los altos neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Rancho, Los Altos Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
A small grid of 1947-52 ranch houses between Campbell Avenue and Springer Road, from Covington Road down to Foothill Expressway, named for the Wilder Company's Los Altos Rancho tracts and the Rancho Shopping Center.
Rancho by the numbers
rancho by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Rancho: Campbell Ave, Covington Rd, Springer Rd and Foothill Expwy. Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in rancho · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Rancho
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Rancho from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
Get alerts for new Los Altos listings: open Los Altos in our full search and tap Save Search.
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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 (Rancho: Campbell Ave, Covington Rd, Springer Rd and Foothill Expwy); it may not match every local definition.
sold by the property nerds
Our sales near Rancho
None of the Los Altos-area sales we can match to MLS records since 2012 sit inside the Rancho outline, so these are our closest listings, measured from its edge.
All 31 of our Los Altos & Los Altos Hills sales, on a map Selling in Rancho? Book a strategy call
the story
How Rancho came to be
Rancho's name has a paper trail. In June 1947 the county recorded Tract No. 372, Los Altos Rancho, filed by the Wilder Company along Springer Road, Riverside Drive and Fremont Avenue, with Arrowood and Rosewood courts. (The county's map index spells it Lost Altos Rancho, which we are going to assume was a typo.) Los Altos Rancho No. 2 followed in February 1948 on part of Lot 11 of the old Campbell Ranch, adding Berry Avenue, Briarwood Court and more of Riverside Drive. West of Riverside, the Doud-Jones Tract, recorded in February 1947, resubdivided other Campbell Ranch lots around Campbell Avenue, Parma Way, Harrington Avenue and Covington Road.
The shopping center came next. A local history dates the start of construction on the Rancho Shopping Center to 1951 and calls it an early Peninsula neighborhood shopping center. The Pacific Coast Architecture Database (PCAD) lists it as built in 1951 and, citing the center's own history, says it was developed and built by Christian Wilder. PCAD credits the design to Harold Johan Bakke, while a 1956 architects' directory lists it as Lawrence Gentry's work. PCAD describes a rustic, low, open-air center with covered walkways, lawns and storefront parking, the same informal style as the Town and Country Village centers in Palo Alto and San Jose.
The grocery anchor has changed names. A larger grocery company bought its chain in 2016 and rebranded this store; the original name came back in 2020, a local news report said. The 6.1-acre center is listed among potential housing sites in the city's 2023-2031 Housing Element inventory, though a 2023 local news report said it was not slated for near-term redevelopment.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Inside the rectangle are about 120 houses. Parma Way and Echo Drive run from Covington Road down toward Foothill Expressway, Riverside Drive curves down to the shopping center, and Berry Avenue, Briarwood Court and Oakwood Court fill in the east side near Springer Road. Houses also face Campbell Avenue, Covington Road and Springer Road, and a few sit on Rixford Lane and the Fremont Avenue frontage road.
The assessor's year-built figures line up with the tract filings: 84 of about 120 houses date from 1946 to 1959, nearly all from 1947 to 1952. Lots run a bit over a quarter acre (median about 11,800 square feet) but vary by street. Parma Way and Echo Drive have the biggest, with medians around 13,000 to 14,000 square feet, and Berry Avenue the smallest, about 8,300. The originals are single-story ranch houses. About one in four has been replaced since 2000, most visibly on Parma Way, where 10 of 25 houses date from 2000 or later.
Every house in the rectangle is zoned R1-10, with no single-story overlay; the nearest one covers Rosewood Court, just north across Covington Road. The shopping center parcel is zoned CN (neighborhood commercial). Strictly speaking, the original Los Altos Rancho tract continues north of Covington Road to Arrowood and Rosewood courts, so the name stretches a block or two past the usual outline.
streets in rancho
- Parma Way
- Echo Drive
- Riverside Drive
- Berry Avenue
- Briarwood Court
- Oakwood Court
- Rixford Lane
- Campbell Avenue
- Covington Road
- Springer Road
- Fremont Avenue
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Rancho
- shopping
Rancho Shopping Center
At Springer Road and Foothill Expressway, within about 0.4 mile (straight line) of every house in the area. Construction began in 1951; a supermarket at 690 Fremont Avenue is the grocery anchor.
- park
McKenzie Park
Across Springer Road at 707 Fremont Avenue, about a third of a mile from the shopping center. The city lists 4.3 acres with two lighted tennis courts also lined for pickleball, a playground, a dog park, a grass field, picnic and barbecue areas and restrooms.
- park
Rosita Park
About 0.7 mile north at 401 Rosita Avenue: about 5 acres with three tennis courts, a baseball and soccer field, a playground and a walking track.
- shopping
Loyola Corners
About a mile east-southeast, where Miramonte Avenue meets Fremont Avenue and Foothill Expressway: a second small shopping district.
