Nicasio, CA Real Estate & Homes for Sale
By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.
Nicasio is an unincorporated rural community in inland West Marin, Marin County, California, in ZIP code 94946, where Marin Water’s Nicasio Reservoir lies along Nicasio Valley Road and ranch parcels can carry zoning of one home per 60 acres. Sales are rare: Redfin’s latest figure for the ZIP, from October 2025, is a single sale at $1.2 million. Marin County, not a city, sets the zoning and permit rules, and Nicasio isn’t one of the county’s ten coastal-zone communities.
- County
- Marin County
- Government
- Unincorporated; inland West Marin
- ZIP code
- 94946
- Reservoir
- Nicasio Reservoir (Marin Water)
- Schools
- Nicasio School District (K–8)
- Short-term rental cap
- 11 licenses, stepping down to 8 (County of Marin)
Nicasio homes for sale
Current MLS listings for Nicasio and ZIP 94946 appear below. Redfin’s latest reported month for the ZIP is October 2025, so set up an alert in our property search that also covers the San Geronimo Valley and the Tomales Bay communities.
What do homes in Nicasio sell for?
$1.2 million
October 2025, Redfin (ZIP 94946, one sale)
178
Redfin, October 2025
$1,678,750
September 2026, single-family, from C.A.R.
Nicasio doesn’t produce a usable median. Redfin’s most recent figure for ZIP 94946 is from October 2025 and rests on one sale, at $1.2 million after 178 days on the market (Redfin). Its price per square foot, $506, says more about that one property than about the valley. ATTOM’s property records give a better sense of scale: about 251 residential properties in the whole ZIP code, with single-family homes averaging 2,537 square feet.
| Measure | Figure | Period and source |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price, ZIP 94946 | $1.2 million (one sale; down 25.7% year over year) | October 2025, Redfin (latest month reported) |
| Price per square foot | $506 (down 40.6%) | October 2025, Redfin |
| Housing stock, ZIP 94946 | 251 residential and 4 commercial properties; average single-family home 2,537 sq ft and 54 years old | ATTOM, data updated April 2025 |
| Marin County median, single-family | $1,678,750, up 1.7% on the year | September 2026, C.A.R. |
A Nicasio ranch is priced from its land as much as its house: acreage, zoning density, water, any easement or Williamson Act contract, and how much of the parcel can actually be grazed or farmed. We pull comparable ranch sales from across West Marin, not just the ZIP code.
Where is Nicasio, California?
Nicasio is inland, with addresses on Nicasio Valley Road, Lucas Valley Road and Point Reyes-Petaluma Road. It’s unincorporated, so Marin County’s Community Development Agency handles zoning, design review, building permits and rental licenses. Nicasio isn’t one of the ten communities in the county’s unincorporated coastal zone, so projects here generally go through county zoning, design review and building permits rather than the coastal permit process; confirm a specific parcel’s status with the Planning Division.
Transfer tax is the county’s alone, at $1.10 per $1,000 of the sale price. Our Marin County guide sets Nicasio beside the county’s cities and coastal towns.
Nicasio Reservoir and the 2025 spillway plan
Nicasio Reservoir is one of seven reservoirs owned by Marin Water, the Marin Municipal Water District, which serves more than 191,000 people in central and southern Marin; Nicasio and Soulajule are its two reservoirs in west Marin, and about 75% of the district’s supply is rain falling on its watersheds (Marin Water). Seeger Dam holds the reservoir back, and Nicasio Valley Road and Point Reyes-Petaluma Road run along it and in places across it.
In April 2025 the district proposed adding a 280-foot inflatable rubber gate to the spillway to store about 3,700 more acre-feet. Its notice said the higher water could affect roads, culverts, wells and septic systems, and listed 23 parcels partly inside the expanded storage area (Marin Water). In August 2025 Marin Water dropped the project, citing runaway costs and limited benefits; residents had turned up records showing the district had proposed and abandoned the same idea more than 40 years earlier (Point Reyes Light).
The spillway plan is off, but the episode is a reminder for buyers of land beside the reservoir: check where the parcel’s boundary, well and septic system sit relative to the shoreline, and ask Marin Water whether any future storage project could reach them.
Ranch zoning in Nicasio
A county design-review application for a 45-acre Nicasio parcel at 5757 Lucas Valley Road (project page updated May 2026) shows how ranch land here can be zoned: ARP-60 zoning, the Agricultural, Residential Planned district with a density of one unit per 60 acres, under the Countywide Plan’s AG1 agricultural designation of one unit per 30 to 60 acres (Marin County Planning). The same application, for two accessory buildings, also included a new septic system and a fire-truck turnaround.
What that means when you buy: the number of homes a ranch can hold is set by its zoning density, not its size alone, and new barns or second structures can trigger design review. Get the parcel’s zoning and any recorded land-division conditions from the county before you plan improvements.
Williamson Act contracts and MALT easements
Two kinds of recorded agreement can limit what a Nicasio ranch buyer can do with the land.
