Tom McEvoy

Here is an update to some of the events and on-going programs you might want to put on your calendar for September. Most of these are selections from Sunnyvale and Cupertino but other communities in Silicon Valley may be included (e.g., Mountain View, Santa Clara, Palo Alto).

• September 1: Labor Day
• September 3, 10, 17, 24: Kiwanis Club of Silicon Valley, 7:20am, 408-774-0609
• September 3: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), monthly meeting, 1:30pm, 408-296-3805
• September 3: Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting, 7pm
• September 4: SNAIL Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7pm
• September 5: Heritage District Neighborhood Association Monthly Meeting, 7pm
• September 6, 13, 20, 27: Farmers Market, 510-745-7100
• September 7, 14, 21, 28: Fair Oaks Toastmasters, 11:30am
• September 8: Board of Library Sunnyvale Trustee’s Meeting, 7pm
• September 8: San Miguel Neighbors Association, General Meeting, 7pm
• September 8, 22: Sunnyvale Planning Commission Meeting, 8pm
• September 9, 16, 30: Sunnyvale City Council Meeting, 7pm
• September 10: Sunnyvale Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting, 7pm
• September 10: Lakewood Village Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7pm
• September 11: WakeUp Sunnyvale!, Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce Networking Breakfast, 7:29am, 408-736-4971
• September 13: State of the City Celebration, 11am – 2pm, Downtown Sunnyvale, 408-730-7535
• September 15: Personnel Board Meeting, Sunnyvale, 5pm
• September 17: Arts Commission Meeting, 7pm
• September 18: Sunnyvale Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission Meeting, 6:30pm
• September 20: Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off, 8am-1pm, Sunnyvale residents, 408-730-7262, TDD 408-730-7501
• September 20: Compost Workshop, 10am
• September 24: Glaucoma Support Group of the South Bay, 6:30pm, 408-523-3221 or 408-404-8479
• September 24: Housing and Human Services Commission Meeting, 7pm
• September 24: “For Your Health” Free Community Wellness Presentation, 7pm, Sunnyvale City Chambers, 408-523-3295
• September 25: Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce Business Mixer, 408-736-4971
• September 27: Sunnyvale Historical Museum Grand Opening, Noon to 4pm, Heritage Park, 550 E. Remington Drive, 408-736-4713

• Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays: Computer and E-Waste Recycling, 8:00am-4:30pm, Cupertino proof of residency
• Every Wednesday: Silicon Valley Toastmasters, 5pm, 260 S. Sunnyvale Avenue, Suite 4, Sunnyvale, 866-387-4086
  

Thanks for reading!

Here is an update to some of the events and on-going programs you might want to put on your calendar for August. Most of these are selections from Sunnyvale and Cupertino but other communities in Silicon Valley may be included (e.g., Mountain View, Santa Clara, Palo Alto).

• August 2: Stress, Breath & You, 2-3:30pm, Sunnyvale Public Library, 408-730-7300 or www.sunnyvalelibrary.org
• August 2, 9, 16, 23, 30: Sunnyvale Farmer's Market, 9:00am, 510-745-7100
• August 2-3: Relay for Life, 10am, Sunnyvale Middle School track and field, 1080 Mango Avenue, American Cancer Society fundraiser, 408-688-0108
• August 3, 10, 17, 24, 31: Fair Oaks Toastmasters, 11:30am
• August 4: Board of Library Sunnyvale Trustee’s Meeting, 7pm
• August 5: Book Networking, 2-3:30pm, Sunnyvale Public Library, 408-730-7300
• August 5: National Night Out, 7pm, Neighborhoods throughout Sunnyvale are invited to join forces with thousands of communities nationwide for 25^th annual crime and drug prevention event, Sunnyvale Public Safety, 408-730-7117 or www.nationalnightout.org/nno
• August 6, 13, 20, 27: Kiwanis Club of Silicon Valley, 7:20am, 408-774-0609
• August 6: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), monthly meeting, 1:30pm, 408-296-3805
• August 6: Downtown Music and Market Series, Double Funk Crunch, 5-8pm, 408-516-7217
• August 6: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), monthly meeting, 1:30pm, 408-296-3805
• August 6: Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting, 7pm
• August 7: SNAIL Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7pm
• August 8: Heritage District Neighborhood Association Monthly Meeting, 7pm
• August 11: San Miguel Neighbors Association, General Meeting, 7pm
• August 11: Planning Commission Meeting, 8pm
• August 12: Sunnyvale City Council Meeting, 7pm
• August 13: Chocolate Extravaganza, 3pm, Sunnyvale Public Library, 408-730-7300
• August 13: Downtown Music and Market Series, Busta Groove, 5-8pm, 408-516-7217
• August 13: Sunnyvale Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting, 7pm
• August 13: Lakewood Village Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7pm
• August 14: WakeUp Sunnyvale!, Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce Networking Breakfast, 7:29am, 408-736-4971
• August 14: WildLife Associates presents Creepy Critters, 2pm, Sunnyvale Public Library, 408-730-7300
• August 16: Compost Workshop, 10am
• August 16: Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off, 8am-1pm, Sunnyvale residents, 408-730-7262, TDD 408-730-7501
• August 18: Personnel Board Meeting, Sunnyvale, 5pm
• August 19: City Council Meeting, 7pm
• August 20: Downtown Music and Market Series, Manicato, 5-8pm, 408-516-7217
• August 20: Arts Commission Meeting, 7pm
• August 20: Glaucoma Support Group of the South Bay, 6:30pm, 408-523-3221 or 408-404-8479
• August 21: Sunnyvale Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission Meeting, 6:30pm
• August 25: Planning Commission Meeting, Sunnyvale, 8pm
• August 27: Housing and Human Services Commission Meeting, 7pm
• August 27: Downtown Music and Market Series, The Groove Kings, 5-8pm, 408-516-7217

• Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays: Computer and E-Waste Recycling, 8:00am-4:30pm, Cupertino proof of residency
• Every Wednesday: Silicon Valley Toastmasters, 5pm, 260 S. Sunnyvale Avenue, Suite 4, Sunnyvale
• Every Saturday: Family Astronomy Evenings, De Anza College Planetarium, 6:00pm, 7:00pm or 8:00pm, Cupertino
• Every Second Monday of Month: Fine Arts League of Cupertino, Quinlan Community Center, 7:00pm

Thanks for reading!

This information summary and analysis uses MLS Listings Inc. (MLS) transactional data for May 2008. For single family homes in Santa Clara County, May saw a reduction of closings of 12% from May 2007. There were 871 closings in the month with 1268 initiated sales (accepted offers) that indicates that closings in June will likely continue higher. This drop from last year occurred across the board in each of the counties I track closely: Santa Clara, San Mateo, Santa Cruz and Monterey. All counties registered more sales than in April, in keeping with the normal seasonal uptrend towards Memorial Day. Monterey County was the only county of the four which saw an increase in closings from May 2007, an indicator of improving market conditions.


Inventory of available single family homes in Santa Clara County was 5,460, down from a record-high 5,540 last month and up from 3,792 in May 2007. San Mateo county is reached an all-time high of 1,720, up three homes from last month. Both Santa Cruz and Monterey available homes dropped from last month but are still near their all-time highs for available homes.


Days of Unsold Inventory (DUI) or the intersection of the inventory (supply) with the recent sales level (demand), shows Santa Clara County at 110, an improvement from 131 last month and even compared to May 2007. San Mateo County is at 99, down from 122 last month. Santa Cruz County has a DUI reading of 147, down sharply from 186 last month. Monterey County showed DUI at 159, also down sharply from 208 last month. Please remember that a lower figure is good here and that a declining measure represents an improvement in the market. Clearly, even with the drops in this indicator, these still are indicating a buyer's market condition as a reading of DUI of 90 or above depicts. For comparison, a seller's market will have a DUI of less than 45 and a balanced market will have a DUI between the two. Keep in mind that these are county-wide averages. The wider area you measure, the statistics are less reliable as a decision tool for any specific area or neighborhood and also that there is often an incredible variation between those areas experiencing terrible market conditions compared to those at virtually the other extreme. As I've mentioned, real estate is local (down to the neighborhood level in some cases) and market conditions can vary within each county and even within cities by a large amount. For instance, within Santa Clara County, Los Altos, Mountain View and Palo Alto have the best market climates in the county with a DUI reading of 52, down from 57 last month, while Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy have the worst reading of 187, dropping from 245 last month. The following table is a ranking of Santa Clara County cities or areas with their current DUI readings compared to last month's calculation as well as my notations as to the type of market the area is in (seller's, balanced or buyer's) and the recent direction of change in this indicator. Even though there are a lot of "better" notations made, many of these areas are still in what we call a "buyer's market" and have poor market climates. Just some markets are much better off than others.

