Blog > Moving to San Mateo: What Homes Cost and What to Know (2026)
Moving to San Mateo? Here’s what homes actually sold for in the 12 months to October 27, 2026, how buyers competed for them, and the things that follow the city line: trains, electricity, transfer tax and the county. Every number comes from closed MLS sales or from the city pages already on our site, and most sections link to the full data.
The short answer
- Houses: the median sale was $2.22M ($1,309 per sq ft), and the middle half sold between $1.66M and $2.79M.
- Condos and townhomes: a median of $866K, from 298 sales.
- Competition: 75% of houses sold over asking (63% across Silicon Valley and the Peninsula).
- Trains: Caltrain.
- At the city line: San Mateo County; electricity from WestLight Energy, delivered by PG&E; transfer tax of $12,200 on a $2 million sale.
Start your search
- See homes for sale in San Mateo, live from the MLS.
- The San Mateo city guide has our neighborhood guides.
- Talk to a Property Nerd about the move, from the first tour to the closing.
What homes cost
Closed sales in the 12 months to October 27, 2026. Houses are the MLS property type “single family home”.
| Houses | Condos and townhomes | |
|---|---|---|
| Sales in 12 months | 506 | 298 |
| Median price | $2.22M | $866K |
| Middle half sold between | $1.66M–$2.79M | $585K–$1.25M |
| Median per sq ft | $1,309 | $772 |
| Median size | 1,728 sq ft | 1,216 sq ft |
| Median lot | 5,866 sq ft | — |
| Sold over asking | 75% | 28% |
63% of the year’s 804 sales were houses. Among the houses, 13% of listings said single-story, 8% mentioned an ADU or in-law unit and 10% a pool; those count listing descriptions, so they undercount.
More: San Mateo home types by the numbers, the San Mateo housing market since 2012, San Mateo house prices by bedrooms and the best month to sell in San Mateo.
Getting around
- Caltrain: stations at San Mateo, Hayward Park and Hillsdale. Home prices near each: San Mateo, Hayward Park and Hillsdale.
- Downtown: Downtown San Mateo.
- Colleges and hospitals: College of San Mateo.
- Commuting elsewhere? Relocation Lab sorts cities by distance from your employer, and homes near tech campuses maps 20 headquarters.
Parks and open space
Home prices near the parks in San Mateo: Central Park, San Mateo and Coyote Point. See all of them on homes near parks.
Bills and rules that follow the city
- County: San Mateo County, which sets the county transfer tax and collects property tax.
- Electricity: WestLight Energy, delivered by PG&E for most homes; some addresses differ. See electricity providers by city.
- Water: Cal Water (Bayshore District), the provider the city names; Foster City’s Estero district serves a part of the city; check by address. See water providers by city.
- Garbage, recycling and compost: Recology San Mateo County. See garbage service by city.
- Transfer tax: $12,200 on a $2 million sale (county plus any city tax), usually split by local custom and set by the contract. See San Mateo’s transfer tax and the San Mateo County transfer tax by city.
- Eichlers: 2 tracts on our Eichler index.
- Property tax: California’s base rate is 1% of the purchase price, plus voter-approved bonds and parcel taxes that vary by address; your first year can also bring a supplemental bill. See the supplemental bill and the property tax calculator.
- Hazard zones: look up any address on Flood & Fire Zones, and get an insurance quote early (home insurance for buyers).
- Renting it out later? Rent caps and tenant rules by city.
- School districts: district lines don’t follow city lines, so check the district’s own boundary lookup for any address.
Neighborhoods and nearby cities
- Neighborhoods: the San Mateo city guide, San Mateo neighborhoods compared and neighborhoods ranked by price per square foot.
- Weighing a nearby city? Belmont vs. San Mateo, San Carlos vs. San Mateo, San Mateo vs. Burlingame, San Mateo vs. Foster City and San Mateo vs. Redwood City.
- Any two cities side by side: the City Match-Up.
- Still choosing a city? Where to live in Silicon Valley sorts all 31 by budget, commute and home type.
How we counted
Closed sales reported to the MLS and read through the IDX feeds that power our home search, with repeat records removed (same MLS number and sale date). A sale is placed by the city in its MLS address, so a few homes in unincorporated pockets count under the nearby city. Medians follow the mix of homes, and blocks within a city can differ a lot. Past sales aren’t a forecast or the value of any one home.
Moving to San Mateo?
We’ll help you narrow the neighborhoods to the ones that fit your budget and commute, tour by video if you’re out of town, and set up a search that catches new listings the day they hit. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.