Santa Clara, California Housing Market Prices

Santa Clara Home Prices and Rent at a Glance

The median home price (often called the average home price), rent costs, affordability metrics, and housing stock characteristics for this housing market.

  • Median home price 55% above the California median
    $1,005,517
  • Median rent 49% above the California median
    $3,033

Housing Market Overview

Metric Santa Clara California Avg US Average
Median Home Price $1,005,517 $650,794 $248,835
Price Trend (Annual %) 9.4% 8.9% 7.5%
Median Gross Rent $3,033 $2,036 $1,407
Rent Trend (Annual %) 5.8% 5.8% 5.1%
Household Income Trend (Annual %) — — —

The median home price in Santa Clara is about 55% higher than in California. Rent is about 49% higher than the California average.

Median Home and Rent Price Trends

Median Home Prices, 2015-2024

Santa Clara
California
United States
Year Santa Clara California United States

Median Rent Prices, 2015-2024

Santa Clara
California
United States
Year Santa Clara California United States

Both home prices and rent are rising in Santa Clara, up about 9.4% and 5.8% a year respectively. Home prices are changing faster.

Median rent in Santa Clara rose about 69.9% between 2015 and 2024, from $1,785 to $3,033. Over the same span, rent in California rose about 62.2%.

Affordability

On average, housing unit costs 5.6 yearly household incomes in Santa Clara.

Buying the median-priced home in Santa Clara costs roughly 27.6 years of rent at the median monthly rate. That is a relatively high price-to-rent ratio, which tends to favor renting over buying in Santa Clara. The price-to-rent ratio in California is about 26.6.

Metric Santa Clara California Avg US Average
Median Home Price $1,005,517 $650,794 $248,835
Median Household Income $179,943 $99,161 $80,455
Price-to-Income Ratio 5.6 6.6 3.1

Home Prices vs Income Over Time

Home Prices
Household Income

Between 2015 and 2024, the median home price in Santa Clara rose about 75.1%, while median household income rose about 103.4% between 2009 and 2025 — income grew faster than the home price.

Income Growth vs Housing Cost Growth (Year-over-Year %)

Compare income and housing cost trends.

Household Income Growth %
Housing Cost Growth %
Year Income Growth % Housing Cost Growth % Gap (Cost - Income)

Occupancy & Tenure

Metric Santa Clara California Avg US Average
Homeownership Rate 39.1% 51.7% 58.5%
Rental Rate 55.5% 40.8% 31.2%
Vacancy Rate 5.4% 7.5% 10.2%
Median Tenure (years) 11.0 15.0 15.0
Median Year Moved In 2015 2011 2011

Santa Clara has a homeownership rate of 39.1%, lower than the California average of 51.7%. Its housing vacancy rate is 5.4%, compared with 7.5% in California.

Housing Stock

Metric Santa Clara California Avg US Average
Average Household Size 2.51 people 2.84 people 2.53 people
Median Structure Built Year 1976 1975 1978
Median Number of Rooms 4.1 5.0 5.5

The typical housing unit in Santa Clara was built around 1976. On average, 2.5 people live in a home with about 4.1 rooms, staying for about 11.0 years on average.

Santa Clara, CA Housing Compared With Nearby Cities

How Santa Clara, CA compares with the 2 cities closest to it.

Area Population Median home price Median rent Homeownership
Santa Clara, CA 127,362 $1,005,517 #2/3 $3,033 #2/3 41.4% #3/3
Sunnyvale, CA 155,720 $248,284 $3,045 43.2%
Campbell, CA 46,259 $1,814,764 $2,643 49.7%

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about the housing market in Santa Clara, California.

What is the median home price in Santa Clara, California?

The median home price in Santa Clara, California is $1,005,517, higher than the California average of $650,794.

What is the average home price in Santa Clara, California?

The typical home price in Santa Clara, California, reported as the median sale price, is $1,005,517. The median is used instead of a mathematical average because it is not skewed by a small number of very expensive or very cheap homes, so it better reflects what a typical buyer pays.

What is the median rent in Santa Clara, California?

The median gross rent in Santa Clara, California is $3,033 per month, higher than the California average of $2,036.

What was the median gross rent in Santa Clara in 2020?

In 2020, the median gross rent in Santa Clara, California was $2,541 per month.

What is the price-to-rent ratio in Santa Clara, California?

The price-to-rent ratio in Santa Clara, California is about 27.6, meaning it would take roughly 27.6 years of rent payments at the median rent to equal the median home price. That is a relatively high price-to-rent ratio, which tends to favor renting over buying in Santa Clara.

Are home prices or rent rising faster in Santa Clara, California?

Both home prices and rent are rising in Santa Clara, up about 9.4% and 5.8% a year respectively. Home prices are changing faster.

What is the homeownership rate in Santa Clara, California?

39.1% of households in Santa Clara, California own their home, lower than the California average of 51.7%.

What is the vacancy rate in Santa Clara, California?

The housing vacancy rate in Santa Clara, California is 5.4%, lower than the California average of 7.5%.

Analyze any area in the US

Get local demographics for any address, aggregated by drive time or radius, on the interactive map.

Explore the map →