Saratoga Voice » Silicon Valley

Hubs of Services for Aging-in-Place

Rick Bonetti — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 19:33:36 +0000

On April 6, 2011 from 5:30-7:00 PM, the Institute for Age-Friendly Housing is presenting Collaborating on Healthcare: Hubs of Services for Aging-in-Place, as part of their 2011 Forum Series held at Avenidas, 450 Bryant Street, Palo Alto, CA. Speakers for this event include:

Robert Trevorrow, San Francisco Senior Centers
Lisa Hendrickson, Avenidas & Avenidas Village
Martin Entwistle, Center for Healthcare Systems Innovation, Palo Alto Medical Foundation

Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door.

On May 4, 2011 the topic will be Spirituality & Aging: Purpose, Meaning and Mutual Support.

If you know a senior who wants to age in place in their home, but needs supportive services or who needs to sell their home and relocate to a more supportive living environment, please give me a call. I can refer you to people who can help.

Rick Bonetti | APR Referral Network | 408-857-8800 | DRE #01237009

Saratoga History

Rick Bonetti — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 16:08:33 +0000

Wikipedia offers the following brief history of Saratoga, CA:

The European settlement of what is now Saratoga occurred in 1848, when William Campbell (father of Benjamin Campbell, the founder of nearby Campbell, California) constructed a sawmill about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) southeast of the present downtown area. An early map noted the area as Campbell’s Gap. In 1851, Martin McCarthy, who had leased the mill, built a toll road down to the Santa Clara Valley and founded what is now Saratoga as McCarthysville. The toll gate was located at the present day intersection of Big Basin Way and 3rd St., giving the town its first widely used name: Toll Gate. In 1867 the town received a post office under the name of McCarthysville.

Industry soon sprang up: at its height the town had a furniture factory, grist mill, tannery, and a paper factory. To commemorate this newfound productivity, the town was renamed yet again in 1863, this time as Bank Mills. In the 1850′s Jud Caldwell discovered springs which were called Pacific Congress Springs because the water had a mineral content similar to Congress Springs, in Saratoga Springs, New York. In 1865, the town received its final name, Saratoga, after the city in New York. At the same time, a resort hotel called Congress Hall was constructed at the springs, named after the famous resort Congress Hall at Saratoga Springs, New York. California’s Congress Hall attracted tourists to the area until it burned down in 1903.

Saratoga then became quietly agricultural, along with much of the rest of the valley. A few vineyards and orchards from this period remain today. After World War II, the town quickly became urbanized, and it incorporated in 1956, mostly to avoid being annexed to San Jose. A slogan during the campaign to incorporate the city of Saratoga was “Keep it rural,” according to historian Willys I. Peck. Today the city serves as a bedroom community for upper-middle class Silicon Valley tech workers.

For more local history, visit the Saratoga Historical Foundation website.

Rick Bonetti | APR Referral Network | 408-857-8800 | DRE #01237009

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Rick Bonetti — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 16:26:12 +0000

The words of Martin Luther King Jr., as shown in San Francisco’s Yerba Buena park display (photo above), stand in stark contrast to the the heated political rhetoric in the aftermath of last week’s tragic shootings in Tucson AZ.

While it is clear that the Tucson violence was the act of a deranged individual, I have personal evidence of an ugly climate of hate that infects the soul of our country – my wife’s niece, Nancy Tucker who was in a nearby Tucson parking lot shortly after the shooting heard a man exclaim to her “That’s what they should do do all the liberals.” Chilling!!

Martin Luther King Jr., was shot and killed in 1968 by racial hatred as a result of his non-violent efforts to create freedom and equality for all Americans. The video of King’s “I have a Dream” speech is below to the right.

Looking for something to do today to honor the memory of a great national leader? Many in Silicon Valley honor his memory with acts of service making it a day ON, rather than a day OFF.

Silicon Valley FACES builds an inclusive and caring community, free of bias and bigotry, by bringing people together through educational programs and serving victims of crime.

In 2009 the US Postal service honored the courage, commitment and achievements of twelve other leaders of the struggle for African-American civil rights: Mary Church Terrell, Mary White Ovington, J. R. CLifford, Joel Elias Spingarn, Oswald Garrison Villard, Daisy Gatson Bates, Charles Hamilton Houston, Walter White, Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Bake and Ruby Hurley (all shown below):

Private Elementary Schools in Santa Clara County

Rick Bonetti — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 01:21:41 +0000

Private Schools in Santa Clara County are a frequent choice for Silicon Valley home buyers with school age children. Neighborhoods such as Willow Glen, Rose Garden have homes that are charming, streets lined with mature trees and a great sense of community identity, but the school scores are not as high as families with young children find desirable.

