Muir Beach, CA Real Estate & Homes for Sale
By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.
Muir Beach is a small unincorporated coastal community on Highway 1 in southern Marin County, California, with a little more than 300 residents, surrounded by state and federal parkland and the Pacific Ocean. Water comes from the Muir Beach Community Services District, and the district’s 2007 guidebook says every property has its own septic system. Sales are rare: Redfin’s latest median, $5.2 million for the three months ending April 2026, rests on only a few sales. Marin County sets the rules, under its Coastal Zone program.
- County
- Marin County
- Government
- Unincorporated (county rules, Coastal Zone)
- ZIP code
- 94965 (shared with Sausalito)
- Median sale price
- $5.2 million (3 months to Apr 2026, Redfin; very few sales)
- Population
- More than 305 (Muir Beach CSD)
- Water
- Muir Beach Community Services District
- Sewer
- Private septic systems (CSD guidebook, 2007)
Muir Beach homes for sale
Any current Muir Beach listings appear below. Because so few homes sell here, it helps to follow Stinson Beach and the Mill Valley side of the mountain as well. Use our property search to set up an alert for ZIP 94965 and the coast.
What do homes in Muir Beach sell for?
$5.2M
Three months to April 2026, Redfin
48
Three months to April 2026, Redfin
$1,678,750
September 2026, C.A.R. (single-family)
Muir Beach has too few sales for a meaningful median. Redfin’s $5.2 million figure, up 131.1% from a year earlier, reflects only a few closed sales, so one large house can double or halve it. ZIP-level figures don’t help either, because 94965 also covers Sausalito. To price a home here, we use individual sales of comparable coastal homes over several years, adjusted for size, lot, view and the septic system’s condition.
| Measure | Figure | Period and source |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price, Muir Beach | $5.2 million (up 131.1%; very few sales) | Three months to April 2026, Redfin |
| Median days on market, Muir Beach | 48 | Three months to April 2026, Redfin |
| Sausalito median (same ZIP, 94965) | $1,574,250 | September 2026, Redfin |
| Marin County median, single-family | $1,678,750 | September 2026, C.A.R. |
Only the county’s documentary transfer tax applies, $1.10 per $1,000 of value. See the Marin County real estate guide for county-wide costs.
Water from the Muir Beach Community Services District
The Muir Beach Community Services District (CSD) is responsible for water quality and distribution, fire protection, roads and infrastructure, and recreation. Its guidebook, dated November 13, 2007, says the district’s wells are on its Frank Valley Road property and that the former Seacape Mutual Water Company system made up a major part of the district’s system (Muir Beach CSD guidebook).
- Where the district stops: the 2007 guidebook puts the district’s responsibility at each home’s water meter, with the house side belonging to the owner. Confirm the current rule with the CSD.
- Rates: the guidebook described tiered rates meant to encourage conservation; ask the district for its current rates and the seller for a year of bills.
- Before you expand: ask the CSD about any connection, meter or capacity limits before planning an addition or an ADU.
Septic systems and building in the Coastal Zone
The CSD’s 2007 guidebook says there is no public sewer: each property maintains its own septic system under Marin County Environmental Health rules. Confirm the system for any home you’re considering with the county’s records. The county classifies systems from Class I (code-complying) to Class IV (undocumented or failing), and alternative systems need an annual operating permit and professional monitoring (Marin County Environmental Health Services).
- At sale: the county recommends, but doesn’t require, a septic inspection. Order one, and ask the county for its file on the system.
- Rules in flux: the county’s septic regulations (its Local Agency Management Program) are being rewritten, with adoption targeted for the end of 2026, and the county is considering lowering the 150 gallons per day per bedroom it uses to size systems (County of Marin). If you plan to add a bedroom, ask how the new rules would size the system.
- Coastal permits: Muir Beach is in the unincorporated Coastal Zone (it is one of the ten coastal communities named in the county’s 2024 coastal short-term rental amendment), so new building is reviewed under the county’s Local Coastal Program through Coastal Development Permits. The updated program took effect on July 13, 2021.
