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los altos hills neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Purissima Hills, Los Altos Hills Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
One-acre-plus hill lots on the southwest side of I-280, from Elena Road up Natoma and Black Mountain roads to Taaffe and Altamont roads. Nearly all of it is in Palo Alto Unified.
Purissima Hills by the numbers
purissima hills by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Purissima Hills (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in purissima hills · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Purissima Hills
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Purissima Hills 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 (Purissima Hills (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Purissima Hills came to be
The name goes back to Rancho La Purísima Concepción, the 4,436-acre grant that became a large part of today's town. The Town's history page says it was granted in 1840 and sold in 1844. In 1855 a Santa Clara Valley rancher bought 3,000 acres of it, and in 1863 he gave 2,800 acres to his daughter as a wedding gift. That land became the Taaffe Ranch, which the next generation split into four sections. A 1904 map in the Town's 2016 history anthology shows the split. The section along Purissima Road, just across today's freeway, was lost to foreclosure in 1897 and became the first part of the town to be subdivided.
Into the 1950s these slopes were orchard and grazing land. The anthology's photo of La Paloma Road, looking toward Purissima Road, shows apricot orchards over the rolling hills. Purissima Hills Water District was formed in 1955, and the Town incorporated on January 27, 1956. In the Town's early years the Los Altos School District bought land near Elena Road for Purissima Hills School. The Town's timeline lists the school closing in the mid-1970s, when Bullis School on Fremont Road was renamed Bullis-Purissima.
Street names carry the ranch era. The anthology lists Taaffe Road and Elena Road among the streets named for the ranch family. Black Mountain Road was Yuba Avenue and part of Elena Avenue until the Town Council renamed it in 1962. Carrington Circle is named for a family that bought 6.5 acres here in 1920; the street-name history says the tract was subdivided later.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Elena Road is the spine. It leaves Purissima Road at Deer Creek Lane, passes under I-280, and runs southeast just below the freeway to Taaffe Road and Robleda Road. Natoma Road climbs from Elena Road to Altamont Road, and Black Mountain Road links Elena Road to Altamont Road at Westwind Barn. Off Elena Road are Avila Court, Wright Way, Delson Court, Byrd Lane, Gigli Court, Adonna Court, Dawn Lane, Estralita Place, La Barranca Road, Cumbra Vista Court, Foothill Lane and Cowden Place. Off Natoma and Black Mountain roads are Simon Lane, Yuba Lane, Natoma Oaks Lane, Edgerton Road, Via Corita, Melody Lane, Vogue Court, Windsor Court, Ursula Lane, Sunrise Farm Road, Tripoli Court, Cortez Lane, Lucero Lane, La Vida Real, Palomino Place and Carrington Circle. Almaden Court, Vista del Valle Court and Elmberg Ridge sit near Taaffe Road.
Many of these lanes are private. The Town's March 2026 street list marks Avila Court, Carrington Circle, Cortez Lane, Cowden Place, Cumbra Vista Court, Elmberg Ridge, Estralita Place, Lucero Lane, Simon Lane and Sunrise Farm Road as private, plus part of Wright Way. Black Mountain Road is public from Altamont Road to Natoma Road and private past Natoma. Elena, Natoma and Taaffe roads are public.
Lots are large. County parcel polygons put the median addressed parcel at about 1.1 acres, in line with the Town's one-acre minimum, which survived a 1988 ballot measure to abolish it. House size is set lot by lot. The Town's October 2025 worksheet turns net acreage and average slope into a lot unit factor, then allows 6,000 sq ft of floor area per unit on lots of 10% slope or less, sliding to 5,000 sq ft per unit at 30% slope and steeper. Expect a mix of older one-story ranch houses and larger two-story rebuilds. Our check of the state's 2025 fire hazard map found these parcels in Moderate or non-wildland zones, not High or Very High.
streets in purissima hills
- Elena Road
- Natoma Road
- Black Mountain Road
- Taaffe Road
- Avila Court
- Wright Way
- Delson Court
- Byrd Lane
- Gigli Court
- Adonna Court
- Dawn Lane
- Estralita Place
- La Barranca Road
- Cumbra Vista Court
- Foothill Lane
- Cowden Place
- Simon Lane
- Yuba Lane
- Natoma Oaks Lane
- Edgerton Road
- Via Corita
- Melody Lane
- Vogue Court
- Windsor Court
- Ursula Lane
- Sunrise Farm Road
- Tripoli Court
- Cortez Lane
- Lucero Lane
- La Vida Real
- Palomino Place
- Carrington Circle
- Almaden Court
- Vista del Valle Court
- Elmberg Ridge
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Purissima Hills
- park
Purissima Park
Just across I-280 through the Elena Road underpass, at 27500 Purissima Road. The Town lists a dog park and the Town Riding Ring there. Its 2007 General Plan puts the Little League fields and riding arena at about 10 acres, and the renovated park reopened in 2009. It is covered in our Town Hall & Fremont Road guide.
