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Small town

Living in Portola Valley, CA

Portola Valley is a small town of 4,305 people in San Mateo County, California. It's about 23 miles from San Jose, CA. Summer highs average 84°F and winter highs 59°F, with almost no snow. The typical home is valued around $2.0M and rent runs about $4k a month.

4,305people
$2.0MTypical home
$3,501/moRent
84° / 59°Summer / winter
0"Snow
270Sunny days
87Rain/snow days

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Size & setting

  • Small town of 4,305
  • Part of a metro area
  • About 474 people per sq mi
  • 23 mi to San Jose, CA
  • 23 mi to San Jose, CA
  • 5 mi to the nearest town of 10k+

Money

  • Typical home $2.0M (≈$13k/mo)
  • Median rent $3,501/mo
  • Median household income $250k
  • Property tax about 0.5% of value
  • 3.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 84°F
  • Winter highs around 59°F
  • Comfortable summers (dew point 54°F)
  • 270 sunny days a year (95 totally clear)
  • 95 cloudy days a year
  • 34 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 87 days a year with rain or snow
  • Basically no snow
  • Snow days are rare
  • 5 days a year over 100°F
  • Rarely drops below 10°F
  • Windier than most places

Safety

  • Low violent crime (223 per 100k), county-wide
  • Low property crime (1,369 per 100k), county-wide

People

  • Median age 61
  • 23% of households have kids
  • 41% are 65 or older
  • 84% have a college degree
  • Mixed community
  • 3% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 22 min
  • 4% walk or take transit to work
  • 10 mi to SQL airport
  • 17 mi to SJC (major hub)
  • 18 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 84% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1966
  • 96% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Hilly terrain
  • Elevation 984 ft
  • 9 mi to the ocean
  • 142 mi to a big lake
  • 3 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 137 mi to the nearest ski area
  • 5 mi to the nearest campground
  • 48 golf courses within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 2,822 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • 165 bars within 25 mi
  • 1,157 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • 30 music venues & clubs within 25 mi
  • 87 museums within 25 mi
  • 20 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
  • 6 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the top 7% of California districts (reading)
  • 2 mi to the nearest grocery store
  • 4 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 5 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • Vet in town
  • 6 mi to the nearest dog park
  • 3 congregations per 10k people
  • 3 mi to the nearest college

Politics

  • San Mateo County: D+50 in 2024
  • California: D+20 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Very low hurricane risk
  • Low tornado risk
  • Low wildfire risk
  • High earthquake risk
  • Moderate flood risk
  • Moderate drought risk
  • Very low winter storm risk
  • Low heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

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