Commercial Real Estate in Mountain View: Zoning, Precise Plans and the City Conveyance Tax

By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.

Mountain View’s commercial property splits between neighborhood shopping and service areas along El Camino Real and the city’s arterials, the downtown around Castro Street, and the large office and research districts north of Central Expressway, especially North Bayshore and East Whisman. Much of the most valuable land is governed by precise plans rather than base zoning, and the city has its own charter-based conveyance tax that rises sharply on large sales. Confirm the district, any precise plan and the tax treatment for each parcel with the Mountain View Planning Division and your escrow officer.

Who controls the parcel

Mountain View is a charter city, and Chapter 36 of its City Code is the zoning ordinance. It sets base commercial, industrial and residential zones, Planned Community (P) districts, and a process for adopting precise plans, which replace base-zone standards inside their boundaries. Little unincorporated County land is left in Mountain View; see our Santa Clara County commercial guide if a parcel turns out to be a County pocket.

Mountain View zoning for commercial, industrial and mixed use

District	Intended uses	Notes
CN Commercial-Neighborhood	Groceries, cleaners, restaurants and salons for nearby homes	Not meant to draw outside traffic; mixed use only where the general plan allows
CO Commercial-Office	Business, medical, professional, real estate and financial offices	Mixed use only where the general plan allows
CRA Commercial/Residential-Arterial	Hotels, retail, restaurants, offices and housing on major arterials	The one commercial zone whose purpose names housing
CS Commercial-Service	Auto repair, wholesale, woodworking, veterinary and similar services	Light industrial-type businesses serving locals
ML Administrative, Research and Limited Industrial	Large administrative facilities, research institutions and specialized manufacturing	Non-nuisance uses only
MM General Industrial	Industrial development, with protections for nearby homes	Air and water quality safeguards
P Planned Community	Site-specific districts	Uses set by the P district or precise plan

The commercial zone purposes date to Ordinance 18.13 of December 10, 2013 and were amended by Ordinance 2.2026 on January 27, 2026. Both industrial zones correspond to the general plan’s general industrial and high-intensity office designations, which is why research and office campuses sit on ML land.

Precise plans: East Whisman, North Bayshore and downtown

East Whisman. The city’s East Whisman Precise Plan page describes the area as a transit-oriented employment center. The plan opens the area to new housing and expanded commercial uses, and sets setbacks, height limits, land uses, design guidelines and new public open space. It comes with administrative guidelines for a jobs-housing linkage program, so office developers should expect a housing component or obligation. Chapter 47 adds a separate East Whisman development impact fee.

North Bayshore. The office and research district north of Highway 101 runs under its own precise plan, which press coverage reports was amended to allow housing. We could not open the city’s North Bayshore page for this review, so confirm current standards, any master plan on the parcel and bonus rules directly with Planning.

Downtown. Castro Street and the surrounding blocks follow the Downtown Precise Plan, which also has its own sign rules in Article XII of Chapter 36. Read the plan’s ground-floor and height standards before leasing or repositioning a downtown building.

Lodging, short-term rentals and local fees

Short-term rentals. Chapter 44, adopted by Ordinance 12.18 in 2018, caps unhosted short-term rentals at 60 days a year, requires city registration and a business license, and bars special events. Hosted stays have no annual cap, so hotels on CRA and ML land still serve most visitors.
Transient occupancy tax. Hotels and short-term rentals pay TOT under Chapter 33; we did not verify the rate.
Precise plan fees. New floor area in East Whisman pays the Chapter 47 impact fee, alongside the citywide transportation impact fee in Chapter 43 and park fees in Chapter 41.

Transfer tax, business tax and property tax

City conveyance tax. Article V of Chapter 29, first adopted in 1973, charges $1.65 per $500 on consideration up to $6 million and $15 per $1,000, or 1.5%, on transfers above $6 million. The higher tier comes from Ordinance 12.2024, dated November 5, 2024, and the exemptions were rewritten by Ordinance 7.2026 in May 2026. The city’s Director of Finance collects it, not the County.
County documentary transfer tax. The County’s real property transfer tax chapter charges $0.55 per $500 and credits only a city tax set at half the County rate. Mountain View’s rate is well above that, so the County tax appears to apply in full alongside the city tax; confirm the total on the escrow estimate.
Business license tax. Chapter 18, enacted by Ordinance 17.18 in November 2018 and effective October 1, 2019, bases the tax on the average number of employees reported to the state. It starts at $75 for one employee and adds per-employee amounts that climb to $150 per head above 5,000 employees, with possible annual CPI adjustment.

A change of ownership generally triggers Proposition 13 reassessment.

Due diligence that matters in Mountain View

Start with our commercial due diligence checklist, then add:

Confirm whether a precise plan or P district, rather than the base zone, controls the parcel.
In East Whisman, price the jobs-housing linkage program and the Chapter 47 impact fee into any new office.
Model the city conveyance tax at the right tier; above $6 million it is 1.5% of the price.
For tenants, estimate the business license tax from employee counts.
For research users, confirm hazardous materials permits under Chapter 24 and ML use rules.
On CS land, check whether existing auto or service uses are legal and conforming.

Questions people ask

Does Mountain View have a transfer tax?

Yes. The city conveyance tax is $1.65 per $500 up to $6 million and $15 per $1,000 above $6 million, on top of the County’s $0.55 per $500, which appears to apply in full.

Which Mountain View zones allow housing with commercial uses?

CRA names housing in its purpose. CN, CO and CS allow mixed use only where the general plan permits, and the East Whisman and North Bayshore precise plans add housing capacity.

What is the East Whisman Precise Plan?

The city’s plan for a transit-oriented employment center, adding housing and commercial uses with a jobs-housing linkage program and an impact fee.

How is the Mountain View business license tax calculated?

On average employee counts reported to the state, from $75 for one employee up to $150 per employee above 5,000.

Can I run a short-term rental in Mountain View?

With city registration and a business license. Unhosted rentals are capped at 60 days a year.

What is ML zoning?

Administrative, research and limited industrial use, intended for large office and research facilities and specialized manufacturing.

Does Diamond handle commercial property in Mountain View?

Contact Matthew Martinez to discuss buying, selling or leasing commercial property in Mountain View.

Sources & notes

Note: We could not open the city’s North Bayshore or Downtown precise plan pages, and did not review land use tables, the East Whisman fee amounts or the TOT rate. Whether the County tax applies in full alongside the city tax was inferred from the County credit rule.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.

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