Roads and Highway 1 access
Muir Beach is reached by Shoreline Highway, the local name for State Route 1, which Caltrans maintains. Inside the community, who maintains a road depends on the road, and that affects who pays for upkeep. The CSD guidebook (2007) lists them this way:
| Maintained by | Roads |
|---|---|
| Caltrans | Shoreline Highway (Route 1) |
| Marin County | Pacific Way (to the beach parking lot), Ahab Drive, Seacape Drive, Starbuck Drive (to the cul-de-sac) |
| Private, within the CSD | Charlotte’s Way, Cove Lane, Lagoon Drive, Pacific Way above the beach lot, Sunset Way, Starbuck Extension, White Way |
For a home on a private road, ask the CSD how upkeep is funded and confirm the 2007 list is current.
Highway 1 itself can close. After the rains of 2017, a slide took out part of the hillside under the highway between Stinson Beach and Muir Beach, and that stretch stayed closed for almost a year; repairs with new retaining walls cost about $50 million, and it reopened in January 2018 with one-lane sections and traffic signals (KPIX 5). Before you buy, check Caltrans for current roadwork on the route.
Living next to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area
The beach and much of the land around the community are part of the National Park Service’s Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA), which covers 80,624 legislated acres across San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo counties and includes Muir Woods (National Park Service). The CSD’s 2007 guidebook notes that the GGNRA was established in 1972 and that its policy has been to return the land around Muir Beach toward wilderness, curtailing farming and commercial activity nearby.
Around the beach, the Park Service has restored Redwood Creek. The project, which began in 2009 and was mainly completed in 2013–2014, reconnected the floodplain across a 46-acre site, restored an intermittent tidal lagoon, improved the parking lot and picnic area, added a 225-foot pedestrian bridge and, in the Park Service’s words, “reduced flooding on Pacific Way,” the county road down to the beach (National Park Service). If you’re looking at a home near the lower end of Pacific Way, still check the FEMA flood map for the parcel.
Can you rent a Muir Beach home to visitors?
Only with a county license, and the cap is small. Outside the cities, Marin County Code Chapter 5.41 requires a short-term rental license, a business license and a transient occupancy tax certificate for any stay under 30 days. The Muir Beach township cap was 20 licenses, stepping down to 19 as licenses lapse (19 in the October 2026 procedures), and new applicants join a first-come waitlist (Marin County STR procedures, February 2025).
- The license doesn’t transfer: it ends automatically when the property changes hands, with one exception for a transfer from a person to a spouse or children. A buyer can’t take over the seller’s rental income stream.
- Septic paperwork: license applicants must submit an STR septic inspection form completed within the past year by an approved provider.
- Tax: the county’s transient occupancy tax is 10% in unincorporated Marin and 14% in West Marin. Confirm with the county Department of Finance which rate applies to a Muir Beach parcel.
Fire protection and hazard zones
Muir Beach has a volunteer fire department of roughly a dozen volunteers, working from an aging firehouse on Shoreline Highway while the district builds a new station, with Marin County and Southern Marin firefighters providing mutual aid, according to a June 4, 2026 Marin Independent Journal report. On June 2, 2026, Muir Beach voters were asked to approve Measure M, a CSD parcel tax of $386 per parcel a year from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2036, adjusted for inflation, to raise $61,374 a year for fire protection, firehouse maintenance, emergency preparedness and equipment (Marin County Elections). It needed a two-thirds vote, and election-night results showed 84% in favor (43 votes to 8). Check the certified result and the parcel’s tax bill.
The State Fire Marshal’s updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps took effect April 1, 2024 for state responsibility areas, and the local-area maps followed in 2025 (State Fire Marshal). Look up the parcel on the state’s viewer. In a High or Very High zone, California’s AB 38 rule requires the seller to provide a recent defensible-space inspection, or the buyer agrees to get one within a year of closing. Get insurance quotes as soon as you’re in contract, because availability and price can change the numbers on a purchase.
