home / los altos / south los altos
los altos neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
South Los Altos Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
The City of Los Altos wedge east of Grant Road, from Homestead Road up to the Mountain View line and out to Stevens Creek, split by Fremont Avenue into two school systems.
South Los Altos by the numbers
south los altos by the numbers · live from the mls
- for sale now…
- median list price…
- homes sold, last 12 months…
- median sale price, 12 mo…
- median price per sq ft, sold…
- sale price vs. list…
Calculated in your browser from MLS data for South Los Altos: Grant Rd to Stevens Creek, Homestead Rd to the Mountain View line. Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in south los altos · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in South Los Altos
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in South Los Altos from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
Loading listings…
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 (South Los Altos: Grant Rd to Stevens Creek, Homestead Rd to the Mountain View line); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How South Los Altos came to be
South Los Altos is an informal name, and people stretch it. In the narrow sense used by the Mountain View Voice's 2015 neighborhood profile and by MLS maps, it is the wedge east of Grant Road: Homestead Road on the south, Stevens Creek on the east, and the Mountain View line along Joel Way, Harwalt Drive and Oak, Truman and Miravalle avenues on the north. Others, including some of our own past posts, use it loosely for most of ZIP 94024 south of downtown, Rancho and Loyola Corners included. This guide uses the narrow version.
The question buyers ask most: is it really Los Altos? Yes. Santa Clara County's official city-limits layer and the Census Bureau's 2026 boundary files both put the whole wedge inside the City of Los Altos, ZIP 94024. It is not an unincorporated pocket, and it is not Sunnyvale with a Los Altos mailing address. The only county land we found is a sliver of less than an acre along Stevens Creek near Fallen Leaf Lane. Sunnyvale (94087) starts across the creek, and Cupertino (95014) starts south of Homestead Road, except the Foothill Crossing shopping center, which is in Los Altos. At the north edge, a few blocks around Mountain View High School, such as Bruckner Circle and Blue Lake Square, are in Mountain View even though they are inside the Los Altos School District.
Los Altos incorporated in 1952 and did most of its growing between 1950 and 1980 on land that had been apricot orchards, and South Los Altos follows that arc. Listing records show ranch houses from 1955 on Ranchita Drive and 1959 on Holt Avenue, and in 1968-69 Eichler Homes added Fallen Leaf Park, 37 modern houses on Clay Drive, Alexander Way and Fallen Leaf Lane. Fremont Avenue is also the line between two school systems, so which side of it you are on matters.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
North of Fremont Avenue, streets branch off Grant Road and Truman Avenue: Ranchita Drive and Marinovich Way, Kathy Lane, Siesta Drive, Julie Lane, Queensbury, Wessex and Marlbarough avenues, Canterbury Way, Havenhurst Drive, Larkellen Lane, Ravenswood Drive and Brookmill Road, with Oak Avenue and the Oak Avenue Elementary campus at the north end. Since 2017, 47 properties on Larkellen Lane and parts of Ravenswood Drive, Havenhurst Drive and Fallen Leaf Lane have been in the city's R1-S single-story overlay, which limits houses to one story and 20 feet.
South of Fremont, the streets run from Austin, Juarez and Richardson avenues near Grant Road east through Holt Avenue, Grant Park Lane and Alford Avenue to Clay Drive, Christina Drive and Fallen Leaf Lane along the creek, then down to Farndon Avenue, Churton Avenue, Crist Drive and Louise Lane near Homestead Road. Fallen Leaf Park's Eichlers cluster on Clay Drive, Alexander Way and Fallen Leaf Lane (see our Fallen Leaf Park guide). Near Homestead, Stevens Place and Marshall Court are zoned R3-4.5, a district the city set aside for two-unit (duplex) homes.
Most original houses are single-story ranches on lots near the R1-10 minimum of 10,000 square feet. Examples from listing records: a 1955 house on Ranchita Drive on 10,213 square feet, and a 1959 single-story ranch on Holt Avenue on 10,400 square feet with a small detached ADU. Remodels are common; new houses range from one-story modern ranches to two-story rebuilds. A 2015 Mountain View Voice profile noted that many residential streets here have no sidewalks or streetlights, so walk the block you are considering after dark.
streets in south los altos
- Grant Road
- Fremont Avenue
- Truman Avenue
- Oak Avenue
- Ranchita Drive
- Marinovich Way
- Kathy Lane
- Siesta Drive
- Julie Lane
- Queensbury Avenue
- Wessex Avenue
- Havenhurst Drive
- Larkellen Lane
- Ravenswood Drive
- Brookmill Road
- Austin Avenue
- Juarez Avenue
- Richardson Avenue
- Holt Avenue
- Grant Park Lane
- Alford Avenue
- Clay Drive
- Christina Drive
- Alexander Way
- Fallen Leaf Lane
- Farndon Avenue
- Churton Avenue
- Crist Drive
- Louise Lane
- Stevens Place
- Marshall Court
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near South Los Altos
- park
Grant Park and Community Center
At 1575 Holt Avenue: a city park and community center with a multipurpose room, stage, kitchen, four classrooms, an outdoor basketball court, picnic area, playground and soccer field.
- park
Marymeade Park
Just west across Grant Road at 1285 Fremont Avenue: 2.47 acres with three lighted tennis courts, a playground, picnic tables, barbecue pits, a large lawn and restrooms.
