California Real Estate Breakdown: San Mateo Vs Santa Clara County
I often get asked about the difference between Counties; primarily on the Peninsula we have Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. San Mateo County is basically South San Francisco to Menlo Park.Santa Clara County is Palo Alto down to Gilroy. And then there are cities like Watsonville that the Multiple Listing Service covers over three counties (a little confusing!). Parts of Palo Alto can be in Santa Clara or San Mateo Counties!!!
Here’s a chart showing four counties and the medium sale prices (houses only), with the largest percent gain shown in 2018 over 2017; I was surprised to see the 20% gain for Milpitas and the 23% gain for Big Sur. I’ve had a lot of clients ask about buying retirement or vacation homes in Monterey County and getaway weekend places in the Santa Cruz mountains; these areas are more affordable than our local housing; another hot area seems to be around Lake Tahoe, a favorite weekend place for many.
While I was looking at County information, I got to wondering which cities in the respective counties were the highest priced and which were the lowest, see the chart below for the information. While Los Altos Hills and Gilroy were certainly no surprise, I was surprised to see Mt. Hermon and San Lucas; I then realized that there weren’t many sales in these cities so the information is somewhat misleading but, nevertheless, a certain price is reflected. There are still great properties to be found in the Santa Cruz Mountains; yes it is a bit of a drive along 17 but if your work hours are flexible, or if you’d like a weekend getaway, this area is affordable and beautiful.
Just the Facts Ma’am!
Covering Silicon Valley. All information from the Multiple Listing Service.
Want information for other areas? Comments? Questions? Send me a message, I’d love to hear from you!
