Alviso (SJ)
Alviso of San Jose
The San Jose real estate market is a strong seller’s market, however this spring it experienced mild unseasonable cooling, though it’s begun to recover some and we’re seeing an increasingly hot market this summer. We see this in the San Jose housing market data, below, but I’ve also seen it in my own real estate practice.
Something to note, however, is that these charts will not reflect the full effect of the pandemic on the market. We have a better view of the impact this month, but it will take a while to see the full picture. For now, you can read about Coronavirus’ impact on real estate sales on my other post.
During the shutdown so far, the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) stopped the timer on all Days on Market (DOM). Therefore these numbers will be off beginning from March 17th through around May 17th. In the data below, this will affect any numbers related to the days on market, the absorption rate, and the days of inventory. Current numbers are accurate, but disregard this data for those previous months.
First please find the Altos Research Charts, a live feed of data on the housing markets in San Jose. You will then also find the RE Report, charts with statistics comparing sales in the last month and comparing them month-over-month and year-over-year. These are both the usual tools I use to gauge a market. Directly below are links to the market analysis of specific neighborhoods in San Jose. Some of these, where I work the most, are updated monthly, and others are updated every few months.
Altos Charts for the San Jose real estate market as a Whole – automatically updated each week – single family homes
First, the market profile and then the basic charts for single family homes or houses in San Jose. FYI, Altos uses LIST prices. The RE Report further down uses SOLD prices (which is part of the reason why I utilize both).
This real time market San Jose housing market profile (updated September 12th) shows on the graph a sharp increase of inventory and steady rise in market action. San Jose is still in a strong seller’s market according to Altos, and is continuing to heat up. The Median List Price (for condos and houses combined) is usually stable around $1,250,000, though it jumped up to $1.28 recently.
If you arrived into Silicon Valley via Highway 101, driving south from San Francisco, you might believe that the Santa Clara Valley, the San Jose area and Silicon Valley as a whole has got to seem to be the ugliest place on earth. Although heavily traveled, that is not the “scenic route”.
So, too, if you are looking for a place to live and are groping to find a place that is reasonably priced, fairly safe and not a terrible commute distance. You might not even have “is nice looking” on your wish list. You might not think it’s possible if all you ever see are the ugly concrete tilt-up buildings in north San Jose, Santa Clara, Alviso, or anywhere along the 237 corridor. That area is an architectural wasteland.
Let me assure you: there are a lot of beautiful places in Silicon Valley where you can rent or buy a home. But how do you find them? It helps a lot to have a local give you a few pointers. I’ll give you some tips today on finding a scenic place to live.
Hills – An easy way to find a scenic location to make your home is to settle near the hills, especially those in the west valley (the Santa Cruz Mountains or the Coastal Range) as they are green year-round. Communities at the base of the west valley foothills include, in Santa Clara County, Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Cupertino, Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos, and the Almaden Valley area of San Jose. All of these areas are adjacent to the hills or mountains and offer far better than average schools (many of them qualify as great – compare costs between these areas). Continue reading
Alviso enjoyed an important position in local Silicon Valley history. It was once a bustling port from which important products were shipped – things like mercury (quicksilver) from New Almaden, tallow, hides and grain. It was incorporated in 1852 but in 1968 became a part of San Jose. As a bayfront community, Alviso’s residents have suffered some severe flooding in the past. Today, though, the water front and marina are a shadow of their former selves, due to the fact that the slough is no longer dredged and vegetation has overtaken much of the marina. Today I’ll share some photos of the Alviso Marina area which I took a few months back and hope it will encourage this site’s readers to make a trip out there and enjoy the local sites in person.
In the photo above, you can see that boats are now surrounded by rushes and reeds rather than open water. The next one, below, provides a view of the San Francisco Bay in the distance.
The public shore sign seemed out of place today.
Closer to the slough, a clear channel does remain but it’s not very deep. Continue reading
