Los Altos Real Estate Blog

Spring is in full swing here in Silicon Valley with lots of sun, hot tempuratures (well over 80) and plenty of reasons to be outside!  No matter what you do, or where you are, have some fun this weekend.  I'll be outdoors enjoying the sunshine as much as I can today.  Tonight I'll be enjoying drinks and dinner on the back deck at Silver Creek Country Club with my in-laws.

Looking for something fun to do this warm, spring weekend?  Here's a few things I'd do:

• Visit Pajaro Dunes!  It's a fabulous beach, great for long walks and shell hunting.  The warm temps will make it especially appealing.  You can use public access to the beach north or south of the actual Pajaro Dunes resort.
• Head over to Santa Cruz... It's got plenty of beach and the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk (rides, games, etc) but if you tire of that you can always just head downtown.  There are lots of nice restaruants, wine tasting, galleries, interesting shops, and great people watching!  Take a walk along the ocean by the lighthouse. 
• Go the Farmer's Market in...Campbell, Los Altos, Saratoga, etc.  Find the one closest to you and head over.  Lots of fresh veggies, organic meats, and more to make the perfect warm-weather meal.
• Go for a walk, hike, play in the park...there are plenty around.  For local hikes I like San Antonio Park but you can just as easily walk your neighborhood.  Head over to the closest park and play catch, throw a frisbee, football, baseball, whatever.

If all else fails, just head to your backyard (or patio) with a good book, cold drink, and lots of sunscreen.  I've had plenty of good times with friends on the back patio doing nothing more than talking about the life in general. 

I've been remiss today in my wishes for everyone to have a Happy Easter.  So, late in the day let me wish you all a very Happy Easter.  I hope you all have enjoyed the day so far.  Many of your will be enjoying a fine dinner with family and friends tonight.

My day consisted of breakfast on the wharf in Santa Cruz followed by a long walk along the ocean.  The weather was perfect - sunny and 68 with a mild breeze.  The wind picked up just past the lighthouse which is normal.  Lots of people were out enjoying the day.  We walked almost 4 miles.

The remainder of our day was spent watching movies and just passing the time.  Easter Dinner was an interesting pseudo-Chinese dish I made.  It's a variation on broccoli beef but made with chicken and squash.  All the flavor of the traditional dish was there and it's all made by hand.  My wife was, once again, happy to have me cook.

The day is winding down and I'm grateful for the time off.  While I did do a small bit of work, today was mostly about family, fun, and rest.  I hope the same for you.

One of the hottest toys, video games, in the U.S. market right now is Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure from Activision.  It's a really addictive adventure game fun for kids and adults.  My son got the Skylanders starter pack for Christmas and has since built a huge collection of characters.  As the game's popularity has grown, people struggle to find new characters.  Here are some hot tips on finding them:

Local Stores

Target, Wal-Mart, Toys-r-us, and Best Buy get regular shipments.  Some of those are on the same day(s) week after week.  Ask the clerk when the next stock shipment will arrive and get there the following morning.  Shipments are stocked at night.  They sell out fast so you have to get to the store early the following morning.

Craigslist and Ebay

There are a few people who sell Skylanders on Craigslist (or other sites) and you can find very rare ones from time to time.  If so, make sure you don't overpay.  Ebay prices are high and Craigslist isn't much better.  Just verify the retail price and make an offer.

Amazon.com

Lately there have been a lot of expansion packs and some rare characters in plentiful supply.  Take a look and check the free shipping offers when buying more than $25 worth of Skylanders.

Nowinstock.net

This site will alert you when any of the Skylander characters are in stock at several websites including Gamestop and Amazon.com.  You select any or all characters your want and which online stores you want to track.  They'll send an email as soon as they verify inventory.  This is the easiest way to find a Skylander online.

I hope this helps my many friend, clients, and readers to find these fun toys for themselves or their kids.  Enjoy!

Are you a fan of the TV show "Mad Men"?  I'm a huge fan and have missed the show since it's been off the air.  Tonight the show returns for a 2-hour premiere to get us back in the mood of crazy 60s advertising and attitudes.  To create a bit of the 60s atmosphere for a party, here are some tips:

Food

• Steak and potatoes (a classic)
• Traditional italian dishes (lasagne, spaghetti, etc)
• Seafood (cracked crab, lobster tail, shrimp cocktail, etc)
• Beef Wellington

Drinks

• Martini (2.5oz vodka or gin, .5oz vermouth, olive)
• Old-Fashioned
• Side Car
• Tom Collins
• Manhattan
• Gimlet
• Whiskey Sour (one of my favorites)

The Man Men guide to drinks on the AMC TV website has a great selection.  Most of these drinks are very simple compared to some modern drinks so the cost is low and flashback value is high!  I'll be drinking a couple of martinis (shaken, not stirred) tonight.  If you don't have traditional glasses or a martini glass, just use a highball glass or something similar.

Watching Mad Men

• The "mood" of the show will be enhanced without commercials.  If you can timeslip or skip commercial with Tivo, do it.
• Turn off all the phones and modern conveniences
• If you really want to go all out, you could dress in 60s styles but you'll be fine with a slick suit, slim dress, and clean line styles similar to the era.  Do whatever works for you.

