Rancho Riconada has gone a long way from being a county section adjacent to Cupertino. A few years back it was officially anex to Cupertino and is no longer county. Location is great. there are still some good buys on the old homes. and as most investors or homeowners buy these to updgrade to the $Million dollar homes, there is no way but to go up.

As soon as the economic crisis is over it will be another bidding war to replace the old homes with high end.
There is a huge lot on the old Bollinger farm that can be splitted into several lots. Contact me for showing.

Now, the following is for economists who really want to know. If I offend you that is the in depth analysis I do for clients!

If you like hard data, here it is. The high school test score (API) correlates to average price per square ft with an index of determination (r^2) of 0.4. As far as correlation between high API vs appreciation(%) from 1989 through the price peak it is < 0.2. The S/N ratio is so low and the F ratio is poor there is no trend indication that better schools will result in higher ROI so far as numbers go.... Most is based on the perception not based on any hard data. Homes in Los Alto Hills is always high you do cash out more but not necess. from a return standpoint. People do not buy investment there but does not mind live there.

There are also schools in un-expectant places that are at par if not even better school wise than brand name places as suggest. Only skilled all around good realtors know where they are.

All depends on how much you bought and how long you will hold this property.
There is a fantistic fixer up home in Rancho Rincocanda area is only for $499K
that will be a good home as an investment.
Please read on this blog:
http://gracekeng.com/2009/07/10/cupertino-short-sale-home-is-low/

BUY LOW and SELL HIGH!

looking_tobuy,

It depends on what you define as a good investment. As others have pointed out below, Rancho is the least expensive neighborhood within the Cupertino School district, so you have potential for appreciation and fairly good schools. However, one aspect of appreciation is that the neighborhood is fairly consistent in look and feel. RR is neither. RR is a mix of older small homes built on rather modest sized lots, interspersed with large "box like" large homes with no character and generally poor construction quality. It's a neighborhood in transition, but what it is transforming into may not be what you are looking for.

RR is relatively inexpensive for a reason. I suggest that you drive the neighborhood and see for yourself. Imagine 10 years into the future, see all the new "box like" homes dotting the neighborhood. If you are O.K. with it, then RR may be for you. If not, I suggest looking elsewhere.

hat area has an annual appreciation of 6% per annum since 1998. It enjoyed an avg of 9.5% avg increase through q3, 2006, peak quarter. All these good school districts the test scores hold up the value during a downturn. It also has the lowest priced homes per square feet in the City. Stated differently, when the market takes off again as it has been last 30 years, other lower priced areas will appreciate faster than any good good schools. Sorry, there are almost no exceptions.

That area is also the most affordable area if you want to buy the City address. BTW: The Eichler homes are not meant to have add on tops without retrofit. You are most likely have to tear and rebuild. Check with City Hall planning department in the basement. Lot size start at 4900, 5000, 6000, and once in a great while a 9000 sf lot shows up.

This area was considered rural under county jurisdiction. As such many older homes do not meet today's building code. Homes built during the era had no backyard or storage. In the 1950s one pass Stevens Creek saw rows and rows of fruit trees. The area is left over from the old ranches divided in the early 1950s. Billy Calvert (minor owner of the Xroads worked there for 46 years), F Tantau (574 ac, 2 parcles), Bollingers (280 ac), and P Millers(172 acres) grew prune/cots there.

Rancho Rinconda (RR) is a unique area. Its certainly the most affordable area with a Cupertino address. The RR area orignially was constructed with inexpensive and low quality housing. I believe the strength of RR is the availability of affordable property and land. Since the market for large newly built homes in Cupertino is strong and RR is one of the most affordable areas to buy a property, many buyers look to RR with the plan to build a large 5 bedroom 3 bathroom 3000 sq ft home.

If you want to invest in Rancho make sure you buy a home with a decent sized lot, so that when you go to sell or redevelope you will be able to construct a marketable home.

As far as schools scores are concerned, you can purchase a better built home in a better quality neighborhood in Santa Clara with comparable elementary Cupertino schools (Eisenhower Elementary) and the same middle and high schools.

http://www.santaclaravalleyliving.com/santa-clara-county-sch…

Rancho Rinconada is served by Sedgwick Elementary, Hyde Middle and Cupertino HS. Sedgwick was remodeled and re-networked about 8 years ago and at that time was the most modern school in the district. Hyde API scores have steadily climbed since the change from 4 jr high schools to 5 middle schools (with the addition of Lawson).

You can view the county API scores by going to my website. On the right hand side, one or two paragraphs down, you will be able to click and go right to the County page.

Hyde originally had all the ESL students from the district for 7th & 8th grade throughout the district. Now that Lawson is included, they are distributed to each. I served on the committee that modified the boundaries for the 5 middle schools. Lawson was added when the district was mandated to include 6th grade in all middle schools.

Rancho Rinconada was built on county land in 1950-1953. The elementary school was Doyle (where the 69 Greenbriar homes now sit between Wunderlich and Lawrence Expressway). Rancho was annexed by resident voters into the City of Cupertino 10 years ago. It had always had a 'Cupertino' address and zip; just county jurisdiction instead of city.

The location is outstanding, the schools are good and the district has a great reputation. Some overlook Rancho because they want Lynbrook or Monta Vista High School instead of Cupertino High. Rancho homes are generally less expensive because of this. The home values in Rancho will pace the surrounding areas so it is a good investment short term and long term. As time goes on, more and more of the original Stern & Price 2/1 and 3/1 homes will disappear and be replaced by rebuilt modern homes. You can see this trend on every street in Rancho.

Cupertino is a destination area. Turnover of homes is very low and the percentage of homes underwater in regards to their mortgages is around 3% (a very low #). People buy in Cupertino and stay. This contributes to more stable and better maintained neighborhoods.

The tradeoff in Rancho is you'll get a larger home for the same price compared to the Monta Vista or Lynbrook areas (technically Lynbrook is San Jose but the school districts are the same). I just sold a home on Carver that is closing this week. A 7 yr old home with 2400sf listed at $1,249,950 - a bargain with good schools and a great location.

Long term you will do as well as the areas surrounding Rancho. On a proportionate basis the appreciation should be just about the same. And you get more bang for the buck to start with.

Mark Burns
Coldwell Banker Premier
408-777-2083