San Jose’s Cambrian, or Cambrian Park, area is a very hot seller’s market.  Multiple offers are not uncommon, especially in the Union School District, where schools are trending upward.  My Cambrian Park Real Estate Report has just been published with the updated numbers from the closed sales in April. Please click on the link to see much more information there.

Prices are up nicely year over year! Inventory is crazy low – just 35 homes for sale in April compared to 57 in March and 84 in April 2011. Days on market is far lower too. All around, it is a deepening seller’s market.

Even stronger is the Cambrian condo market, which is skyrocketing!!!  Please see the Cambrian Condominium & Townhouse Real Estate Report for all of the numbers, but I’ll include a quick summary below.

Here again, notice the ratio of active to pending homes, the sale vs list price (over 100%), and most of all, the tremendous rise in both the average and median sales price.  Few homes closed escrow in February, so it is possible that these numbers are a little exaggerated.  We will know more in a month – if it’s a trend or if this is a fluke.

Now let’s work with Altos Research’s graphs and get a feel for the Cambrian realty market in “real time”.  These use list prices, whereas my REReport uses sold data.

First, the statistics by quartile for houses in San Jose 95118:

Next, the stats and trends by price quartile for houses in San Jose 95124:

Median list price of homes for sale in 95124 and 95118 (all quartiles combined):

Very interesting that the 95124 pricing appears to be swinging upward while the 95118 pricing continues to go down.  I believe that this is mainly because the schools in 95124 have been trending upward strongly with the API scores.  Prices are also at a higher level, and those are less impacted by short sales and REOs countywide.  So it may be the result of multiple factors.  (95124 is about 2/3 of the Cambrian real estate market.)

Inventory in Cambrian area of San Jose 95124, 95118:

Surprising, isn’t it, to see how differently these two San Jose zip codes are behaving from each other?

Average days on Market in San Jose’s Cambrian area

And again, really different trends on these neighboring zips, both in Cambrian!

Another anecdotal story to share: Recently I closed the sale on my listing at 5114 Nerissa Way in Cambrian with Union Schools and Alta Vista in particular. We were listed at $579,000 and received 4 offers and sold at $585,000. Interestingly, we received 2 nearly identical “best” offers, both at $585,000. One was completely As Is and the other was almost As Is (they wanted a fumigation and pest clearance provided).  That is usually a pretty good affirmation of market value, and the property did appraise at the sales price.  The other two offers we got were below list price.  One was all cash and it was extremely low.  Buyers who are purchasing without financing sometimes misunderstand the type of discount that their all-cash status will get for them, so sometimes the worst offers are all cash and that was the case this time.

Want more info on your neighborhood, your house, or your target home to buy? Please call me!

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 36. See more 95124 zip code real estate.
(all data current as of 5/24/2012)

1. $699,000 : 2757 Theresa Ln, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,563 sq ft

   Lot size: 8,580 sqft
   
2. $699,000 : 1898 Kay Dr, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,331 sq ft

   Lot size: 7,062 sqft
   
3. $1,299,999 : 14904 Leigh Av, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 3 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 3,340 sq ft

   Lot size: 10,125 sqft
   
4. $682,950 : 3591 Gavota Av, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,600 sq ft

   Lot size: 7,500 sqft
   
5. $1,180,000 : 1777 Kirkmont Dr, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,306 sq ft

   Lot size: 8,249 sqft
   

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 22. See more 95118 zip code real estate.
(all data current as of 5/24/2012)

1. $670,000 : 4241 Ranwick Ct, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 3 full baths

   Home size: 2,199 sq ft

   Lot size: 5,000 sqft
   
2. $785,000 : 3339 Beacon Ln, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 1,952 sq ft

   Lot size: 6,784 sqft
   
3. $998,000 : 5715 Mireille Dr, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,000 sq ft

   Lot size: 6,566 sqft
   
4. $649,000 : 1373 Adobe Ct, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,966 sq ft

   Lot size: 8,800 sqft
   
5. $499,500 : 5576 Dwight Av, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,401 sq ft

   Lot size: 6,000 sqft
   

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Browse lists of Cambrian & Cambrian Park homes for sale:
Houses for sale in the 95118 part of Cambrian
Cambrian Park Houses for Sale in 95124

Mary Pope-Handy, Realtor, CRS, ABR, e-PRO, SRES, ASP, CNHS, ACRE
Helping Nice Folks to Buy & Sell Homes Since 1993
Co-Author: “Get The Best Deal When Selling Your Home In Silicon Valley”
408 204-7673 (Cell)
emailto: Mary (at) PopeHandy.com
Blog: www.LiveInLosGatos.com & www.ValleyOfHeartsDelight.com

Cambrian Park, or more broadly, Cambrian, is a west San Jose neighborhood or district and is one of the more affordable, high-value areas in Silicon Valley. The schools are good, the crime is low, and the commute is not too bad. For people relocating to Santa Clara County, this is a place to know about since quality education and affordability are often high priorities!

What’s the compromise for the more reasonable prices of homes for sale? Well, Cambrian doesn’t have an interesting, upscale downtown area like Campbell, Los Gatos, Saratoga, or Willow Glen.

But it does have tons of shopping & restaurants and even a Farmer’s Market. It also enjoys a top notch hospital (Good Samaritan) and plenty of parks as well as a fantastic rec center with a large park adjacent to it, the Camden Community Center, which has tons of programs (including an after school program for youth), classes, and a fabulous pool.  (My family and I lived in Cambrian in the “Cambrian Gardens” neighborhood for 10 years and loved it – our kids made great use of the community center too.)

Altogether, there are about 75,000 to 80,000 residents in Cambrian, spread throughout the three zip codes of 95124, 95118 and a little tiny bit of 95008.

If there is a “central Cambrian Park”, it would have to be near the original Cambrian Park Shopping Center, which was the first actual mall in San Jose! That area is sometimes known as Cambrian Village.  People sometimes use the three names interchangeably: Cambrian, Cambrian Park, Cambrian Village.:

Where is Cambrian Park? Map of approximate Cambrian Boundaries:

View Cambrian Area of San Jose in a larger map

Cambrian Park is a west side suburban area, part of the city of San Jose for the most part (there are a few county pockets, a bit now covered by Campbell, though), which is located adjacent to Campbell, Los Gatos, Almaden Valley, Blossom Valley and Willow Glen.

The Cambrian Park boundaries are, approximately, Foxworthy Avenue, Bascom Avenue, Carlton Avenue, Blossom Hill Road (except for a jut up in the Vista Loop area), Camden Avenue, the Guadalupe Creek (between Coleman Ave and Blossom Hill Rd.) and Almaden Expressway. There are many many zigs and zags, especially with the Los Gatos border, but I sketched out the approximate boundaries so that readers could get a rough idea of the area we call Cambrian Park – see the map above.

What are the schools in Cambrian?

Cambrian is served by 3 elementary school districts: The Union School District (in the area closest to Los Gatos), the Cambrian School District (the part to the north, closer to Campbell) and San Jose Unified School District (covering most of the 95118 section).   High Schools are served by Campbell Union High School District if the homes are in the Union or Cambrian schools area, or San Jose Unified in the rest of Cambrian. (Some school districts are elementary and middle only, with a separate high school district.  Others are “unified”, covering K – 12.)