Muir Beach compared with nearby areas
| Area | Government | One verified difference |
|---|---|---|
| Muir Beach | Unincorporated, Coastal Zone | CSD water; private septic systems (CSD guidebook, 2007); short-term rental cap of 20 licenses |
| Stinson Beach | Unincorporated, Coastal Zone | Water and an onsite wastewater program run by the Stinson Beach County Water District; Marin Transit Route 61 stops there |
| Mill Valley | Incorporated city | Marin Water and a public sewer; a sewer lateral inspection before title transfers; median $1,898,743 (Aug 2026, Redfin) |
| Sausalito | Incorporated city | Same ZIP code, 94965; short-term rentals banned in homes; Golden Gate Ferry to San Francisco |
| Bolinas | Unincorporated, Coastal Zone | No new municipal water connections since 1971 under the utility district’s moratorium |
How Diamond Real Estate Group helps Muir Beach buyers
A Muir Beach purchase depends on the systems behind the house as much as the house itself. Before you commit, request the septic inspection and the county’s file on the system, confirm the water service and any CSD charges with the district, find out whether the home is on a county or a private road, look up the fire hazard zone, and check the permit and Coastal Development Permit history of any addition. If rental income matters, check the county’s license waitlist first, because the seller’s license ends at closing.
See also the Marin hiking trails guide and how we work with buyers. Owners thinking of selling can start with a home valuation, and our luxury real estate page covers estate-level coastal property.
Selling a home in Muir Beach
Muir Beach is unincorporated, so Marin County holds the building, coastal and septic files, and the Muir Beach Community Services District supplies the water. We found no county resale report or sewer-lateral rule for the community. The small scale of the local systems still shapes what buyers ask to see.
Water and wastewater
- Water. The district draws on the Redwood Creek watershed through two service wells, serves 159 paying customers and can deliver up to 45,000 gallons a day. Billing is every two months: a meter charge of $88.75 for a 5/8- to 1-inch meter, a small capacity charge, and $2.86 per 100 gallons. A year of bills helps a buyer budget; ask the district how it handles the account at closing.
- Septic. Pull the permit and class for your system from the county’s digital septic archive. If it’s an alternative design, tell buyers it carries an annual operating permit and professional monitoring. An evaluation on Environmental Health’s residential inspection form, done before listing, puts the condition report in front of buyers early.
Coast, permits and fire
- Muir Beach was among the communities studied in Marin’s 2018 C-SMART report on sea-level rise and storm surge, which also flagged temporary road flooding and closures. The state’s Natural Hazard Disclosure form covers FEMA flood zones, not sea-level rise, so share any drainage or flood records you have.
- For additions, decks and retaining walls on these slopes, gather the county building permits and any Coastal Development Permit.
- Check the address in Marin County Fire’s lookup. In a High or Very High zone, the buyer gets AB 38 documentation, or a written agreement to obtain it within a year after closing.
Rentals and transfer tax
The county’s October 2026 procedures allow 19 short-term rental licenses in Muir Beach. Any license expires automatically when the property changes hands, apart from one transfer to a spouse or children, and an operator owes the Tax Collector written notice 30 days ahead of the sale.
Muir Beach has no city transfer tax; the county’s rate is $0.55 per $500 of value. The seller customarily pays in Diamond’s North Bay markets, though buyers and sellers can split it differently; our transfer tax guide explains it. See the Marin County selling requirements, or learn how we handle listing and selling a coastal home.
Sources for this section: Muir Beach Community Services District: Water; Marin County Environmental Health Services: Septic systems; Adaptation Clearinghouse: Marin County Ocean Coast Sea-Level Rise Adaptation Report (C-SMART, 2018); California Public Law: Civil Code section 1103.2 (Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement); Marin County Fire: What is an AB-38 inspection?; Marin County CDA: Short-term rental administrative procedures (October 2026); California Coastal Commission: Marin County short-term rental LCP amendment exhibits, ordinance text (April 2024); Marin County Department of Finance: Transient occupancy tax, sell, transfer or terminate operations; Marin County Assessor-Recorder: Fees (documentary transfer tax).
Muir Beach real estate FAQs
What is the ZIP code for Muir Beach?
Muir Beach uses 94965, the same ZIP code as Sausalito, so ZIP-level price figures mostly describe Sausalito’s market.
How much do homes in Muir Beach cost?
Redfin’s latest median was $5.2 million for the three months ending April 2026, but it rests on only a few sales; the Marin County single-family median was $1,678,750 in September 2026 (C.A.R.). Individual recent sales tell you more than any median here.