- Williamson Act contracts: under the California Land Conservation Act of 1965, an owner contracts with the county to keep the land in farming and not subdivide it, and in return the county assesses it at a lower value, which cuts the property tax. Marin’s Assessor gives that benefit to land used for commercial farming (County of Marin). The state Department of Conservation says contracts run for at least nine years, renew automatically every year unless a notice of nonrenewal is filed, and bind every later buyer; cancelling a standard contract costs a fee of 12.5% of the property’s current market value as set by the county assessor (California Department of Conservation).
- MALT easements: the Marin Agricultural Land Trust, founded in 1980, holds 99 agricultural conservation easements protecting 59,028 acres (MALT). Under California Civil Code §815.2, a conservation easement is perpetual and is an interest in the land itself, and its specific limits are those written in the recorded easement.
Ask for the recorded contract or easement early in escrow, because they set what you can build or divide later.
Wells, septic and fire
County planning files and Marin Water’s 2025 reservoir notice both show private wells and septic systems on Nicasio parcels, so read the county records. Marin County requires a permit to operate a private well as a domestic water supply, with yield and quality standards in County Code Chapter 7.28, and septic systems are permitted and classed by Environmental Health Services (Marin EHS). The county recommends but doesn’t require a septic inspection at sale, and its well rules don’t call for a test at sale, so order both. The county is also rewriting its septic rules, with adoption targeted for the end of 2026.
For fire, look up the parcel on the State Fire Marshal’s Fire Hazard Severity Zone viewer. In a High or Very High zone, California’s AB 38 rule means the seller provides a defensible-space inspection from the past six months, or you agree in writing to get one within a year of closing. Ask insurers to quote the property in the first days of escrow, while you can still walk away.
Renting out a Nicasio property
Short-term rentals need a county license, and Nicasio’s cap is 11, stepping down to 8 as licenses lapse (County of Marin). New applicants join a waitlist, and a seller’s license ends when the property sells. Nicasio is named in the West Marin transient occupancy tax area, so guests pay 14% rather than the county’s standard 10% (Ordinance 3692).
For longer-term rentals, unincorporated Marin requires mediation when a landlord raises rent by more than 5% in 12 months (County of Marin), and the county’s just-cause eviction ordinance applies to properties with three or more units (Legal Aid of Marin). See how we work with investors before counting on rental income.
Nicasio compared with nearby areas
| Area | Setting | One verified difference |
|---|---|---|
| Nicasio | Unincorporated, inland ranch land | STR cap 11, falling to 8; not one of the ten coastal-zone communities |
| San Geronimo | Unincorporated, San Geronimo Valley | On Marin Transit Route 68; STR cap 10, falling to 7 |
| Lagunitas | Unincorporated, San Geronimo Valley | STR cap 6, falling to 4 |
| Marshall | Unincorporated, Tomales Bay, coastal zone | Shared onsite wastewater zone for 53 parcels |
| Novato | Incorporated city | North Marin Water District; three SMART stations; 12% hotel tax |
How Diamond Real Estate Group helps Nicasio buyers
Buying in Nicasio is often as much about the land as the house. We pull the zoning and density, the recorded easements and any Williamson Act contract, the well permit and septic file, and the fire-zone map before you commit, and we check how the parcel sits against the reservoir and the county roads. We also read past ranch sales across West Marin for what they included, from acreage to water and outbuildings.
If you own a Nicasio ranch and are weighing a sale, our seller services page explains the process. For larger estates, see our luxury real estate guide, and our buyer services page explains how we work.
Selling a home in Nicasio
A Nicasio sale is usually a sale of land as much as a house, and every record behind it is held by the County of Marin. The Community Development Agency’s Public Access Viewer covers building permits and planning decisions; Environmental Health’s viewer covers septic and well files. Search by assessor’s parcel number, because a ranch often spans several parcels and each can carry its own permits.
Water, septic and outbuildings
Most Nicasio buyers will ask how the house gets water. For a private well, the county requires a permit to drill it and a separate permit to operate it as a domestic water supply, with minimum pumping volumes and water quality standards set in County Code Chapter 7.28. The county’s well program describes no test triggered by a sale, so testing is left to the parties; recent yield and quality results give a buyer something concrete to review.
- Septic: the county doesn’t require an inspection at sale. It does point buyers to the records and, where those are missing, to an evaluation by a septic inspector.
- Older systems: a system with no permit record or a cesspool falls into the county’s Class IV, and the county weighs a system’s type, age and capacity when deciding what it allows.
- Barns and second structures: match each building to a permit in the county file, and list any that aren’t permitted.
Agricultural contracts and easements
If the ranch is under a Williamson Act contract, the land is restricted to agricultural or open space use under an agreement with the county, which administers its own program rules. Ask the county for the contract and any notice of nonrenewal, and gather recorded conservation easements, before you list. Buyers will price the property on what those documents allow. Our Marin County land and ranch guide covers how we present acreage.
