sell · monte sereno
Selling a home in Monte Sereno
Half of Monte Sereno’s 104 sales since January 2024 closed over asking and 40% under, and the median sale over the last 12 months was $4.47M (40 sales). Here’s what the numbers say, what’s different about selling here, and the homes at $3M or more we’ve listed nearest to Monte Sereno.
monte sereno by the numbers
What the Monte Sereno market says right now
Monte Sereno closed 40 sales in the last 12 months, all of them recorded as single-family homes, at a median of $4.47M, or $1,482 per square foot (Silicon Valley: $992). Since January 2024, half of its 104 sales closed over asking and 40% under. It’s a small market, so each figure here shows its count, and we read two years of sales by area where one year is too thin.
- median sale price$4.47Mlast 12 months, 40 sales; Silicon Valley $1.65M
- over asking50%of 104 sales since January 2024; median overbid $314K
- under asking40%of the same 104 sales; median discount $249K
- best closing monthsMarch–July44% to 53% over asking (March highest, 20 of 38 closings); November lowest, 30% of 47; 2012–2025 sales pooled
Source: closed MLS sales, Boyenga Team analysis, October 2026. Recent 12 months = October 2025 to September 2026; over and under asking = January 2024 to September 2026; best month = all 2012–2025 sales pooled by closing month, because every month has too few sales to average year by year. See Monte Sereno on our City Scorecard and Best month to sell.
what’s different here
What sellers in Monte Sereno should plan for
What we’d plan for on a Monte Sereno listing.
Half over asking, 40% under
measured: since January 2024
Since January 2024, 52 of Monte Sereno’s 104 sales (50%) closed over the final list price and 42 (40%) closed under it (Silicon Valley: 60% over). The median overbid was $314K and the median discount $249K. The area matters: in the 24 months to October 27, 2026, the typical sale in our Daves Avenue guide closed 4.4% over its list price, with 67% of its 18 sales over asking, while in Twin Creeks it closed 1.3% under, with 42% of 26 sales over. So we price from the closest sales in your part of the city.
Houses at the top of the market
measured: two years
In the two years to October 27, 2026, our Monte Sereno city guide counts 71 house sales inside its outline of the city, at a median of $4.62M: 32 (45%) closed at $5 million or more, 7 (10%) at $7.5 million or more, and 5 (7%) under $3 million, none under $2.5 million. Among our four area guides, Twin Creeks had the highest median, $5.63M, with 17 of its 26 house sales (65%) at $5 million or more. All 40 Monte Sereno sales in the last 12 months were recorded in the MLS as single-family homes, two of them in Montalvo Oaks, which our city guide describes as a townhome development. Inside the guide’s outline of the city, the median house price per square foot went from $864 (98 sales) in the two years to October 27, 2016 to $1,537 (71 sales) in the two years to October 27, 2026, up 78% (prices as recorded, not adjusted for inflation, and different houses in each period).
Big lots with published limits
city rules and county records
Zoning minimums are 8,000 sq ft (R-1-8), half an acre (R-1-20) and one acre (R-1-44), and about 74 percent of the city is planned for one home per acre. In R-1-20 the main house tops out at 4,950 sq ft for one story or 4,500 sq ft for two, and in R-1-44 at 6,600 and 6,000, garage included and slightly more on oversize lots; on lots that slope 10 percent or more, a slope-density formula raises the required lot size and lowers the allowed house size. By county assessor records, the median Monte Sereno house was built in 1971 and has 3,044 square feet on 0.5 acres, and 19% of the 1,261 houses were built in 2000 or later. If your lot could support a bigger house, an ADU or an SB 9 split, we show buyers the numbers: zone, net lot area, slope and the allowed floor area.
Fire zones on the hillside
measured: 1,261 houses
Counted by the highest zone that touches any part of the parcel, 49 of Monte Sereno’s 1,261 houses (4%) are in a CAL FIRE Very High fire hazard severity zone, 70 (6%) in a High zone and 61 (5%) in a Moderate one; 1,081 (86%) are outside the mapped zones. Most of the High and Very High houses are in El Sereno Hillside (48 Very High and 55 High of its 233), and our Daves Avenue, Rose Avenue & Andrews Street and Twin Creeks guides have none in any zone. The city reports 16 percent of its area in a High or Very High zone on the State Fire Marshal’s February 2025 maps. Depending on the zone and the kind of area, a zone can bring stricter building standards for new construction and additions, defensible-space rules and a line on the seller’s natural hazard disclosure, so we gather your defensible-space work, roof and vent upgrades and any hazardous-tree removals for buyers.
Its own city, its own records
city records and state maps
Monte Sereno isn’t part of Los Gatos: it’s a separate city, incorporated on May 14, 1957, with its own council and planning and building departments, though it shares the 95030 ZIP code and police service with Los Gatos. Buyers here read the permit file closely, so we pull your permit history and final inspections from the city’s building department, especially for additions, basements, pools and ADUs. Many streets are single-lane or private; for a private road we have the maintenance agreement ready, with a survey if boundaries are unclear, and sewer lateral or septic records. By parcel center, 111 of the 1,113 houses in our four Monte Sereno area guides (10%) are in a state earthquake-induced landslide zone, most in Twin Creeks (52) and El Sereno Hillside (41). Sellers must disclose when a home is in one, and buyers of hillside parcels will want a geotechnical review.
