What Happened in Saratoga, CA Real Estate Since September 17, 2008?
September 17, 2008 is generally considered that start of the freefall in the stock market and financial bailout crisis. Sales in Saratoga did not stop, but they dropped off dramatically. Only 21 detached homes and 9 attached closed escrow in Saratoga since 9/17/08. As we end 2008 there are 105…
Thoughts For the New Year
 Post-Christmas is time of reflection about the past year and anticipation about what lies ahead. We enjoy the unhurried, post-holiday time to complete a challenging Edward Hicks jigsaw puzzle (above) and wish that life were as simple as knowing that if you just focus and persevere, all the pieces…
Rebuilding Together Serves the Community
 This past October, about 25 folks from Saratoga Presbyterian Church and about the same number from Epocrates participated in an all day project of refurbishing 10 mobile homes in south San Jose. My wife Lynne and I are located above the right sign. More photos are available >here. Rebuilding…
Merry Christmas to All!
 Wishing all a blessed Christmas with family and friends. Click >here for some beautiful seasonal choral music (Festival of Nine Lessons) from Kings College, Cambridge.…
Saratoga Schools are Great!
As I child I attended grades k-8 at what is now known as Oak Street Elementary. The current building is the third school in this location. The original building, near the sons of Temperance Hall was built in the 1860′s. A bell in the front sign is from the 1898…
Seller Financing in Saratoga, CA?
 The Current Mortgage Market has changed in the past 18 months: LTVs are down Guidelines are more restrictive Several Lenders have exited the market California hit harder than rest of U.S. Gone are the days when a borrower could walk down the street and get a 100% LTV loan…
Senior Rountable Expands Our Network
This morning I enjoyed cheery Christmas music and a delicious breakfast feast at Sunnyside Gardens in Sunnyvale with about 100 senior care provider professionals. The Senior Rountable meets monthly and provides opportunities for us to expand our network of people who can assist our “55+ or Better” clients and/or the…
Should I Buy a Home in Saratoga now?
Tuesday 12/16/08 the Federal Reserve cut its federal funds target rate by more than three-quarters of a percentage point to a range of between 0 and .25 percent. The decision signals that Fed Chief Ben Bernanke is more concerned with the rapidly deteriorating economy than the prospect of stoking inflation.…
Saratoga Area Senior Coordinating Council
I met today with Susan Huff who has been the Managing Director for the Saratoga Area Senior Coordinating Council for about a year. She has a backgound with Watsonville Community Hospital as a former Community Relations Director and seems enthusiastic about her new role to help Saratoga seniors. SASCC is a non-profit (501C3) which…
Should We Wait for Mortgages to Fall to 4.5%?
Mortgage rates for 30 year fixed rate loans are still very low, although they rose a bit from the previous week. Some lenders such as Well Fargo believe that we are at or near the low point in the mortgage market and there will be a mini refinance boom early in 2009. An…
Summit League House Tour December 5-6, 2008
  My mother, Virginia Bonetti was a member of the Summit League, which started in the late 1950′s. I remember her meeting with Barbara Lockhart, one of the original founders, and working on fundraising for what was then the Ming Quong Home, on Loma Alta in Los Gatos (just up…
It’s a Great Time to Refinance!
Conforming and jumbo conforming 30 year fixed rate loans are as low as they have been in a long time, which has set off a mini refi boom. Consumers around the country responded quickly to act when mortgage rates dropped. Since there are only 3 weeks left to take advantage of the…
Stricter Appraisals for Saratoga Real Estate
Hoping to mitigate losses, many lenders are now requiring more thorough home appraisals and reviewing valuation figures more carefully than in previous years. Lenders now often require “comps†(sales of comparable properties used to help determine a home’s value) that are no more than 60 to 90 days old, and within…
