Blog > Palo Alto Neighborhoods by Their Houses: Age, Rebuilds, Lots and Single-Story Zoning
Palo Alto Neighborhoods by Their Houses: Age, Rebuilds, Lots and Single-Story Zoning
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Palo Alto’s parcel records list the year built, lot size and zoning for every parcel in the city. We took the 14,625 parcels zoned for single-family houses (R-1 and RE) that the city’s plan designates single-family, one record per parcel, and placed each in our neighborhood guide outlines; 14,450 of them fall inside at least one guide. The figures come from the City of Palo Alto’s public parcel data as of October 21, 2026. There are no addresses or owner details here.
The short answer
- Citywide, the median house was built in 1952. 17% of Palo Alto’s single-family houses date from before 1940, 60% from 1940 to 1969, and 14% from 2000 or later.
- Oldest neighborhoods by median year built (guides with at least 150 houses): Professorville (1908), University South (1925) and Southgate (1937).
- Newest: Adobe Meadow & Meadow Park (1957), Palo Verde (1957) and Charleston Gardens (1954).
- Most rebuilt: in county records a full rebuild shows up as a new year built. The highest shares built in 2000 or later are in South of Midtown (22%), Barron Park (19%), Old Palo Alto (18%) and Midtown (18%); the lowest are in Greenmeadow (2%), Charleston Gardens (3%) and Fairmeadow (4%).
- Single-story zoning: 1,002 houses citywide (7%) sit in a single-story (S) overlay, most of them in Greenmeadow (371), Charleston Meadows (174) and Midtown (152).
- Lots: the median lot citywide is 7,004 square feet. The largest medians are in Crescent Park (8,000 sq ft), Greenmeadow (7,953 sq ft) and Professorville (7,875 sq ft); the smallest are in University South (5,625 sq ft) and College Terrace (5,750 sq ft).
Next steps in Palo Alto
- What’s my Palo Alto home worth? Request an estimate, and ask us for the recent sales on your street.
- See Palo Alto homes for sale, then use Save Search to get new listings by email.
- Book a strategy call with a Property Nerd.
Neighborhood by neighborhood
Oldest first, by the median year built. “Houses” counts single-family parcels inside each guide’s outline; some guides sit inside others, so a house can count in two. “Historic” counts houses on the city’s historic inventory (categories 1 to 4), in the Professorville district, or contributing to the Greenmeadow National Register district. Each name opens its guide.
| Neighborhood | Houses | Median year built | Before 1940 | 1940–1969 | 2000 or later | Median lot | Single-story zoning | Historic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professorville | 185 | 1908 | 75% | 10% | 8% | 7,875 sq ft | — | 167 |
| University South | 283 | 1925 | 67% | 11% | 14% | 5,625 sq ft | — | 41 |
| Downtown North | 142 | 1937 | 52% | 12% | 12% | 5,625 sq ft | — | 4 |
| Southgate | 208 | 1937 | 58% | 23% | 14% | 6,300 sq ft | — | 4 |
| Old Palo Alto | 1,157 | 1939 | 51% | 21% | 18% | 7,500 sq ft | — | 55 |
| Crescent Park | 1,184 | 1940 | 49% | 27% | 15% | 8,000 sq ft | — | 69 |
| College Terrace | 492 | 1941 | 47% | 26% | 15% | 5,750 sq ft | — | 23 |
| Evergreen Park | 149 | 1941 | 41% | 25% | 23% | 7,500 sq ft | — | 4 |
| Community Center | 432 | 1947 | 44% | 21% | 17% | 7,350 sq ft | — | 4 |
| Duveneck / St. Francis | 1,248 | 1950 | 2% | 85% | 11% | 6,688 sq ft | 5% | 63 |
| Leland Manor / Garland | 710 | 1950 | 8% | 75% | 13% | 7,507 sq ft | 10% | — |
| Ventura | 345 | 1950 | 11% | 75% | 11% | 6,000 sq ft | — | — |
| Charleston Meadows | 331 | 1951 | 1% | 91% | 5% | 6,492 sq ft | 53% | — |
