Palo Alto

At the center of innovation sits Palo Alto, a university town turned high-tech hub that’s considered one of the most educated zip codes in the country. The area has been attracting top talent ever since prestigious Stanford University opened its doors. Two of its most influential alum would go on to found Hewlett-Packard in a one-car garage, dubbing the city the “Birthplace of Silicon Valley.” Today, Palo Alto is home to more than 7,000 businesses, from the next great startup to established names like Tesla, Skype, and Space Systems.

Tucked away from high-tech, charming neighborhoods feature the best of suburbia with mid-century homes and highly rated public schools. Residents also benefit from an action-packed downtown lined with boutiques, restaurants, and a nightlife that doesn’t exist in surrounding towns. Away from the buzz of University Avenue, explore the vast one-third of Palo Alto reserved for open space. Hike a 1,400 acre preserve by day and enjoy a Michelin-starred meal by night— anything is possible in the heart of Silicon Valley.

The tree-lined streets, top-ranked schools and vast network of parks and open spaces are just a few of the reasons people want to live here. It’s so much more than that. Sit in a café on University Avenue and you’re going to absorb an energy you can’t find elsewhere. It’s almost like you can feel the ideas brewing all around you. You’re going to hear snippets of conversations from venture capitalists and startup founders, and there will be no doubt in your mind—Palo Alto is the heart of Silicon Valley.

It’s no secret that I love spending time here. It’s home to many of my favorite restaurants and coffee shops. Read more about my top picks:

In this article, I’ll break down Palo Alto’s notable communities, and give you an idea of what life could look like in each. For sales trends and data, check out the latest Santa Clara Market Report on my website.

Downtown Palo Alto

University Avenue in Palo Alto / Photo by: Compass

University Avenue is one of the best downtowns in Silicon Valley. It’s packed with restaurants, coffee shops, mom-and-pop stores and well-known chains. It’s far from a small-town feel but it still has that charm you can’t find in urban downtowns.

The area is always evolving with constant construction. That’s apparent when you look at the varied types of real estate. Zoning changes block to block with a lot of multi-family homes and mixed-use development. One minute you’re on a street of newly built condos, and the next is full of older single-family homes from the early 1920s. This is typical of downtown areas and what you get when you choose to live at the center of the action.

Two of my favorite University Avenue landmarks:

HanaHaus: This public workspace embodies Palo Alto. The building was originally a 1920’s movie theater and then a Borders Bookstore. Now, there is a Blue Bottle Coffee on site and you can reserve various seating and meeting spaces. I always feel inspired here. There’s a buzz in the air and I love how this historic building has been preserved and revived as a modern day workspace.

Stanford Theatre: Relive the heyday of Hollywood at this independent movie theatre. It opened in 1925 but deteriorated over time until the Lucile Packard Foundation bought and restored it in 1987. They only play classic Hollywood movies and there is a “Mighty Wurlitzer” theatre organ that plays live during intermissions and silent movies.

Professorville

Photo by Valentina Nurmatova — Photo by Valentina Nurmatova

Stanford’s faculty has been calling this neighborhood home since the university opened in 1891. It’s close to campus, close to downtown and one of the most historically significant areas of Palo Alto. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with three notable architectural styles represented: Shingle, Colonial Revival and Craftsman.

Move here, and you’re buying a piece of history. Many residents feel strongly about preserving the original look and feel of homes. As time goes on and new residents move in, homes are modernized but you’ll still see many people going to great lengths to preserve the historical integrity of their purchase.

It’s not just the century old homes that makes this place special. It’s also the Birthplace of Silicon Valley. Hewlett-Packard was founded at 367 Addison Avenue in 1939 in what is now called the HP Garage. Historical walking tours of Professorville are offered occasionally throughout the year.

