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Silicon Valley has revolutionized the world in more ways than one. Today, it is one of the prime destinations for millennials hoping to make a name for themselves.

The area offers ample opportunity for career growth, great weather year-round, and so much more.

The tech boom

When history books years in the future are written, this age will closely resemble the industrial boom of the early twentieth century. The difference is that our “revolution” will be a technological one.

Millennials who have the skills or ideas to compete in this crowded market know that they need to be in the middle of the action. The Bay Area offers multiple startups for different skills levels. Newcomers and experienced professionals alike are welcome and well rewarded.

West Coast vibes

It is no secret that the top schools on the East Coast tend to sit in uncomfortably volatile areas in terms of weather. New England has rough winters, for example, and many students dream of never dealing with inches of snow again.

There is a certain allure to the West Coast that has always seen young graduates gravitating to it. Nearly 25% of students from the Top 25 universities on the East Coast have made the move to the West Coast within five years.

Trend

Silicon Valley remains the top choice of recent graduates. Yes, there are plenty of other tech hubs to choose from, but Silicon Valley offers the established name.

Recent graduates aspiring to be tech gurus will jump at the chance at being involved in the industry in this particular area. They will willingly share a smaller home with other tech workers to achieve their dreams. The trend is very strong at the moment and it does not show signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Best companies to work for

Some of Fortune’s 70 Best Companies to Work For in the Bay Area are located in Silicon Valley. They include the following top tech firms:

Large companies

• Cisco
• Adobe
• Intuit Inc.
• NVIDIA
• Arista Networks
• HP

Small and medium companies

• CCumulus Networks
• Chegg
• Sage Intact
• Zuora
• Coupa Software

At Cisco, employees can build their own careers with the flexibility they need – like choosing their own schedule or working from home. At NVIDIA, the culture encourages employees to think differently and make them feel like they’re part of the company’s success.

In a smaller company like Cumulus Networks, employees appreciate the leadership’s openness about its operating details.

Numbers don’t lie

In spite of higher home prices and tough commutes, Silicon Valley has a lot of great things going for it. The 2019 Silicon Valley Index shows that the jobless rate was at an 18-year low at 2.15%. The national unemployment average as of February 2019 was 3.8%. Last year, Silicon Valley added 35,000 jobs, which fueled a rise in household incomes.

Shaping the future

It all ultimately comes down to ambition. The youth of today is keen on shaping the future and acquiring the skills necessary to do so. All they need is to be in the right place at the right time.

Silicon Valley is the place for the right professional it and the place where they can build their future.

To explore your housing options in Silicon Valley, get in touch with us, David Chung and Sunny Kim, today. Call 650.489.6251 or email us at info@david&sunny.com.

Flipping your home for profit is an art. To learn it, you have to pay attention. Here is an overview of how you can sell your home for a higher price.

Be honest with yourself

First and foremost, it is essential to be as objective as you can about pricing your home. It is the single most important thing you have to do to make sure your get the best offers. If you allow your sentiments to rule, you may jack up your price to levels beyond the comparable homes in your neighborhood and risk seeing your own house remain unsold for weeks on end.

Renovate

Once you know how much you can sell the house for, you can begin thinking about renovations. According to the 2019 Cost vs. Value report of Remodeling, a publication for the construction industry, the following home renovations add the most value:

• Replacing the garage door
• Replacing vinyl siding with manufactured stone veneer
• Undertaking a minor kitchen remodel
• Adding a wooden deck
• Replacing dilapidated siding

Investing in the above renovations will allow you to recoup costs at an average of 77% to 98% once the house is sold.

Consult a real estate agent

Work with a local real agent to help you determine the most competitive price, plan a selling strategy, prep your home, and decide on the best time to sell your home faster and to the highest bidder. Your agent will ensure that your home isn’t priced less than it is worth. Your agent will also help you handle the voluminous paperwork that’s typical of real estate transactions.

Employ value range marketing

Instead of sticking a specific price tag on a home, consider value range marketing. List a price range that’s between the ideal market price for your home and the lowest price you would accept. It allows potential sellers to negotiate toward a middle price – which could turn out to be far more than what you can realistically expect.

Offer perks

Once a buyer has narrowed down their choices to two or three homes, make sure the buyer decides in your favor. One way to do this is by offering incentives. Offer to pay for closing costs, home inspections, or repairs. You can also sweeten the deal by prepaying homeowners’ association fees, golf memberships, or internet services for a period of time.

