Schools!

Last month I listed a great home that's in an ideal Los Gatos location - close to award-winning, highly acclaimed Los Gatos Schools: Van Meter Elementary School, Blossom Hill School, and Fisher Middle School. It's also a quick jaunt to the wonderful shops, banks, grocery stores and restaurants at the intersection of Blossom Hill Road and Los Gatos Boulevard.

Recently, the house at 120 Magneson Terrace in Los Gatos got a new roof and a big price reduction. It is a tremendous value!

Details:

120 Magneson Terrace (off Magneson Loop and Los Gatos Blvd or Shannon Road)
MLS # 814262
3 Bedrooms, 2.5 Bathrooms
Living Room, Dining Room, Bonus Room (office, library, music room)
Hardwood Floors
Air Conditioning
Brand New Roof
Quiet cul-de-sac location
appx 1800 SF home
lot size appx 8700 SF

Yesterday the sellers lowered the price dramatically AGAIN, and it's now a fantastic buy at $1,250,000! Hurry!



Folks who should consider this home include those wanting:

"Walk to Schools" or "Bike To Schools" or "Two minute drive to schools"

As well as those who want to be close to buslines, close enough to shops, banks, grocery stores, and restaurants that they could get there without a car.

For more details, please visit www.PopeHandy.com and click on Mary's Featured Properties.
Click this link to see a Virtual Tour of 120 Magneson Terrace, Los Gatos, CA


Best regards,
Mary Pope-Handy