Put another way, some of the private elementary schools are sufficiently desirable, that they positively influence the proximate location where homebuyers select their residence in much the same way that public schools with high API scores.

What are dozens of private elementary school options available in Santa Clara County:

Harker School -

Harker School for grades K-5 is located at 4300 Bucknall Road in the Campbell area of San Jose

Harker School for grades 9-12 is located at 500 Saratoga Ave., in San Jose, just north of the 280 freeway.

Challenger School - Challenger has 10 locations in the San Francisco Bay Area, most in Santa Clara County.

Hillbrook School

Rick Bonetti | APR Referral Network | 408-857-8800 | DRE #01237009

Montalvo Summer Events In July, 2010

Rick Bonetti — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:41:49 +0000

July at Montalvo brings more concerts and events for children and adults:

Monday, July 12-23, 2010 | Montalvo Acts! Youth Theatre Camp
Monday, July 12-16, 2010 | Making Books & Prints
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 Noon | Summer Luncheon
Thursday, July 15, 2010, 7:30 P.M. | Richie Havens
Saturday July 17, 2010 11 A.M. and Noon | History Walks on the park grounds
Saturday, July 17, 2010, 8 P.M. | Lily Tomlin
Monday, July19-23, 2010 | Masks & Murals – Ages 5-14
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 Noon | Summer Luncheon
Friday, July 23, 2010 – Opening Party for Sculpture on the Montalvo Grounds

Sculptural works by Bay Area artists David Middlebrook, Ann Weber, and Ali Naschke-Messing will be celebrated on July 23 with an opening party for Natural and Creative Capital, Montalvo’s thematic artsÂ program that will explore issues of sustainability in our natural and creative environments. These works are part of Montalvo’s Sculpture on the Grounds program, and will be on view through October 2010.

The Opening Party will include live music, performances, food & libations. The public is invited to attend from 7pm – 9pm.Â Click here! Free Admission; No-host Bar. RSVP encouraged, but not required. Call 408-961-5858 Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010 Noon | Summer Luncheon
Friday, July 30, 2010 7 P.M. | Missoula Children’s Theatre’s King Arthur’s Quest

Rick Bonetti | Alain Pinel Realtors | 408-857-8800

Photo courtesy of Montalvo Arts Center

Interest Growing For Village Movement in Silicon Valley

Rick Bonetti — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 20:14:36 +0000

Interest in starting a village movement in the south bay of Silicon Valley is growing. I blogged about it three months ago and everyone I talk with thinks it is a good idea. Most women in their 70′s and 80′s instantly understand the village movement concept, which is a voluntary membership, non-profit organization that helps people age in place at their own home by providing concierge services and community support.

The Avenidas Newsletter will give you a better idea of how it differs from the typical, facility-based senior center.

Next Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 8 AM Susan Poor (Senior Policy Analyst at NCB Capital Impact) and Lisa Hendrickson (President and CEO of Avenidas in Palo Alto) will be speaking about San Francisco Village, Avenidas and the village movement in general at the Santa Clara Senior Roundtable at Los Altos Sub-Acute & Rehab.

I am a member of the Santa Clara Senior Roundtable because of of my interest in seniors real estate as an SRES; check out their website for more details or call me is you are interesting in attending.

Rick Bonetti, SRES | Alain Pinel Realtors | 408-857-8800

Silicon Valley Village Is A New Idea Whose Time Has Come (saratogavoice.com)

First Quarter 2010 Silicon Valley Real Estate Results

Rick Bonetti — Tue, 25 May 2010 15:26:13 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

Saratoga – Home sales in Saratoga, CA during the first quarter of 2010 totaled 40 homes, almost double the volume during the first quarter of 2009! Prices were up 4% too, for an average of $1.898 million! Average days on the market dropped from 111 to 69 days and months of inventory plummeted 65% from 11.9 months to only 4.2 months.

Los Gatos – Nearby Los Gatos also increased home sales volume during the first quarter 2010 from 36 to 49 homes, but average prices dropped slightly (6%) to $1.287 million. Average days on market declined 15% to 100 days and months of inventory dropped dramatically to a low 5.3 months, based on current absorption rate during the last month of the quarter.

Monte Sereno – Eight homes were sold in Monte Sereno during Q1 2010 (a 167% increase) with the highest average sales price of $2.553 million and the lowest average days on market (21 days) among Santa Clara County cities!

Strong sales and low inventory were also achieved in Cupertino, Los Altos, Mountain View and Palo Alto. Desirable school scores rather than buyer incentives drives strong demand in more expensive parts of Silicon Valley as well as a sense that the real estate market has bottomed out here.

