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menlo park neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Linfield Oaks, Menlo Park Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
A mid-1950s tract of ranch houses and two-story apartments on San Francisquito Creek, with Menlo Park's civic center, library and Burgess Park on its west side and newer townhome enclaves mixed in.
Linfield Oaks by the numbers
linfield oaks by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Linfield Oaks: Ravenswood Ave to San Francisquito Creek, Alma St to Middlefield Rd (approximate). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in linfield oaks · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Linfield Oaks
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Linfield Oaks 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 (Linfield Oaks: Ravenswood Ave to San Francisquito Creek, Alma St to Middlefield Rd (approximate)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Linfield Oaks came to be
The land under Linfield Oaks' west side went to war first. In 1943 the Army built Dibble General Hospital on the former Hopkins estate, and at its peak it had 2,400 beds while Menlo Park counted about 3,258 residents. When the hospital closed in 1946, Stanford took over the site for student housing, and the city, led by former mayor Charles Burgess, bought 29 acres of the grounds and built its civic center there. Burgess Park was part of the hospital property; the city bought it in 1948, making it one of Menlo Park's first city-owned recreation areas.
The neighborhood itself is a 1950s tract. City parcel records file most of its single-family lots under the recorded "Linfield Oaks" and "Linfield Oaks Unit No. 2" maps, and 177 of the 181 R-1-U house parcels list a year built in the 1950s. The same maps include blocks on Waverley Street and Kent Place zoned for apartments, and their two-story buildings date from the same decade. The Almanac's neighborhood profile sums it up the same way: mostly built in the mid-1950s, with ranch-style homes and two-story apartments.
Later decades filled the edges. Park Lane Condominiums on Willow Road came in 1965, Burgess Park Condominiums and Menlo-Alma Condominiums in the late 1960s and 1970s, and Willow West in 1976-1986. In 1999 the Classics of Menlo Park tract added about 33 homes off Laurel Street on Barron, Hopkins and Thurlow streets, names shared with the old Hopkins estate's Thurlow Lodge. Morgan Lane followed in 2008 with about 55 homes, behind the former Sunset magazine headquarters, and Lane Woods on Paulson Circle added 32 more in 2008-2009.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Two streets organize the tract. Willow Road continues west of Middlefield Road as a neighborhood street, running southwest toward Alma Street, with Waverley Street, East Creek Drive and Claremont Way crossing it on the way to the creek. Linfield Drive runs from Middlefield southwest past Waverley and Laurel streets to Sherwood Way. Laurel and Alma streets carry the civic center traffic on the west side. Morgan Lane, Pearl Lane, Homewood Place and Morandi Lane form the 2008 enclave near Middlefield, and Paulson Circle loops through Lane Woods.
The original houses are single-story ranches, 167 of the 181 R-1-U house parcels in city records, on lots of about 8,000 to 9,400 square feet. Only four list a build year after the 1950s, so nearly all are the original 1950s houses. East Creek Drive's creekside lots are larger, about 11,000 to 17,000 square feet, under R-1-S zoning.
About three-quarters of the homes are apartments, condos and townhomes. The 1950s apartment blocks on Waverley Street and Kent Place sit on R-3-A zoning, with about 190 units in two-story buildings. The condo complexes on Willow Road, Burgess Drive and Alma Street date from 1965 to 1986, and the 1999 and 2008 tracts are townhomes and small-lot homes; Morgan Lane has a homeowners association, so ask about HOAs and common areas at the others. North of the homes, between Laurel Street, Ravenswood Avenue and Middlefield Road, are large campuses, led by SRI International's headquarters at 333 Ravenswood Avenue.
streets in linfield oaks
- Linfield Drive
- Sherwood Way
- Claremont Way
- East Creek Drive
- Waverley Street
- Kent Place
- Laurel Street
- Alma Street
- Burgess Drive
- Willow Road
- Middlefield Road
- Ravenswood Avenue
- Morgan Lane
- Pearl Lane
- Homewood Place
- Morandi Lane
- Paulson Circle
- Barron Street
- Hopkins Street
- Thurlow Street
- Manor Place
- Linfield Place
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Linfield Oaks
- park
Burgess Park
9.31 acres at 701 Laurel Street with baseball, softball and soccer fields, tennis and basketball courts, a duck pond, playground, picnic and barbecue areas, and lighted paths. Burgess Pool and the 15,000-square-foot Burgess Skate Park (580 Alma Street) are on the same campus.
- civic
Menlo Park Civic Center
City Hall, the council chambers and the police department at 701 Laurel Street, the Menlo Park Library on Alma Street, and the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center, Gymnasium (600 Alma Street) and Gymnastics Center.
