Best Realtors in San Ardo, CA (2026 Guide)
By Matthew Martinez
San Ardo is a small unincorporated community of about 460 people on Highway 101 in the southern Salinas Valley, south of King City. Most property here is farmland, ranch land or a home on a small town lot or rural parcel, and no agent profile we found names San Ardo itself, so the agents below are ones whose profiles name South Monterey County or Monterey County.
This guide is published by Diamond Real Estate Group, one of the brokerages listed. Our broker is listed first; other agents are in alphabetical order. The order is not a ranking, and inclusion is not an endorsement.
How we chose the agents in this guide
Each agent below met three checks in October 2026:
- A current California license. We opened each agent’s record on the California Department of Real Estate (DRE) public lookup and confirmed the name, license type (salesperson or broker) and a "Licensed" status, with a responsible broker or broker-associate affiliation that matches the brokerage on the agent’s profile.
- A named brokerage. Each agent’s DRE record shows the brokerage they work under.
- A public profile tied to the area. We opened each agent’s profile and confirmed it names South Monterey County or Monterey County. None names San Ardo by name.
We did not rank agents, and we did not consider sales volume, reviews or awards. Licenses and affiliations change, so check the license yourself before you sign anything, and interview more than one agent. In a community this small, ask each agent how many south county rural sales they have handled.
San Ardo housing in numbers
| Census measure (ACS 2024 5-year) | San Ardo CDP |
|---|---|
| Population | 462 |
| Median value of owner-occupied homes | $445,900 (±$255,314) |
| Median age | 25.7 |
| Persons per household | 4.2 |
| Mean travel time to work | 20.8 minutes |
| Housing units | 116 |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates, as presented by Census Reporter. With about 116 housing units, these figures carry very wide margins of error, and the Census did not publish a median household income; treat them as rough guides, not current sale prices.
San Ardo’s estimated median owner-occupied value is far below the Monterey County figure of $808,600 (ACS 2024 1-year, Census Reporter). Farm and ranch parcels around town price very differently from the homes the Census counts, so ask agents for comparable rural sales, not town averages.
Farmland, ranches and the Highway 101 corridor
San Ardo has no city government, so Monterey County handles zoning and permits under its inland zoning code, Title 21. Much of the land around the community is farmland on the Salinas River bottom or grazing land in the hills, with a small cluster of homes near the highway. For more, see our San Ardo real estate guide, our rural water and wastewater notes, our private roads and site access page and our Monterey County land and ranches guide.
Costs and rules specific to a San Ardo purchase
- Transfer tax. San Ardo is unincorporated, so no city transfer tax applies. Monterey County Code Chapter 5.32 sets Monterey County’s documentary transfer tax at 55 cents per $500 ($1.10 per $1,000), about $490 on a $445,900 sale. Settle who pays in the purchase contract, confirm on your escrow estimate, and see our California transfer tax guide.
- Zoning. Farm and ranch parcels fall under the County’s agricultural districts in Title 21. Ask County Housing and Community Development for a zoning confirmation before you plan a second home, farmworker housing or a new barn.
- Vacation rentals. The County’s short-term rental page says stays of 30 days or less in the inland unincorporated county need a discretionary permit and are limited to certain districts.
- Wells and septic. Most rural homes rely on private wells and septic systems. Get a well yield and water quality test and a septic inspection, and ask whether the parcel has any recorded water rights.
- Flood and hazard disclosures. Land near the Salinas River can sit in mapped flood areas. Read the natural hazard disclosure report and check fire hazard maps on the State Fire Marshal’s Fire Hazard Severity Zone viewer for hillside parcels.
San Ardo agents with verified licenses
Matthew Martinez, Diamond Real Estate Group (publisher of this guide)
Matthew Martinez is the Founder, CEO and Managing Broker of Diamond Real Estate Group. He is based in Sonoma County; contact him to discuss a purchase or sale in San Ardo. Contact Matthew · Broker #01869679 · Diamond Group Estates Inc DBA Diamond Real Estate Group, DRE #02163490
| Agent | Brokerage | License | Areas named on profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Folliard (licensed as Thomas Joseph Folliard) | Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Real Time Realty, Salinas | Salesperson #01126658 | Monterey County |
| Joe Garcia (licensed as Jose Jesus Garcia) | eXp Realty of California | Salesperson #01878384 | Monterey County |
| Elba Montero (licensed as Elba Covarrubias Montero) | RE/MAX Property Experts, Salinas | Salesperson #02095191 | Monterey, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and San Benito counties |
| Starlette Sanchez (licensed as Starlette Gadomski-Sanchez) | RE/MAX Property Experts, Salinas | Broker #01247690 DRE record name: Gadomski-Sanchez, Starlette. | Monterey County, Salinas, Monterey |
| Kim Tankersley (licensed as Kimberly Kay Tankersley) | Oak Shores Realty, King City | Broker #01412138 | King City, South Monterey County, San Antonio Valley |
On the DRE record, Kim Tankersley is a broker associate of Oak Shores Realty (DRE #02201406), whose King City office at 523 Broadway Street is the closest of these to San Ardo; RE/MAX Property Experts agents are licensed under Bay Capital Real Estate, Inc.; Tom Folliard under Real Time Realty Inc. (DRE #01900835); and Joe Garcia under eXp Realty of California, Inc. (DRE #01878277). For nearby agents, see our San Lucas guide, our Soledad guide and our Monterey County agents guide.
How to vet a San Ardo agent
- Ask about farm and ranch sales. Ask how many south county rural sales the agent has handled and how they price farmland and ranch land.
- Confirm water before you write an offer. Ask for well logs, yield and quality tests and any water rights records.
- Check access and easements. Ask whether the parcel is reached by a shared private road and whether there is a road maintenance agreement.
- Ask about flood risk on river land. Ask the agent to pull the hazard report and flood map early.
- Ask about Williamson Act or other land contracts. Ask whether the parcel is under any agricultural preserve contract that would carry over to you.
- Check the license yourself. Confirm a "Licensed" status with a current broker on the DRE lookup.
San Ardo questions we hear
Is there a city transfer tax in San Ardo?
No. San Ardo is unincorporated, so only Monterey County’s tax applies, set at $1.10 per $1,000 by Monterey County Code Chapter 5.32.
What is the median home value in San Ardo?
Census estimates put it at about $445,900 for 2020–2024, with a margin of error of more than $255,000 because the community has only about 116 housing units.
Why don’t the agents’ profiles name San Ardo?
We did not find any public profile that names San Ardo itself. The agents listed name South Monterey County or Monterey County, and the nearest office among them is in King City.
Who handles permits in San Ardo?
Monterey County Housing and Community Development, under the County’s inland zoning code.
Sources & notes
- California DRE public license lookup (individual records linked in the table)
- Census Reporter, San Ardo CDP profile (ACS 2024 5-year)
- Census Reporter, Monterey County profile (ACS 2024 1-year)
- Monterey County Code Chapter 5.32, Documentary Transfer Tax (county rate of $0.55 per $500, with credit for a qualifying city tax)
- Monterey County zoning code index, Titles 20 and 21
- Monterey County HCD, short-term rentals
- State Fire Marshal, Fire Hazard Severity Zones
- Agent profiles on mlslistings.com and remax.com, linked in the table
- License records checked October 2026 on the California DRE public lookup. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
Related: San Ardo real estate guide · San Ardo home valuation · Monterey County agents guide · 20 tips for choosing a real estate agent
License-status update: the linked California DRE public records were checked November 2, 2026 and showed "Licensed." Public profile research retains the dates stated above. Names on DRE records may differ from public profile names; verify status and brokerage before selecting an agent.