The median price for single family homes in Santa Clara County was $775,000 down from $859,000 the same month a year ago which was just off our record high and down from $799,000 in December. This is a decline of 10.8% from that record high. There is still an emphasis (overweighted percentage) of higher-priced homes sold as opposed to the more affordable homes but not as pronounced as last year when the sub-prime loan problems started in February 2007 and really took hold last August when mortgage interest rates jumped upwards, especially for jumbo size loans. The bottom 10% median selling price was $445,000 in May and showed a decline of 30.0% from the same month a year ago and the top 10% median price was $1,700,000 saw a drop of only 3.9% from May 2007. The northwest quadrant of the county including Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Cupertino and parts of Sunnyvale (zip 94087) are at or near their all time highs while county-wide medians are down. With few exceptions, the single family home markets become weaker when you cross Lawrence Expressway heading east. Median price comparisons for single family homes by county for May 2008 were:

I thought it interesting to present the following table that shows the May 2008 change from record high median prices for each county. Of particular note is the extreme price adjustment that has been going on in Monterey County.

The price range with the lowest DUI is called the "sweet-spot" of the market for single family homes. For May, it remains the $1,000,000 to $2,500,000 range. Next comes the $750,000 to $1,000,000 range and then the under $450,000 range. For condo/townhouses the picture is similar but slightly better with a DUI reading of 124, an improvement from 168 last month.

Potential real estate investment buyers continue to see poor numbers for multiunit properties at 403, an improvement from 447 last month. This means under the current rate of sales of multi-unit properties, there are about 1.10 years of unsold supply! Better opportunity to negotiate. The "sweet-spot" of the multi-unit or investor class is also in the range of $1,000,000 to $2,500,000. Lenders have substantially increased the borrower's minimum requirements to obtain a loan for investor property purchases AND many are not allowing the use of home equity credit lines for their down payments so I forecast that this area will remain weak and characterized as a buyer's market. This remains an area of opportunity for smart, long term investors with adequate down payments. Rental vacancies are relatively low and rates continue to increase. In Santa Clara County, rents are estimated to increase 10-12% in 2008.

Why is following all these trends and statistics worth it? I believe that informed clients make the best decisions. The research and staying on top of the changes to market conditions allows me to properly advise my clients on the appropriate strategy to employ so that they make the best decision possible whether they decide to buy or sell. This is one area I part company from other real estate agents as only a relative handful of agents invest the time to study the trends. Most other agents spend the bulk of their time working on self-promotion ads for newspapers, magazines and stuff that fill your mailbox with either "brag" cards or "spray and pray" cards. Beware the various media sound-bites or headlines as they generalize too much (i.e., the national real estate market, the Bay Area real estate market, etc.). If you generalize too much you lose the fineness of being able to use current information strategically to make better decisions.

If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to post them here or send me an email at tom.mcevoy@remax.net.

Thanks for reading!

It's not often that after a meal, I take home about half of my dinner but it happened recently at Alexander's Steakhouse in Cupertino. Recently there for an anniversary celebration dinner with my wife of thirty years, we enjoyed ourselves immensely. Our older son was taken there last year for his birthday by his girlfriend and has raved about it ever since. So he said that next special-occasion dinner you've got to try this place. In addition to just telling us, our two sons encouraged us by buying us gift cards to use.

My wife started by making reservations for our special night on opentable.com. On the website, they ask about any special comments or requests. My wife merely typed in a request that we get a nice table for our 30th Anniversary. Little did we know the comment would set in motion a whole host of things starting when we arrived. The hosts congratulated us on our anniversary (are we the only ones?) and seated us at a nice corner table away from the major aisles.

Next up, our servers, Jennifer and helper Andrew, presented us with two flutes which were immediately filled with a Spanish "champagne" or sparkling wine for a toast. Very classy! The wine was a little on the sweet side but woke up our palates nicely.

For a starter, we opted to split a Caesar salad and we're glad we did. The salad, made with full romaine lettuce leaves was excellently prepared with a slightly-tangy dressing was plenty for the both of us.

We were tipped off by our son that the dinner portions were quite large so we didn't order a bunch of starters though they had an impressive selection of small plates ranging from sashimi to lamb chop to foie gras to popcorn crab. The also offered a tasting menu as well as an Omakase and Iron Chef-inspired tasting menus from their executive chef, Jeffrey Stout.

My wife ordered their small filet mignon that came with shitake mushrooms, scallions and candied bacon. Cooked to perfection, she just loved it!

A lover of ribeye, I ordered their two-pound plus bone-in ribeye that was in a BBQ demi-glace and was served with some roasted tomatoes. The beef was just superior to others I've had and was so tender and full of flavor. To accompany the entree, I chose a glass of Cannonball Winery, 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon that paired well with the ribeye.