Best of all, have fun!  Enjoy to 60s comeback.

TRIVIA:  I read in an article a few months ago that the show creator wants to take the next 3 seasons and evolve Don Draper into the 21st century.  It'll be interesting to see if that's how the show progresses this season and we see the 70s come around.

When I was a kid and my parents took me on long car trips, I didn't have electronic gadgets to entertain me.  My sister and I would count VW bugs or play other car games to pass the time from place to place.  Those trips were fun because of the games.  Well, my kids have created a new game for the new age - The Prius Game.

Since the Toyota Prius is as ubiquitous as the VW bug was back in the 70s, there are plenty of options.  We've mixed up the rules with a few variations.  The overall goal is:  count as many Prius cars are you can.  Our funny sounding plural for Prius is "Prii" (pronounced pre-eye).

GAME 1:  INDIVIDUAL COMPETITION

Each person counts as many Prius cars as they can.  There are now three body styles; the old style (without the hatchback), the new style (body we all know), and the 2012 tweaked style (different roof line).  You can include or exclude whatever styles you want.  A variation on this is to count only cars of a certain color or colors.  Whoever counts the most cars wins.

• Variation 1:  Count only specific colors
• Variation 2:  Count cars within a certain time limit

GAME 2:  TEAM COMPETITION

Assuming you've got a couple of kids (adults can play too) you can all work together to spot as many "Prii" as possible.  You can even do this with mileage markers. For example, if you have a 100 mile trip, set it up so you count cars for 15-20 miles.  That eats up a nice chunk of travel time with a possible goal.  When I play this with my kids, we set a target number and see if we can break it.  For a 10 mile drive, it should be possible to spot at least 40 Prius cars.

So, play the Prius Game and have fun passing the time on car trips!

This place is spectacular!  Do you like really good, gourmet-quality pizza?  Then this is the place for you. My wife and I came here on Tuesday night and were blown away by the quality of the food.  We started with a couple of beers and because it was Happy Hour, the prices were incredibly low.  I got a great draft, hand-crafted brew for $2.50 and it was served in a couple of minutes - very fast service at this place.  We opted to order their meatball appetizer and a large pizza with artichokes, pepperoni, mushrooms, and fresh tomatoes.  That's our "benchmark" pizza whenever we try a new place.

The meatballs were incredible!  Hand-made and seasoned to perfection.  They're baked with a cheese topping and served hot out of the oven.  We couldn't get enough of 'em!  Our pizza came out promptly after and it was among the best we've ever had - and we've been to a lot of epic pizza places.  The dough was perfectly cooked (we opted for thin crust), the sauce was tangy and vibrant, and the toppings were the perfect combination of fresh and plentiful (but not too much).  It's artistry in a pizza pie!

Service was excellent and timely.  But that's not where the story ends.

We came back on Saturday at lunch.  The restaurant was much busier and lively.  This time we opted to try their garlic bread, more meatballs, and a large caeser salad.  WOW!  These guys know how to make a salad.  The lettuce was cool and crisp like I'd make at home, but even better.  The dressing and croutons are all made right on side, from scratch, and you could tell.  The croutons were slightly crisp, a little springy inside, and absolutely perfect.  I've been in 5-star restaurants and these are on par.

The garlic bread is baked with a cheesy layer on top and pre-baked garlic.  It's got a bold flavor and is almost as addictive as the meatballs.

Prices are reasonable, service is great, and the food it brilliant.  Stop by and try Blue Line Pizza. You'll be glad you did.

www.BlueLinePizza.com

Blue Line Pizza review on Yelp!

The Metro, local magazine, is now taking votes for the 2012 Best of Silicon Valley.  Today is the last day of voting and I want to make sure everyone gets a shot at voting for the many Los Altos businesses that are on the list of candidates.  To vote, follow this link to the MetroActive survey.

Some of the Los Altos businesses that have been nominated include:

• Aldo's (Best italian restaurant)
• Los Altos Golf and Country Club (Best place to hold a wedding reception)
• Beausejour (Best french restarurant)
• JW Catering (Best caterer)
• Los Altos History Museum (Best small/quirky museum)
• Bus Barn Theater (Best Theater Company)
• Bicycle Outfitters (Best Bike Shop)

If you can get on there today and cast your votes that would help our fine local businesses get some exposure and the pride of being voted "The Best".  You can put a write-in candidate as well if you don't see you favorite Los Altos business on the list. 

It's been fun reading all the speculation about how the many staff and management of Facebook will transform the local real estate market.  While the media has talked endlessly about how much property "1000 millionaires" will buy, nobody has taken the time to explain what is really likely to happen.  Guess what!  It's going to be very similar to what happened during the original "dot com" boom of 1997-2000.  But it might not be quite what people are expecting.

How much money will the Facebook millionaires have?

I'm just guessing because, let's face it, nobody has the exact count, but if they're anything like the folks from 12+ years ago, a lot of these people will walk away with $3-5 million in stock.  From that, they'll have to take out taxes and the cost of the stock (unless it was a pure award).  So, you've got a lot of folks with $2-4 million to shop with.  There will be a few with much more but not many.  It's a lot of money but local real estate is pricey.  That leaves the question of where these folks will shop.