The newest API scores for Santa Clara County’s public schools have been released as of Nov 29, 2011.  If you are unfamiliar with how API scores work, it’s on a scale of 1 to 1000.  The target number for the county is 800, so anything higher is considered good.  Getting close to or over 900 is rare and is the mark of an exceptionally excellent school.

Cambrian came out even stronger than in years past, particularly in the Union School District, where 5 out of 6 elementary schools were in the 900s and the other 1 school was at 878.

The middle schools in the Union area of Cambrian Park also scored high in 2010, with Dartmouth at 900 and Union Middle at 881. For some reason there are NO scores for 2011.

In the Cambrian School District there are 4 grammar schools, 3 of which slipped from the previous year and 1 of which went up.  Bagby was at 905 this time and the rest were in the 8s. Price Charter Middle School held steady at 864.

The high schools in this region (the Campbell Union HSD) all went up from the previous year, but only one of them, Leigh, is over 800 (Leigh has a strong 822 API).

Maps for the school district boundaries and school of attendance in Cambrian:

Map of the Union School District (loads slowly, please allow more time than seems reasonable):
http://www3.unionsd.org/unionsd/lib/unionsd/union_boundarymap.pdf

Map of the Cambrian School District of its boundaries (zoom in for better view), showing school of attendance maps also (they include the Farnaham charter School):
http://www.cambrian.k12.ca.us/oldSite/district_site/images/Cambrian_School_District_Map.jpg

The Cambrian elementary schools covered by the San Jose Unified School District are:
Almaden Elementary (782 API), Hacienda Science/Environmental Magnet Elementary (872) , and Reed Elementary (844).  The middle schools in Cambrian or covering Cambrian for the SJUSD are Castillero (795, slipped a little from the previous year – this school is in Almaden Valley) and John Muir (782).  The map of this district is not very helpful – cannot seem to zoom in:
http://www.sjusd.org/school/district/map_district/

The History of Cambrian, via the Cambrian Community Council

A friend & past client of mine (who purchased a home with me in Cambrian) very kindly told me about a wonderful article on the history of the Cambrian area which can be found on the Cambrian Community Council website.

Cambrian Area: It was always about the schools!

As with many parts of California, interestingly, the name itself goes back to the naming of a school (Cambria being another name for Wales).  This happened in the mid to late 1800s. The details of the founding of the Union School District and the Cambrian School District are shared there, too. It’s funny to think that more than a century later, the high quality schools in this San Jose neighborhood are still of prime importance and a main driver in home values.

Where was Cambrian originally?

The article further explains that the Cambrian area was an enormous stretch of land, and that Cambrian Park is within that general area (as is “Cambrian Village”, found at the crossroads of Union and Camden Avenues in San Jose).  The boundaries got defined differently at various points in time, and at times has included part of Los Gatos. (I read elsewhere that Cambrian was said to extend as far as Dry Creek Road at one point.) Some areas that were originally Cambrian are now part of Willow Glen or part of Campbell. Our local Realtor MLS defines the area as going roughly from about Foxworthy to the north to Blossom Hill in the south, Almaden Expressway to the east and Bascom Avenue to the west. (It touches Los Gatos, Almaden Valley, Willow Glen, and Campbell.)

If you live in this wonderful part of Silicon Valley, I encourage you to visit the CCC website and enjoy their colorful article, History of the Cambrian Area.

Cambrian Park Neighborhoods

Because I sell a fair amount in Cambrian and lived there, I am very partial to this area and have begun doing posts which are Cambrian neighborhood spotlight pieces.  I hope you will enjoy them.  More posts are to come but here are a few to get you started:

The Alta Vista Neighborhood, Where San Jose’s Cambrian Park and Los Gatos Weave Together Along The Base of the Hills

The “King Street” Neighborhood of Cambrian Park on the Los Gatos Border

Cambrian Park Neighborhoods: How to Choose Where to Live?

How’s the Cambrian Park Real Estate Market?

You can read about the Cambrian real estate market (as well as other Silicon Valley real estate markets in Santa Clara County) on my REReport, which is updated in the first week or so of each month.

The current RE Report for Cambrian Park Houses
The current RE Report for Cambrian Condominiums & Townhouses

What is my Cambrian home worth?

If you live in Cambrian now and are wondering about the market value of your home today, there are two approaches you can take.  You can request from me an online valuation (which will be approximate only as it’s “sight unseen”) at either of two places:

Price Your Home request on popehandy.com or at SiliconValleyHomeValue.com

Both of these come to me and I run the numbers personally for home owners who request them (sorry, this offer is not for home buyers).  I can usually turn the info around within a day, but sometimes it takes a couple of days if I happen to be travelling or otherwise overly busy.  If you make a request and for some reason don’t hear back from me within a couple of hours to acknowledge your request, please email or phone me!  Once in awhile, technology doesn’t come through and I don’t get an email alert when I should.

Alternatively, if you do not wish to share your contact info with me at this time, you can also simply browse the sold real estate listings in Cambrian on my Property Analysis page of the RE Report.  Just input an address (it’s not saved, I won’t see it) anywhere in Santa Clara County, and you’ll be able to view nearby sold, pending and available homes for sale close to your property.

What do houses cost in Cambrian?

If you’d like to buy a Cambrian home, you can browse the MLS listings of Cambrian Homes for Sale on this blogsite.  I have them listed by zip code on separate posts for houses, and below this section are the currently available condo and townhome properties which are on our MLS.

Houses for Sale in Cambrian Park, San Jose, 95118

Cambrian Park Houses for Sale in 95124

What do townhouses and condos cost in Cambrian?

Below, please browse MLS listings of Cambrian condos for sale and Cambrian townhouses for sale in 95124 and 95118:

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 11. See more 95124 zip code real estate.
(all data current as of 5/24/2012)

1. $269,000 : 3485 Wine Barrel Wy, San Jose
   
   2 beds, 1 full bath

   Home size: 868 sq ft

   Lot size: 840 sqft
   
2. $825,000 : 2173 Vizcaya Cl Ci, San Jose
   
   3 beds, 3 full baths

   Home size: 2,421 sq ft

   Lot size: 3,952 sqft
   
3. $725,000 : 2816 Paseo Ln, San Jose
   
   4 beds, 4 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,438 sq ft

   Lot size: 871 sqft
   
4. $519,950 : 2881 Meridian Av #157, San Jose
   
   2 beds, 2 full baths

   Home size: 1,383 sq ft
   
5. $439,000 : 6091 Calle De Amor, San Jose
   
   2 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 1,490 sq ft

   Lot size: 2,300 sqft
   

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Showing properties 1 - 3 of 3. See more 95118 zip code real estate.
(all data current as of 5/24/2012)

1. $199,950 : 1325 Joplin Dr #1, San Jose
   
   2 beds, 1 full bath

   Home size: 810 sq ft

   Lot size: 435 sqft
   
2. $199,000 : 4970 Cherry Av #201, San Jose
   
   1 bed, 1 full bath

   Home size: 675 sq ft

   Lot size: 1,879 sqft
   
3. $219,900 : 4568 Waterville Dr, San Jose
   
   1 bed, 1 full bath

   Home size: 771 sq ft

   Lot size: 435 sqft
   

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

The annual market report is out at popehandy.REReport.com and we can now learn how 2011 compared to 2010.  The median sales price for houses in Santa Clara County was off 5.3% overall.  But from one part of the valley to the next it varied wildly with 6 cities or areas finding themselves in positive territory while others were off by double digits.