Community Center

You’ll find everything you need within this community so aptly named Community Center—the Lucie Stern Community Center, Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo, Children’s Library and 19-acre Rinconada Park, Palo Alto’s second oldest park with a popular public pool. There is a relaxed feel in Community Center and no shortage of events—summer concerts, plays, food trucks, art festivals—and you’re close to everything University Avenue has to offer.

There used to be a ton of smaller bungalows in this neighborhood. They’ve mostly been replaced by larger homes but you’ll still see a variety in architectural styles with many older homes, including a two-block tract of Eichlers. These are actually some of the last homes built by Joseph Eichler.

Crescent Park

Crescent Park is one of the most prestigious neighborhoods in Palo Alto with a highly desirable location. It has a very serene, residential feel but sits between highway 101 and downtown so you’re still close to all the action. The streets are lined with multi-million dollar homes, ranging from smaller 2-bedroom cottages to sprawling estates. Some lots are up to half an acre, which is quite large for Palo Alto.

You’ll see a lot of traditional architecture here with stately, elegant homes on beautifully manicured properties. Some parcels are in a flood zone due to nearby San Francisquito Creek. Mark Zuckerberg bought his home here in 2011, and went on to buy multiple surrounding properties in the neighborhood.

Green Gable / Duveneck

This is the ultimate family-friendly neighborhood. It’s a place where it’s still common to see kids playing outside together after school. Green Gables refers to the area in general but locals refer to the communities within the community. Duveneck is the largest of the sub-neighborhoods, named after the elementary school that sits in the middle of the neighborhood. All the schools here are excellent.

This is one of the few areas in Palo Alto that has not seen a huge construction boom. Largely because people who buy in Duveneck, stay in Duveneck. It’s not uncommon for people to stay 30, 40, 50 years and that means few opportunities to buy or rebuild.

Old Palo Alto

This is one of the most prestigious—and most expensive—areas of Palo Alto. It’s been this way from the start. “Old” Palo Alto is home to old money and high-tech’s elite like Google co-founder, Larry Page, and the late Steve Jobs who lived on Waverly Street.

Lots here average around 9000 sq ft, which is big for Palo Alto, bou’re also going to find some of the city’s largest lots reaching 30,000 sq ft. There are still many historic houses from the early 1900s but naturally, the neighborhood is evolving. Many lots are being swept up by investors and left vacant or combined into one large property. Still, there’s a lot of charm in this neighborhood. You get a peaceful, friendly feel, it’s walkable and beautiful to look at with its mature trees and flawless front yards.

College Terrace

This neighborhood is right next to Stanford but it actually gets its name from the 12 streets named after eastern universities—Princeton, Cornell, Harvard. The original landowner wouldn’t sell the area to Stanford but over time, Stanford has bought up dozens of homes here. Once Stanford owns a piece of property, it’s not likely they will ever sell, adding to the area’s high demand and scarcity of listings.

There’s still a diverse mix of residents—students and faculty but also young families and longtime residents. You’ll find a mix of home types from original Queen Anne Victorians, to English and Spanish Colonial Revival cottages and inevitably, new construction as money is funneled into what was once a place populated by starving students. It’s very close to Palo Alto’s secondary downtown on California Avenue, which has seen a surge of new restaurants in the past five years and has a popular farmers’ market Sunday, 9am-1pm.

Ventura

Here you’ll find some of Palo Alto’s most affordable homes in this self-described “people’s neighborhood.” The neighborhood’s lower price point makes it popular with young families looking for an entrypoint into Palo Alto. There’s a mixture of single-family homes and apartment complexes, attracting a diverse group of residents.

Ventura is desirable for its walkability and proximity to commuter hubs like Caltrain and the Oregon Expressway. Mitchell Park is close by with its library, playground and community center.

Midtown

Just like the name implies, Midtown sits in the middle of Palo Alto. The north part of Palo Alto is very desirable but this is a great option if you’re looking for something a little cheaper with the same great schools Palo Alto is known for.