Which towns are likely to get the attention of these buyers?

The first is Palo Alto, which is what many agents agree is a good target for the kind of buyer we'll see.  As far as I know, the corporate culture isn't one where people are looking for high-profile luxury homes.  Mark Zuckerberg bought a nice house but it wasn't some over-the-top chateau-style estate on 2-acres in Atherton.  It was more modest, yet still pricey.  I'll bet that "casual luxury" will be where many Facebook millionaires focus their spending.  I predict the towns that will see the most activity will be Palo Alto and Menlo Park (the two most likely) as well as Los Altos, Woodside, Portola Valley, and Los Altos Hills.  A few might look at the hills of Redwood City and as far south as Los Gatos or Saratoga.

What does all this mean for the local real estate markets?

I predict that the bulk of the sales will be near the median sales prices in each town, focused on the $1.5 - $2.5 million range.  However, that's also the price range where the "average Joe" is buying too.  So, what's likely to happen is that we'll see some additional price appreciation just as we did last year.  Since these buyers will not be coming during spring and early summer "hot selling season" the wild appreciation we saw years ago isn't likely to happen.  I predict these Facebook millionaires will be cautious with their spending and will wait until there is sufficient inventory.  That could draw out the activity well into winter when things normally cool down a bit.

Of course, the high-end - with homes from $4 million to $10+ million is also likely to appeal to some of these folks who get a major windfall.  There's plenty of inventory in across all markets and this could all bode well for the luxury markets heading to a full recovery.

Overall, I think this will mean a sustained buying period but not the irrational appreciation we saw in the "dot com" boom.  Personally, I look forward to helping a few of these folks find nice homes and not trophies.

The Superbowl is one of the best opportunities to venture out to a pub, bar, or restaurant and get roudy, loud, and excited without having to worry about having enough food, drink, or space.  Why stay home when you can watch the game on a whole bunch of flat-panel TVs al around a giant room!?  There are a few spots I consider to be the best for an event like this. 

LOS ALTOS - First and Main Sports Lounge:  This place is all kinds of fun with sports gear on the walls, tons of TVs, and gourmet pub food.  I like to think of it as a gastro-pub.  The food is way beyond what the normal bars service and the prices are very reasonable.  You'll be hard pressed to find a better place to hang out if you live in Mountain View or Los Altos.

LOS GATOS - Double-D's Sports Grille:  I have always liked this place because not only does it cater to the sports fan but there are tons of athletes who stop by for a bite after their games.  I've seen 'em!  They have a healthy number of TVs so you won't miss a thing, a large bar, and extensive menu of classics including wings, egg rolls, dip, you name it plus some creative dishes you won't find in most sports bars.  If you're in the Los Gatos area (or Saratoga), this is the place to be.

SANTANA ROW - The Yard House:  A newer entry into the gastro-pub line-up, this place has dozens of beers on tap, TVs all over the place, and plenty of room to handle the crowds.  The food is epic and priced reasonably.  I think the best draw is the beer - pretty much every kind of beer made with examples from all over the world.  You want beer and Superbowl?  This is THE place to go.

I'll give a special mention to Sonoma Chicken Coop in downtown Campbell.  It's a good sized bar and restaurant with plenty of parking nearby and a wide selection of snacks and munchies to make you forget tailgating. 

As you've heard, Newt Gingrich has proposed that we invest in building a moon colony by 2020.  Many politicians are making fun of the proposal as a huge waste of money, especially with all our debt.  The simple opinion is that the moon is just a big rock and we're wasting time and money going there.  However, it has the resources to open space up to commercialization at a far lower cost than current methods.  Just like trains opened up expansion and growth in the United States, building a base on the moon and mining would enable the same expansion.

The moon has an abundant supply of natural resources; metals, silicon, and oxygen (embedded in the rock).  Those resources can be used to build lunar colonies, space ships, and space stations as well as solar panels and electronics.  This supply of resources isn't endless but it's more than enough to get people confortable with living and working in space.  Will it take a significant investment?  Sure, but that'll be paid back in time as an off-world economy grows.  Having a significant presence in space will mean industry growth here on Earth to support it all.

What will is cost?  According to NASA, the inflation adjusted cost of the Apollo missons was about $170 billion.  If the government works with private industry to keep innovation and economies of scale reasonable, I'll bet it could be a lot lower.  We don't need all those missions and everything that goes to the moon could become usable to build infrastructure there.  The payoff?  Expansion of our civilization and hopefully a new sense of unity with a common goal.  It would be great to make this effort a global one, not just for the U.S.

Can we actually do it?  Yes and don't let the idiots trying to discredit the idea convince you otherwise.  The technology to go to the moon is old, really old.  The necessary manufacturing technologies exist as well and there are a number of economically feasible methods to build both temporary and permanent colonies.  Imagine putting the resources of the world toward building this vision.

In conclusion, yes, we should colonize the moon.  It would become a defining effort in changing the world and give us all a sense of purpose.