In the image to the left, I’ve put into bold the cities where the median sales price of houses which sold and closed escrow in 2011 were ahead of 2010′s pricing.

What is it that makes Gilroy, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Mountain View and Palo Alto “in the black”?

Most of these cities/towns are upscale, west valley communities.  But so are Saratoga, Cupertino, and Monte Sereno.

Gilroy was especially hard-hit with the housing downturn so perhaps in that case, it’s just coming back into more of a balance. (Then again, so was Morgan Hill and it’s still off by 12%.)

The LinkedIn IPO and others in the Palo Alto area drove prices up for some parts of the housing market nearby and it’s likely that this explains the positive growth for Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Los Altos Hills.  That said, it would seem that Los Altos, and perhaps even Sunnyvale would have seen stronger numbers on the same account.  Perhaps school scores are the key driver here.

Los Gatos, Saratoga and Monte Sereno often behave somewhat similarly as they are adjacent to one another and often attract similar home buyers who want good schools, a nice downtown area nearby and scenic beauty with the hills.  The annual numbers show Monte Sereno down 6.7%, Saratoga down 2% but Los Gatos up 6.4%.  With Monte Sereno, there are very few sales each month and each year (only about 4,000 residents), so there can be a wider swing without it necessarily being accurate. Saratoga and Los Gatos each have about 30,000 people who call these areas home, though, so the data is much more helpful.  Saratoga and Los Gatos both have multiple school districts, views, homes with better proximity to “downtown” and more variables – I think we’d have to dig a lot deeper to learn why these two neighboring markets are so diverse.  We might also have to look at multiple years of data to see if Saratoga spiked while LG slumped to explain the difference.

Coming in at last place: the Santa Cruz Mountains or Los Gatos Mountains area (zip code 95033), where the median list price of houses sold slipped 17% from the year before.  This beautifully scenic region covers a lot of territory and several quite different neighborhoods, some more convenient and others more remote.  It often takes much longer to sell a home in the mountains than on the valley floor but it can be a great “bang for your buck” for great schools, clean area, less crowding, etc.  The remoteness of some homes, the increased rain and other challenges generally make this part of the valley a more challenging real estate market most of the time, and in a down market that’s even more true.

Palo Alto, Mountain View and Los Altos each have regions which can be tracked in addition to the cities as a whole. If you’d like to see these numbers, please visit http://popehandy.rereport.com and then click on Yearly, then select the city, then the neighborhood and you can see how Baron Park or other areas are faring in particular (also for their monthly or quartly reports).

Areas within San Jose, like PA, MV and LA, can be tracked. Since I am very active in several of them (Almaden Valley, Cambrian Park, Willow Glen, Blossom Valley and others on the west side), I want to share those next.

The median sales price of houses which sold & closed in 2011 in the City of San Jose was down 5.9%, lower than the county as a whole.  Most of San Jose was worse off than the prior year – all except Alviso!

Alviso, which was a separate town until not so long ago, sold with a double digit increase in the median sales price – a whopping 10.6% higher than in 2010.  Affordability and investor activity are most likely the cause – more demand and less inventory than the year before. (I suspect either fewer distressed properties or that they were gobbled up quickly. Knowing would require more research.)

Downtown or central San Jose took a beating with the median sales price down 9.6%.  Why did it fall from grace?  Not everything in this area is affordable – consider that it includes Naglee Park, The Rosegarden, and a few other tony areas. I suspect it’s the number of foreclosures (REOs) and short sales but I don’t have that information at hand.  It would require a much closer look that our brief survey here to uncover what’s happening.  (We know that there are many unsold, new condos in downtown San Jose but those should not be impacting the sales of single family homes.)

In future articles or posts I hope to look at a few of these areas more carefully to see what is causing the great diversity between the areas showing improvement over 2010 such as Alviso, Palo Alto, Gilroy, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos and Mountain View versus those which are really hurting: downtown San Jose, the Los Gatos Mountains, Evergreen, Morgan Hill, Milpitas.  Very likely it’s a combination of the distressed market activity in some areas, school scores, the pricing tier (i.e., homes between 1 and 2 million near Palo Alto) and more factors.  With real estate, it’s always local – and that’s just the starting point.

Malibu Grill in San Jose - menu

Malibu Grill is a Silicon Valley sports bar and hamburger place (and more, of course – baby back ribs, chicken, pizza, pasta) with the dual themes of surfing and all things athletic.  Jim and I occasionally pop over there for lunch or dinner as it’s just a few blocks from our neighborhood, Belwood of Los Gatos and we like the food, service, ambiance and prices.  Today we did again and happened to be there for Monday Madness Hamburgers, which save patrons a couple of bucks. That’s always nice!

A casual but friendly and comfortable restaurant, the Malibu Grill features a broad array of tasty burgers, sandwiches, and other items from the grill. It’s not all fried or carby food, though.  Today I ordered the Malibu Burger (basically a cheeseburger) with a side green salad rather than the fries (for $1 more or I could have had cole slaw, potato salad or fries at no extra cost).

Malibu Grill dining area includes views of sports on TV

Prices are reasonable.  You order at the cash register and pay, and the food is brought to your table. If you are following a game on one of the many televisions, you’ll be happy to not have to get up to retrieve your order.

This eatery has a huge collection of surfing and sports memorabilia and a lot of televisions.  Kids would find plenty to look at here, and with the classic menu items, it shouldn’t be too hard to feed the young set either. It would be a great place to dine after a kids’ or school sporting event as well as ideal to catch the NFL or other game you can’t view at home or online.

Malibu Grill beverage area

Adults will be pleased to know that Malibu Grill offers a very nice selection wine and beer on tap, including at least a couple of “light beers” too.

No matter where you sit, there will be at least one flat screen television in view.  At our booth, I was facing one but Jim could see three adjacent screens over the bar, all with different sports programs showing. (Since the Patriots were being shown on one of those, I quickly joined him in facing the multiple TVs.)

Malibu Grill in San Jose has plenty of flat screen televisions!

Located along Camden Avenue in San Jose, Malibu Grill is technically in the Cambrian area but on the edge of both Almaden and Los Gatos.  It’s easy to get there – just a few blocks off of Blossom Hill Road, not far from Hwy 85 too.

If you’re looking for a fun, unpretentious restaurant with good food and very fair prices, Malibu Grill is your match.  Read more about them on their website, or just drop by and give it a spin.

Malibu Grill
http://www.malibugrill.com/
5735 Camden Avenue, San Jose, CA

One of the worst marketing efforts, in my opinion, is a rider attached to a “for sale” sign stating “I’m gorgeous inside!“  It’s as if to say “I know the exterior is really bad, but just wait ’til you get past the front door!”

