Silicon Valley mansions linger on market in real estate slowdown

San Francisco

A CUSTOM-BUILT home in the heart of California's Silicon Valley had its price cut by US$500,000 last week after sitting on the market since the end of March - a move that would've been almost unfathomable a year ago and a signal that frenzied demand has peaked.

The six-bedroom, five-bath house in Palo Alto - located blocks from Stanford University and the homes of Google co-founder Larry Page and Steve Jobs's widow, Laurene Powell Jobs - is now listed for US$7.5 million. It joins a growing inventory of high-end homes in the area that are taking longer to sell.

"We've recently noticed a slowdown," Jack Woodson, who works at Alain Pinel Realtors in nearby Menlo Park, sa…