Palo Alto by the Numbers

We have been helping the Dreyfus Group at Golden Gate Sotheby's International Realty with city-specific market reports for a number of years now, starting in Palo Alto. There are a few things that make this report unique.

First, we use the sale date (the date the home went into contract) to indicate the timing of sales. Most reports use the close date, which can be a month or more after the home went into contract. Sale date is a more accurate reflection of market activity as it happens.

Second, house size is a common factor used to compare relative prices by calculating "price per square foot". While a useful piece of data, it ignores the impact of lot size on a home's price, which can be significant, especially in Silicon Valley where large lots are scarce. We calculate something we call size index that factors in both house size and lot size, based on a regression analysis of their relative contribution to sale price in the city. The size index is more highly correlated with sale price than house size alone.

Third, the report takes the time to give some local color for each of the neighborhoods in Palo Alto, reflecting the Dreyfus Group's long history there and understanding of the uniqueness of each area.