A better approach than an apologetic rider sign is to tidy up the front of the home and yard so it gives a great first impression.

If you are a potential seller, drive through your area (zip code, subdivision etc.) and have a look at the outside of other properties for sale which are generally similar to your own for size, pricing and so on. How’s the competition doing with curb appeal?  Pretend that you’re a Saratoga, Almaden or Cambrian home buyer.  Take notes.  What do you see?  Be brutal in your assessment and then take your observations back to your own home and keep the same standards.

First, pay attention to these landscaping elements in the yard:

1. The lawn, if there is one: is it green?  Weedy? Healthy? Does it have bare or dead spots? Is it level or “bumpy”?  Is it fairly uniform, or are there patches of various types of grasses in other areas, making the lawn uneven in color, texture, or density? Putting in fresh sod may give you a super “bang for your buck” or return on investment.Why does this matter? Because if your lawn looks neglected, buyers may wonder what else is neglected, too.
2. Bushes and shrubs should not impede sidewalks, walkways or views of doors and windows.  Buyers will feel crowded if they sense that plants are blocking their passage or that of light!  The yard, like the home, needs to feel uncluttered. As you look at the other homes’ yards, do the bushes look appealing or unruly? Are they a help or a hindrance to the home’s curb appeal?  Many buyers do not like ivy or juniper, by the way, unless they are exceedingly neat and in small quantities.

1. Color:  bright annuals with colorful flowers make a home far more inviting.  Is the yard solidly green? (All lawn and bushes?)  It can be spiced up with flowering plants and bushes.  If room is an issue, at the very minimum sellers could add color spots by the front door. Luckily, in Silicon Valley we enjoy a sub-tropical climate and even in winter there are annuals that can pack a nice punch of color.
2. Stuff in the yard: what are homeowners doing with hoses, watering cans, front porch furniture or kids’ toys?  Ideally, hoses and other items not in use will be curled up or otherwise pretty much out of sight. (Worst case – laying across walkways, inviting disaster as home buyers trip!)  Yard gnomes etc.: don’t. Seriously.

Next, have a look at the building itself.  How well maintained and attractive is the house, townhouse or condo and garage?  If the view of the structure is unappealing, Silicon Valley home buyers may never cross your threshold to see how great the interior is!

Check these items:

1. Paint – is it in good condition?  Wood tends to need painting about every five years, stucco closer to ten.  If paint is peeling or looking faded, at the very least it should have some “touch up” work done.  If it’s just dusty or sports a few spider webs or the like, perhaps a power washing will do the trick.  Peeling paint screams that “this house has deferred maintenance and is neglected”.
2. Doors and windows:  should be fully visible without bushes or other objects obstructing passage or the view of light.  They should look impeccably clean and function easily.  The hardware should sparkle.  A clean doormat is helpful too.A few months back I saw an MLS comment for agents advising that the door knob sticks and if this happens to use the large rock nearby to make it open. Bad, bad, bad. Sellers need to make their doors open smoothly – again, buyers will worry about what else doesn’t work right if the obvious stuff doesn’t!
3. Gutters, downspouts & roof – first look to see if there are gutters and if there’s coverage over the doorways especially. These components age and can leak at the seams if not well maintained.  Do you see rust at the seams?  If there are screens to keep leaves out, are they in place or have they moved and look a little off?  Small things like that can again send a wrong signal that your home is not well cared for when in fact it may actually be in great shape.Do the downspouts have any issues? Does the water simply dump out at the foundation? (If so, is there moss to address?)  If there are extenders, do they create any tripping hazards?The roof can accumulate stuff – particularly leaves in the autumn.  View the roof and gutter for buildup of debris, moss, etc.  Sometimes there’s so much accumulation of organic material in the gutters and roof area that grass and weeds begin to spring up.  I have even seen this on a home for sale!
4. Front porch: if the property enjoys a front porch, it’s a good idea to play it up with appropriately sized and welcoming furniture, if possible.  Often porches in newer houses or homes are not super big, so bistro sized tables & chairs may be the best best. It may also be a good play for color spots – bowls with colorful annuals to welcome visitors in.

Once you’ve found several homes in your neighborhood which are your property’s competition and have noted their curb appeal, go back to your own residence and see how yours stacks up in all these areas.  Write a list of what needs to be done.  You may need to call in some outside help to get things in top shape, but this is normally both time and money well spent in getting you the best sales price for your home.  This is true whether you’re selling a luxury home or a distressed property – a home that appeals to buyers will have a much better chance of selling faster and for top dollar than one which looks a bit neglected.

Finally: many sellers make a huge effort to put their home in great condition prior to going on the market, but once there, they sometimes let it slip.  Bushes or hedges become overgrown, patches of the lawn are too dry and begin to brown, or the yards generally become a little neglected.  Don’t do this – every serious buyer who sees a neglected yard will wonder what else has been neglected too!  Nervous or worried buyers write lower offers than those who are confident – so keep the yards up so you have your best return on investment.

Tucked into the large strip mall at Camden and Union Avenues in San Jose’s Cambrian Park neighborhood (the Camden Park Shopping Center), and far too easy to miss, is a wonderful Thai food restaurant, Lanna Thai.

Normally when we want to go out for a Thai meal, we stop in at Bangkok Taste on Blossom Hill Road, which is very near to our home and has excellent food.  But that day we were having a bad spell of heat, and when we popped into Bankok Taste, it was even hotter inside than out…so we pushed on to find a restaurant with air conditioning. (Bankok Taste may have it and it just wasn’t working that day – I don’t know.)  Armed with a smartphone, we found one just a couple of miles away, phoned and learned that there was no wait, and headed over.

The interior of the restaurant was very pleasantly cool and the decor was inviting – a very clean, welcoming restaurant.  Service was good and the food even better. Plenty of choices on the menu for all kinds of preferences (vegetarian included).  The portions were fine too.  All around, it was a “10″ – great ambiance, service, and food.

We tend to revisit the same favorites over and over, but it was good to be pushed to try something new.  If you enjoy thai food and live in Campbell, San Jose, or Los Gatos, I would encourage you to try Lanna Thai yourself.

Multiple offers have returned to many segments of the Silicon Valley real estate market.  We are hearing about them in Palo Alto, Cupertino, Mountain View – areas where newly minted IPO money is having an impact – but also in more modest, middle class areas such as San Jose’s Cambrian neighborhood. The trend appears to be spreading.

What Silicon Valley home sellers need to know and do to attract multiple offers

If you’re a Silicon Valley home seller, what do you need to know to try to get multiples on your home?  What should you beware of?  In short, here’s what needs to happen if you want to attract multiple offers on your home for sale:

1. The home must be turnkey, either fully remodeled or close to it – it must look like there’s nothing or very little for a buyer to do.  In addition to being turnkey, it must be squeaky clean and well staged! It needs to be comfortable – not too hot, not too cold. You want buyers and their agent to linger longer.
   
