The city of Palo Alto, which means “tall tree” in Spanish, is located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County. Palo Alto got its name after a coast redwood tree called El Palo Alto. Palo Alto was first established by a politician named Leland Stanford Sr. when he founded Stanford University in memory of the death of his son, Leland Stanford Jr.

As many of you may know, Stanford is one of the world’s most prestigious institutions. Stanford faculty and alumni have founded many well-known companies including Google, Hewlett-Packard, Nike, Sun Microsystems and Yahoo! Stanford is not only known for their excellent academic research and programs but also for their outstanding sports.

Aside from this superb university, high schools around Palo Alto such as Palo Alto High School is ranked 41st within the state of California and a national rank of 228. Many stars have also graduated from Palo Alto High School including the actor James Franco, the former football coach of the 49ers Jim Harbaugh, and the NBA basketball player who plays for the LA Lakers Jeremy Lin.

Thanks to the wonderful schools within this city, residents from Palo Alto are among the most educated in the country. But not to mention, Palo Alto is also one of the most expensive cities in the United States.

Median Sales Price in Palo Alto

Palo Alto market trends indicate an increase of $200,000 (9%) in median home sales over the past year. The average price per square foot for this same period rose to $1,519, up from $1,405.

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