Timing and transfer tax
pooled months, county tax
Monte Sereno has too few sales in every month to average year by year, so we pool all 2012–2025 sales by closing month: March closings sold over asking most often (20 of 38, or 53%), April through July ran 44% to 47%, and November closings least (14 of 47, or 30%). Each month rests on 30 to 69 closings, so these numbers swing more. Monte Sereno adds no city transfer tax to the Santa Clara County tax of $1.10 per $1,000, so a $4 million sale carries $4,400. By local custom in Santa Clara County the seller pays the county tax, and usually the escrow fee and the owner’s title policy too. All of it is negotiable, and the purchase contract decides.
our sales
Homes we’ve listed and sold near Monte Sereno
The MLS doesn’t show a Monte Sereno sale with our name on it yet. Here are the homes at $3M or more we’ve listed and sold closest to Monte Sereno, in neighboring Los Gatos and Saratoga. They aren’t Monte Sereno comparables; the numbers above show how Monte Sereno homes have sold.
sold Dec 2020 · los gatos
$3.50M
60 Mariposa Avenue · San Benito & Mariposa
4 bd · 2.5 ba · 4,073 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Oct 2021 · los gatos
$4.65M
16414 Englewood Avenue · Shannon & Kennedy Road hills
4 bd · 3 ba · 3,060 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Oct 2016 · saratoga
$3.60M
19781 Wild Oak Way · Montalvo & Horseshoe
4 bd · 3 ba · 4,294 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team
sold May 2025 · saratoga
$4.70M
20932 Sarahills Dr · Saratoga Foothills
4 bd · 3 ba · 3,883 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Oct 2024 · los gatos
$5.00M
5 bd · 4.5 ba · 5,922 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold May 2025 · los gatos
$4.63M
14205 Shannon Rd · Blossom Hill
5 bd · 4.5 ba · 4,588 sq ft
Listed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
our plan
How we’d sell your Monte Sereno home
The same Property Nerd plan we run on every listing, tuned to Monte Sereno.
Price against the right sales
We start with the closest recent sales in your neighborhood and of your kind of house, then read the competition that week. In Monte Sereno that means pricing to your part of the city: since January 2024, half of sales closed over asking and 40% under.
Prepare what buyers notice
Paint, light, landscaping and staging, budgeted in the Prep Lab, with Compass Concierge to front eligible costs. With a median lot of half an acre, the plan covers the grounds and what the lot allows, as well as the house.
Disclose early
Inspections and disclosures ready before launch, so buyers make offers on facts. In Monte Sereno that includes the city’s permit file and final inspections, and the fire and landslide zones for the address.
Launch on purpose
A private or Coming Soon start if it fits, then the full launch; the Launch Lab shows the plan. Pooled over 2012–2025, March through July closings sold over asking most often and November least, so we set the date around your timing.
Negotiate and close
We compare offers on price, terms and certainty, then run escrow to closing.
The Monte Sereno data series
our own analysis
More from the series
by price and place
Seller tools
plan your numbers
Looking for an agent rather than a plan? Meet Eric & Janelle Boyenga · Monte Sereno city guide
questions
Questions Monte Sereno sellers ask us
How often do Monte Sereno homes sell over asking?
From January 2024 to September 2026, 50% of 104 Monte Sereno sales closed above the final list price, with a median overbid of $314K, and 40% closed below it, with a median discount of $249K. In the $3M–5M band, 50% of 50 sales closed over asking; in the $5M+ band, 51% of 45. Across Silicon Valley, 60% closed over asking.
What do Monte Sereno homes sell for?
In the last 12 months the median Monte Sereno sale was $4.47M, and all 40 sales were recorded as single-family homes; the middle half sold between $3.98M and $5.74M. The median price per square foot was $1,482 (Silicon Valley: $992). In the two years to October 27, 2026, 32 of the 71 house sales our Monte Sereno city guide counts (45%) closed at $5 million or more.
Is Monte Sereno part of Los Gatos?
No. It’s a separate city, incorporated on May 14, 1957, with its own council and planning and building departments. It shares the 95030 ZIP code and police service with Los Gatos. For a sale, the permit history and final inspections come from Monte Sereno’s building department, so we pull that file before launch.
When is the best time to sell in Monte Sereno?
Monte Sereno has too few sales in every month to average year by year, so we pool all 2012–2025 sales by closing month. Pooled that way, March closings sold over asking most often (53% of 38), April through July ran 44% to 47%, and November closings sold over least often (30% of 47). Pooled numbers swing more than year-by-year averages, so the calendar is one input next to condition, price and what else is for sale.
Is my Monte Sereno house in a fire hazard zone?
Counted by the highest zone touching any part of the parcel, 49 of the city’s 1,261 houses (4%) are in a CAL FIRE Very High fire hazard severity zone, 70 (6%) in a High zone and 61 (5%) in a Moderate one; the other 1,081 (86%) are outside the mapped zones. Most of the High and Very High houses are in El Sereno Hillside. Depending on the zone and the kind of area, a zone can bring stricter building standards, defensible-space rules and a line on the seller’s natural hazard disclosure. We check your parcel before you list.
Does Monte Sereno charge a transfer tax?
No city transfer tax. The Santa Clara County tax is $1.10 per $1,000 of the sale price, so a $4 million sale carries $4,400. By local custom in Santa Clara County the seller pays the county tax, the escrow fee and the owner’s title policy. All of it is negotiable, and the purchase contract decides.
What do you charge to sell a Monte Sereno home?
Commissions are negotiable. We offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.
talk to a property nerd
Thinking about selling in Monte Sereno?
We’ll pull the closest sales to your house, walk through prep and timing, and tell you what we’d do. No pressure and no obligation.
eric boyenga dre 01254725 · janelle boyenga dre 01254724 · compass · equal housing opportunity
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Eric & Janelle Boyenga
Realtors DRE01254724 / 01254725
Realtors DRE01254724 / 01254725