2. The price must be at or even under market value.  That is, you must be willing to price it aggressively.  Think it’s worth $1,050,000?  You might list it at $999,999 to get in under a major price threshold and to be the very best, most attractive property for the money. Yes, it might be under priced.  Over priced listings get either one offer at best or, more likely, none at all.
3. The property must be highly accessible. If it is hard to see, you probably won’t get multiple offers (and may get none at all).  (Please see articles on accessibility and on open houses.)
4. Finally, the property must be well marketed.  This includes a wide range of factors ranging from photographs, text, fliers, signs, and even the commission rate offered to the buyer’s side.

What Silicon Valley home buyers need to know and do to compete with multiple offers

If you’re a Silicon Valley home buyer, how do you win out in multiples without giving away all of your rights or overpaying for your house/home?

Over the last few years, I’ve written a number of articles about multiple offers and tips for buyers when competing (concepts to beware of, issues around contingencies, financing and more).  This is a bit like a multi-chapter ebook on how to work with multiple offers.  I hope it’s helpful!

By way of quick summary: you must cover a few areas very, very well:

1. You must be pre-approved by a reputable lender (fully pre-approved)
2. You must have a strong down payment (20% or more)
3. You must be willing to put 3% down for your initial deposit (also called a good faith deposit)
4. You must have a good agent helping you – he or she must do a good job completing the paperwork (it needs to be thorough and without any major mistakes), must communicate well with the listing agent and represent you and himself/herself as a great team with which the listing agent and sellers will want to work
5. You must have an excellent sense of pricing.  Your Realtor should “run the comps” for you, or may even prepare a competitive or comparative market analysis on the home you wish to purchase.  Pay attention to where the value  lies – sometimes that has little to do with the list price!
6. Be prepared to balance out the price and terms offered so that you do not feel like you are giving away all your rights.  Some real estate agents may push consumers to write contracts with no contingencies for home inspection, property condition, appraisal or finance.  I believe that this is a risky and unwarranted practice – but learn about it since your competitors may be doing this.
7. Read all of the articles below – they are here to help you!

Tips for Writing a Competitive Offer  Part One

Writing an Offer in a Multiples Situation? Financing Tips Part 2

Writing Strong Offers: More Financing Tips Part 3

Tips for Home Buyers Competing Against Multiple Offers – More Financing Tips Part 4

Competing Against Multiple Offers: Contingencies and Timeframes Part 5

Real Estate Purchase Offer Terms to Consider When Competing in Multiple Offers  Part 6

Sometimes the List Price Isn’t the Expected Sales Price, So Run Comps!

The Advantages of Presenting and Receiving Offers In Person

Interested in working with an agent who’s highly experienced with multiple offers?  Call or email me today!

Often on this blog we look at specific, hyper local real estate markets in Santa Clara County (as with Saratoga, Campbell, Los Gatos, or even a larger city such as San Jose – or parts of it such as Almaden or Cambrian – or even subsets of any of those). Today, though, we’ll check in on Santa Clara County as a whole, which is home to 1.8 million people and many diverse markets.

The number of homes being sold in Silicon Valley is trending upward now. Prices, though, while higher than a month ago are down about 5.4% from a year before. Let’s see it visually:

Pricing of houses sold in Santa Clara County

Both median and average sales prices are shown in the graph below (which is from the printable version of my Santa Clara County Real Estate Report; you can also view an online version at popehandy.rereport.com). Note the trends with several “peaks and valleys” over the last five years or so.

To check on particular areas within the county, please visit my RE Report and select the city, town, or area within San Jose that you want to better understand.

I’ve been selling real estate for 18 years, full time, in Silicon Valley. Until recently I had never seen a dampwood termite in this area but a few months ago I caught sight of  a dead one at the Almaden Winery neighborhood (on the Cambrian and Almaden border) when our pest inspector, Miguel Torres from Thrasher Termite, noticed it.  Luckily there were no live dampwoods to be found! I thought it was a weird fluke.

Fast forward a few months, and  again this week I saw first the much smaller,  immature dampwoods (so I didn’t recognize them, but suspected that they were termites of some kind as they were coming out of rotting wood) and a few days later saw the large and now mature dampwood termites swarming in the same location in Belgatos Park, Los Gatos, close to where my family and I live. Initially I thought they were strange moths as there was a lot of flapping motion, but on closer look I could see that they were indeed termites and they were big!!!

We normally don’t see the dampwood type of termite on the Santa Clara Valley floor (usually subterranean and drywood 0nly).  Normally the dampwoods tend to live  in the Santa Cruz Mountain communities (and places where it’s much damper), so I hope that this isn’t a new trend to be concerned about – either way, though, I thought you’d like to see what they look like and to be aware of the fact that it is possible to have them in San Jose or Los Gatos real estate.  I know, I’ve seen them myself!


Related reading:

Would You Recognize Signs of Subterranean Termites If You Saw Them?

What Is Cellulose Debris (in a pest or termite report)?

How Often Should You Get A Termite Inspection?

Not everyone is familiar with the term “patio home” or “zero lot line” house when searching for Silicon Valley real estate.  Recently a listing agent of such a property called me for feedback and when I told her that my clients did not want a zero lot line home, she didn’t know what I was talking about. She had no idea that this term applied to her listing!

So I thought maybe this topic deserved a little more attention.

What does zero lot line mean?

With most houses, the structure is set into the lot or land such that the property boundaries are at least a few feet away on all sides – often 5 or 8 feet.  One common exception is garages in older parts of Willow Glen, Los Gatos, downtown San Jose, etc., where often these buildings were set directly against the property line on one or two sides.

When a house is right up against the property line, directly on the line, that’s referred to as a zero lot line and is usually referred to as a patio home.  To view that wall, you’d literally have to go onto your neighbor’s lot to have a look.  Although this is not terribly uncommon in dense, urban areas, it’s fairly infrequent in Silicon Valley.

Why are homes designed on zero lot line properties?  The main reason is to increase the density while providing more yard to the home owner.  Rather than having two 8′ side yards, perhaps you’ll have one much larger 16′ yard.

Interestingly, these houses do not seem to sell for less with the zero lot line – at least not that I have been able to discern. (That’s counter-intuitive….)

How can you tell if it’s a zero lot line house?

It should be disclosed in the MLS as such, but often isn’t (sometimes the listing agent doesn’t even know), so you’ll have to look carefully at the neighborhood and the property to see.  Here are some clues:

• you’re most likely to find patio homes where the houses sit on very small lots
• most of the time, there are no windows on the side built against the property boundary (though in Silver Creek there are a number of these with glass block windows put into bathrooms – so there is some light, but no opening into the neighbor’s yard)
• try to walk all the way around the property without going into a neighbor’s yard – if you can’t, that’s your red flag
• most of the time, patio homes are part of a home owner’s association and are located on private roads

Where are these patio homes located?

They are really all over Santa Clara County as a good alternative between having super small lots vs a townhouse.  We are seeing more and more of these in younger construction especially.

• in Almaden Valley, the Glencrest development (by Shapell, a great builder, with top rated schools there: Williams, Bret Harte and Leland) – very popular!
• in Silver Creek, there are condos and single family homes, but some of the houses further down into the valley are patio homes
• in Cambrian, along the Almaden border, there are patio homes in 2 of the 3 subdivisions of the Almaden Winery neighborhood (Tresor and Vineland) the Vintage subdivision is not zero lot line) (See one such home I sold on Le Fevre Drive in 2010 by clicking on the link)
• and many other places throughout the San Jose area!