- landmark
The Menlo Park gates
A reproduction of the 1854 "Menlo Park" gate that gave the city its name, dedicated near the library at Ravenswood Avenue and Alma Street on March 17, 2019.
- shopping
The Willows Market and downtown
The Willows Market at 60 Middlefield Road is just across Middlefield, and downtown's Santa Cruz Avenue is about 0.6 mile west across the tracks (straight line).
- creek
San Francisquito Creek
The southern edge and the county line with Palo Alto. The San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority, formed in 1999 after the 1998 flood, handles flood-protection projects for Menlo Park, Palo Alto and East Palo Alto.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Linfield Oaks addresses are served by the Menlo Park City School District (TK-8) and the Sequoia Union High School District. No public school sits inside the neighborhood; Menlo-Atherton High School is just north across Ravenswood Avenue at 555 Middlefield Road in Atherton. Attendance boundaries change, so check the exact address with each district (MPCSD has an online school locator) before you rely on it.
Menlo Park City Schools guide · Las Lomitas guide · Sequoia Union guide · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- Menlo Park Caltrain is about 0.6 mile northwest and the Palo Alto Transit Center about 0.6 to 0.7 mile southeast (straight line), roughly 15 minutes on foot to either.
- Middlefield Road between Ravenswood Avenue and Willow Road was restriped in 2023 to one lane each way plus a center turn lane, with buffered bike lanes; the city is studying safety changes from Linfield Drive to the Palo Alto line.
- US 101 at Willow Road is about 1.4 miles northeast and I-280 at Sand Hill Road about 3.5 miles southwest (straight line).
- The planned Middle Avenue undercrossing would link Alma Street near Burgess Park to El Camino Real under the Caltrain tracks; it is in design and environmental clearance.
- Ravenswood Avenue is one of three crossings (with Oak Grove and Glenwood avenues) slated for grade separation under the city's 2019 preferred plan; design and environmental work is underway.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Linfield Oaks: what we check
Buying here
- Most single-family houses are 1950s originals: check the foundation, electrical panel and wiring, heating, any original plumbing and the sewer lateral (West Bay Sanitary District).
- Near the creek, look up the FEMA flood map: city records put a handful of parcels in zones A and AE. Ask for an elevation certificate and get an insurance quote before you remove contingencies.
- For condos and the 1999 and 2008 townhome tracts, read the HOA budget, reserve study, CC&Rs and minutes, and confirm guest parking rules.
- Check the water provider: most addresses are on California Water Service, but city records show the Classics of Menlo Park tract and several campus and city parcels near Ravenswood Avenue and Burgess Drive on the Menlo Park Municipal Water District.
- Large changes are possible next door: follow city planning notices for the SRI campus and the city's pages on the Middlefield Road safety study, the Middle Avenue undercrossing and the Ravenswood grade separation. For your own lot, check R-1-U rules, heritage trees, ADU and SB 9 options.
Selling here
- Lead with walking distances: Burgess Park, the library and pool, both Caltrain stations and downtown.
- For a 1950s ranch, a pre-listing inspection and sewer lateral report let buyers price updates rather than guess.
- Creekside sellers should provide flood zone information and any elevation certificate up front.
- Townhome and condo sellers should have HOA documents, the reserve study and recent minutes ready on day one.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Linfield Oaks questions, answered
Where is Linfield Oaks?
East of the Caltrain tracks between Alma Street and Middlefield Road, from Ravenswood Avenue south to San Francisquito Creek. The civic center and Burgess Park are on its west side.
When was Linfield Oaks built?
Mostly in the mid-1950s. City records list 177 of the 181 single-family house parcels in the 1950s; condos followed from 1965 to 1986 and townhome tracts in 1999 and 2008-2009.
What is Morgan Lane?
A 2008 development of about 55 homes on Morgan Lane, Pearl Lane, Homewood Place, Morandi Lane and part of Linfield Drive, near Middlefield Road and behind the former Sunset magazine headquarters. It has a homeowners association.
Is Linfield Oaks in a flood zone?
Most parcels are in FEMA zone X in city records, but a handful near San Francisquito Creek are in zones A and AE. Check the current FEMA map for the exact address.
How close is Burgess Park?
It is part of the neighborhood: the 9.31-acre park, pool, gym, recreation center and skate park sit on the civic center campus along Alma and Laurel streets.
Which school districts serve Linfield Oaks?
Menlo Park City School District for TK-8 and Sequoia Union High School District for high school. Confirm the exact address with each district.
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