- landmark
Not Rancho San Antonio
Rancho San Antonio County Park and Preserve is a different place, about 2 miles south (straight line) off I-280 in Cupertino.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
The Los Altos School District serves Rancho, and the district's school-boundary locator currently places these blocks in the Loyola Elementary attendance area (Loyola School is at 770 Berry Avenue, just east of Springer Road) and the Blach junior high area. High school is assigned by the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District by address. Attendance boundaries change, so check the exact address with LASD's locator and MVLA's street search.
Los Altos School District guide · Mountain View-Los Altos high schools · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- Caltrain: there is no station in Los Altos. Mountain View station is about 2.5 miles and San Antonio station about 3.1 miles from the middle of Rancho (straight line).
- I-280: Springer Road continues south across Foothill Expressway as Magdalena Avenue to I-280 exit 15, about a mile (straight line).
- Foothill Expressway runs along the south edge and is a popular cycling route.
- Downtown Los Altos is about 1.5 miles (straight line) to the northwest.
- Bus: check VTA's trip planner for current routes; VTA links Los Altos with the Mountain View Transit Center and Caltrain.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Rancho: what we check
Buying here
- Lot size varies by street, from about 8,300 square feet on Berry Avenue to about 14,000 on Parma Way. Confirm the parcel size and setbacks before you plan an addition.
- For a 1947-52 original, ask for permits on any addition and check the electrical panel, foundation and sewer lateral.
- FEMA's flood map puts nearly all of Rancho in shaded Zone X (0.2 percent annual chance); two parcels on Covington Road near Riverside Drive are in Zone AE, where federally backed mortgages generally require flood insurance. Check the map for the exact parcel.
- Houses next to the shopping center trade convenience for activity. Visit at delivery and peak hours, and follow any redevelopment of the 6.1-acre center, which is in the city's Housing Element site inventory.
- Confirm the elementary and junior high attendance areas by address with LASD; this pocket is currently in the Loyola and Blach areas.
Selling here
- Use the right comparables: a 1948 original on Berry Avenue and a recent rebuild on Parma Way are different products.
- Put the lot size and the distance to the Rancho Shopping Center in the listing as numbers.
- Have permits, roof records and any sewer lateral work ready; buyers of 1940s houses ask for them.
- Name the place precisely: Rancho is the Springer Road and Foothill Expressway neighborhood, not Rancho San Antonio.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Rancho questions, answered
Why is it called Rancho?
The Wilder Company filed Tract No. 372, Los Altos Rancho, in 1947 and Los Altos Rancho No. 2 in 1948, and construction began on the Rancho Shopping Center at Springer Road and Foothill Expressway in 1951. Today the name is used for the blocks around the center.
When did the Rancho Shopping Center open?
Sources agree on 1951: a local history says construction began that year, and the Pacific Coast Architecture Database lists it as built in 1951. We have not found an exact opening date.
Is Rancho near Rancho San Antonio Preserve?
Not really. Rancho is the neighborhood at Springer Road and Foothill Expressway. Rancho San Antonio County Park and Preserve is about 2 miles south in a straight line, off I-280 in Cupertino.
What are the boundaries?
Campbell Avenue, Covington Road, Springer Road and Foothill Expressway. The original Los Altos Rancho tract also reaches north of Covington Road to Arrowood and Rosewood courts.
How big are the lots?
The median is about 11,800 square feet in county assessor data. Parma Way and Echo Drive run about 13,000 to 14,000 square feet; Berry Avenue lots are smaller, about 8,300.
Which schools serve Rancho?
The Los Altos School District and the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District. LASD's locator currently assigns these blocks to Loyola Elementary and Blach; MVLA assigns high school by address. Boundaries change, so check the exact address.
next door
More Los Altos neighborhood guides
From the blog: Best Los Altos Neighborhoods · Los Altos Neighborhoods
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Thinking about Rancho? Let's run your numbers.
Eric, Janelle and the Boyenga Team have sold more than 2,520 Silicon Valley homes, $2.6+ billion in all, since 1996. Get a value, a plan, or a straight answer about a street.
on the home styles field guide
Home styles in Rancho
Rancho shows up on this plate in our home styles field guide. Each plate shows how to spot the style from the sidewalk, with live listings opened to Los Altos.
live market · los altos
Los Altos right now
City-wide numbers read from the MLS each time this page loads. A neighborhood can trade differently from its city, so ask us for the sales on your street.
- homes for sale…houses, condos, townhomes
- new this week…by days on market
- median list price…of homes for sale
- median days on market…of homes for sale
- 12 months of sales…median sale price
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Listing data comes from the MLS through our IDX feeds and is shown as reported; it isn’t guaranteed. Repeat listings from overlapping feeds are removed, and land and mobile homes are left out.
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