As dinners are al la cart, we ordered some sides to accompany our dinners. One, was a large baked potato which, as requested, had "goodies" served on the side so we could control the portions to our liking. We also ordered a side of asparagus which we found a bit disappointing. There weren't many spears and the rouille and saffron bread crumbs (served on the side as we requested) were tasty but still left us a bit disappointed in the overall dish. The best side was our third selection of crimini mushrooms. These were plentiful and were excellently-prepared in sherry wine with leeks. Outstanding taste and value!

I failed to mention that in-between the courses, they treated us to some very nice palate-cleansers. They included: tasty cracker topped with marscapone cheese and smoked salmon; and, disk of cucumber jelly topped with a raspberry.

Do to the quantity of food we ordered (and the wonderful, personalized cake I had at home) we opted not to order a dessert from Alexander's but our server, Jennifer, said we shouldn't run off. Shortly they arrived with a special platter with chocolate-scripted "Happy 30th Anniversary" on it that had a small brownie bite served with a couple of berries and whipped cream. What a surprise!


Now, it seems that our son was correct! A very impressive eatery with excellent, even personalized service and decor. Who could ask for anything more on our anniversary!


Alexander's Steakhouse
10330 N. Wolfe Road
Cupertino, CA 95014
408-446-2222
www.alexanderssteakhouse.com

Thanks for reading!

Here is an update to some of the events and on-going programs you might want to put on your calendar for June. These are selections from Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Mountain View, Santa Clara and other communities in Silicon Valley.

• June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29: Fair Oaks Toastmasters, 11:30am, 408-251-2521
• June 2: Sunnyvale Board of Library Trustees Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 3, 10, 24: Sunnyvale City Council Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 4, 11, 18, 25: Kiwanis Club of Silicon Valley, 7:20am, 408-774-0609
• June 4: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), monthly meeting, 1:30pm, 408-296-3805
• June 4: Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 4, 11, 18, 25: Silicon Valley Toastmasters, 5:00pm, call 866-387-4086
• June 5: SNAIL Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7:00pm
• June 6: Heritage District Neighborhood Association, 7:30pm
• June 7, 14, 21, 28: Sunnyvale Farmer's Market, 9:00am, 510-745-7100
• June 7 & 8: Sunnyvale Art & Wine festival, 10:00am-6:00pm, Downtown Sunnyvale
• June 8: Sunnyvale Art Club Exhibition, Noon-6:00pm, Sunnyvale Public Library, 408-730-7300 or visit www.sunnyvalelibrary.org
• June 9: San Miguel Neighbors Association, general meeting, 7:00pm
• June 9, 23: Sunnyvale Planning Commission Meeting, 8:00pm
• June 10: NASA’s Phoenix/Messenger Update, 7:00pm, Sunnyvale Public Library
• June 11: Sunnyvale Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 11: Lakewood Village Neighborhood Association, monthly, 7:00pm
• June 12: Wake Up Sunnyvale!, Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce Networking Breakfast, 7:29am, 408-736-4971
• June 16: Sunnyvale Personnel Board Meeting, 5:00pm
• June 18: Sunnyvale Arts Commission Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 19: Sunnyvale Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission Meeting, 6:30pm
• June 21: Compost Workshop, 10:00am
• June 21: Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off, 8:00am-1:00pm, Sunnyvale residents, 408-730-7262, TDD 408-730-7501
• June 21: Loss, Trauma and Young Children, 9:00am-2:30pm, Free class but space is limited, call 408-523-8150 ext. 22 for locations and to register
• June 25: Sunnyvale Housing and Human Services Commission Meeting, 7:00pm
• June 25: Glaucoma Support Group of the South Bay, 6:30pm, 408-523-3221 or 408-404-8479
• June 26: Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce Business Mixer, 5:00pm, 408-736-4971

• Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays: Computer and E-Waste Recycling, 8:00am-4:30pm, Cupertino proof of residency
• Every Wednesday: South Bay Community Orchestra, Noon-1:00pm for strings, 1:00-4:00pm for full orchestra
• Every Saturday: Family Astronomy Evenings, De Anza College Planetarium, 6:00pm, 7:00pm or 8:00pm
• Every Second Monday of Month: Fine Arts League of Cupertino, Quinlan Community Center, 7:00pm

NOTE: Please remember the annual Sunnyvale Art & Wine festival on June 7 & 8 from 10:00am to 6:00pm. Located in Downtown Sunnyvale, the event drew an estimated 150,000 attendees for both days and is regarded as the largest of its kind in Northern California.

Thanks for reading!