sell · palo alto
Selling a home in Palo Alto
In Palo Alto, 62% of recent sales closed over asking, with a median overbid of $287K, but how far over depends on the neighborhood, and 28% of houses sit in a FEMA high-risk flood zone. Here’s what the numbers say, what’s different about selling here, and what we’ve sold in town.
palo alto by the numbers
What the Palo Alto market says right now
Palo Alto closed 528 sales in the last 12 months, at the 4th-highest median price of the 25 cities with 100+ sales. Price per square foot reached $2,042 in the three months ending July 2026, its highest three-month reading so far.
- median sale price$3.44Mlast 12 months, 528 sales; Silicon Valley $1.65M
- over asking62%of 1,352 sales since January 2024; median overbid $287K
- $3M–5M76%of 597 sales in that band closed over asking
- best closing monthMarch73% over asking, against 40% in January; May is busiest
Source: closed MLS sales, Boyenga Team analysis, October 2026. Recent 12 months = October 2025 to September 2026; over and under asking = January 2024 to September 2026; best month = averaged over 2012–2025. See Palo Alto by the numbers.
what’s different here
What sellers in Palo Alto should plan for
What we plan for on Palo Alto listings.
Bidding depends on the neighborhood
measured: 24 months
Over the last two years, Greenmeadow, Duveneck / St. Francis and Midtown sold furthest over asking, a typical 7% to 9% over. In Crescent Park, Old Palo Alto and Downtown North the typical sale closed at asking. A citywide figure won’t price your house, so we start from your neighborhood’s record.
Flood zones
measured: 28% of houses
4,109 Palo Alto houses (28%) sit in a FEMA high-risk flood zone, most of them in Midtown, Crescent Park and Duveneck / St. Francis. If the house itself is in zone A, AE or AH, lenders on federally backed mortgages require flood insurance, so we order a flood zone determination for the address before launch and buyers can price any insurance early.
Eichlers and single-story zoning
city records
1,002 Palo Alto houses (7%) sit in a single-story overlay, most of them in Greenmeadow (371), Charleston Meadows (174) and Midtown (152). Besides most of Greenmeadow and about half of Charleston Meadows, eight smaller Eichler tracts are in an overlay and 15 aren’t. A buyer who plans a second story checks this first. Since 2018 we’ve listed 11 Palo Alto Eichlers and midmods; 9 closed over the final list price.
Older houses and the historic inventory
city records
The median Palo Alto house was built in 1952, and 17% date from before 1940; in Professorville the median is 1908. 680 houses are on the City’s historic inventory (categories 1 to 4), inside the Professorville district, or contributors to the Greenmeadow National Register district. Buyers who plan changes will ask what that allows, so we gather the City’s records on your parcel before you list.
Original or rebuilt
measured: 14% since 2000
14% of Palo Alto’s single-family houses were built (or fully rebuilt) in 2000 or later: 22% in South of Midtown, 2% in Greenmeadow. The median lot is 7,004 sq ft. On a street that’s rebuilding, a buyer may be pricing the lot; on an original one, the house. We show you both kinds of recent sales near you.
Timing and transfer tax
measured and city
March closings sold over asking most often (73%), January least (40%). Inside city limits, Palo Alto adds a city transfer tax of $3.30 per $1,000 to the county’s $1.10, so $13,200 in all on a $3 million sale. By local custom the seller pays the county tax and the buyer and seller split the city tax; all of it is negotiable, and the purchase contract decides.
our sales
Homes we’ve listed and sold in Palo Alto
Since 2017 we’ve matched 34 Palo Alto sales to MLS records: 28 homes we listed and 6 where we represented the buyer. The most recent homes we listed:
sold Oct 2026 · palo alto
$3.04M
770 Everett Ave · Crescent Park
3 bd · 2.5 ba · 2,088 sq ft
52.4% over the final list price of $2.00MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Apr 2026 · palo alto
$3.75M
4 bd · 2.5 ba · 2,098 sq ft
1.4% over the final list price of $3.70MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Mar 2026 · palo alto
$3.51M
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,792 sq ft
6.8% over the final list price of $3.29MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Apr 2025 · palo alto
$3.71M
4 bd · 2 ba · 1,636 sq ft
23.7% over the final list price of $3.00MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Nov 2024 · palo alto
$4.30M
742 De Soto Dr · Duveneck / St. Francis
4 bd · 3 ba · 2,248 sq ft
7.6% over the final list price of $4.00MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
sold Sep 2024 · palo alto
$3.80M
4 bd · 2 ba · 1,771 sq ft
15.2% over the final list price of $3.30MListed by the Boyenga Team at Compass
For all 28 homes we listed here, the sold record shows the final list price: 17 closed at or above it, 15 of them over asking. The final list price is the asking price after any price changes. Source: closed MLS records, read October 27–30, 2026.
