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san carlos neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Beverly Terrace & the Highlands, San Carlos Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
The middle hills west of Alameda de las Pulgas, between Brittan and San Carlos avenues: Heather Elementary, 11-acre Highlands Park and about 1,000 single-family lots, all in the San Carlos School District.
Beverly Terrace & the Highlands by the numbers
beverly terrace & the highlands by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Beverly Terrace & the Highlands (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in beverly terrace & the highlands · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Beverly Terrace & the Highlands
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Beverly Terrace & the Highlands from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
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Listings come from MLSListings and other MLSs through IDX and show their listing brokerage; confirm details with the listing agent. The map outline is the neighborhood boundary used by our listing search (Beverly Terrace & the Highlands (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Beverly Terrace & the Highlands came to be
This is old Brittan land. The city's history page says the Brittan estate ran from Cordilleras Creek near Redwood City to Pulgas Creek and west to Cañada Road, which takes in this neighborhood, and Pulgas Creek still runs past its north-east corner near Carmelita Drive (county stream maps).
One building from that time is still here. A city centennial marker on Dale Avenue points to the octagonal 'Party House' built for the Brittan estate, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. It is a private home, and the city's marker notes that trees and shrubs largely hide it from the street.
The streets above came later, and they come in naming clusters: Sunset Drive, Wilshire Court, Fairbanks Avenue and Rogers Avenue near the Alameda; Aberdeen Drive, Glasgow Lane and Dundee Lane around Highlands Park; Portofino, Porto Marino, Torino, San Remo, Milano and Tramanto higher up. Listing records split the area into smaller labels such as Sunset Highlands, Heather Highlands, Beverly Hills, San Carlos Estates and San Carlos Manor. This guide groups them as Beverly Terrace & the Highlands, with the city's Highlands Park at the center.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Melendy Drive is the spine. It leaves the Alameda at about 180 feet and climbs past Highlands Park and Heather Elementary toward Crestview Drive, with Heather Drive, Hewitt Drive, Nanette Drive, Bauer Drive and Sunset Drive looping off it. Brittan Avenue forms the south edge, and Rockridge Road, Rogers Avenue, Fairbanks Avenue and Wilshire Court fill the slope between them. To the north, the San Carlos Manor streets (Manor Drive, Carmelita Drive, Madera Avenue, Dale Avenue, Pine Avenue, Vista del Grande) sit below San Carlos Avenue, and Coronado Avenue winds up from them toward Winding Way.
County parcel records count about 1,000 single-family lots with a median of about 8,200 square feet, and about 30 lots of half an acre or more. The multi-unit pocket is around Heather Elementary: about 60 condominium and 25 townhome parcels on Portofino Drive and Melendy Drive, and small apartment buildings on Torino Drive, Caprino Way and the 2600 block of Melendy Drive. Elevations run from about 105 feet where San Carlos Avenue meets the Alameda to about 390 feet at Highlands Park and about 580 feet on Portofino Court (USGS elevation points).
Much of the terrain is steep enough for the city's Hillside (H) overlay, which applies to lots averaging a 20% slope or more: a 35-foot overall height limit, a 20-foot cap on a downhill, street-facing wall with a 5-foot stepback above, at least 35% of the lot left in its natural state, and driveways averaging no more than 18%. State seismic hazard maps put about 400 of the area's lots in a landslide zone, so expect geotechnical reports on hillside additions.
streets in beverly terrace & the highlands
- Melendy Drive
- Brittan Avenue
- San Carlos Avenue
- Alameda de las Pulgas
- Sunset Drive
- Rockridge Road
- Rogers Avenue
- Fairbanks Avenue
- Wilshire Court
- Bauer Drive
- Bauer Court
- Heather Drive
- Hewitt Drive
- Nanette Drive
- Glasgow Lane
- Aberdeen Drive
- Dundee Lane
- Ashford Avenue
- Coronado Avenue
- Elston Court
- Coleman Court
- Manor Drive
- Carmelita Drive
- Madera Avenue
- Dale Avenue
- Phillip Lane
- Pine Avenue
- Vista del Grande
- Portofino Drive
- Portofino Court
- Estates Court
- Torino Drive
- Torino Lane
- Caprino Way
- Porto Marino Drive
- Porto Marino Way
- Porto Marino Lane
- Porto Rosa Way
- San Remo Way
- San Simeon Way
- San Miguel Way
- Milano Way
- Locarno Way
- Tramanto Drive
- Drake Court
- Somerset Court
- Roslyn Avenue
- Fay Avenue
- Windsor Drive
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Beverly Terrace & the Highlands
- park
Highlands Park
The city's 11.25-acre park at 2600 Melendy Drive, at the corner of Aberdeen Drive, with grass and turf soccer fields, baseball diamonds, five tennis courts, pickleball, walking paths and a playground.
- park
Heather Dog Exercise Area
A fenced, 1.5-acre off-leash area at 2700 Melendy Drive, next to Heather School, with a walking path and shade. The city converted the site to a dog area in 1991.