You’ll find a diverse mix of single- and multi-family homes with architectural styles that range from Eichler to craftsman, plus major construction in the last 5-8 years. You can get pretty much anything you need within Midtown—grocery stores, drugstores, coffee shops and it’s very close to the restaurants and shops on California Avenue.

South Palo Alto

This neighborhood is situated next to Mountain View and is sometimes referred to as “South of Midtown.” It’s one of the more architecturally significant parts of Palo Alto because Joseph Eichler built more Eichler homes here than anywhere else in the Bay Area. They began popping up in the 1950s and have continued to be an integral part of the look and feel of South Palo Alto.

That also means there are stricter building restrictions in place, limiting home renovations and prohibiting second story additions in many parts. But even with those restrictions in place, there has been a lot of construction and turnover in recent years, and this tree-lined neighborhood has seen some major changes.

Barron Park

This neighborhood has a different feel than the rest. It’s located in south Palo Alto, tucked in a pocket off El Camino. It’s a bit isolated from the rest of the city and as a result, it has its own close-knit community feel. Homes here are more modest, ranging from two-story houses to the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park. There’s a mix of young families and long-time residents who’ve been there 40+ years.

Barron Park holds on to its rural roots a little more than the rest of Palo Alto. There are no sidewalks and their most unique residents are two donkeys named Perry and Jenny. Every weekend, dozens visit them at Bol Park, a Barron Park tradition since 1934.

Green Acres

Green Acres is generally divided into two sections: Green Acres I, a small pocket east of Arastradero Road, and Green Acres II, a larger stretch to the west of Arastradero road. Both are residential only with predominantly single family homes. There are a lot of tract homes here, plus ranch-style houses, bungalows and new construction that’s turning many modest properties into grander estates.

Many families choose Green Acres for the school district. Juana Briones Elementary School, Terman Middle School and Gunn High School are all top-ranked and walkable if you live in the neighborhood.

Palo Alto Hills

On the far side of highway 280, you’ll find Palo Alto Hills—in many ways, you’re world’s apart from the rest of Palo Alto. The city designates a lot of acreage to open space but when you live here, it’s virtually in your backyard. Palo Alto Hills is bordered by Pearson-Arastradero Preserve and near Foothills Park. The Palo Alto Hills Golf & Country Club is also right there with spectacular nature views and loads of amenities.

If you want a larger parcel of land within Palo Alto, then this is a good neighborhood to consider. Geographically, it’s a small area though so there are not a ton of opportunities to buy here. The schools are good, and some areas fall under Los Altos Schools.

Bonus Neighborhood: Stanford

Many people don’t realize that Stanford is its own unincorporated area, separate from the city of Palo Alto—though the two are deeply intertwined. Stanford University opened in 1891 and Palo Alto was developed around it to provide housing and resources to the professors and students.

The University actually owns a ton of real estate and what makes housing unique within Stanford is that only faculty and staff can buy a house here. In reality though, you pay a mortgage but it’s not really yours. You’re leasing it from Stanford for a stretch of 60-70 years, you can only sell to someone who meets the residency requirement and you must use Stanford Credit Union.

Open Spaces

One-third of Palo Alto is dedicated to open spaces so you really can get the best of all worlds here. There are so many places to escape into nature but here are two of my favorites:

Baylands Nature Preserve: This 1,940-acre preserve sits on the other side of Palo Alto and will give you a completely different nature experience. It’s one of the largest undisturbed marshlands in the San Francisco Bay Area. There are 15 miles of trails for walking, running or biking, and it’s known as one of the best places for bird watching. Look out for the public art installations scattered throughout the trail.

Foothills Park: This 1,400-acre preserve is in the Palo Alto Hills and one of the most beautiful open spaces you can visit. There are 15 miles of hiking trails, fishing and non-motorized boating in Boronda Lake, and a seasonal campground. For decades, it was exclusively open to Palo Alto residents and their guests. Just recently, this controversial policy was abolished by City Council and access will be open to all moving forward.