See all 34 on our Palo Alto sales map
Neighborhoods where we’ve sold most: Palo Verde (6), Duveneck / St. Francis (6), Midtown (6), Greenmeadow (2), Charleston Gardens (2), Leland Manor / Garland (2).
our plan
How we’d sell your Palo Alto home
The same Property Nerd plan we run on every listing, tuned to Palo Alto.
Price against the right sales
We start with the closest recent sales in your neighborhood and of your kind of house, then read the competition that week. In Palo Alto that means pricing to your neighborhood’s record and your kind of house: an original Eichler and a rebuild on the same street draw different buyers.
Prepare what buyers notice
Paint, light, landscaping and staging, budgeted in the Prep Lab, with Compass Concierge to front eligible costs. On Eichlers and older houses, inspections up front show what’s worth fixing before buyers find it.
Disclose early
Inspections and disclosures ready before launch, so buyers make offers on facts. In Palo Alto that includes a flood zone determination for the address.
Launch on purpose
A private or Coming Soon start if it fits, then the full launch; the Launch Lab shows the plan. March closings sold over asking most often, so a spring sale is planned in winter.
Negotiate and close
We compare offers on price, terms and certainty, then run escrow to closing.
The Palo Alto data series
our own analysis
More from the series
by price and place
Seller tools
plan your numbers
Looking for an agent rather than a plan? Our Palo Alto real estate team page · Palo Alto neighborhood guides
questions
Questions Palo Alto sellers ask us
How often do Palo Alto homes sell over asking?
From January 2024 to September 2026, 62% of 1,352 Palo Alto sales closed above the final list price, with a median overbid of $287K. 29% closed below it, with a median discount of $100K. In the $3M–5M band, 76% of 597 sales closed over asking. Across Silicon Valley, 60% closed over asking.
When is the best time to sell in Palo Alto?
Averaged over 2012–2025, Palo Alto closings in March sold over asking most often (73%) and January closings least often (40%). May has the most closings, about 11% of the year’s sales. Because closing comes about a month after the offer, plan a spring sale in winter.
Is my Palo Alto house in a flood zone?
About 28% of Palo Alto’s single-family houses (4,109) sit in a FEMA high-risk flood zone (A, AE or AH), most of them in Midtown, Crescent Park and Duveneck / St. Francis. If the house itself is in zone A, AE or AH, lenders on federally backed mortgages require flood insurance. A flood zone determination for the address settles it, and we order one before you list.
Is my house in a single-story overlay?
1,002 Palo Alto houses (7%) are in a single-story (S) overlay, most of them in Greenmeadow (371), Charleston Meadows (174) and Midtown (152). Besides most of Greenmeadow and about half of Charleston Meadows, eight smaller Eichler tracts are in an overlay and 15 aren’t. We confirm your parcel’s zoning with the City before you list.
My house is on the historic inventory. Does that matter?
680 Palo Alto houses are on the City’s historic inventory (categories 1 to 4), inside the Professorville district, or contributors to the Greenmeadow National Register district. It mostly matters to buyers who plan to change the house, so we gather what the City has on your parcel before you list.
Does Palo Alto charge a transfer tax?
Inside city limits, yes: $3.30 per $1,000 of the sale price, on top of the Santa Clara County tax of $1.10 per $1,000, so $13,200 in all on a $3 million sale. Some homes with a Palo Alto address sit on unincorporated county land, where only the county tax applies; your escrow officer confirms it from the parcel’s tax rate area. By local custom the seller pays the county tax and the buyer and seller split the city tax; all of it is negotiable, and the purchase contract decides.
What do you charge to sell a Palo Alto home?
Commissions are negotiable. We offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.
talk to a property nerd
Thinking about selling in Palo Alto?
We’ll pull the closest sales to your house, walk through prep and timing, and tell you what we’d do. No pressure and no obligation.
eric boyenga dre 01254725 · janelle boyenga dre 01254724 · compass · equal housing opportunity
Thinking about selling in Palo Alto? Send us a note.
Eric & Janelle Boyenga
Realtors DRE01254724 / 01254725
Realtors DRE01254724 / 01254725