Buying

Buy with a plan, not a panic.

Los Gatos homes sell in about three weeks and the best ones in one. The buyers who win are not the richest. They are the ones who did the work before the house came up.

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A single house key with a copper tag on a marble counter

The process

Seven steps, in this order, every time.

  1. 01The sit down

    An hour at the office or on a call. What you need, what you want, what you can spend without wincing, and which of those three is allowed to move. We sign the buyer agreement here so the fee is on paper before anyone shows you a house.

  2. 02Pre-approval, the real kind

    A fully underwritten pre-approval from a local lender, not a two minute online letter. Sellers here can tell the difference and so can their agents. We introduce you to three lenders and you pick.

  3. 03The search, including the quiet part

    MLS alerts are table stakes. Sofia is at broker tour every Tuesday and talks to listing agents before launch, so you hear about coming soon and off market homes while they still are.

  4. 04Tours that include the street

    We book showings for the hour that tells you something: 8am for traffic, dusk for the light, a weeknight for the freeway noise. Then we read the disclosure package together, boring pages included.

  5. 05The offer

    Price is one lever of six. Contingencies, close date, rent back, deposit size and the letter all matter to a seller. We show you the comps, tell you where we think it lands, and write what you decide.

  6. 06Inspections and the second negotiation

    Most Los Gatos sellers pre-inspect. We still bring our own people for the roof, the sewer line and the foundation on hillside lots. If something turns up, there is a second conversation and we have it for you.

  7. 07Closing and the keys

    A final walkthrough the day before, wire instructions confirmed by phone with the title officer (never by email), and keys the afternoon it records. Then we send you the names of the plumber, the arborist and the dog walker.

What we cost

Usually paid by the seller. Here is how.

Our buyer fee is 2% to 2.5% of the purchase price, set in the agreement you sign at step one. In most Los Gatos sales the seller offers to cover the buyer's agent fee out of the sale proceeds, so you pay us nothing out of pocket. We confirm what each seller is offering before you write an offer.

If a seller offers less than the number in your agreement, you have three choices: ask the seller to cover the gap in the offer, pay the difference at closing, or walk. We tell you the gap in dollars before you decide, not after.

What you pay regardless: inspections ($900 to $2,500 depending on the house), appraisal (about $800), and closing costs of roughly 1% to 1.5% of price for title, escrow and prepaid taxes. We give you a written estimate of all of it at step two.

Figures are typical ranges for Los Gatos in 2026. Every sale is different. Nothing here is a quote.

Run the numbers

What the payment actually looks like.

Slide the price, the down payment and the rate. The principal and interest figure updates as you go, with tax and insurance added so the all-in number is honest.

$2,400,000
20% ($480,000)
6.250%
Loan term
$11,822 a month, principal and interest, on a $1,920,000 loan Property tax about $2,400 a month (1.2% a year)
Insurance about $180 a month
All in, about $14,402 a month

Estimate only, not a quote or a pre-approval. Rates, tax and insurance vary by lender, lot and house. Your lender gives you the real number.

Questions buyers ask

The ones we hear every week.

How much over asking do Los Gatos homes sell for?
It depends on how the seller priced it. Homes priced at the comps sell at 3% to 10% over list after a one week launch. Homes priced above the comps sit for a month and sell at or under list. Our sold page shows both patterns side by side.
Do I need to waive contingencies to win?
Not always, and we never recommend waiving all of them. Most winning offers here keep a shortened inspection period or lean on the seller's pre-inspection, and go non-contingent on the loan only with a fully underwritten pre-approval behind them. We walk through the risk of each one before you decide.
How long does it take to buy?
Pre-approval takes about a week. The search is the variable part: some clients find the house in a month, some take six, especially if they want a specific school or a flat lot. Once an offer is accepted, closing takes 21 to 30 days.
Which school district am I buying into?
Most of Los Gatos is in Los Gatos Union School District for elementary and middle, and Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District for high school. Parts of town east of Highway 17 and south toward Lexington feed different schools, so we check the exact address with the district before you write an offer.
Can we buy a house we have only seen on video?
Yes, and clients relocating from out of state do it regularly. We do a live walkthrough with you on the call, a second video of the street and the neighbors, and we bring in our inspectors before you remove any contingency. See the relocation page for how that works.
What about homes that never hit the MLS?
About one in five of our buyer closings this year was off market or coming soon. Those come from Tuesday broker tour, from listing agents we know and from our own sellers who want a quiet sale. You hear about them when we do.
What is the Mello-Roos or special tax situation here?
Most of Los Gatos has no Mello-Roos. Property tax runs about 1.1% to 1.25% of purchase price a year including local bonds and parcel taxes, which is why the calculator above uses 1.2%. We pull the exact tax bill for any house you are serious about.

Related, and what to do next.

Moving from out of the area? Start with relocation. Looking at a $3M-plus hillside home? Read hillside and estates. Buying a rental? Investment covers cap rates and the ADU angle. Selling at the same time? Here is how we sequence it.

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