Belgatos playground closed
Today my family and I enjoyed a walk in the neighborhood with the dry, warmer weather. Lots of neighbors were out biking, hiking, and walking dogs, and we wondered if the Belgatos Park playground would be in use, or off limits due to the coronavirus restrictions. Not surprisingly, it was cordoned off.
In addition to the police tape, there’s a sign to keep people from being in too-close proximity on the equipment.
Be safe out there!
Vote at the Belwood of Los Gatos Cabaña
Midway through a major election year, voting on a few measures and maybe the presidential primary may not be at the top of everyone’s To Do List. In the Belwood-Belgatos area, we’re fortunate that our polling place is extremely local – you can vote at the Belwood of Los Gatos Cabaña. Stop on by – lines are short and the folks handing out the ballots are very nice. It’s a good reason to take a few minutes out of your regular day. And the bonus for all of us is that it’s such a scenic place.
If you aren’t going to be home, and have already completed your ballot, there are a myriad of ballot drop off locations. Check out the list here:
https://www.sccgov.org/sites/rov/Pages/Registrar-of-Voters.aspx
2019 real estate sales in Belwood, Belgatos, Surmont & nearby
The Belwood area in east Los Gatos had a healthy number of sales in 2019 (sales which closed or originated in 2019). The map below indicates the listings and sales of single family homes (houses) in the Surmont, Belgatos, Belwood, and contiguous areas last year. (There was also one duplex, info on that below.)
The tables below are a bit small to read, but if you click on them, it will open up in a new tab as full width (1200 px instead of 700 px). Here’s what did close escrow in 2019 for single family homes. Click image to enlarge.
Please click on image to enlarge – table with info on 2019 sales in Belwood, Belgatos, Surmont, and adjacent areas.
There was one duplex just off of Belwood Gateway (the two courts near the cabana have duplexes).
Click image to enlarge
Right now, here’s what is available (there’s a “coming soon” sign on a property on Belwood Gateway right now, too):
Please click on the image to enlarge – it will open in a new tab
The Bacigalupi family of Los Gatos – some history
We happen to live on Bacigalupi Drive in Belwood of Los Gatos, a lovely street you might walk to get to Belgatos Park. A classmate of mine at Saratoga High School was a Bacigalupi and I have noticed that one of the old buildings in downtown Los Gatos is the Bacigalupi Building (it houses Mountain Charley’s, I believe – it is in the La Canada or Hofstra block near the corner of Main and North Santa Cruz). So I wondered, who were these people with the hard to pronounce name? (I can say it, but I speak some Italian!)
The Bacigalupi Family c.1922 – click to visit the Los Gatos Local History Research Collection and see a larger image and info on this family
The Hooked on Los Gatos project was a collaborative project by the Library and History Museum which appears to have since become the Los Gatos Local History Research Collection. This collection includes page after page of online resources, including all the photos in their archives relating to the Bacigalupi clan. Clicking on each image leads to more information. For instance, here I found information on James A. Bacigalupi, Sr.
I was very impressed to learn that he was the first president of the Bank of Italy, and then worked with A.P. Giannini to form the Bank of America. He may not be the most famous Los Gatan, but he’s certainly a big deal! To the right, this photo features Mr. Bacigalupi with his family, in approximately the year 1922. Click on the image to visit the original photo on the Local History Research Collection page, see a larger image and learn more about the family in this image.
As you probably know, the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake did a great deal of damage to many of the older, historic buildings in downtown Los Gatos. The La Canada (Hofstra) block was no exception. The Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce reported on its “walking tour” page (which has since disappeared, but thankfully has been archived) after the quake, that block was restored by the Bacigalupi, Farwell, Brady and VanDalsem families, so we can thank them for their continued love of our town and its history. (On a side note, if you’re interested in a Los Gatos walking tour don’t despair! The old walking tour has been swapped with a high-tech model: LOST Gatos the walking tour App.)
