I’ve gotten a number of requests from prospective homebuyers to provide more information about Fremont.  So, I’ve put together a brief overview below that describes the five districts (Mission San Jose, Irvington, Niles, Centerville and Warm Springs) that comprise Fremont.  Each district has its own atmosphere and unique attributes, making the Fremont experience greater than the sum of its parts.

See my previous post for more information about the Mission San Jose district.

As well as being a great place to find a home, the Irvington district is Fremont’s largest shopping area, with everything from small locally-owned shops and restaurants to the mainstream shopping stores available at The Hub shopping center and Gateway Plaza, both located close the BART station.  Irvington is also home to Lake Elizabeth at Central Park. The park and recreation area was recently ranked by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of the best urban outings in the Bay Area (March 5, 2009).

The Niles district, another of Fremont’s historic districts, was Hollywood before there was a Hollywood.  It is the famous home of many of the Charlie Chapin and Bronco Billy films. Proud of its history, Niles is a community within a community. Located along Mission Blvd (old Highway 238) and tucked below the green foothills, the homes are both some of the oldest and some of the prettiest in Fremont. Niles is the small town inside the big suburb. It is also one of the best places to find antiques in the East Bay.

The Centerville district is currently one of the more affluent of Fremont’s districts and has one of the most diverse ethnic populations in Fremont.  Containing the newly developed Ardenwood neighborhood, with the high scoring Ardenwood elementary school, it has become the go-to place for many working professionals looking to buy their first home. Centerville is rich with multi-cultural pride.

Warm Springs at the south end of Fremont is the newest of the five districts and the closest to Silicon Valley.  But simply calling it a great place to live while you work in San Jose or Mountain View would overlook its own importance in the Bay Areas economic boom. Within the Warm Springs district, you’ll find the headquarters of many high-tech companies including Nielsen Norman Group, Corsair Memory and Lexar, Elitegroup Computer Systems, Asus and many of the country’s top bio-tech firms. The district is also home to NUMMI, Fremont’s largest employer (a joint automobile manufacturing plant for General Motors and Toyota). With well respected elementary schools, Warm Springs has become a highly desirable place to raise children.  Warms Springs will soon have a new Asian Shopping center near the interchange between highway 680 and highway 880.  What’s more, it is now home to the large Pacific Commons Shopping Center.

Including all the schools listed above, Fremont is served by the Fremont Unified School District. Fremont has 29 elementary schools, five junior high schools and six high schools: Mission San Jose High School — which was ranked as the 49th best high school in the nation; American High School, Irvington High School, Washington High School,Robertson High School and Kennedy High School.  Alsion Montessori Middle/High School and California School for the Deaf are also located in Fremont as well as a number of private schools.  For advanced studies or summer enrichment courses, Stanford, the UC Berkeley main campus and University East Bay in Hayward are within 35 minute drives.  UC Berkeley also has an extension campus located in Fremont. And as I mentioned, Ohlone College is a top community college with highly regarded nursing, computer science and green technology programs.

Fremont is a wonderful place to live with a great deal of home buying opportunities currently available. As a Fremont realtor with over 15 years of experience here, I’d be glad to provide you with more information on the Fremont real estate market.  Feel free to get your Fremont homes search started on my website today.  

I’ve gotten a number of requests from prospective homebuyers to provide more information on the various communities that I have expertise on.  So, I’ve put together a brief overview for Fremont’s Mission San Jose district below.  Please feel free to contact me with any questions that you may have.

Fremont has 201,334 residents situated over 92 square miles, according to the census of 2008, making it the fifth largest city on the Bay Area.  Its established itself as the Bay Area home of many high-tech and bio-tech firms and is known for its attractive, manageable commutes to other tech companies located in the South Bay and on the Peninsula. In addition, San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley are accessible within 60 minutes on BART. 

The historic Mission San Jose district is a very desirable area for home buyers and families.  It is located just off of Highway 680 and sits below the foothills of Mission Peak. The district prides itself on maintaining a small town feel – for example, the Olive Festival is held annually, Independence Day parades bring residents out onto the sidewalk in summer, and in winter a Christmas tree lighting event is held close by. Ohlone College (see more below) is the hub of activity in the area and a number of small commercial businesses, retail shops, and eateries are within walking distance. The Mission San Jose district is a short drive away from The Hub shopping center in the Irvington district, Gateway Plaza near the BART station, the newly developed Pacific Commons Shopping Center in the Warm Springs district and NewPark Mall in the city of Newark.

The Mission San Jose district is also home to cultural and community centers like the impressive Smith Center for Performing Arts at Ohlone College and the Olive Hyde Art gallery.  In addition, Fremont has plenty of indoor and outdoor recreation areas. The popular and highly ranked Lake Elizabeth (Central Park) with golfing, a dog park and sporting fields will soon house a new water park opening in May of 2009.  Additionally, residents and visitors enjoy Quarry Lakes Park, sections of the Alameda Creek trail, Fremont Teen Center, Fremont Senior Center, and of course the mountainous hiking trails of Mission Peak.

