At the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Los Gatos is an elegant town on the edge of Silicon Valley that prides itself in a high quality of life with a small-town feel. Highway 17 brings local commuters to and from this 14-square-mile town, allowing for a balance of convenience and protection from commercial Silicon Valley.
Residents enjoy a sophisticated array of high-end local retail along suburban Los Gatos Boulevard. Jewelers, cigar lounges, four-star restaurants, and modern hotels and spas contrast with the abundance of 19th century Art Deco, Richardsonian Romanesque, and Mission Revival architectural styles and preserved historical sites within the Commercial Historical District. Proximity to larger shopping areas such as Vasona Station and Rinconada Hills provide a wider commercial selection. Lexington Reservoir, the Los Gatos Creek Trail and the Vasona County Park offer a great selection of hiking and boating, while the Kotani-En Japanese Garden shares two acres of sanctuary, pristine landscape, and 13th-century styled Japanese architecture. Los Gatos is far from lacking in local activities, such as the Annual Children's Holiday Parade, the Fiesta de Artes, the summer Music in the Park series, or the weekly farmer's market.
The median house price in Los Gatos is $832,640, with an average of 825 houses sold a year. Los Gatos has a population of 94,300 residents, each grossing a median household income of $94,300. One of Progent's Silicon Valley headquarters is located within Los Gatos, as well as Netflix's burgeoning online business which ranks just above the midpoint of Silicon Valley's top 150 businesses. Also impressive is Los Gatos High School's API score of 863, nearly 200 points about the average for California schools, and ranked 10th in the state. Daves Avenue Elementary has an API of 894, bringing remarkable education to Los Gatos' younger students. Writers John Steinbeck ("Grapes of Wrath," "Of Mice and Men") and Jack London ("Call of the Wild," "White Fang") have both lived in Los Gatos.