On the other hand, Gilroy performed below par for Q1 2010 compared with the same period the prior year, although it’s average price is inching up and months of inventory is low. Los Altos Hills had respectable sales volume, but a 48% decline in average price to $2.229 million, with very high DOM and a high of 33 months of inventory, based on recent absorption.

Much of what one reads in the newspaper about increasing sale volume and average sales prices reflects activity in more affordable parts of San Jose and as you can see from above, real estate activity varies greatly between cities.Â Real estate is very local – thereÂ are huge differences between neighborhoods with different price points.Â Call me for specifics about your neighborhood; I will be happy to give you a specific market snapshot and review of trends so you can make anÂ informed decision about whether to buy or sell.

Rick Bonetti | Alain Pinel Realtors | 408-857-8800

Palo Alto is Bellwether For South Bay Silicon Valley

Rick Bonetti — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:12:42 +0000

The Palo Alto real estate market is often a bellwether in advance of what happens to real estate in the south bay of Silicon Valley. Here are some recent sales activity from Palo Alto Alain Pinel Realtor Carol Li to give you a flavor of what we might expect. (note: I have not personally confirmed this information, so call me if you need to make a real estate decision on it and I will get you more help):

1. 2553 Emerson Ave., Palo Alto – 5 offers on this midtown 3/2, 1784sf, home listed at $1,398,000 on pending within a week on the market. Top two offers went over $1.5M, sold 15% over the asking.

2. 2671 Emerson Ave., Palo Alto - 4 offers on this 4/2 listed at $1,648,000, sold to an all cash buyer. No contingency, as is, quick close clean offer.

3. 3250 Murry way, Palo Alto – 6 offers on this 3/2.5, 1,548+/-sf home listed at $1,098,000 sold within a week on mls.

4. 2340 Dartmouth, Palo Alto – sold off the market to an all cash buyer, the property was sold for land value. It was listed at $1,295,000 last year. Sold off the market.

5. 3715 Whitsell, Palo Alto – approximately 3 offers on this 3/1 home listed at $895,000.

6. 3145 Emerson, Palo Alto – sold to cash buyer; newly construction house. Seller rejected the low ball offer.

7. 601 Matadero, Palo Alto – multiple disclosure packages out.

Here is a list of currently available homes in Palo Alto priced under $2 million:

Saratoga Rotary Art Show May 2, 2010

Rick Bonetti — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 20:06:30 +0000

An annual event that many in Silicon Valley look forward to is the Saratoga Rotary Art Show this Sunday from 9AM to 5 PM at West Valley College on Fruitvale Ave. and Allendale in Saratoga, CA.

You’ll find a wide variety of fine art: paintings, sculptures, ceramics, jewelry, photography, glassworks, woodworks and mixed media — something for everyone!

Enjoy wine tasting from superb local wineries. Food and entertainment will be featured.

Bring the family and enjoy a day of art, entertainment for all ages, a large selection of food, and wine tasting. Both admission and parking are free.

Best of all, you will be contributing to worthy causes. All net proceeds from the Show go to the Saratoga Rotary Charitable Foundation, which has returned over $2 million to local non-profits through its grant program. You might call this the Art Show with a heart. Â You might call my business the art and heart of real estate.

Rick Bonetti | Alain Pinel Realtors | 408-857-8800 | The Art and Heart of Real Estate

Saratoga Idol 2010 Auditions on April 17th (saratogavoice.com)

Saratoga Alain Pinel Realtors Office Sales Up in March 2010

Rick Bonetti — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 18:37:20 +0000

March 2010 was a very good month for the Saratoga office of Alain Pinel Realtors with closed sales up 287.5% over March 2009 Â making Saratoga the #2 ranking office in the company. Â Â Written volume in March were also up 93.7% over March 2009.

The recession may not be over, but there are definitely more buyers out there in the west valley communities of Saratoga, Monte Sereno and Los Gatos. Â Inventory is also very low, so it is a good time to be a home seller.

Rick Bonetti | Alain Pinel Realtors | 408-857-8800

Saratoga Voice » Silicon Valley

Hubs of Services for Aging-in-Place

Saratoga History

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Private Elementary Schools in Santa Clara County

Montalvo Summer Events In July, 2010

July at Montalvo brings more concerts and events for children and adults:

Interest Growing For Village Movement in Silicon Valley

Related articles:

First Quarter 2010 Silicon Valley Real Estate Results

Palo Alto is Bellwether For South Bay Silicon Valley

Saratoga Rotary Art Show May 2, 2010

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Saratoga Alain Pinel Realtors Office Sales Up in March 2010