saratoga neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Fruitvale, Saratoga Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
Saratoga's civic spine: Fruitvale Avenue from the library and Heritage Orchard past City Hall and West Valley College, then south through one-acre-zoned streets to Saratoga-Los Gatos Road.
Fruitvale by the numbers
fruitvale by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Fruitvale: along Fruitvale Ave from the library to Saratoga-Los Gatos Rd (approximate). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in fruitvale · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Fruitvale
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Fruitvale from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
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Listings come from MLSListings and other MLSs through IDX and show their listing brokerage; confirm details with the listing agent. The map outline is the neighborhood boundary used by our listing search (Fruitvale: along Fruitvale Ave from the library to Saratoga-Los Gatos Rd (approximate)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Fruitvale came to be
Fruitvale Avenue is where Saratoga keeps its public buildings. The City's General Plan puts the Civic Center and Theater on the west side of Fruitvale, the Saratoga Library on Saratoga Avenue at the Fruitvale corner, and West Valley College at the northeast corner of Fruitvale and Allendale avenues. Between the library and City Hall is the Heritage Orchard, which the City made a park in 1984 and a Heritage Landmark in 1988 to keep a piece of the orchard era. Its plum, apricot and cherry trees are picked in City-run community harvests, and a nonprofit gleaning group has collected fruit there for food banks.
The college came in stages. West Valley College was founded in 1963 and started out in Campbell; it bought this land in 1966, broke ground on June 15, 1967, moved its first classes here in 1968 and finished the move in 1975. The Civic Center holds an older survivor: the circa-1896 Queen Anne known as the Warner Hutton House, a City landmark listed on the National Register, which was moved here from Sousa Lane in the Quito area.
South of the college the land stayed in big lots. The City's historic inventory lists the 1912 Mission Revival Odd Fellows Home on Fruitvale Avenue and a 1910 Craftsman bungalow on Saratoga-Los Gatos Road. County build years date the oldest houses on Valle Vista Drive, Via Colina, Oriole Road, El Camino Grande, Panorama Drive and Sunnyside Drive to the late 1940s and early 1950s. Burgundy Way and its wine-named courts (Chablis, Riesling, Zinfandel), Granite Way, Crisp Avenue and Pinnacle Court followed in 1972-77, then Gypsy Hill Road, Via de Marcos and Sobey Oaks Court in the 1990s.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Every residential parcel in this outline is zoned R-1-40,000, Saratoga's one-acre district, and the county numbers show it: a median lot of about 43,600 sq ft and a median home of about 4,100 sq ft. About two-thirds of single-family parcels list one floor, and about 115 homes have a build year of 1990 or later.
Fruitvale Avenue is the only through street. Short roads and cul-de-sacs branch east off it (San Marcos Road, Burgundy Way, Crisp Avenue, Valle Vista Drive) or off Chester Avenue and Sobey Road (Gypsy Hill Road, Sperry Lane, Spring Brook Lane), and Monte Vista Drive and Montewood Drive link the southern streets across to Quito Road. The homes on the west side of Sobey Road are inside this outline; the east side belongs to the Sobey guide.
Between the cul-de-sacs, the City's San Marcos Open Space keeps a strip along Sobey Creek with a loop trail of about 0.6 mile on the City's trail map. The southern streets rise into the first hills, which is where fire-hazard mapping begins (see the nerd notes).
streets in fruitvale
- Fruitvale Avenue
- Allendale Avenue
- San Marcos Road
- Burgundy Way
- Chablis Court
- Riesling Court
- Zinfandel Court
- Granite Way
- Granite Court
- Crisp Avenue
- Pinnacle Court
- Andrew Court
- Haun Court
- Via de Marcos
- Gypsy Hill Road
- Spring Brook Lane
- Sperry Lane
- El Camino Senda
- Encina Court
- Oriole Road
- Valle Vista Drive
- Via Colina
- Panorama Drive
- El Camino Grande
- Blue Gum Court
- Monte Vista Drive
- Montewood Drive
- Montewood Court
- Sunnyside Drive
- Sobey Oaks Court
- Montauk Drive
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Fruitvale
- landmark
Heritage Orchard
A City park since 1984 and Heritage Landmark since 1988 at Saratoga and Fruitvale avenues, with plum, apricot and cherry trees, a 2020 master plan, a loop path of about 0.6 mile (City trail map) and a circa-1870 barn that was moved here from a Marshall Lane ranch and rebuilt.
- landmark
Saratoga Library and Civic Center
The Saratoga Library (Santa Clara County Library District) at 13650 Saratoga Avenue, City Hall and the Civic Theater at 13777 Fruitvale Avenue, and the Joan Pisani Community Center at 19655 Allendale Avenue.
- landmark
West Valley College
A community college campus at Fruitvale and Allendale avenues, with the VTA transit center on campus.
- park
San Marcos Open Space
City open space along Sobey Creek between the San Marcos and Sobey Road streets, with a loop trail of about 0.6 mile on the City's trail map.