Belwood, Belgatos, Surmont neighborhood
Welcome to my site regarding a beautiful neighborhood in east Los Gatos, including Belwood of Los Gatos, Belgatos, Surmont, and adjacent tracts & subdivisions. Here I’ll provide ongoing real estate information, some events that are happening in the community, photos of Belgatos Park and other nearby areas, and items of concern to residents in this pretty corner of Los Gatos.
Please note that this is NOT the Belwood Homeowner’s Association website. For the HOA site, and phone numbers for the Cabaña or HOA, for lifeguard jobs, please visit BelwoodHomes.org
Enjoy this slideshow of photos of our scenic neighborhood.
Belwood, Belgatos, Surmont & nearby Los Gatos sales year to date
How’s the real estate market in Belwood of Los Gatos, Belgatos, Surmont, and adjacent areas in east Los Gatos? I thought my neighbors might enjoy seeing how the first three quarters of 2019 have been going. The Silicon Valley real estate market has been decent in 2019, but not like the first half of 2018, which was the peak of the market. You can get info for all of the town’s realty market conditions here (on the Live in Los Gatos blog): Los Gatos real estate statistics and market trends. The map below represents homes for sale (green houses), pending (orange house – hard to see since a red one is on top of it – far left side of the image), and properties which are sold and closed (red houses). They are fairly well spread out.
Map – 2019-10-19 Belwood area real estate activity YTD
Most of the sales, 9 out of 12, were sold for between $1,615,000 and $1,960,000. Two properties sold in the low $2 millions, and one, a large home with acreage, sold for $3.1 million.
In the image below, DOM stands for Days on Market, meaning the number of days between when the house was listed on the mls and seen publicly to when it was a contingent or pending sale. Of the 12 sales, 5 sold in 14 days or less (the 0 for one of them suggests an off market sale). Four others sold within 1 month. With 75% of the solds here pending within a month, it’s a pretty decent real estate market in this corner of Los Gatos.
The houses which usually sell the fastest have a few things in common.
- they are priced aggressively, usually a little low
- they show well – uncluttered, cleaned,in good shape / updated (or remodeled), and frequently professionally staged
- they are easy to show (short notice or vacant “go direct”)
- they are well marketed with professional photographs (after price, photos are the most important element to a successful marketing campaign), solid pre-sale inspections
Want to buy or sell a home in the area in the coming months? Please reach out to me – I’m happy to meet with you confidentially, no obligation, no pushing ever.
Interested in nearby areas in Santa Clara County? Check out neighborhood descriptions and real estate markets for various areas such as Almaden Valley, Cambrian, Campbell, Saratoga, Willow Glen, Cupertino, and more at the Valley of Heart’s Delight blog (https://sanjoserealestatelosgatoshomes.com/).
Halloween Party at Belwood of Los Gatos
Halloween fun in the Belwood of Los Gatos Community!
Put on a costume and celebrate Halloween at the Belwood of Los Gatos cabana club, Sunday Oct 27th from 3- 6pm. Enjoy games, prizes, pizza, snacks & the spirit of All Hallows Eve. The featured event will be either a spooky haunted house or a movie, beginning at 6pm. Costumes highly encouraged!
Belwood residents and invited guests only, please. Free admission, donations appreciated.
Learn more at the Belwood Homes Halloween Party event page.
Volunteers needed! Find sign-up information through the link above.
BelwoodOfLosGatos.com
This website is provided by Mary Pope-Handy, a Belwood resident and real estate agent.
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For the HOA site,
and phone numbers for the Cabana or HOA, please visit
BelwoodHomes.org
************************* Mary Pope-Handy
Belwood area resident
Realtor
ABR, CIPS, CRS, SRES
Sereno Group Real Estate
214 Los Gatos-Saratoga Rd
Los Gatos, CA 95030
408 204-7673
Mary (at) PopeHandy.com
BRE License #01153805
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