Blog > What Silicon Valley Buyers Pay More For: Home Features and Styles Ranked (2026)
What Silicon Valley Buyers Pay More For: Home Features and Styles Ranked (2026)
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Which home features and styles do Silicon Valley buyers actually pay more for? We sorted the 21,761 houses sold in 31 Silicon Valley cities in the two years to October 27, 2026 by what their listings said: the style, a pool, a view, an ADU, a remodel, solar and more. Then we compared each sale’s price per square foot with the typical house in its own city, so a feature isn’t credited for where it happens to be. Here is every one, ranked.
The short answer
- Biggest premiums: Ranch (style named) (+13%), Single-story (+9%) and Remodeled (fully or recently) (+5%).
- Biggest discounts: Three-car garage or bigger (−7%), Main-floor bedroom (two-story houses) (−8%) and Victorian or Edwardian (−12%).
- Close to even: Tudor, storybook or traditional, Pool, Waterfront or water views, RV or boat parking, ADU, in-law unit or guest house, Cul-de-sac, Corner lot and Solar.
- Across all 21,761 houses, 63% sold over asking.
Next steps
- What’s my home worth? A starting estimate, then a real one from a Property Nerd.
- Prep Lab: what to fix before you sell, and what to leave.
- Talk to a Property Nerd about what your home’s features are worth on your street.
Every feature and style, ranked
Price per square foot against the median for all houses in the same city, highest first; each linked name opens its own post with every city.
| # | Feature or style | $/sq ft vs. its city | Sales | Median price | Sold over asking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ranch (style named) | +13% | 632 | $2.35M | 70% |
| 2 | Single-story | +9% | 3,063 | $2.14M | 68% |
| 3 | Remodeled (fully or recently) | +5% | 2,768 | $1.98M | 73% |
| 4 | Eichler | +5% | 263 | $2.79M | 76% |
| 5 | Craftsman or bungalow | +4% | 472 | $2M | 61% |
| 6 | Air conditioning | +3% | 4,229 | $2M | 67% |
| 7 | Modern farmhouse or new construction | +3% | 812 | $2.85M | 56% |
| 8 | Mid-century modern | +2% | 818 | $2.52M | 74% |
| 9 | Modern or contemporary | +2% | 1,062 | $2.6M | 66% |
| 10 | EV charging | +2% | 1,600 | $2.38M | 67% |
| 11 | Basement | +2% | 348 | $1.85M | 59% |
| 12 | Tudor, storybook or traditional | +1% | 277 | $2.8M | 62% |
| 13 | Pool | +1% | 2,809 | $2.8M | 57% |
| 14 | Waterfront or water views | ±0% | 121 | $2.19M | 62% |
| 15 | RV or boat parking | ±0% | 514 | $1.73M | 59% |
| 16 | ADU, in-law unit or guest house | ±0% | 1,945 | $2.4M | 54% |
| 17 | Cul-de-sac | ±0% | 1,764 | $2.4M | 67% |
| 18 | Corner lot | ±0% | 1,051 | $1.86M | 66% |
| 19 | Solar | ±0% | 2,338 | $2.11M | 62% |
| 20 | Elevator | −2% | 73 | $6.8M | 34% |
| 21 | Home office | −3% | 3,280 | $2.15M | 65% |
| 22 | Gated entry | −3% | 483 | $2.8M | 52% |
| 23 | Wine cellar or wine room | −5% | 480 | $4.4M | 45% |
| 24 | Creekside | −6% | 138 | $2.64M | 46% |
| 25 | View | −6% | 1,805 | $2.38M | 57% |
| 26 | Spanish or Mediterranean | −7% | 314 | $3.45M | 54% |
| 27 | Fixer-upper | −7% | 695 | $1.48M | 62% |
| 28 | Three-car garage or bigger | −7% | 1,097 | $2.8M | 52% |
| 29 | Main-floor bedroom (two-story houses) | −8% | 1,909 | $2.54M | 60% |
| 30 | Victorian or Edwardian | −12% | 81 | $1.55M | 47% |
Reading it right
- Associated with, not caused by. A pool doesn’t add a fixed amount; houses with pools also tend to differ in lot size, age and neighborhood. The city comparison takes location out, not the rest.
- Price per square foot favors smaller houses. Single-story and ranch houses are usually smaller, which lifts their price per square foot; big view and estate houses go the other way.
- It’s what listings say. A house counts when its description names the feature or style; many never do.
- Your street decides. These are medians across 31 cities. On any one street, the numbers can be very different.
How we counted
Closed sales of houses (MLS property type “single family home”) between October 28, 2024 and October 27, 2026 in 31 cities of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, reported to the MLS and read through the IDX feeds that power our home search, with repeat records from different feeds removed (normalized address plus sale date). Price per square foot uses sales with 400 sq ft or more; each sale is compared with the median for all houses in its city (cities with at least 30 such sales). Features and styles with fewer than 50 sales are left out. Past sales aren’t a forecast or the value of any one home.
Go deeper
See what each home style sells for and the Home Styles field guide, or compare neighborhoods on the city-by-city data posts. Every home-type post is on one page: Silicon Valley home types by the numbers.
Selling a house with something special?
A Property Nerd will pull the sales closest to yours, with the same features on the same streets, and show you what buyers paid for them. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a strategy call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.