Fire zone, tax and state forms
Marin County Fire’s online lookup tells you whether the parcel is in a High or Very High hazard zone. If it is, an AB 38 inspection showing defensible-space compliance goes to the buyer, or the parties agree that the buyer will obtain one within a year. Nicasio has no city transfer tax; the county’s $0.55 per $500 applies, customarily paid by the seller in Diamond’s North Bay markets but open to negotiation (see our transfer tax guide). The seller also certifies water heater bracing in writing.
A ranch needs comparables from across West Marin; request a property valuation to start.
Sources for this section: County of Marin Community Development Agency: Records search (Public Access Viewer); County of Marin Environmental Health Services: Wells and water systems; County of Marin Environmental Health Services: Septic systems program; County of Marin Environmental Health Services: Septic regulations update (LAMP); California Department of Conservation: Williamson Act program; Marin County Fire: What is an AB-38 inspection?; Marin County Assessor-Recorder: Fees (documentary transfer tax); California Public Law: Health and Safety Code 19211 (water heater bracing).
Nicasio real estate FAQs
Where is Nicasio, California?
Nicasio is an unincorporated community in inland West Marin, Marin County. Its main roads are Nicasio Valley Road, Lucas Valley Road and Point Reyes-Petaluma Road, which runs along Nicasio Reservoir.
What is the ZIP code for Nicasio, CA?
94946. The Nicasio School District and county planning files use Nicasio, CA 94946 addresses.
What do Nicasio homes and ranches sell for?
There isn’t enough sales data for a median. Redfin’s latest figure for ZIP 94946, from October 2025, is one sale at $1.2 million; the Marin County single-family median was $1,678,750 in September 2026 (C.A.R.).
Who owns Nicasio Reservoir?
Marin Water, the Marin Municipal Water District. It’s one of the district’s seven reservoirs, which serve central and southern Marin.
Is Marin Water still planning to raise Nicasio Reservoir?
No. The district proposed a spillway gate in April 2025 that would have stored about 3,700 more acre-feet and touched 23 parcels, then dropped it in August 2025 over cost and limited benefit.
How is ranch land in Nicasio zoned?
Parcel by parcel, under the county’s agricultural districts. One county design-review file for a 45-acre Lucas Valley Road parcel shows ARP-60 zoning, one unit per 60 acres, under the Countywide Plan’s AG1 designation. Confirm each parcel’s zoning with Marin County Planning.
How does a Williamson Act contract affect a Nicasio purchase?
The land stays in farming and isn’t subdivided, and in exchange it’s assessed at a lower value for property tax. Contracts bind every later buyer and renew each year unless a notice of nonrenewal is filed, so ask the county whether one has been.
What does a MALT easement mean for a buyer?
You buy the ranch subject to a perpetual conservation easement held by the Marin Agricultural Land Trust. What you can build or divide depends on the recorded easement’s terms, so read it before you make an offer.
Do Nicasio projects need a coastal permit?
Usually not. Nicasio isn’t among the ten coastal-zone communities named in the county’s 2024 short-term rental amendment to its Local Coastal Program, so coastal permits don’t usually apply; confirm a specific parcel with the Planning Division. County zoning, design review and building permits still do.
Can a Nicasio home be a short-term rental?
It needs a county license first, and few exist: Nicasio’s cap is 11, falling to 8, there’s a waitlist, and a seller’s license ends at the sale.
Is Nicasio inside the West Marin hotel-tax area?
Yes, so the rate is 14%. Ordinance 3692, approved by voters on November 6, 2018, names Nicasio in the West Marin area where the transient occupancy tax rose from 10% to 14%, with the extra share split between fire and emergency services and community housing.
Which school district serves Nicasio?
The Nicasio School District, a K–8 district at 5555 Nicasio Valley Road with 30 to 40 students, according to Marin LAFCo. Ask the district about high school placement for a specific address.
What rules apply if I rent a Nicasio home long term?
California’s statewide rules plus the county’s: rent increases over 5% in 12 months go to mandatory mediation, and just-cause eviction rules apply to properties with three or more units.
Sources & notes
- Redfin: ZIP 94946 housing market (October 2025 data), ATTOM: Nicasio property data and C.A.R.: September 2026 sales and price report
- Marin Water: about our water system, Nicasio spillway modification notice (April 2025) and Point Reyes Light: Marin Water drops Nicasio spillway plan (August 2025)
- Marin County Planning: design review P4614, Nicasio and Williamson Act program
- Marin Agricultural Land Trust: farmland protection and California Civil Code §815.2
- County of Marin: STR administrative procedures (February 2025), Ordinance 3692 (West Marin TOT), mandatory mediation program, recorder fees and transfer tax
- Marin Environmental Health Services: septic systems, septic regulations update and wells
- Marin LAFCo: Nicasio School District and State Fire Marshal: Fire Hazard Severity Zones
Figures carry their dates where they appear, and we refresh market numbers every quarter. This is general information, not legal, tax or insurance advice; confirm the rules for a specific property with the agency named. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
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.
