At the south end of San Francisco Bay, former orchard land on the valley floor now holds the neighborhoods of San Jose, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale and Mountain View. The foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains to the west and the Diablo Range to the east frame the valley and add hillside and semi-rural properties to the mix.
- Coverage
- Desktop appraisals countywide
- Single-family & condo
- Basic Desktop $299 · Desktop $449
- 2–4 units
- Desktop from $549
- Effective dates
- Current or retrospective
The Santa Clara County housing landscape
Postwar ranch homes cover much of the valley floor, and Eichler tracts with glass walls, atriums and low-pitched roofs are concentrated in Sunnyvale and parts of Mountain View. Pre-war bungalows and period revival homes cluster instead in San Jose's Willow Glen, Rose Garden and Naglee Park neighborhoods. Townhome and condominium construction has followed the rail and light-rail corridors through Mountain View, Sunnyvale and north San Jose. Demand tracks the regional technology economy closely, and many original tract houses have been expanded, rebuilt or replaced, so the size and finish of homes can vary widely along a single street.
Cities we frequently appraise
- Mountain View
- San Jose
- Santa Clara
- Sunnyvale
Property elsewhere in Santa Clara County? Desktop appraisals cover the entire county — include the address in your request.
Property types
- Eichler and mid-century ranch homes
- pre-war bungalows and period revival homes
- transit-corridor townhomes and condominiums
- foothill and mountain properties
- mobile homes in San Jose mobilehome parks
- small multifamily buildings under rent stabilization
Valuation considerations
Some Eichler neighborhoods, including tracts in Sunnyvale, have been rezoned with single-story overlays that bar second-story additions, which limits expansion potential and narrows the pool of truly comparable sales. San Jose's Apartment Rent Ordinance covers older buildings of three or more units, and Mountain View has its own rent stabilization law, so occupied multifamily property needs income-aware analysis. Foothill lots in the Santa Cruz Mountains and the east San Jose hills raise landslide, wildfire and access questions, and low-lying areas near the bay and along Coyote Creek can carry flood or liquefaction risk.
Is a desktop appraisal the right fit?
Because ranch and Eichler models were built in quantity across the valley floor, close comparable sales are usually available and a desktop appraisal can support estate, trust or divorce work. Extensive remodels, where finish level drives value, and hillside properties with access or slope issues are the cases that warrant an inspection.
Read more about how desktop appraisals work, or compare report types on the pricing page.
Purposes we handle in Santa Clara County
- Date-of-Death Appraisals
- Estate & Trust Appraisals
- Divorce Appraisals
- Bankruptcy Appraisals
- Proposition 19 Appraisals
- Property Tax & Gift Tax Appraisals
- Pre-Purchase Appraisals
- Pre-Sale Appraisals
- Family Transfer Appraisals
- Insurance Dispute Appraisals
- Bail Bond Appraisals
- Expert Witness & Litigation Support
- Appraisal Review & Second Opinions