- landmark
Woodland Branch Library
At 1975 Grant Road, on the east side where Grant Road runs beside Foothill Expressway: a 4,600 sq ft county library branch that opened in 1975 and added an outdoor terrace and native-plant habitat in August 2026.
- shopping
Woodland Plaza
A Lucky supermarket and small shops on Grant Road opposite Arboretum Drive. Under 2023 city rules, any redevelopment must stay mixed-use, with 20 to 33 percent commercial space; the zone's base height limit is 30 feet.
- shopping
Foothill Crossing
The Trader Joe's-anchored strip at Homestead Road and Foothill Expressway (22310 and 22350 Homestead Road), inside Los Altos city limits; a former Rite Aid space there has been listed for lease.
- landmark
Convolute of the Square
A twisting red metal sculpture on the city's public art list, at the corner of Fremont Avenue and Grant Road.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Fremont Avenue is the school line. North of it, addresses are in the Los Altos School District (TK-8) and the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District; the district's own School Locator currently maps these blocks to Oak Avenue Elementary, which sits in the neighborhood at 1501 Oak Avenue, and Blach for grades 7-8, and MVLA assigns Los Altos High or Mountain View High by address (Mountain View High's campus is just over the city line on Truman Avenue). South of Fremont, addresses are in the Cupertino Union School District and the Fremont Union High School District. Attendance boundaries change, so confirm any address with the districts' own lookup tools.
Los Altos School District guide · Cupertino Union guide · Mountain View-Los Altos high schools · Fremont Union guide
Getting around
- Grant Road is the spine: north into Mountain View past El Camino Hospital (2500 Grant Road) toward El Camino Real, south along Foothill Expressway to I-280 exit 13.
- State Route 85 runs just east of Stevens Creek with interchanges at Fremont Avenue and Homestead Road, roughly half a mile to a mile from most streets.
- Caltrain: Mountain View (600 W. Evelyn Ave.) and Sunnyvale (121 W. Evelyn Ave.) stations, both fare zone 3, are each about 4 miles by car; San Antonio is about 6. Mountain View also has VTA Orange Line light rail.
- VTA Route 51 (weekdays) links the area with the Mountain View Transit Center, Moffett Field and West Valley College; its timed stops include Truman and Bryant and Grant and Eunice.
- Downtown Los Altos is about 4 miles by car via Fremont Avenue or Foothill Expressway.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in South Los Altos: what we check
Buying here
- Check which side of Fremont Avenue the address is on, then confirm the districts with the LASD and MVLA or the Cupertino Union and Fremont Union lookup tools; the line runs through the middle of the neighborhood.
- On Larkellen Lane and nearby parts of Ravenswood, Havenhurst and Fallen Leaf, check the 2017 R1-S overlay before planning a second story; in Fallen Leaf Park, read our Eichler notes on radiant heat and flat roofs.
- Look up the FEMA flood map for the parcel: most streets are shaded Zone X, but there are Zone A strips along Stevens Creek and Zone D (undetermined hazard) patches, for example around Crist Drive and Havenhurst Drive.
- In original 1950s houses, budget for a sewer lateral scope, an electrical panel check and a roof inspection.
- Grant Road and Fremont Avenue are through routes, and Truman and Oak avenues serve two school campuses; if the house fronts one of them, visit at peak hours.
Selling here
- Say the jurisdiction plainly in the listing: City of Los Altos, 94024. Buyers often ask whether east-of-Grant addresses are Sunnyvale or county.
- State the school districts for your side of Fremont Avenue and include the district lookup links.
- Have lot dimensions and a quick ADU or SB 9 feasibility note ready; on lots near 10,000 square feet, that is the next question.
- If you are in the R1-S overlay or Fallen Leaf Park, disclose it and explain what it means for additions.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
South Los Altos questions, answered
Is South Los Altos in the City of Los Altos or in Sunnyvale?
The area east of Grant Road between Homestead Road, Stevens Creek and the Mountain View line is all City of Los Altos, ZIP 94024, per the county's official city-limits map and 2026 Census boundaries. Sunnyvale starts on the far side of Stevens Creek.
Is any of it unincorporated county land?
Essentially no. The only county land we found is a strip of less than an acre along Stevens Creek near Fallen Leaf Lane. The large unincorporated area with Los Altos addresses is Loyola, west of Grant Road near Loyola Corners and the Country Club.
Which school districts serve South Los Altos?
North of Fremont Avenue: Los Altos School District and Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District. South of Fremont: Cupertino Union School District and Fremont Union High School District. Boundaries change, so check the exact address with the districts.
Are there Eichlers in South Los Altos?
Yes. Fallen Leaf Park, on Clay Drive, Alexander Way and Fallen Leaf Lane south of Fremont Avenue, is a late-1960s Eichler tract of 37 homes. See our Fallen Leaf Park guide for details.
How far is Caltrain?
Los Altos has no station. From South Los Altos, the Mountain View and Sunnyvale stations are each about 4 miles by car and San Antonio is about 6. VTA Route 51 connects to the Mountain View Transit Center on weekdays.
next door
More Los Altos neighborhood guides
talk to a property nerd
Thinking about South Los Altos? 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.
Questions about South Los Altos? Send us a note.
