Mario Pinedo, CCIM

I owned a home in the Rose Garden on Burrell Court - it was 75 years old at the time. That was not a deterent at all - actuallly it was a positive - as the buyer's in the Rose Garden value architecture and age.
That home had been a 2 bedroom, one bath. The previous owners added a master suite and the home became far more valuable. This may be something to consider for your home.
Will the market go up in the next 5 years - my answer is absolutely - when more available financing comes back into the lending market - that will fuel prices - let alone population growth and lack of single family home construction. - Fri May 9 2008, 11:34

The convention on sales in Santa Clara County is that the seller pays for escrow fee and seller's title insurance. The buyer pays for the lender's supplemental title insurance. County transfer tax is paid by seller and City of San Jose transfer tax is split 50/50. Santa Clara County is very buyer favorable. Alameda and San Mateo counties are very seller favorable. As for new construction developments - many have been making the buyer pay for all of it. This rubs many buyers the wrong way because they will have to pay the most on both the purchase and the eventual sale - because as a resale - it would normally fall under the accepted convention of the county. It is what it is unfortunately... - Thu May 8 2008, 17:34

NO!!! - Granted the sacrifice in living in a smaller home is tough - although I really feel that the toll on your lives, let alone the car, is too much to bear. Prices will also hold far better within central Silicon Valley than in the outskirts. Tracy's prices are very attractive now with all the short sales and foreclosures which is making a lot of people look there. I do think the market also is no where near the bottom in Tracy. That could mean a year or more of lowering prices. There are definitely good deals in San Jose condos now also. - Fri Apr 25 2008, 18:36

I like blossom valley in San Jose for one big reason - I see buyer support of prices there. This gives strength to the arguement that we may be at or nearing a bottom in price decline in that area. Now, this is with single family homes that are listing at $500,000 or below. The fully loaded townhomes will mirror the small single family homes too. By fully loaded - I mean at least 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2 car garage and a patio or backyard. There are other adjacent areas that I have not seen the bottom price support yet and it may make better sense to wait on those neighborhoods. - Wed Apr 23 2008, 09:55

Having lived in the far west of Menlo Park - the county portion by Alameda de las Pulgas - I can confidently say there are no cons except for the cost of it all! It is a wonderful community. The one thing that is a downside though is the quality of Menlo Atherton High School. This is in stark contrast to living in Palo Alto where both high schools are outstanding, as are the lower grade schools too. Many parents opt for private high school options in Menlo Park. - Mon Apr 21 2008, 21:47