<p>Friends listed their home in Sunnyvale for $899,888. Sold in 7 days at $1,010,000. I believe there were 3 or 4 offers. It was only 1700 s.f. and some change. Silicon Valley is HOT! Low inventory (along with cheap money) speaks volumes, although many are paying cash or putting big down big down payments.</p>
<p>Whoa. Too bad our house is not in Silicon Valley. Hahahahahaha. That’s okay, as long as it sells. We just never had the timing/money to buy into the more desirable parts of the Bay Area.</p>
<p>Mstee…I think you are going to be fine. The bay area is red hot. Good luck.</p>
<p>dstark – that is very good to hear.</p>
<p>jshain, how on earth do people get into the market? S1 and his new spouse just graduated and moved out to SV and while they have good salaries, there is no freakin’ way they can come up with a sizable down payment (>20%), much less an all-cash offer, in five years. (and they are frugal folk!) Does 10% down and a stellar credit/income history carry no weight?</p>
<p>My D just graduated and moved into an apartment in Silicon Valley. She works for a Big 4 accounting firm, makes a decent salary and also is in no position financially to purchase anything other than maybe an apartment- sized condo in a less-than-ideal area. I remember when I graduated from college, I moved back home to Moraga CA for 2 years and saved for my first down payment. I also had 2 roommates help me pay the mortgage. For me, I built up a lot of equity in the first 10-12 years of home ownership (paid $50K in San Ramon, sold for $350K), traded up after getting married, and then built up more equity while earning higher income along the way. Nowadays, building equity quickly is likely not going to happen again anytime soon. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, salaries have not increased at the rate of S.F. Bay Area homes so my daughter, just like your son CountingDown, is not going to own a home here in the near future either.</p>
<p>I also think many of the younger people who own (nice) homes have gotten cash gifts from parents or inheritance money along the way.</p>
<p>We live in the DC area and are no strangers to high home prices, but wow…SV blows me away. Hard to think of it as a long-term place to stay when getting into a house is so daunting.</p>
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<p>The numbers aren’t quite the same, but a similar sale happened in the Sunnyvale neighborhood where I’m renting. Listed for $848,000, sold for $1,020,000, I think there were 8-10 offers. The house was less than 1500 square feet. The perceived quality of the K-12 school district is a huge factor in the demand for single-family houses in Silicon Valley. The same house in a less desirable school district would sell for over a hundred thousand less.</p>
<p>A friend’s nephew is looking to buy his first condo in this area and can pay $600,000. He’s willing to settle for a 1-bedroom at that price. Another friend’s daughter wants to move back to the area from Texas with her 3 kids, but is completely priced out of the market. Affordable houses for teachers, firemen, and many other professional people is very difficult to find.</p>
<p>Vballmom, there are ramifications if teachers, policemen, and firemen are priced out, but it is very late so I want to know, is Sunnyvale nice now? I don’t remember Sunnyvale being anything great. I apologize to anyone who lives in Sunnyvale. But $600 a sq ft for a house in Sunnyvale?</p>
<p>Agree that I worry my s in SV will not be able to get into real estate if he wants to. Same issue. He currently lives in a condo (rental) that is around 800 sf. Its across the bay from SF in an ok area but nothing he likely wants to stay in forever. The condi above him (same floorplan/size) was on the market for just under half a million. Its nuts. 800 sf? Heck, the finished part of my basement is 1200 sf!</p>
<p>jsahin, suffice it to say there won’t be any inheritance or parental assistance from us for buying a house. That money went to tuition, which was one of the tradeoffs he chose to make when he turned down his free ride! </p>
<p>dstark, S and DIL are in Sunnyvale. 1 BR apartment, 662 sq. ft. Rent is more than our mortgage, but was within their original budget. They had feared they’d have to go a good bit higher, but found something that ticked all their boxes. Fortunately they are not picky about high-end amenities, granite countertops, etc. They do not have central air or a washer/dryer in their apt. They did want to be near Caltrain, shuttles, and shopping since they plan to be car-free for a while. </p>
<p>DH and I were out there last weekend. We trolled the RE listings and there are some single family houses in the mid 500s, but they are 2BR, 2BA and not updated. We did some very nice updates/buildouts while we were there, so I can see the potential. But yikes!</p>
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<p>Absolutely, it’s a nice city although the city planners seem to have made mincemeat of the central business district. Murphy Street seems to be reviving but that’s pretty much it for nightlife. El Camino is one strip mall after another, but that’s true up & down the Peninsula.</p>
<p>There are very nice neighborhoods here, mostly built in the 50s and 60s with well-maintained Eichlers and Brown & Kaufman homes. Mid-century modern is seeing a revival now so these homes, particularly the Eichlers, are in high demand. The high schools are considered excellent.</p>
<p>[Eichler</a> City](<a href=“http://johnfyten.com/eichler_city.htm]Eichler”>http://johnfyten.com/eichler_city.htm)</p>
<p>Sunnyvale doesn’t have the status of Los Altos or Palo Alto, and it’s not as charming as Mountain View, but I’ve enjoyed living here this past year. No regrets about moving on to the house I’ve been renovating elsewhere, which should happen in about 3 weeks.</p>
<p>A coming soon sign is being put on our Bay Area house today. It will be on the market in a week or two. I have very mixed feelings about that!</p>
<p>Good luck, mstee!! Sounds like a hot market!!</p>
<p>Yes, Good Luck Mstee! Wish the market for our house were stronger. I understand the mixed feelings though, I’ve been struggling with them for months as I’ve been going back trying to sort things. DH experienced them for the first time I think as we made the final push to get it on the market last week. At least he can now fill in the blanks when I can’t talk about it - though that phase seems to be over. Something to the “out of sight, out of mind” expression and I’m so ready to have this over! House is now listed and the online pics look good. We decided to go with the original realtor - basically the only game in town and someone needs to go into the house before showings. Out of town realtors just show up with their clients and I’ve heard rumblings of complaints if they have to drive 30 mins to show somewhere! Realtor broker agreed to 5% commission if he sells, but no other concessions, but that’s something.</p>
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<p>Jshain, your D still can buy a home in the “bay area” if she is willing to settle in CC county, not Walnut Creek, of course. Think Pinole, Rodeo, Pittsburg, Bay Point… Along that line for around 200K. Go for a FHA loan.</p>
<p>mstee, good luck, I guess you should be receiving offers now.</p>
<p>We have a second home in SC in a gated community. This week we got a regular update on real estate in the community - sales, new construction, etc. Closed sales were up 25% over the same month last year. In the community of 300 homes, there are currently 12 new homes under construction, and 3 more still in the approval process. There are also 2 spec homes about to begin construction, which is a good sign because there’s been no spec construction for 2-3 years. Rumor has it that many of the communities in the area are seeing the same positives.</p>
<p>Now there is talk of a shortage of homes for sale in many communities…</p>
<p>^ Send those buyers here. At our current sales rate we have a 30-year supply of homes available.</p>
<p>The problem in our area is availability of mortgage money. “Comps” are often foreclosed properties. Not many working folks have enough cash to put 50-60% down on a home.</p>
<p>It is almost, almost on the market. The realtor just called to ask if we minded if they listed it at $20,000 higher than they planned to. Uh, no, if you think it will sell at that price . . .It should be on the MLS in the next few days. Apparently the market is going crazy right now (which means the Bay Area market is back to normal, LOL).</p>