Thinking of moving to, or buying a house in Los Gatos?
Particularly for people relocating to Los Gatos (or generally to Silicon Valley) from other areas, or from parts of Santa Clara County not by the hills, there are a few home buying tips you’ll want to know before purchasing a home in the “Town of the Cats”. (For locals, these may seem obvious!)
Here are our top 5 things you should know when looking for a home in Los Gatos, CA.
1. Los Gatos & Schools
Whether you have school aged kids or not, you’ll want to know that there are several school districts covering the Los Gatos area. School district lines do not follow the town’s boundaries. (Some years ago I met someone with a home to sell in the Belgatos area and he had no idea that his home did not belong to the Los Gatos Union School District. This caused him to misunderstand the likely market value of his property.)
You can check a property’s district a few ways. Many schools have public boundary maps, and you can always call to confirm with the school district itself. The County of Santa Clara has another lookup service. After accepting the terms of service and checking the bot-filter, then you will be allowed to search an address. Once you have the address information, click the tab titled “School District/Tax Rate Area” and the information will be right at the top.
Santa Clara County Office of Education School District Boundary Map – only a rough guide
Town of Los Gatos: List of Schools Serving Los Gatos Students
2. Historic downtown Los Gatos areas
Areas closest to “downtown Los Gatos,” especially the historic neighborhoods (including Almond Grove, Edelen, Broadway, Fairview Plaza) tend to be much more expensive than those further out. The “walk to town” or “close to town” proximity makes them highly desireable, but also these regions of town are very scenic and have some fabulous Victorian and other beautiful architectural styles, and tree-lined streets.
One challenge faced by downtown residents is worsening beach traffic. The downtown area is a popular spot any day of the week, but it can be bumper-to-bumper on a hot summer weekend with cars inching across the pass on 17 to Santa Cruz.
Related to both #1 and #2, the public schools are not all that close to downtown Los Gatos, except for Los Gatos High School in the heart of Town on Main Street. (St. Mary’s Catholic Elementary School is in the downtown area, as is the adjacent Los Gatos Parent Nursery School.) Much of central and downtown Los Gatos also have the enjoyment and challenges associated with the next on our list, #3.
3. Hillside locales
If you buy a house close to a hill, among some hills or on a hill, you will need to pay close attention to issues which are less common in flatter areas further from slopes. Among them are foundation, water and drainage concerns. Some flat areas near the hills may have a high water table, many springs that come seasonally or in very wet years as well as runoff problems.
Water is often far more damaging than termites but it is not really uncommon to find water in a crawl space during the rainy season. Learn about it and pay heed to property inspectors’ suggestions regarding remediation if it’s a condition in a house you want to purchase.
Additionally, with fire seasons worsening newer fire hazard zoning has had major impacts on property insurance and residential construction. Many homes near the foothills or any open space are designated in the High or Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones. Some homes must also abide by Defensible Space requirements.
I wrote about this on my Valley of Hearts Delight blog (covering all of Santa Clara County, but mostly the west valley) and suggest these two articles:
What To Consider When Buying a Hillside Home in Silicon Valley
Cracked Foundations, Adobe Clay Soils and Water in Silicon Valley
4. Los Gatos address
Some homes with a “Los Gatos address” may not actually be in the town of Los Gatos. Many are in a county pocket or unincorporated area (and may not have all the services of the Town). A very few are actually part of either Campbell, Saratoga, or San Jose but were assigned a Los Gatos mailing address by the US Post Office.
How can you tell if a residence is within the Town of Los Gatos, is unincorporated, or part of another city? Santa Clara County has an interactive map with the boundaries. You can also search for a specific address and look under “Zoning” and “General Plan” to see where that address is mapped. In the past, the house number (how many digits) or whether or not the street had curbs and gutters were telltale signs, but since many unincorporated pockets have been incorporated over the years it’s not always obvious today which is which.
What difference does it make? The actual address (not mailing address) will impact a variety of things such as services (sherriff vs Los Gatos Monte Sereno police, free access to Oak Meadow Park), planning (any additions, remodels etc. will need to be approved by your actual city), voting in Los Gatos elections, etc.
5. Los Gatos is a town, not a city
Los Gatos is a town. (Monte Sereno, with whom we share some services, is much smaller but is a city, not a town.) This means our government is run a little differently. For instance, we don’t vote for mayor. Instead, we vote for town council members. They, in turn, vote for mayor. (Usually it’s a rotation.)
According to Wikipedia: “There are 481 incorporated municipalities in California, of which 459 are called cities and 22 are called towns.” [Edit: this quote was accurate as of Feb 28, 2011, but has been edited since. On Oct 24, 2017, the page lists 482 municipalities, 22 of which call themselves Towns.] I was surprised that there are so many towns – had thought it was only a handful!
Los Gatos is an interesting, fun, welcoming town. If you’re moving to the area, it’s a vibrant place you should check out. Please call or email me if you’d like more assistance.
