Space In The Valley Is Dear

Silicon Valley Swamped By Internet Millionaires

(CBS)  Gold rush fever is raging in Silicon Valley, the hottest real estate market in the country. Harold Dow reports on the steep real estate market, where plenty of new millionaires are pushing prices sky high.

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"I call them kids," says real estate agent Chris McDonnell. "They've got the baggy jeans and the baseball hats backward and T-shirts."

The typical couple, looking to buy a $4 million or $5 million home, drives off in a brand new Porsche, say veteran real estate agents like McDonnell and Pam Hammer of Coldwell Banker.

"Whoever's willing to pay the highest price gets it," Hammer explains.

Recently, one house on the market carried an asking price of a mere $16,750,000. In this market, a million dollars is, well, only a start.

The real estate agents show off a two-bedroom, one-bathroom home remodeled with only 1,100 square feet of space. The listing price: $995,000.

Not only does "cute" fetch more than the asking price, the competition is so intense a buyer might throw in a friendly bribe as well. Incentives might include frequent flyer miles or stock.

For months, Lynn Limbrick and her husband Kim have been renting while looking to buy their dream home in the town of Palo Alto. "It's ridiculous, and you, know, it makes you really say, 'Is it worth living here?'" Lynn Limbrick says.

And that's with a joint income of almost $300,000 a year from their new Internet jobs.

"You start off trying to be optimistic every single week," Lynn Limbrick says.

For instance, the couple pulls up at one place with "curbside appeal" only to find people swarming all over it.

"It's a crap shoot," says Kim Limbrick, when asked to describe the process.

"It's just long and tedious and pretty exhausting and disappointing," Lynn Limbrick chimes in.

They learn about all the advertising ploys - such as bedrooms called generous but really small; cozy can be a euphemism for too small to get a decent-size table in.

And once Lynn and Kim Limbrick do find a house that seems too good to be true, they find more than a dozen brokers have already left their calling cards.

They know they need a battle plan for the bidding war that lies ahead.

One strategy: bonding with the neighbors to let them know that they're the nice young couple who want the house nearby.

"Hi, there," Lynn Limbrick tries. "We just thought we'd let you know; we're looking at the house across the street."

But that house, it turns out, is beyond their reach. It sells for $1.1 million in less than a week.

"I'm tired of looking; I'm just to the point where I say forget it," says Lynn Limbrick. "It's just not worth the trouble."

But Brad and Kathy Mills have found their dream home.

"Four bedrooms, three baths, three-car garage. We paid with all the upgrades," Brad Mills details.

And it only cost $143,000. Buthere's a huge catch: He lives roughly 100 miles from where he works.

Brad Mills is a police officer in the Silicon Valley town of Atherton.

"I love being a cop," he says. "I've got my seniority," he adds. "I've got security there."

Brad Mills works a 12-hour shift three to four days a week. "I spend half my week living away from home," he explains.

And he stays over at his parents' home near Atherton. "This is the room that I grew up in before I moved out on my own," Brad Mills tells a visitor.

What's the hardest part for him? "Missing the time with my daughter," he says.

Living so far away from home is one sacrifice Kim and Lynn Limbrick won't have to make.

After practically losing hope, they've found a home.

The house they found cost close to $700,000 but it needs to be completely reworked, which could run about $100,000 to $200,000.

It's definitely not a dream house, but Kim and Lynn Limbrick figure that in this gold rush, it's worth staking a claim.

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