Learn the process and adjust

Now that you have a better idea of how to sell your home for a higher price, see how it goes. If something doesn’t work, quickly make adjustments. If you have fewer inquiries than you’d like, rethink your price. If home visits don’t result in offers, find out if there’s anything wrong with the house and make fixes immediately.

If you’re selling your home in the Silicon Valley area, you need the guidance of professionals who know this complicated market by heart, and with a proven track record of success. Get in touch with us, David Chung and Sunny Kim, today. Call 650.489.6251 or email us at info@david&sunny.com.

How important is living near a good school to home buyers? Last year, a survey revealed that 78% of buyers would be willing to forego amenities like a garage, an updated kitchen, the number of bedrooms they wanted, and outdoor living space to get their children into a desirable school district.

If you’re thinking of moving to the Bay Area, here are five of the best school districts in the region. Each entry on this list has received an overall grade of A+ on Niche.com and has devoted itself to quality education for years.

1. Palo Alto Unified School District
   Not only does the Palo Alto’s elementary schools district boast an average grade of A+, the district itself ranks Number 1 in the state of California. The math and reading proficiency tests in this school rarely average below 80%. Its ultimate goal of excellence is established and enforced by teachers whose tenure speaks volumes about their ability to stay the course.
2. Acalanes Union High School District
   Acalanes Union is one of the many great districts in the Bay Area and ranks Number 10 among all districts in the state. Its students, which number around 5.000, boast proficiency test scores above 70%. Moreover, the school district has a teacher-to-student ratio of 1 to 21. The teachers are tops in their field, with an impressive career history and professional achievements.
3. Pleasanton Unified School District
   Pleasanton is K-12 excellence personified. It has over 14,000 students, with a reading proficiency score of 80%. For years, Pleasanton has consistently increased its standards to rank among the Top 20 school districts in the Bay Area. None of the elementary schools within the district scored anywhere below an A.
4. Freemont Union High School District
   Freemont Union High School District is committed to its 10,000+ students by focusing on mathematics and reading and writing skills. The school boasts 78% in math proficiency and 82% in reading proficiency. Freemont Union ranks Number 15 in the state of California. Graduates have gone on to pursue college degrees, too, so it’s a great choice if you want to give your child an edge.
5. San Ramon Valley Unified School District
   San Ramon Valley is exactly what you would expect from a district that ranks Number 20 among the best districts in the state. If you can afford to buy a home in this area, your children will receive some of the best education in California. Reading proficiency is above 80% in this school district.

A bright future

Your children deserve a bright future. Attending a school in one of these school districts ensures they have a solid foundation for success.

To look for a home in the Bay Area that will allow your children to take advantage of its excellent schools, get in touch with us, David Chung and Sunny Kim, at 650.489.6251 or email us at info@david&sunny.com. We will be happy to show you your real estate options.

For many people, working for a startup is certainly a very exciting idea. Not only do you get an opportunity to make a lot of money, but you might become part of something that can potentially change the world.

For those who don’t consider themselves to be tech-savvy however, joining a startup might not be part of the plan. But the truth is, there are many jobs in the tech industry don’t require coding knowledge. A startup also needs people to design their product, write copy, communicate with users, create marketing strategies, and handle all sorts of non-technical tasks as well.

If you’re thinking about working for a tech startup but have zero experience on coding, here are several roles that are ideal for you:

Marketing

Startups need to attract new users and create some hype around their product, which is why many of them are looking for workers with PR or marketing experience. Keep in mind however that most startups’ budget for marketing are usually smaller compared to what established companies spend, which means you’ll need to be creative in figuring out how you can create a big impact using limited resources.

Product manager

Product managers are in charge of the product’s overall design and how it should function. This type of job typically involves creating the product’s “look and feel,” designing flowcharts (how users navigate through a website or app), collaborating with designers and engineers, and communicating with marketing on how to best present the product or highlight certain features.

Support

Getting a job as a support rep in a tech startup is an excellent way to gain knowledge on the tech industry, especially if you’re a recent graduate. A support rep communicates with users, addresses issues and concerns, explains how the product works, and so on.

Members of the support staff are often the most knowledgeable when it comes to user satisfaction, which is why they play a key role in improving the company’s product.

Business development manager

Some of the most innovative features in popular tech products are often the result of outstanding business development deals, like getting a discount on your favorite restaurant when you book an Uber, or tweeting with a specific hashtag to save money whenever you shop using your AmEx card.