Who supplies water to Muir Beach homes?
The Muir Beach Community Services District. Its 2007 guidebook says the water comes from district wells on its Frank Valley Road property and that rates were tiered to encourage conservation. Ask the district for current rates, and about capacity before planning an addition.
Do Muir Beach homes have sewer service?
Not according to the district’s 2007 guidebook, which says each property maintains its own septic system under county Environmental Health rules; confirm the system for a specific home with the county. The county recommends rather than requires an inspection at sale, so budget for one during escrow.
Can I add an ADU or a bedroom to a Muir Beach home?
Possibly, but three things decide it: a Coastal Development Permit under the county’s Local Coastal Program, a septic system sized for the added bedrooms, and water service from the CSD. Also note that newer ADUs in unincorporated Marin can’t be used as short-term rentals.
Can I use a Muir Beach home as a vacation rental?
Only with a county short-term rental license, and the Muir Beach cap is 20 licenses, falling to 19. New applicants join a waitlist, and a seller’s license ends when the property sells, so don’t count on rental income from day one.
Are there homes for sale near Muir Woods?
Muir Woods National Monument is federal parkland within the GGNRA, so there are no homes inside it. Nearby private homes are in Muir Beach and in the unincorporated area the county calls Muir Woods Park, which has its own short-term rental cap of 19 licenses.
Is there public transportation to Muir Beach?
Not in the way most buyers would need. Marin Transit Route 61, the coastal bus from Sausalito to Bolinas, runs over Panoramic Highway through Pan Toll to Stinson Beach, and its listed stops don’t include Muir Beach (Marin Transit). Plan on a car.
Who provides fire protection in Muir Beach?
A volunteer fire department of roughly a dozen volunteers, based in an aging firehouse on Shoreline Highway while the district builds a new station, with mutual aid from Marin County and Southern Marin firefighters (Marin Independent Journal, June 2026). In June 2026 the CSD put a $386-a-year parcel tax for fire protection and firehouse maintenance, Measure M, before voters; election-night results showed 84% in favor, above the two-thirds it needed.
Is my Muir Beach road public or private?
It depends on the street. The CSD guidebook (2007) lists Pacific Way below the beach lot, Ahab Drive, Seacape Drive and Starbuck Drive as county roads, and Cove Lane, Sunset Way, Lagoon Drive, White Way and others as private. Confirm the current status and any maintenance charges for the address.
Sources & notes
- Redfin: Muir Beach housing market (three months to April 2026) and C.A.R.: September 2026 sales and price report
- Muir Beach Community Services District: district home page and guidebook (November 13, 2007)
- County of Marin: septic systems, septic regulations update, Local Coastal Program and short-term rental procedures (February 2025)
- California Coastal Commission: county short-term rental ordinance text (2024)
- KPIX 5: Highway 1 reopens after landslide (January 2018)
- National Park Service: Redwood Creek restoration at Muir Beach and GGNRA statistics
- Marin County Elections: Measure M (June 2, 2026), Marin Independent Journal, via Fire Apparatus Magazine: Muir Beach voters approve fire tax (June 4, 2026), State Fire Marshal: fire hazard severity zones and Marin Transit Route 61
Figures carry their dates where they appear. This is general information, not legal, tax or insurance advice; confirm the rules for a specific property with the agency named.
Plan your next move
Share your preferred location, budget, property requirements and timing. We can help organize a focused search, arrange showings or discuss preparing a property for sale.
Local resource: Marin County planning and township resources. Check official information for the address you are considering; area descriptions do not establish a property’s permitted uses.
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Matthew Martinez
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Local property guides
- Buying a Home in Muir Beach: Coastal Permits, Parcel Records and Existing Improvements
- Muir Beach Settings: Comparing Shoreline Context, Inland Homes and Sloping Sites
- What Does a Muir Beach Home Cost to Own? Insurance, Maintenance and Utilities
- Muir Beach Home Inspections: Drainage, Foundations, Roofs and Site Access
- Pricing a Muir Beach Home: Testing Views, Access, Condition and Comparable Evidence
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