Blog > Santa Clara Neighborhoods by Their Houses: Age, Lots, Zoning and Flood Zones
Santa Clara Neighborhoods by Their Houses: Age, Lots, Zoning and Flood Zones
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The City of Santa Clara’s zoning map shows which parcels are zoned for single-family houses, and the county assessor’s records give the year each house was built. We took the 16,193 parcels zoned single-family (R1), measured each lot from its outline, matched it to the county’s year built, placed it in our neighborhood guide outlines and checked its center against FEMA’s flood map. Santa Clara’s public records don’t list house size or stories, so this post is about age, lots, zoning and flood zones. The figures come from public records as of October 2026. There are no addresses or owner details here.
The short answer
- Santa Clara’s median single-family house was built in 1956, on a 6,390 sq ft lot. 73% were built before 1960.
- Oldest medians: Old Quad (1947) and Monastery Gardens (1950). Newest: Agnew Village (1977) and Montague Park (1965).
- Very little has been rebuilt: only 1% of houses citywide carry a year built of 2000 or later; the highest shares are in South of Forest (7%) and Central Park West (3%).
- Zoning: 15,743 of the lots are zoned R1-6L and 436 R1-8L, the city’s two main single-family districts.
- Flood zones: 694 single-family lots (4%) are in FEMA high-risk zones (581 in AO and 113 in AH). Among our guides, El Camino Homes has the most (275); 13 are in parts of the city our guides don’t cover.
Next steps in Santa Clara
- What’s my Santa Clara home worth? Request an estimate, and ask us for the recent sales on your street.
- See Santa Clara homes for sale, then use Save Search to get new listings by email.
- Book a strategy call with a Property Nerd.
Neighborhood by neighborhood
Oldest first, by the median year built. Some guides overlap (Bowers/Monroe and Briarwood share about 1,040 lots, and Monastery Gardens sits inside the Old Quad), so a lot can count in two rows. Each name opens its guide.
| Neighborhood | Single-family lots | Median year built | Built before 1960 | Built 2000 or later | Median lot | In FEMA high-risk zones |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Old Quad | 2,261 | 1947 | 89% | 2% | 6,370 sq ft | — |
| Monastery Gardens | 194 | 1950 | 96% | 1% | 6,240 sq ft | — |
| El Camino Homes | 535 | 1951 | 82% | 1% | 6,370 sq ft | 275 |
| South of Forest | 307 | 1952 | 90% | 7% | 9,670 sq ft | — |
| Sunny Brae | 597 | 1953 | 86% | under 1% | 6,400 sq ft | 1 |
| Central Park West | 860 | 1954 | 70% | 3% | 7,570 sq ft | — |
| Westwood | 834 | 1954 | 98% | 1% | 6,260 sq ft | — |
| Henry Schmidt Park | 771 | 1955 | 98% | 1% | 5,910 sq ft | — |
| Junipero Gardens | 634 | 1955 | 91% | 1% | 6,120 sq ft | 83 |
| Mariposa Gardens | 568 | 1955 | 77% | 1% | 5,770 sq ft | 86 |
| Briarwood | 2,284 | 1956 | 94% | under 1% | 5,960 sq ft | — |
| Bowers/Monroe | 2,646 | 1957 | 79% | 1% | 5,950 sq ft | 236 |
| Maywood | 1,261 | 1957 | 78% | 2% | 6,820 sq ft | — |
| Westwood Oaks | 530 | 1958 | 96% | 2% | 6,740 sq ft | — |
| Fairway Glen | 430 | 1960 | 0% | 1% | 6,390 sq ft | — |
| Killarney Farms | 1,066 | 1960 | 41% | under 1% | 6,420 sq ft | — |
| Forest Park | 367 | 1961 | 3% | 1% | 8,370 sq ft | — |
| Montague Park | 708 | 1965 | under 1% | under 1% | 6,610 sq ft | — |
| Agnew Village | 351 | 1977 | 46% | 2% | 7,480 sq ft | — |
| All of Santa Clara | 16,193 | 1956 | 73% | 1% | 6,390 sq ft | 694 |
The “All of Santa Clara” row also counts the 314 single-family lots outside the neighborhoods above.
What stands out
- Old Quad has the oldest houses: median built 1947, with 89% built before 1960.
- Among our guides, flood-zone lots concentrate in El Camino Homes: 275 of its 535 lots (275 in AO), mostly shallow-flooding zone AO.
- Lot sizes are fairly even. Neighborhood median lots run from 5,770 sq ft in Mariposa Gardens to 9,670 sq ft in South of Forest.
What the flood zones mean
- Zone A: a 1%-a-year chance of flooding, where FEMA hasn’t set a base flood elevation.
- Zone AE: the same 1%-a-year risk, with a base flood elevation set.
- Zone AH: shallow ponding, usually 1 to 3 feet deep, with the same 1%-a-year risk and a base flood elevation.
- Zone AO: shallow flooding, usually sheet flow, 1 to 3 feet deep, with the same 1%-a-year risk; FEMA gives a flood depth instead of an elevation.
- Zone X: moderate to minimal risk, outside the 1%-a-year floodplain.
- Insurance: lenders require flood insurance on homes in the A zones when the mortgage is federally backed. In zone X it’s optional.
Reading it right
- Sources. Single-family lots and zoning from the City of Santa Clara’s public zoning layer (parcels zoned R1, 1,500 square feet or more); year built from the county assessor’s public parcel layer, matched to each lot by location (16,147 of 16,193 lots have one); flood zones from FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer at the center of each lot.
- Zoning isn’t use. A few R1 lots may hold a second unit or something other than a house, and single-family houses in other districts aren’t counted. That’s why our Rivermark guide (planned-development zoning) and Lawrence Station (its own area plan) are left out of the table.
- “Year built” is the record’s year. A house torn down and rebuilt shows the rebuild year; an older house with an addition keeps its original year.
- The flood zone covers the land, not the house. A house can sit above the flood level even in a high-risk zone; an elevation certificate settles it. FEMA revises its maps, so check the current map for the exact address.
- A median isn’t a verdict. It describes the houses, not which neighborhood is right for you.
Go deeper
Santa Clara Housing Market by the Numbers covers prices and bidding, The Most Expensive Streets in Santa Clara goes street by street, and our Santa Clara sales shows the homes we’ve sold there. Flood & Fire Zones by Neighborhood compares every guide we write. The Santa Clara city guide links every neighborhood guide.
Thinking about a rebuild, an addition or a flood-zone house?
A Property Nerd can pull the zoning, the lot, the flood zone and the recent sales on your street before you plan. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a strategy call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.