- park
Big Canyon Park
Sixteen acres of canyon with a 1.2-mile trail on the southwest edge, entered from the north side of the 3200 block of Brittan Avenue.
- park
Arguello Park
A 21-acre city park at 260 Wellington Drive, just north across San Carlos Avenue (about a third of a mile, straight-line, from the closest homes), with a big grass field, playground, picnic sites and hillside trails.
- shopping
Laurel Street, downtown San Carlos
Downtown's shopping street is about 0.9 mile (straight-line) from the middle of the area, mostly downhill on the way there.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
All of Beverly Terrace & the Highlands is in the San Carlos School District (Census school-district maps, checked at every residential parcel) and the Sequoia Union High School District. San Carlos schools split by grade: TK-3 elementary schools, two grade 4-5 upper elementary schools and two middle schools. Heather Elementary (TK-3) is inside the area at 2757 Melendy Drive; Brittan Acres Elementary (TK-3) is just across the Alameda at 2000 Belle Avenue, and Arundel Elementary (TK-3) is just north of San Carlos Avenue at 200 Arundel Road. The district says its boundaries don't match the city limits and that it can't guarantee a home school, so check the exact address with its School Locator.
San Carlos School District guide · Sequoia Union guide · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- Caltrain: San Carlos station (599 El Camino Real, Zone 2) is about 1.2 miles straight-line from the middle and about 0.7 mile from the closest homes near the Alameda.
- Buses: public maps show SamTrans stops on the Alameda at Brittan Avenue and on San Carlos Avenue at Devonshire Boulevard; SamTrans route 260 runs between the San Carlos Caltrain station and Carlmont Village in Belmont. Check current routes and stops with SamTrans.
- US 101: the Holly Street ramps are about 1.7 miles (straight-line) to the north-east.
- I-280: the Edgewood Road ramps are about 2.0 miles (straight-line) to the southwest, by way of Brittan Avenue or Melendy Drive and Crestview Drive.
- On foot: the Alameda is the flat edge; Melendy Drive climbs about 200 feet between the Alameda and Highlands Park (USGS elevation points).
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Beverly Terrace & the Highlands: what we check
Buying here
- Check whether the Hillside (H) overlay applies (average slope of 20% or more): it limits height, downhill wall height, grading, retaining walls and paved area, and it requires multi-level foundations unless design review approves another approach.
- Ask for geotechnical history. State seismic hazard maps put about 400 lots in a landslide zone (Portofino Drive, Madera Avenue, Coronado Avenue, Sunset Drive, Melendy Drive and others) and about 100 in a liquefaction zone along the Pulgas Creek side near Carmelita Drive, San Carlos Avenue and lower Brittan Avenue.
- Read the fire hazard disclosure. CAL FIRE's March 2025 map puts about 120 lots in its Moderate zone (mostly Portofino Drive, Melendy Drive, Somerset Court and Estates Court) and the rest in non-wildland; an older county map layer still shows about a third of the lots as Very High.
- For condominiums and townhomes on Portofino Drive and Melendy Drive, read the HOA documents: check current dues, reserves, insurance and any rental rules.
- Confirm the school assignment with the San Carlos School District's School Locator; the district can overflow students to another school when the home school is full.
Selling here
- Show slope, view and usable yard clearly, ideally with a site plan or survey.
- Have permits ready for decks, retaining walls and additions, since hillside rules cap deck and wall heights.
- Have the San Carlos School District lookup ready, and note Heather Elementary and Highlands Park on Melendy Drive.
- For condos and townhomes, gather the HOA budget, reserve study and rules before listing.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Beverly Terrace & the Highlands questions, answered
Is Highlands Park the same as the 'Highland Park' label in listings?
No. Highlands Park is the city's 11.25-acre park at 2600 Melendy Drive in this neighborhood. Listing records use 'Highland Park' for the flower-named condominium lanes off upper Crestview Drive and Club Drive, which are in the Brittan Heights & Crestview guide.
Which school district serves Beverly Terrace & the Highlands?
The San Carlos School District for elementary and middle school, and the Sequoia Union High School District. Heather Elementary (TK-3) is on Melendy Drive inside the area. Check the exact address, since assignments can change and full schools overflow.
When do the city's hillside rules apply?
They apply to lots with an average slope of 20% or more. The Hillside overlay limits buildings to 35 feet overall and 20 feet on a downhill, street-facing side, keeps at least 35% of the lot in its natural state, and caps driveways at an 18% average grade. The city may ask for a slope survey to decide.
Is any of this area unincorporated?
No. County records put every parcel in this outline in the City of San Carlos. Unincorporated Devonshire begins at the west edge, along Roslyn Avenue and Winding Way.
Are there historic buildings here?
The octagonal 'Party House' on Dale Avenue, built for the Brittan estate, has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1994. It is a private home with no public access.
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