Dana’s note: We always ask the home sellers we work with to share information about the homes we list – amenities, upgrades, and their favorite things about living in their home and in their neighborhood. This comes to us in many forms, everything from details delivered via phone, handwritten notes and sometimes emailed lists. This information is always helpful – no one knows a home and neighborhood better than the people who live there. Usually we incorporate this information in marketing materials we create for each home. When we received this “insider” information from the homeowners of 1207 Camino Vallecito in the form of a beautiful letter written to their home’s potential buyers, though, we asked permission to share that letter directly with you here on the blog. It’s beautifully written – and jammed with homeowner insider info you’ll want to know!
April 2015
To potential buyers of our home,
We have LOVED living in this home! While it has only been a short period of 17 months of ownership, we are sad to leave Lafayette in order to relocate closer to our family in Phoenix, Arizona.
There are so many things to love about this home, this neighborhood and the broader Lafayette area in general but here are a few of our favorites:
Our Home – 1207 Camino Vallecito, Lafayette
What sold us on buying the home was the lot. We were amazed that less than 20 miles from a major urban city like San Francisco, we could find ourselves practically in the middle of the forest, surrounded by beautiful oaks and redwoods.
The home is situated at the end of the street, allowing our children to play outside without worry of traffic or danger. Between zip-lining in our front yard, riding go-karts down the long driveway, exploring the forest between neighbors’ homes, swinging on the play structure or jumping on the trampoline, it is truly paradise for our children.
We love the expansive decks and have enjoyed entertaining friends while sitting on the patio and barbecuing.
Improving the front and backyard was our first priority when we moved in. We replaced the failing retaining walls in the backyard, added cabling to match the decks and installed artificial grass in order to preserve our oak trees and have a low-maintenance, eco-friendly green yard. In the front yard, we wanted to keep it more natural-looking and focused on planting, installing new low voltage lights and mulching.
Inside the home, the large family room and adjoining dining room are where we spend much of our time given the breathtaking views outside and the openness of the rooms with high vaulted ceilings.
We have also appreciated the layout of the home, distinguishing between the master and guest suites downstairs and the children’s rooms upstairs.
Not to mention, the two washer/dryer hookups (one set downstairs, one set upstairs), two A/C units, two dishwashers and extensive refrigerated drawers in the kitchen have all been new luxuries for us, but now seem impossible to live without!
Our kids’ favorite is the playroom upstairs. It’s large, bright and perfect for playing inside on the rare rainy day. And for the parents, we’ve enjoyed trying to grow fruit and vegetables in our modest garden adjacent to the kitchen, although the squirrels seem to like the harvest better than our kids!
Our Neighborhood
Happy Valley, and in particular, Camino Vallecito is full of wonderful neighbors, with a mix of young families, families with older children and some empty nesters.
We were warmly greeted into the neighborhood with a barbecue hosted by several families. Since then, we have become friends – with our kids constantly running over the Patitucci’s across the street to play baseball or to play with their new puppy, or our oldest daughter running next door to play with her friend at the Flagg’s.
Importantly, we as neighbors watch out for each other and we are grateful to good neighbors who keep an eye out for us when we travel. We will miss the seasonal daffodils planted throughout Happy Valley each year and the birdhouses attached to the back of stop signs.
A key benefit to living in this home is rear access to Valley View Road which leads to Happy Valley Road and takes 7-10 minutes to walk to Happy Valley Elementary.
On a rainy day, it’s still only a 5-minute drive to get to the elementary school. And of course it’s fun to tell friends and family that we live just down the street from San Francisco Giants star, Buster Posey.
Our Lafayette
Having both been raised in a big city, moving to a city of just 25,000 people was perfect for us as we wanted a small town feel but near a big city. Of course many families come to Lafayette for the excellent public and private schools (which we love!), but we have also found so many great things to do right outside our backdoor such as:
- Jog to Lafayette Reservoir (1.5 miles away), or hike along the upper ridge trail
- Workout at Oakwood Athletic Club (1.7 miles away)
- Take the kids to Powells, a candy store even Willy Wonka would admire, or to Johnny’s Donuts (both less than 3 miles away) for a weekend treat
- Enjoy a relaxing patio dinner at any of our favorite Lafayette restaurants: Pizza Antica, Cooperage, Postino, or El Jaro (all less than a 3-mile drive)
- Road or mountain bike in the Lafayette and Orinda hills (our favorite is riding up Happy Valley Road for a lap around Briones Reservoir, 3 miles away)
- Shop or see a movie in Walnut Creek (10 miles away)
Lafayette is a special place. It’s full of so many great things to do, both for adults as well as for children.
Our kids have really enjoyed swim team and participating in Standing Ovations plays. On weekends, a day-trip into San Francisco, a day at the beach (our favorite is Capitola Beach near Santa Cruz, 1.5 hours away) or a long weekend in Tahoe (2.5 hours away) are some of our most cherished memories.
We hope you will enjoy this home as much as we have!
Best regards,
Megan and Tyler Jones
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Learn more about Lafayette the easy way – watch the Lafayette Lifestyle Video.