- landmark
Westwind Barn and Byrne Preserve
At the top of Black Mountain Road, across Altamont Road, are the Town-owned Westwind Community Barn and the 88-acre Byrne Preserve, covered in our Altamont, Taaffe & Moody guide.
- trail
Town pathways
The Town's pathway plan aims to put a path next to or across the street from every home. Trail maps show off-road paths here such as the Natoma Oaks Pathway, Byrd Path and the Deer Creek Trail. Off-road paths often cross private land on easements, so stay on the path.
- shopping
Downtown Los Altos
The Town's history describes Los Altos Hills as a residential-only town, so there are no stores here. Downtown Los Altos is about 2 miles straight-line to the east.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Census school-district maps put about 90% of the addressed parcels here in Palo Alto Unified School District. The Taaffe Road side, including Taaffe Road, Vista del Valle Court and a few lots on Elena and Robleda roads, is in Los Altos School District for elementary and middle school and Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District for high school. No public school sits inside the area. Attendance boundaries change, so check the exact address with the district.
Palo Alto Unified guide · Los Altos School District guide · Mountain View-Los Altos high schools · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- I-280 has no interchange here. The closest are Page Mill Road (about 1.6 mi straight-line from the middle) and El Monte Road / Moody Road (about 1.8 mi).
- Elena Road connects at its north end to Purissima Road, which leads to Arastradero Road and Palo Alto. At its south end it reaches El Monte Road at Foothill College.
- Caltrain: San Antonio station in Mountain View is about 3.5 mi straight-line; California Avenue in Palo Alto is about 4 mi.
- VTA routes 40 and 52 serve Foothill College, about 1.4 mi straight-line to the southeast.
- Roads have no sidewalks; walkers and riders use the Town's roadside and off-road pathways.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Purissima Hills: what we check
Buying here
- Check the school district for the exact address. The Palo Alto Unified / Los Altos SD line runs through the streets near Taaffe Road.
- Get the lot's maximum floor area and maximum development area (MFA/MDA) from the Town's worksheet before you price a remodel. Slope reduces both.
- Many lanes here are private. Ask for any road maintenance agreement and how costs are split. Black Mountain Road is private past Natoma Road.
- About 60% of the addressed parcels fall inside Santa Clara County's mapped fault-rupture hazard zone (USGS 2005 data). Read the natural hazard disclosure, and ask whether past permits needed a geologic report.
- Confirm sewer or septic (county septic permits are issued in town only where sewer is more than 200 feet away). Also confirm the water provider: Purissima Hills Water District or Cal Water.
Selling here
- Run the Town's MFA/MDA worksheet for your lot so buyers can see the room to expand or rebuild, not just today's square footage.
- Gather the road maintenance agreement, septic or sewer records, and any pathway or conservation easements shown on title before listing.
- Order the natural hazard disclosure early. Parcels here map as Moderate or non-wildland on the state's 2025 fire maps, but many sit in the county's fault-rupture zone.
- Confirm the school district for your address with the district, and state it in the listing as a fact, not a promise.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Purissima Hills questions, answered
Is Purissima Hills an official neighborhood?
No. Los Altos Hills has no official neighborhoods. Purissima Hills is our name for the Town streets southwest of I-280 around Elena, Natoma and Black Mountain roads.
Why is it called Purissima Hills if Purissima Road is across the freeway?
The name comes from the old Rancho La Purísima Concepción, which covered these hills, and from the former Purissima Hills School that the Los Altos School District opened near Elena Road. Purissima Road and Purissima Park are just across I-280 through the Elena Road underpass.
Which school district serves these streets?
Census maps put about 90% of the addressed parcels in Palo Alto Unified. The Taaffe Road side is in Los Altos School District and Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District. Boundaries change, so confirm the exact address with the district.
How large a house can be built here?
It depends on the lot. The Town's worksheet turns net acreage and average slope into a lot unit factor, then allows up to 6,000 sq ft of floor area per unit on gentle lots and 5,000 sq ft per unit on lots of 30% slope or more, with exceptions for small or very steep lots. Ask the Town's planners for a pre-application review.
Is Purissima Hills in a high fire hazard zone?
Our check of parcel centroids against the state fire marshal's 2025 map found these streets in Moderate or non-wildland zones, unlike the canyon streets south of Moody Road. Confirm the specific parcel on the state's map and in the disclosure report.
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