by Clair Handy, Mary Pope-Handy | Mar 10, 2023 | Homes & Housing Market, Los Gatos Real Estate, Monte Sereno Real Estate
The City of Monte Sereno is a popular community bordering Los Gatos, Saratoga, and the Santa Cruz mountains. It’s also quite small, with just about 3,500 residents, so tracking the real estate market trends for the area can be tricky.
Info at a glance (details further below):
- While January had 5 closed sales – a little higher than typical January numbers – there were NO closed sales in February, nor any in February 2022. There’s a real lack of sales data in these charts!
- This city is currently in a seller’s market with low inventory, just 6 available homes at the end of February, and fewer sales.
- Pending sales grew month-over-month and remain a little low year-over-year.
- As of today, March 10, 2023, there are 9 available homes for sale, 2 closed sales so far this month, 1 pending sale, and 0 contingent sales in Monte Sereno.
The number of houses sold in any given month will always be extremely small and the data will jump around. Checking the Los Gatos market will also help, but the best pulse on the market will come from particular sales in particular neighborhoods.
Houses make up most of Monte Sereno – there are no commercial buildings, just a post office, city hall, some churches or religious grounds, and an elementary school. There are also extremely few residential properties that are not detached single family homes. We don’t track the condo or townhomes in this area as we do in other communities because there just wouldn’t be enough (if any) data for it!
First up for the market analysis is the Altos Research weekly profile for Monte Sereno (uses list prices, not sales). This is updated automatically, so feel free to check this article weekly to see what’s happening now with list prices.
Trends at a Glance from the RE Report:
February 2023 had 0 closed sales, so some older charts are provided below to offer more context to this limited data.
| Trends At a Glance |
Feb 2023 |
Previous Month |
Year-over-Year |
| Median Price |
$0 (-100.0%) |
$3,250,000 |
$0 (N/A) |
| Average Price |
$0 (-100.0%) |
$3,386,120 |
$0 (N/A) |
| No. of Sales |
0 (-100.0%) |
5 |
0 (N/A) |
| Pending |
5 (+66.7%) |
3 |
9 (-44.4%) |
| Active |
6 (+50.0%) |
4 |
4 (+50.0%) |
| Sale vs. List Price |
0.0% (-100.0%) |
97.4% |
0.0% (N/A) |
| Days on Market |
0 (-100.0%) |
51 |
0 (N/A) |
| Days of Inventory |
0 (-100.0%) |
24 |
0 (N/A) |
January 2023 had 5 closed sales, a little higher than typical for the start of the year.
| Trends At a Glance |
Jan 2023 |
Previous Month |
Year-over-Year |
| Median Price |
$3,250,000 (N/A) |
$0 |
$4,525,000 (-28.2%) |
| Average Price |
$3,386,120 (N/A) |
$0 |
$7,166,000 (-52.7%) |
| No. of Sales |
5 (N/A) |
0 |
4 (+25.0%) |
| Pending |
3 (-40.0%) |
5 |
3 (0.0%) |
| Active |
4 (-42.9%) |
7 |
4 (0.0%) |
| Sale vs. List Price |
97.4% (N/A) |
0.0% |
109.7% (-11.2%) |
| Days on Market |
51 (N/A) |
0 |
95 (-46.5%) |
| Days of Inventory |
24 (N/A) |
0 |
30 (-20.0%) |
December 2022 brought NO closed sales of homes in Monte Sereno.
| Trends At a Glance |
Dec 2022 |
Previous Month |
Year-over-Year |
| Median Price |
$0 (-100.0%) |
$3,424,000 |
$5,100,000 (-100.0%) |
| Average Price |
$0 (-100.0%) |
$3,424,000 |
$5,447,160 (-100.0%) |
| No. of Sales |
0 (-100.0%) |
2 |
5 (-100.0%) |
| Pending |
5 (+66.7%) |
3 |
6 (-16.7%) |
| Active |
7 (-12.5%) |
8 |
2 (+250.0%) |
| Sale vs. List Price |
0.0% (-100.0%) |
93.3% |
103.7% (-100.0%) |
| Days on Market |
0 (-100.0%) |
48 |
10 (-100.0%) |
| Days of Inventory |
0 (-100.0%) |
116 |
12 (-100.0%) |
MLS info pulled directly: the charts below all were pulled from MLS Listings.com
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by Mary Pope-Handy | Mar 9, 2023 | Events, Kids
The KCAT TV Summer Camp for 9 to 14 year old campers is taking applications now.