As for schools, Fremont is served by the Fremont Unified School District, and families flock to homes in the Mission San Jose district to enroll their children in Mission San Jose High School, ranked as the 49th best high school in the nation.  Known locally as “Mission” or MSJ, the high school was founded in 1964 and is known for its strong academics, sending 93% of its graduates to post-secondary schools.  For advanced studies or summer enrichment courses, Stanford, the UC Berkeley main campus and Cal State University East Bay in Hayward are within 35 minute drives.  UC Berkeley also has an extension campus located in Fremont.  Ohlone College (a community college) with highly regarded nursing, computer science and green technology programs has its main campus located in the Mission San Jose district. 

Fremont and the Mission San Jose district are wonderful places to live with a great deal of home buying opportunities currently available. Feel free to contact me to learn more about the real estate market in this wonderful city.

The City of Fremont and President Obama want first-time home buyers to achieve their dreams.  Now is a fantastic time to purchase your first home.

As part of the economic stimulus package, President Obama signed into law a first-time home buyers tax credit of $8,000. First-time homebuyers who purchase a home this year between Jan. 1 and Dec. 1 may be eligible for the tax credit.

Additionally, The City of Fremont offers loans through its First Time Home Buyer Program of up to $40,000 to eligible homebuyers for down payment assistance

UPCOMING WORKSHOP - CITY OF FREMONT FIRST TIME HOME BUYER PROGRAM

Tuesday, April 21, 2009.  Registration is now open. 

Registration is mandatory.

Visit the City’s First Time Home Buyer webpage to register for the April workshop.

As I mentioned in my previous post, the City of Fremont First Time Homebuyer Program and CalHFA financing may be able to assist with down payment assistance of up to $67,600 for a Fremont home, provided that you meet certain qualification.  According to the City’s website, you are eligible for the program if you:

• Attend one of the mandatory two-hour First Time Homebuyer Workshops.
• Live or work in Fremont currently, or previously lived in Fremont.
• Have not owned a home in the last three years.
• Meet the income guidelines (see Income chart).
• Are able to secure a mortgage and have good credit.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: In February 2009 the city published a list of lenders in Fremont (available here) which are approved for the Fremont First Time Home Buyer Program. The list includes select branches of: Bank of America,Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Countrywide Home Loans, Diversified Capital Funding and Jacinto Mortgage Group.

To see if you are eligible, or for further information, please contact me.  I’d be glad to provide you with more information on making your home ownership dream a reality.

The San Francisco Chronicle recently listed Fremont’s own Lake Elizabeth (Central Park) as one of the best urban outings in the Bay Area (March 5, 2009).  The park is set on 450 acres with an 83 acre lake. It is noted for its relaxing, natural atmosphere, walk-ability, separate dog park, boating, and ample bird watching. The park grounds also contain a number of sporting fields, a golf course and a water park opening in May of 2009.

As a Fremont realtor, I understand how appealing and important access to an open park setting can be to those who are looking to buy a home here. The park is a short driving distance from most Fremont homes and many are within walking distance. The surrounding area has a good mixture of residential homes and shopping at Gateway Plaza and The Hub. 

Families who live near the park send their children to high ranking schools like: John Gomes Elementary School, William Hopkins Junior High School and top performingMission San Jose High School. The homes are also conveniently located near important public services like the Fremont Main Library, Fremont Teen Center, Washington Hospital and the Kaiser Permanente campus, California School for the Deaf and the Fremont Police station.

Lake Elizabeth is a wonderful park and is one of the many things that make Fremont and great place to live. Its great to see it receiving the applause it deserves.

You can read the full SF Chronicle article here.

Veena Grover, RE/Max | http://www.FremontHomesTeam.com | 510.378.7546 

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.

• Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.

• In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.

• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

In my view, given the seasonal slowdown, there are very good deals to be had here in the Bay Area. Furthermore, with an incoming Obama administration that is more likely to push for policies helping homeowners facing foreclosure, I believe that the number of homes entering foreclosure will gradually stabilize over the next year and then decline. Regardless, its certainly a good time to start searching online for properties that interest you. You can do this search and get automated email updates on homes that match your criteria on my website (FremontHomesTeam.com), by clicking here.

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.

• Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.

• In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.

• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

In my view, given the seasonal slowdown, there are very good deals to be had here in the Bay Area. Furthermore, with an incoming Obama administration that is more likely to push for policies helping homeowners facing foreclosure, I believe that the number of homes entering foreclosure will gradually stabilize over the next year and then decline. Regardless, its certainly a good time to start searching online for properties that interest you. You can do this search and get automated email updates on homes that match your criteria on my website (FremontHomesTeam.com), by clicking here.

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year. 
• Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales. 
• In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level. 
• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years. 

In my view, given the seasonal slowdown, there are very good deals to be had here in the Bay Area. Furthermore, with an incoming Obama administration that is more likely to push for policies helping homeowners facing foreclosure, I believe that the number of homes entering foreclosure will gradually stabilize over the next year and then decline. Regardless, its certainly a good time to start searching online for properties that interest you. You can do this search and get automated email updates on homes that match your criteria on my website (FremontHomesTeam.com), by clicking here.

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year. 
• Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales. 
• In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level. 
• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years. 

In my view, given the seasonal slowdown, there are very good deals to be had here in the Bay Area. Furthermore, with an incoming Obama administration that is more likely to push for policies helping homeowners facing foreclosure, I believe that the number of homes entering foreclosure will gradually stabilize over the next year and then decline. Regardless, its certainly a good time to start searching online for properties that interest you. You can do this search and get automated email updates on homes that match your criteria on my website (FremontHomesTeam.com), by clicking here.