- shopping
Saratoga Village
Big Basin Way's shops and restaurants are about 1.3 miles west (straight-line); a Safeway at Pollard Road and More Avenue in Los Gatos is about 1.5 miles east (OpenStreetMap).
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Most of this area is in Saratoga Union School District (TK-8) and Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District; about 20 parcels on its east side near Chester Avenue and Sobey Road are in Campbell Union School District and Campbell Union High School District, according to the City of Saratoga's parcel data and Census district maps. Redwood Middle School, the middle school for all of Saratoga Union, is on Fruitvale Avenue inside this outline, Saratoga High School is about 1.3 miles west, and Campbell Union's Marshall Lane Elementary is about 0.8 mile east (straight-line). Saratoga Union assigns elementary schools by open enrollment rather than by address. Boundaries change, so check the exact address with each district.
Saratoga Union guide · Los Gatos-Saratoga high schools · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- The West Valley College transit center is the end of VTA Line 57 (daily, via Saratoga Avenue and Westgate to Old Ironsides station) and Lines 26, 37 and 51 (weekdays).
- Saratoga-Los Gatos Road is Highway 9; it widens to four lanes with a center divider at Fruitvale Avenue, and it has carried the Great Race run between downtown Saratoga and downtown Los Gatos since 1978.
- Highway 85's Saratoga Avenue interchange is about 1.5 miles north (straight-line).
- VTA light rail's Winchester station in Campbell is about 3.7 miles east; Lawrence and San Jose Diridon Caltrain stations are each about 8 miles away (straight-line).
- On foot: the Heritage Orchard trail and Heritage Loop walkway around the Civic Center, the Fruitvale connector paths, the San Marcos trail and the Monte Vista trail are all on the City's trail map.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Fruitvale: what we check
Buying here
- Check the fire maps. City parcel data put about 67 parcels here in the 2025 Fire Hazard Severity Zones (Moderate, High and Very High) and about 150 in the City's Wildland Urban Interface, mostly on Monte Vista Drive, Montewood Drive, Via Colina, Valle Vista Drive, El Camino Grande and Panorama Drive. Ask about defensible space, roof and vents, and insurance early, and read the City's page on building in a fire zone before planning work.
- Ground movement: about 170 parcels sit in City Ground Movement Potential zones other than the valley-floor category, such as shallow-landslide and creep ('Ps') and shallow-bedrock ('Sbr') areas around Crisp Avenue, Granite Way, Gypsy Hill Road, Sperry Lane and Sobey Road. City Code Article 16-65 sets review rules by zone.
- One-acre zoning (R-1-40,000) shapes additions, ADUs and SB 9 splits; check design review thresholds and whether a new lot would need fire-access road improvements, as the City's SB 9 page warns.
- On large older lots, confirm the sewer connection and lateral (the City lists West Valley Sanitation District for these parcels), the condition of long private driveways, and permits for pool houses and additions. Saratoga also regulates removal of protected trees.
- Confirm the school district for the exact parcel; the Saratoga Union / Campbell Union line runs near Chester Avenue and Sobey Road.
Selling here
- Acre lots differ in usable flat area, slope and access. Show buyers what the land holds (pool, sport court, garden, room for an ADU) with a site plan.
- If the parcel is in a fire hazard zone, have defensible-space inspection results, roof and vent upgrades and any insurance quotes ready.
- Gather permits and sewer-connection records for older houses and for additions.
- Be specific about location: distance to West Valley College, the Heritage Orchard and the Village, and whether the lot fronts Fruitvale Avenue or Highway 9.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Fruitvale questions, answered
Is West Valley College in Saratoga?
Yes. The 143-acre campus sits at the northeast corner of Fruitvale and Allendale avenues. The college moved here from Campbell in stages between 1968 and 1975.
What is the Heritage Orchard?
A City park since 1984 and Heritage Landmark since 1988 next to the Saratoga Library, planted with plum, apricot and cherry trees and harvested in City-run community events. A loop path of about 0.6 mile circles it.
How big are the lots along Fruitvale?
Residential parcels east of Fruitvale are zoned R-1-40,000. County data give a median lot of about one acre and a median home of about 4,100 sq ft.
Is any of Fruitvale in a fire hazard zone?
Parts of the southern streets are. About 67 parcels are in the 2025 Fire Hazard Severity Zones and about 150 in the City's Wildland Urban Interface, per City parcel data. Check the exact parcel.
Which school districts serve Fruitvale?
Mostly Saratoga Union (TK-8) and Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High; about 20 parcels near Chester Avenue and Sobey Road are in Campbell Union and Campbell Union High. Confirm with the districts.
talk to a property nerd
Thinking about Fruitvale? Let's run your numbers.
Eric, Janelle and the Boyenga Team have sold more than 2,520 Silicon Valley homes, $2.6+ billion in all, since 1996. Get a value, a plan, or a straight answer about a street.
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