One caution: sometimes there are townhome communities where a unit is sold as if it is a “duet home” or “patio home”.  Be sure to read the preliminary title report carefully to note the type of ownership in the common areas as well as the unit itself. You might be surprised!

Yesterday we looked at the types of home sales around Silicon Valley by price point.  Not terribly surprising, most of the short sales and bank owned homes were in the lowest price ranges.  Today we’ll look at this type of information not by pricing tier but instead by geography – in other words, by either town, city or district of San Jose (area).  This post will not cover every area but will be a sampling a few communities, mostly on the west side of the valley (since that’s primarily where I work).

By way of reminder, the small image to the left reflects Santa Clara County’s houses for sale as a whole – all areas and all price points. (You can see the full sized image by clicking on it.) The green area represents “regular home sales” and the brick red and light orange signify distressed  properties listed on the MLS for sale (red is short sales and orange is bank owned or REOs). Next let’s see a few regions within the county to see how things are faring geographically.

1. Almaden Valley area of San Jose – homes listed for sale by type – very few distressed properties on the market!

Almaden is a lovely southwest San Jose suburban community (zip code 95120) that grew up initially with the cinnabar or mercury mining activity.  Today it’s an upscale area of more expensive homes than most of the county, it enjoys really good schools and scenic views of the coastal range as well as the Santa Teresa Foothills.  Housing here is costly but residents love the quality of life. Since the cost of homes for sale here is high, it’s not super surprising, after seeing yesterday’s post, that there are very few distressed homes on the market here. Next we’ll check the other extreme….

2. Alum Rock area of San Jose – this is a less wealthy part of Santa Clara County and generally has been harder hit by the mortgage and housing crisis.

In this east San Jose neighborhood of Alum Rock (near beautiful Alum Rock Park), almost half the homes listed for sale are either short sales or bank owned properties.  That said, Alum Rock has some areas which are much more upscale (and elevated), some with many many acres of land and those pricier properties are not quite so badly hit with the distressed property deluge.

3. Cambrian area of San Jose – a west valley community that often closely reflects Santa Clara County as a whole

The Cambrian or Cambrian Park district of San Jose often has prices, days on market and other trends which are very similar to Santa Clara County so it’s often a good “gauge” of how the area is doing generally.  If you compare this graph to the one at the top of this post, you’ll find them very similar – about 2/3 of listed houses and duet homes for sale are “regular” or non-distressed sales.

5.  Campbell -a little more expensive, great downtown, popular area

Campbell is exceedingly popular as it’s got a charming downtown, enjoys light rail access and is part of the Los Gatos Creek Trail. It’s close to Los Gatos, but more affordable. Here about 70% of the homes listed for sale on our multiple listing service or MLS are regular sales, so a little healthier than most of Silicon Valley.

6. Los Gatos – a more expensive community, fewer distressed houses for sale

In Los Gatos, there are right now just 3 short sales on the market (for houses and duet homes) and NO bank owned homes. As you can see, it’s overwhelmingly “normal sales” and this helps a lot with home values.

A year or so ago, we had a cluster of short sales in one particular east Los Gatos neighborhood and it was really damaging the property values of the “regular sellers’” homes. It’s encouraging to see this correct a bit.

7. Monte Sereno – more expensive still – no distressed houses for sale right now!

Monte Sereno is a tiny city with 4,000 residents. It’s more expensive then neighboring Los Gatos, with whom it shares police, schools, library and more.

With no businesses or commercial buildings, Monte Sereno enjoys a quieter lifestyle.  Most of the activity is either around Daves Avenue School, the post office/city building or the horse trails!

8. Palo Alto -home to Stanford and classy luxury homes

Stately and vibrant Palo Alto is home to Stanford University (and the Lucille Packard Hospital, which is a world class facility).  Schools in this city are top-rated in Silicon Valley.  The city is beautiful and there’s lots to do.  For many reasons, then, Palo Alto is probably the most sought after address in the region, and home prices reflect its desireability. Not surprisingly, then, it’s not likely that home buyers will find many low-cost distressed properties on the market.  When they do appear, they tend to go fast.  As of this writing, there’s just one short sale and no bank owned homes available there.

9. Saratoga – great schools, scenic vista, highly regarded Silicon Valley community

Saratoga is not as costly as Palo Alto, but within Santa Clara County it’s right up there near the top for least affordable.

What I find most interesting here is not the small number of distressed properties on the MLS in Saratoga, but rather that there’s an equal number of short sales as there are REOs (bank owned).  Usually the ratio is more 2 – to – 1.  Maybe it’s a fluke? We’ll have to check and see down the road!

What we see when looking at Silicon Valley houses listed for sale by sale type is that the geographical differences largely mimic the pricing tiers.  The more expensive the area – or the home within it – the less likely you are to find that bargain priced property.

For more info on Silicon Valley Communities, please also see my website’s community information page.

Sometimes it’s not too hard to find the likely market value of a property: it might be a San Jose tract home where several similar homes, in similar conditions, on similar lot sizes, has sold recently.  Or, if not such a cookie-cutter property, it could be a “typical” type of house for a given part of Silicon Valley – a typical Cambrian area 3 bedroom, 2 bath house, for instance.

But sometimes, you have residential real estate that really is not too similar to others nearby.  It may have been custom built or remodeled to an extreme.  It might have an exceptional location or view.  Or perhaps it’s in a region where there is very low turnover, so no recent sales.

Estimating the probable buyer’s value with a unique home for sale in Silicon Valley is tricky but not impossible.  There may be no “good comps” within a mile, but there are homes that fill similar needs and that’s where you look.  We must put ourselves into the buyer’s shoes as much as possible.

Begin with asking yourself this question: what would the buyer of this property be looking for? What needs does this house and land fill?  Here are some possible areas to consider:

• Schools – many Silicon Valley home buyers are aiming at particular school districts, or possibly even a single school or set of schools. If the property in question is located in an area with highly regarded schools, this will be an important factor in the market value.
• Condition – some buyers are looking for a lower-cost property to rebuild or remodel. Others only want a truly turnkey home that’s either newly and extensively remodeled or a very young home.  Many homes for sale in Santa Clara County are partially updated, and neither fully original nor fully remodeled.  Some buyers are OK with this but many want one extreme or the other and most want the move-in, nothing needed house & yard.
• Land – in California, it is the land that holds value, not the structure (which gets old, needs repair, can be destroyed).  How much acreage is there? Is it all usable? Is it conveniently located? How are the views?
• Amenities – if the unique home has any special or bonus type features such as belonging to a cabana club or neighborhood pool, features a special attribute such as a wine cellar & tasting room, those should be considered too.

