Why Is Mountain View So Hot?

March 16, 2007

I’m very excited to be a contributor to 3Oceans. I hope you find my posts to be as informative, witty and entertaining as they are intended to be.

I live in Mountain View and focus on the surrounding communities of Los Altos, Palo Alto and Menlo Park. In the last couple of months since the local real estate market has come roaring back (think bullet train), Mountain View has been the epicenter of the multiple offer, sales way above asking madness.

Mountain View used to be the Johnny-come-lately, ugly stepchild of Palo Alto to the North, so what is driving this turnaround? As with most answers to simple questions, it’s a number of things.

  1. The other Castro Street – Like it’s more famous namesake in San Francisco, Castro Street in downtown Mountain View has become a destination in recent years, with more good restaurants, decent bars and even a couple of nightclubs drawing gen X and Y hipsters from the surrounding communities. The local nightlife scene has made housing within walking distance of Castro Street hot properties.
  2. Google – As a former employee of Silicon Graphics, Inc which formerly inhabited the GooglePlex that now houses the Valley megalith, I know that many Google employees don’t stray all that far from work, and have used their stock funds and high-salaries to purchase homes in Mountain View. It is definitely a different vibe from ten years ago, and the sleepy neighborhoods like Cuesta Park and Varsity Park that border Los Altos are seeing an influx of young, successful 30 somethings looking for neighborhoods to start families in, while still being close to major transportation routes.
  3. The 3 L’s of real estate – Location, location, location. Mountain View is at the intersection of 3 major freeways, 101, 85 and 237, and only 10 minutes from 280, giving good access to major commute routes to all of Silicon Valley’s major employment centers. If public transit is your thing, there are two train stations near housing areas, and a light rail station in the middle of the Whisman Station neighborhood.
  4. Buzz, buzz, buzz – Last week, the San Jose Mercury News had a 30 page special section on Mountain View real estate and the run up in values in the last few years, which prompted me to write this as an opening post. If you haven’t seen it, check it out online. Interesting stuff.
  5. Values – As prices in neighboring Palo Alto and Los Altos have climbed to stratospheric levels, many people who are priced out of those markets are finding better “deals” in Mountain View, so we are seeing a market with many buyers chasing a few homes, particularly in the areas adjacent to downtown.

I’m very bullish on Mountain View, and my trusty Magic 8-ball here says that the trend of increasing property values will continue, particularly on the West side of town in the 94040 ZIP code. Don’t just take my word for it though. Surf on over to Altos Research and check out their market reports for Mountain View 94040. You can even sign up to get them weekly.

Written by Chris Iverson, Realtor · Filed Under Mountain View, Real estate 

Comments

4 Responses to “Why Is Mountain View So Hot?”

  1. Jason Hegland on March 16th, 2007 3:16 pm

    We’re definitely seeing a rise in popularity for Mountain View as Palo Alto becomes more impacted and people begin to question the marginal value of having a 9430_ area code. Is there any indication of how far south from the mega-bucks real estate epicenter this trend is going to move? What are the odds places like Sunnyvale and Cupertino will become the new Mountain View in a couple years time?

  2. Chris Iverson on March 16th, 2007 8:40 pm

    Jason -
    You pose an interesting question. Sunnyvale seems to be looking North and taking notes. There is a major redevelopment effort around the old Town Center mall and downtown Sunnyvale similar to what we have seen in Mountain View over the last decade. Since similarly sized homes are 10-20% less in Sunnyvale than Mountain View, depending on neighborhood, there is the potential for appreciation like we have seen in Mountain View in recent years. If you are a patient, betting type buy in Sunnyvale and hold for ten years. I know a couple of Realtors who may be willing to help you out . . .

    With the increasing anti-growth attitude of the residents, and the lack of a “real” downtown, I don’t see the same draw happening to Cupertino.

  3. Albert on May 19th, 2007 11:33 pm

    Hi Chris,

    Thanks for the nice article – I have two questions:

    1. The link to San Jose Mercury News doesn’t seem to work – do you know how I can get a hold of that article?

    2. How would you compare Varsity Park vs. Waverly Park areas? Is Varisty one far more apealing due to Los Altos schools, and how do you see the sale price trends in those two areas?

    Many thanks.

    Albert

  4. Chris Iverson, Realtor on May 22nd, 2007 2:51 pm

    Hi Albert,

    Thanks for your comments. The Merc doesn’t appear to have put the insert online. Here is a link to a related article: http://www.mercurynews.com/search/ci_5558959?nclick_check=1

    Both Varsity and Waverly Park are sought after areas (Cuesta Park too), but Varsity Park has the edge due to its more central location and Los Altos school district. Homes in Varsity Park are selling briskly, a bit more quickly than in Waverly Park, but prices continue to increase across Mountain View on the Los Altos side of El Camino. We are seeing increases of 7-10% over a year ago in the Cuesta and Varsity Park neighborhoods, and about 6-7% in Waverly Park.

    As a resident of Cuesta Park, I tend to look more favorably on the ranches of the Cuesta and Varsity Park neighborhoods and their walkable proximity to downtown than Waverly Park which requires a bike or car trip. That being said, you can’t go wrong in either neighborhood, and if you need extra space, then Waverly Park is for you.

    Thanks for reading.

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