A business development manager is often behind deals like these. They collaborate with other companies in order to create more buzz for products and make them even better for users.

Community manager

Depending on the startup, community managers have different tasks and responsibilities, but their primary task is to connect with end users by making them feel appreciated by the product or company. A community manager is often in charge of building the company’s online community through managing social media accounts, organizing events, creating new content, and requesting feedback from customers.

Thinking about relocating to Silicon Valley? For the best Silicon Valley homes for sale, get in touch with David and Sunny at 650-489-6251.

While new startup ecosystems are now being established in different parts of the globe, Silicon Valley is still firmly at the top of the tech industry, continuing to attract countless entrepreneurs year in, year out. Procuring the necessary capital to run a successful startup may now be possible elsewhere, but the culture of Silicon Valley is still unmatched. It’s impossible to find a higher concentration of tech-savvy individuals who think outside of the box and work hard to push technology beyond its limits.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at several forward-thinking Silicon Valley startups that demonstrate the type of innovation and determination Silicon Valley is known for.

Gladly

Gladly helps businesses build a better connection with their customers through an efficient and highly personalized solution. They’ve helped companies from different industries including retail, hospitality, finance, travel, and more by providing reliable customer support agents with access to all the tools and information they need to provide unparalleled support to customers.

Incubated in 2015 by Greylock Partners, Gladly has now raised more than $63 million and currently has a team of more than 50 employees.

Ripe.io

Ripe.io made a significant impact to the digital food supply industry through their innovative use of the Internet of Things and blockchain technology. With their transparent food quality network, consumers now get access to a wealth of information that tells them about their food’s quality, where it was produced, and more.

Additionally, farmers and distributors can use Ripe.io to automate internal processes and fulfill market demand for high-quality, sustainable food products.

Shippo

With Shippo,users are now able to save more time and money with shipping through the use of an automated cloud-based software. The intuitive and easy-to-use tool helps customers get information on rates, print the required labels, track their packages, and more. Companies can use Shippo’s system to provide their users with different shipping options available through e-commerce websites.

Biomarker Labs

Biomarker Labs gives users real-time, data-driven access to a wide variety of health supplements. The company analyzes a user’s health metrics, symptoms and other information in order to match them with the best beneficial nutritional supplements.

Biomarker takes advantage of the increasing number of supplement users who use smartphones and wearable technology to gather insights and create a precise database of information. With more users, they get more data on how people respond to specific supplements, which leads to better results.

Nurx

Nurx’suser-friendly app provides a better way for women to get access to birth control. Through the app, a user can request a prescription online and simply wait for it to be delivered right to their door.

Nurx’s application is currently operational in more than 15 states across the US. Through their unique birth control subscription service, the company is seeking more innovations in women’s healthcare this year.

Thinking about relocating to Silicon Valley? For the best Silicon Valley homes for sale, get in touch with David and Sunny at 650-489-6251.

If you’re looking forward to enjoying some quality time with the family, Los Altos is home to an assortment of fun family-friendly activities and destinations. Located south of Palo Alto, this suburban haven is filled with a variety of attractions perfect for visitors of all ages.

If you’re searching for the best family-friendly venues in Los Altos, here are some of the top places for you to check out:

Linden Tree Books

Located in downtown Los Altos, Linden Tree Books is an independent bookseller dedicated to providing books and gifts for people of all ages. Their vast book inventory features a terrific selection of children’s titles and is complemented by a variety of educational merchandise, including puzzles, science and math games, art materials, book-related puppets and dolls, and more.

Linden Tree Books also hosts different in-store events throughout the year including craft activities, story time sessions, and author events. Get information on upcoming events at the store here.

Shoup Park

Tucked within a scenic residential neighborhood, Shoup Park is the perfect place if you’re looking to spend a relaxing day outdoors. Surrounded by soaring redwood trees, the 3.9-acre park has access to a slow-flowing creek and has different amenities including barbecue pits, picnic tables, a playground, turf areas, and public restrooms.

Shoup Park is also home of The Underground Teen Center, Garden House, and Patriot Corner Group Picnic Area, all of which are available for birthdays, family reunions, and other events.

Area 151

Area 151 boasts a dazzling variety of friendly games for children of all ages, ranging from simple but fun ball tossing games to modern arcade-style versions of popular smartphone videogames, and everything in between.