Hypothetical Case: Unique Almaden Valley Home to Sell

Let’s take a hypothetical case of a unique home to sell in the Almaden Valley area of San Jose.  Let’s say that this house began as a standard 4 bedroom, 2 bath home with 2000 square feet in a nice area with great schools.  And now let’s say that the owners massively expanded the home by adding a basement under the house (an expensive undertaking and which no other neighbor has) that features a game room, a bed & bath suite with a kitchenette, and it includes Brazilian hardwood flooring.  We’ll say that the home is now 3000 SF in all and that the owners got all permits and finals. (This is totally made up, I know of no such home in the 95120 zip code.)

With no similar homes to compare it to, how would you estimate the market value of the property?

As a basis, you can see what the house would sell for without the improvement and addition.  We know that the value would go up from there, so this will establish a “lower than baseline” value.  The house itself is 50% larger but buyers will not pay 50% more for a home that much bigger (sellers often wish that they would) because the land didn’t get 50% better and neither did the neighborhood, and the house is only part of the package. Smaller homes sell for much more per SF than larger homes do.

You can also see what homes of a similar square footage are selling for when the extra space is above ground, such as with a 2 story home.  Most home buyers would far prefer that all square footage be above and not below grade.  If you can find properties that are 5 bedroom, 3 bath and feature a bonus room (and beautifully remodeled) all above ground, that is likely to be your high end of value.

The likely buyer of that property may be someone looking for the best schools who either wants/needs a pool table room (or has a hobby that calls out for a rec room or bonus room) and wants a guest suite (perhaps for relatives or a nanny or some other purpose). Or perhaps the buyer will be someone who wants to create a home theater, in which case being in the basement is a plus since you don’t want a lot of large windows there.

The best comparable sales may not be within a mile, or even be within 10% of the size of the home.  They could be further out but fill similar needs and show what buyers will pay to have those needs filled.  It’s not always exactly about the square footage, the numbers of beds & baths, the precise street or view.

With a lot of tweaking, it’s usually possible to narrow the range for that likely buyer’s value for the home to within 10% of the correct spread.

At that point, it may be good for your agent to connect and network with other good Realtors to get some insight as to the recently sold and closed properties and those which are sale pending.  There may be more to it than the price which shows up on the county records.  It can also be wise for your real estate agent to call in a favor (once it’s listed for sale, after you have signed the paperwork) or two and ask colleagues and friends in the industry who are experienced with similar properties to swing by and offer their suggestions on market value.  Collaboration does not show weakness on the part of your agent, but rather going the extra mile to get it right.  Sometimes the extra input can be very helpful.

A quick warning on appraisals: sometimes agents or home sellers will want to get an appraisal of value to determine market value.  I want to caution that appraisals are not the same thing as a competitive market analysis (sometimes called a comparative market analysis).  Appraisals look at what has sold and often times they may not factor in things the same way that an agent would for a buyer’s response.  For instance, I once saw a Los Gatos home which sported a tangerine colored kitchen sink.  For an appraiser, that sink (which was in mint condition) was not an issue.  It functions, it’s in good shape.  But as a listing agent, I can tell you that things like teal colored carpet, flocked wallpaper and crazy colored fixtures do not make a home easier to sell or to sell it for top price.  They may be OK for an appraiser but not for what buyers will be willing to pay today.  It will hurt you competitively.

Many Silicon Valley home buyers seek a great home with excellent schools and an affordable price – and I have just such a listing to present to you!   Not only that, but additionally it’s located on a very quiet street (no through traffic), it has recently been updated and remodeled, and further, it’s on an over-sized lot!

Just listed this week, the home at 5114 Nerissa Way in San Jose’s Cambrian neighborhood is sure to please!  Here are some of the highlights:

• 3 bedrooms + small office or hobby room
• 2 baths – both recently remodeled
  • hall bath features shower/tub combo & big skylight
  • master bath includes stall shower
• updated kitchen with slab granite countertops, large skylight & breakfast bar
• living room offers cozy, wood burning fireplace
• family room open to dining and kitchen & offers back yard and patio access
• hardwood floors in bedrooms and under carpeting in hallway and living room
• house is appx 1233 square feet and lot is appx 7500 SF
• loads of natural light – sunny house!
• open, flexible floorplan
• 1 car garage, attached
• Room to add on to house, possible to make 2 car garage, and room for pool – many possibilities

Affordable Home in Alta Vista School Area!

This darling ranch style home is part of the Cambrian Gardens neighborhood which enjoys attendance at Alta Vista Elementary School.  Alta Vista is in the town of Los Gatos and serves homes in both east Los Gatos and the Cambrian area of San Jose.  Home prices for this school area range from the low 500s (for homes needing a substantial amount of work) to well over $1 million.  The house at 5114 Nerissa Way, San Jose 95124 is offered at a very attractive $579,000. Relative to the Alta Vista school area and immediate Alta Vista neighborhood, this is extraordinarily affordable!

Schools of attendance & 2010 API Scores:

• Alta Vista Elementary School – API score of 938
• Union Middle School – API 892
• Leigh High School – API 817

Silicon Valley Gardener’s Delight!

Step into the back yard and be amazed at the space, the flowers, the quiet!  There’s a sizable patio area with a trellis (and flowering vine) and built in bench.  Move beyond that and find a world of beauty with a yard designed with a garden lover in mind.  In addition to a nice lawn area, there are roses planted against the house, raised planter beds, a small greenhouse, a pond area with calla lilies surrounding it and every nook and cranny planted with some sort of flowering bush, annual, herb or tree, including fruit trees. Bulb plants and many others are ready to bounce into spring now that the heavy rains of March are past us.

Room to Expand or Add a Pool

Since the lot, and particularly the back yard, is so big, there’s room to grow here.  It’s possible to add onto the back of the house, for instance, and still have plenty of backyard left.  Or if your heart’s desire is an in-ground pool, there’s room for that too. This is the type of home and location where you’ll want to move in and stay for many years to come.  It’s nice to know that it’s a flexible situation in terms of your future wants and needs.

Fabulous Location: Quiet Street, Los Gatos Border

Nerissa Way is a hidden gem in Cambrian Gardens – it’s tucked away, close in, but out of the way….It’s a 3 minute drive to the entrance of highway 85 but far enough for the location to be quiet.  The grocery store, a large Safeway, is just a few blocks away or perhaps a 2 minute car ride.

This neighborhood is very close to the Los Gatos border and it’s a quick drive from here to King’s Court Shopping Center, Vasona Lake County Park and all the attractions of Los Gatos.

Want more information?

Here are a few more things you may want to know.

1. We have an open house planned on Saturday & Sunday, April 9 & 10, 2011 from 2 – 4pm both days.
2. The MLS # is 81114496.
3. You can view a virtual tour with 49 photographs at
   http://www.tourfactory.com/721887
4. I shot a walk through video with my flip camera a few hours before we went on the MLS.  (Warning, not professionally shot, no tripod!) If you’d like to literally “walk through” the house with me, the video is about 5 minutes, 18 seconds long (about the same timeframe as the virtual tour).  I’ll embed it below.
5. There are inspection reports available: property/home, pest, roof, chimney.  Disclosures should be ready soon.  We are asking for any offers to wait until after April 10th, please.

A walk through 5114 Nerissa Way, house for sale in Cambrian Gardens neighborhood of San Jose

Enjoy my video walk through this great home for sale!  Hope you will enjoy it and stop by our open house soon.