Calling all future TV Producers, Filmmakers, Podcasters, Editors, and Creators! KCAT TV SUMMER CAMP REGISTRATION OPEN NOW
KCAT TV Summer Camp Details
June 12th through Aug 11th Monday – Friday (no camp July 3-7)
Full Day 9 am – 5 pm An immersive experience of Live TV, movie production, and podcasting Half-Day
(Morning Session) 9 am – 1 pm Focus on Live TV and studio production Half-Day
(Afternoon Session) 1 pm – 5 pm Focus on filmmaking, movie production, and podcasting All camps take place at KCAT TV15 Studio (Los Gatos High School Campus)
Learn more and register now:
• Morning: Live TV & Studio Camp – 9am-1pm
• Afternoon: Movie Making and Podcasting Camp – 1pm – 5pm
Cost per weekly session (scholarships may be available): $350 half day / $650 full day
https://www.kcat.org/camp
Related Reading:
Los Gatos High School’s Spring Musical
Oktoberfest LG
Black Cat Hats
by Mary Pope-Handy | Mar 8, 2023 | Events, Safety
Last night there was a Neighborhood Watch in the Belwood area in East Los Gatos. Much of what was shared will likely interest people throughout Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, and nearby, so I wanted to share the info here also.
Highlights: Neighborhood Watch in the Belwood area
Sergeant Bill Hoyt from the Los Gatos Monte Sereno police department made a presentation and answered questions from residents regarding recent break ins and what can be done about it.
Most surprisingly, he shared that at least some of the crime is coming from a South American group which brings thieves up on tourist visas, puts them up in a safe house for a period of time, and then flies them back home before they can be identified and captured. They have a particular method of gaining entry and are careful about what they drive to blend in.
Several tips were given, as well as some tools the town is now using and may be suggesting that neighborhoods expand upon.
Please find all of the details of the Neighborhood Watch in the Belwood area on our Belwood Of Los Gatos Blog in this post: Neighborhood Watch.
by Mary Pope-Handy, Clair Handy | Mar 7, 2023 | Homes & Housing Market, Los Gatos Real Estate
As of today, March 7, 2023, the Los Gatos real estate market in 95030 & 95032 is showing signs of cooling. That said, some homes are still selling fast and with multiple offers and overbids. .
Los Gatos real estate market statistics
Here is some Los Gatos real estate market data that I pulled directly from the MLS today.
Numbers of homes sold
Normally we don’t share the stats on how many houses are selling each month, but it’s so terribly low that I thought it would be good to point this out. In February, just 10 houses sold. Check out the sales for the same month from 2017 on and you can see how abnormally low it is.
Months of Inventory
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by Mary Pope-Handy, Clair Handy | Mar 2, 2023 | Homes & Housing Market
Things that grow on your roof will shorten its life span, so do not allow debris such as leaves, twigs, or moss to stay there long if they appear.
Leaves, Debris, Weeds: Growth Of A Green Roof?
Winter is a great time for dirt, leaves, and other debris to pile up in your rain gutters. Leave it long enough and there will be buildup. Leave it a really long time and those bits of dust, plant life and other things will mush together and decompose, eventually becoming plant-worthy soil. Add a few seeds and some rain, and before you know it, green sprouts are popping up on your roof!
I passed a home in Los Gatos in which this seems to have happened. Grass and weeds were sprouting out of the rain gutters and had crept onto the roof quite a few inches. (Not a great photo – taken with my ancient cell phone’s camera years ago and enlarged to show the roof but trying to keep the house itself anonymous.)
Why is this a problem? Because the more moisture you have trapped up there and the more organizms growing the faster the roof decomposes. You don’t want things like fungus and dry rot to munch away at your home, and having plants grow on your roof is going to lead to exactly that.
Even if you clean it once a year and don’t give it time to decompose, that might not be enough. If you enjoy lush, mature trees near your home your gutters might need to be cleared a few times per season. When a clog occurs, rainwater may be forced back up, spilling over the edge and possibly right into your roof and down your walls – inside or out!
Clean Your Roof! Things that grow on your roof will cause loads of problems!
Different homes require different levels of upkeep this way, so get to know what your home needs and stay on top of maintenance. Keep your roofs and gutters clean so problems like this do not have a chance to start. It is infinitely easier, and often much cheaper, to prevent this than to cure it!
If it’s hard to keep up with the cleaning, consider investing in gutter guards. Also called gutter covers, strainers, or filters these are installed in the opening to catch debris and prevent accumulation and clogging that stops water flow in the gutter. They still require maintenance, but can lessen buildup and make it much easier to complete your cleaning chore!
Keep a special eye on the north facing area, as moss will attempt to grow on your roof there especially.
Specialty “Green” or “Living” Rooves
While not the subject of this post, adventurous homeowners curious about getting a real “green” or “living roof” should contact a roofing professional with experience in that field. These are specialty systems designed with the weight, water, and material considerations necessary to support plant growth while providing a structurally sound roof – they are complex, expensive, and require different maintenance than more typical systems.
More related articles from this blog:
Why is a Frosty Roof a Good Thing?
Fanciful roof art
Remembering San Jose’s “El Dumpo”:What Makes a Fixer a Fixer?
And related posts from our other blogs:
Silicon Valley is Rife with Roof Rats. Is Your Landscaping Attracting Them?
Some HOA roofing concerns considered here: Silicon Valley homeowner associations: they’re not all alike
