The 'Guide Me Home to San Jose' Blog

Every time this year the neighborhoods around Altera Real Estate come alive with the beauty that is Spring in California. No wonder so much poetry has been written about Spring and flowers; after months of clouds, cold and rain the bright colors seem to get us all moving again.

Home and garden tours are as much a part of Spring as fresh flowers and seasonal allergies. Our Willow Glen neighborhood, one of San Jose’s oldest, boasts countless tour-worthy homes and gardens. This weekend, May 2nd and 3rd, the San Jose Day Nursery will be holding its 27th annual Willow Glen Lifestyles Home Tour from 10am to 4pm. Countless children have benefited from the services of the San Jose Day Nursery since its founding in 1916. The proceeds from this tour help provide scholarships for children of low-income working parents.

This year the tour includes a classic, single-story Spanish-style home with an up to the minute kitchen, a newly-built 2-story home with all the charm of a period home, and a Craftsman-style home. Truly a sampling of the many styles that make our area so sought-after. These homes aren’t for sale! Just come to visit and enjoy. Among the local businesses selling tickets are Domus and Able Printing.

Posted By: Colleen Badagliacco

On Saturday, April 25th, a team of Realtors from Altera Real Estate Silicon Valley will be tying the laces on their running and walking shoes to participate in the fourth annual run in the Almaden Valley honoring Pat Tillman, the local kid (my daughter Laura went to middle school with Pat at Bret Harte Middle School) who played football at Arizona State, and later, famously, for the Arizona Cardinals. If that was the end of the story, the local legend, however, might have left less of a legacy.

What most Americans remember about Pat has little or nothing to do with San Jose, nor with football. Pat Tillman walked into history after walking off the field of a successful NFL football career in 2002, the memory of 9/11 fresh in his mind and with a desire to give back to the country that had given him so much. He became an Army Ranger. Tragically, errant friendly-fire in a narrow Afghanistan mountain canyon ended Pat’s life way too soon. Stunned friends, teammates and colleagues came together to celebrate his life and fund a foundation, the Pat Tillman Foundation, to support Pat’s memory and the life he lived. The foundation’s motto is “Leadership through Action.”

The Altera Real Estate team will travel the 4.2 mile course (Pat’s number was 42), hoping in their small way to honor Pat, his example, and help create his living legacy. For more information or to support the Pat Tillman Foundation, please go to PatsRun.com.

Posted By: Colleen Badagliacco

I recently ran across a blog from someone claiming to have superior knowledge and to be educated in the ways of real estate agents who has the opinion that 90% of today’s agents are out of touch and not in tune with what current consumers are demanding. He of course personally knows the cream of the crop but they are in the minority and the rest are bad apples bringing shoddy service to consumers who deserve better. Well, consumers do deserve the best that’s for sure. We, however, have to disagree with that writer in regard to the professionalism, integrity and skill sets that the majority of agents possess, at least within the scope of our experience, which is considerable.

Education and training. Realty agents don’t always publish their educational credentials but within our sphere of colleagues, most are college educated, many with advanced degrees. Most experienced agents have earned designations for a variety of specializations. Most are involved in continuing education programs and classes.

Professional commitment. All agents with whom we do business are members of the Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS® which, in turn, makes them members of both the California Association of REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS®. While there are many benefits to both the agent and the public we believe that the adherence to a Code of Ethics is the most fundamental. Every Realtor must agree to uphold this very strict and specific code and are subject to sanctions when they do not.

Should anyone really care? Well, in a state where it seems you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a real estate agent you should. If you are going to entrust the details of making one of the biggest financial decisions of your life to a real estate agent you have to be using a Realtor. He or she is going to have training, experience, support and accountability. As for all those agents who choose not to adhere to these standards, who are merely looking for a paycheck, whose primary interests are their own, we wish the best of luck but we also have a feeling that they will be counted in the statistics quoted by the blogger above.

Posted By: Charlene & David Todd