The Camden Community Center is located in the Cambrian Park area of San Jose, close to the intersection of Camden and Union Avenues (SJ 95124).  This may be the most under-appreciated recreation venue in Silicon Valley, so I wanted to give it a plug!

Stop by and you’ll find that it is a fabulous resource whether you want to work out daily, rent a room for a big party, sign up for a class, walk your dog (just cleanup after!)  or attend a community event.  My kids took “hula dancing” there when they were very young, amongst other things, and a year or two ago we visited to catch a travelling exhibit about colons. (There was a giant plastic model of one which you could walk through. Yes, really.)

The sprawling campus sports nice, newer buildings, an indoor pool, a huge grassy field, a playground, attractive landscaping and plenty of parking – it is a pleasant place in which to spend some time.  It’s also home to some funky art – a giant metal sculpture of a hand (and a hand inside another one) as if to wave hello.  (Maybe the same artist decorated the outside of the parking garage at the San Jose Mineta International Airport?).

When & where?

Open daily except Sunday, so stop by and check out the offerings. The center is located at 3369 Union Avenue, just off Camden (and behind the Lucky’s shopping center). Telephone 408 559-8553.  If you’re travelling by bus, you’ll want to use the 37 or 62 lines.  Open Monday through Friday 8:30am to 8pm, Saturdays 9am to 1pm.

Check out all of the offerings at the Camden Community Center’s website.

Close to the Los Gatos border sits one of the more affordable Cambrian neighborhoods in San Jose and the west valley generally.  It enjoys lovely views of the hills, great public schools with high API scores, a neighborhood private school to boot, and convenient access to freeways and stores.  There’s no sign, marker or gateway to the area, so many of its residents are probably unaware that the official name to it is Cambrian Gardens.

This neighborhood provides an incredible “bang for the buck” for home buyers wanting excellent schools and not wanting to pay luxury home pricing.  In many ways, it’s a “sleeper” – meaning that many people don’t know it’s there, but it’s a good deal!

Where is the Cambrian Gardens area of Cambrian?

The rough borders are Union Avenue, Los Gatos-Almaden Road, Leigh Avenue, and the West Valley Freeway (85).

Not everything within that area is part of the tracts which make up Cambrian Gardens, though. It was developed just south of and directly adjacent to the Cambrian Park area which is so well known, but now separated from it by the freeway. (Click image or here to see live map in Google.)

Cambrian Garden Landmarks

Homes built in this part of Silicon Valley were clustered around the later-built neighborhood public school (bordered by Clarinda, Laurinda, Emeline and Sandy), James De Voss, which is now leased out as a private one, the Global School, as well as Little Oak Preschool. The other major landmark to the neighborhood is Ross Creek, which slides through the middle. With it come frogs, egrets, ducks and other wildlife which are generally welcome.

What are houses like in the Cambrian Gardens neighborhood?

The property was subdivided, developed and built beginning in the late 1950s.  Most sections were completed by the early 60s but one part (Mise and Stuckey) came much later and houses there a bit larger.

Typically, the original construction consisted of smaller ranch style houses on about 6000 square foot lots with 3-4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and anywhere from 1100 to 1600 square feet. (Most common: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and 1200- 1300 SF.) Most lots have a frontage of about 60 feet with lots going back about 100 feet.

Since there were several builders, there are likewise several designs. At the same time, though, most were built within a few years of one another so basic features tend to be similar.Fireplaces, front porches, sliding glass doors to back patios, the use of tile, hardwood and abundant windows are all hallmarks of these homes.

Kitchens: a real estate trend of that era was “galley” style kitchens with a breakfast nook area or eat-in kitchen so that’s predominantly what you’ll find here. Some houses have both a formal dining area (dining “L” or combined living-dining room) as well as a breakfast room. Cabinets were often built under soffits, so if remodeling, it’s easy to get more storage by simply bringing the cabinets down directly from the ceiling.

Bathrooms: As with other construction of that vintage, bathrooms were built with efficiency in mind and are compact. The hall bath usually has a shower over the tub and the master bath includes a stall shower in most cases. (The latter often has a built in cabinet next to the shower which could be “blown out” to make a bigger stall shower.)

Houses are set fairly far back on the lot, which was typical for the time in which these properties were built.  For buyers with an eye to expansion, this means there’s room to add on in front (some build up, some build out when adding on).

Garage & laundry: Laundry is usually in the garage.  Most properties have an attached 2 car garage, but one builder provided an option that enabled purchasers to elect a 1 car garage + family or bonus room (and also to have an inside laundry room). A lot of houses have an extra wide side yard just off the garage, which appears to have been intended to function as an area for a drying line.

The majority, if not all of these houses, were built with hardwood floors (all but kitchen and bathrooms in most cases) and forced air heat (but again, one builder used wall heaters – though most of those have since been upgraded by later owners to forced air heating). They are almost exclusively on raised foundations, not slab (exception that I’m aware of being the “bonus” option on the 1 or 2 car garage design, where the family or bonus room is on slab – the rest of the house on a perimeter or raised foundation).

A challenge with some designs in the area is a shortage of closet space (for what we are used to today).  To reclaim some interior space for closets, some homeowners move the furnace from an interior space to either the garage or attic, thus adding another closet.  Others add on to the house, build “organizers” in the existing closets and have other ways of minimizing their need for more.

In looking through the Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions, or CCRs, I was surprised to see the name McKeon twice listed out of three names for those who subdivided this area.  The McKeons are best known in this area for the many, many fourplexes that dot Santa Clara County.  (There were several builders, though.)

What about the schools?

This area is not all served by the same public elementary schools.  One section, north of Ross Creek, has attendance at Carlton Elementary and the other, south of Ross Creek, at Alta Vista. Both are extremely well regarded.  (Please see the boundary map for the Union School District online.) All attend Union Middle School and Leigh High School.  Here are the numbers for the API Report numbers for 2010:

• Carlton: 930 API
• Alta Vista 938 API
• Union Middle 892 API
• Leigh High 817 API

What do homes cost in Cambrian Gardens?

Naturally there is a range of size, condition, and sale type (regular sale vs short sale or bank owned) and those all influence resale value or market value.  Additionally, there are more and less desirable areas: Leigh and Los Gatos-Almaden Road are much busier than more interior streets such as Kenlar, Tilden, or Nerissa (which has no through traffic at all).  And, of course, homes that are very close to the freeway will be louder and that also impacts a buyer’s probable value for the home.

Disclaimers aside, at this time prices are running mostly in the 500s and 600s with exceptions for the extremes one way or the other (big additions or homes needing a lot of work in a less desirable area). You can check on the current Cambrian real estate market conditions here.

Overall, it’s an inexpensive area for the quality of the schools and is a great choice for people who want to live either in the Alta Vista neighborhood or perhaps closer to Carlton Elementary (such as in the King Streets or El Gato Terrace areas) but don’t want to spend that much.

See photo slide show of San Jose’s Cambrian Gardens area

Just listed: Beautiful, updated & remodeled Cambrian Gardens home on oversized lot!
Beautiful Cambrian Home, Large Lot, Alta Vista School, Affordable Price!