The arcade is dedicated to providing family-oriented fun – rather than focusing on traditional video arcade machines, they’ve selected games that promote teamwork and cooperation to earn tickets, which you can exchange for fun prizes.

Bumble

Bumble is an organic restaurant designed for families looking to enjoy a healthy meal made with fresh, locally sourced ingredients. For younger guests, the restaurant features an outdoor sandbox and a playroom for kids aged 1 to 10 years old.

In addition to serving delicious and healthy meals, Bumble also hosts special events like art shows, private dinner events, film showings, and playtime events at their playroom. Check out some of the events scheduled this month by heading to this page.

Hidden Villa

Encompassing over 1,600 acres of sprawling open space, Hidden Villa offers unique programs for all ages and is a fantastic destination for anyone looking for a hands-on experience on organic farming.

Nestled in the foothills of the majestic Santa Cruz mountains, this picturesque location boasts incredible amenities including an educational organic garden, pockets of shaded areas with picnic tables, kid-friendly hiking trails, accessible farm animals, and many more.

Hidden Valley’s year-round programs offer opportunities to learn more about the environment and experience all of the wonderful things the location has to offer. Take a look at a full list of their available programs here.

Discover more great family-friendly destinations in Los Altos! For Los Altos homes for sale, get in touch with David and Sunny at 650-489-6251.

Along the bay area of southern San Francisco lies Silicon Valley, Northern California’s high tech hub. Its location and collection of upscale neighborhoods, famous companies, trendy eateries, and historical landmarks make it one of San Francisco’s hippest places to be in. Check out five of the most exciting and dynamic neighborhoods in the area.

San Jose

San Jose is known as the capital of Silicon Valley. It is also the largest city in the bay area so you can take your time exploring the entire breadth of this location.

If you’re into the latest technology Silicon Valley has to offer, San Jose is home to several iconic tech landmarks. There’s the Tech Museum of Innovation, as well as the Adobe Headquarters which features an illuminated semaphore code at the top that invites people to solve it.

Dining options are also abundant, with a Michelin-starred restaurant tucked away in Little Portugal, one of San Jose’s more interesting neighborhoods.

Mountain View

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Mountain View got its name from its breathtaking views of the Santa Cruz Mountains. You can find notable companies headquartered here, such as Google, Microsoft, Mozilla, and Nokia.

Foodies can go downtown and find Castro Street, a diverse district full of fine shops and restaurants featuring cuisine from all around the world.

If you’re worried about staying connected, Google has your back, providing free Wi-Fi connectivity all over the city.

Palo Alto

Palo Alto is a lively, energetic suburb situated in the northwest end of Santa Clara County.

Although not a metropolis like San Jose, Palo Alto still has numerous trendy places to visit, like b8ta (a small shop for everything electronic), electric carmaker Tesla’s showroom, and a life-size statue of Nikola Tesla which is both a free Wi-Fi access point and a time capsule to be opened in 2043.

Palo Alto is also home to Stanford University and HP Garage, where Hewlett Packard was founded in 1939.

Santa Clara

Despite being small with a population of a little over 100,000, major companies such as Intel, NVIDIA, WebEx, and National Semiconductor all have their headquarters set up in Santa Clara.

If you’re into technology, popular spots here include the Intel museum and Hacker Dojo, a hangout for computer enthusiasts. It’s also the first location in California to have a Bitcoin ATM.

Nestled within Santa Clara is Santana Row, a premier shopping area with choice restaurants, hotels, and stores like Gucci, Oakley, and Ann Taylor Loft.

Sunnyvale

Although it is one of the most populous cities in the Bay Area, Sunnyvale is ranked as one of the safest cities in the US.

If you’re an art lover, you will definitely enjoy this city. There are more than 100 pieces of public art on display all over. There’s also the Open Painting Studio, an art installation open to all levels of ability. The said venue teaches multiple art forms such as watercolor and calligraphy.

If you’re interested in history and space exploration, Sunnyvale also houses the NASA Ames Exploration Center and Historical Museum.

You can also find Fry’s Electronics here, a hugely popular gadget store in Silicon Valley.

For anyone who wishes to move into Silicon Valley, our real estate team at David & Sunny can serve your every real estate need. Our collective experience as Realtors in the Silicon Valley area will be useful to clients going through this process. Get in touch with us at 650.489.6251 or via email at info@david&sunny.com.