| Barron Park | 1,189 | 1952 | 9% | 62% | 19% | 7,500 sq ft | 2% | 1 |
| Fairmeadow | 300 | 1952 | 0% | 96% | 4% | 6,197 sq ft | — | — |
| South of Midtown | 924 | 1952 | under 1% | 73% | 22% | 6,250 sq ft | — | — |
| Midtown | 2,517 | 1953 | 3% | 72% | 18% | 6,725 sq ft | 6% | 2 |
| Monroe Park | 133 | 1953 | 5% | 62% | 20% | 9,448 sq ft | — | 1 |
| Charleston Gardens | 154 | 1954 | 0% | 96% | 3% | 6,125 sq ft | — | — |
| Green Acres | 394 | 1954 | 3% | 71% | 15% | 7,725 sq ft | — | — |
| Greenmeadow | 539 | 1954 | 0% | 96% | 2% | 7,953 sq ft | 69% | 242 |
| Triple El | 68 | 1955 | 0% | 97% | 1% | 6,571 sq ft | 100% | — |
| Adobe Meadow & Meadow Park | 411 | 1957 | 1% | 79% | 8% | 7,389 sq ft | 19% | — |
| Palo Verde | 831 | 1957 | 1% | 83% | 7% | 7,245 sq ft | 10% | — |
| Palo Alto Hills | 74 | 1971 | 1% | 41% | 10% | 36,345 sq ft | — | — |
| Esther Clark Park | 123 | 1975 | 4% | 28% | 26% | 21,337 sq ft | — | — |
| All of Palo Alto | 14,625 | 1952 | 17% | 60% | 14% | 7,004 sq ft | 7% | 680 |
What stands out
- The oldest houses ring downtown. Professorville, University South, Downtown North, Southgate, Old Palo Alto and Crescent Park all have median years before 1941; Professorville’s median house dates from 1908, and 90% of its houses are on the historic inventory or in the district. Every other guide’s median falls between 1941 and 1975, and 15 of them are in the 1950s.
- Eichler tracts have been rebuilt the least. The lowest shares of houses built in 2000 or later are in Greenmeadow (2%), Charleston Gardens (3%), Fairmeadow (4%) and Charleston Meadows (5%).
- Where the single-story overlay applies. The (S) overlay, which limits a house to one story, covers most houses in Greenmeadow (69%), Charleston Meadows (53%) and Triple El (100%), and part of Midtown (6%), Palo Verde (10%), Adobe Meadow & Meadow Park (19%), Leland Manor / Garland (10%), Duveneck / St. Francis (5%) and Barron Park (2%).
Reading it right
- “Year built” is the record’s year. A house torn down and rebuilt shows the rebuild year; an older house with a big addition keeps its original year.
- Zoning isn’t use. We counted parcels zoned and designated for single-family houses; a few may hold a second unit or sit vacant.
- Lot sizes come from the city’s parcel records, which round to the square foot and can differ from a survey.
- A median isn’t a verdict. It describes the houses, not which neighborhood is right for you.
Go deeper
Palo Alto Flood Zones by Neighborhood uses the same parcels with FEMA’s flood maps. Palo Alto’s Eichler single-story overlays explains the (S) rules, Palo Alto Neighborhoods Ranked by Price per Square Foot shows what recent sales brought, and The Most Expensive Streets in Palo Alto goes street by street. The Palo Alto city guide links every neighborhood guide.
The Palo Alto data series: housing market by the numbers · neighborhoods ranked by price per sq ft · where homes sell over asking · ten years of prices by neighborhood · condos and townhomes · house prices by bedrooms · houses under $3M · houses at $5M and up · the best month to sell · the most expensive streets · flood zones by neighborhood · our sales map
Thinking about a rebuild or a second story?
A Property Nerd can pull the zoning, the lot, any historic status and the recent sales on your street before you plan. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a strategy call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.
Selling? Start with selling a home in Palo Alto: how we’d price, prepare and launch your sale, and the homes we’ve listed and sold in Palo Alto.