Where to Live in Santa Clara County: Towns Compared by Transit, Services and Rules

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

The most practical way to narrow where to live in Santa Clara County is to start with the line between city and county land. Nearly all urban housing sits inside a city’s Urban Service Area, where the city plans development and provides services, while land outside those boundaries is meant to stay rural. From there, three questions sort the cities quickly: are you near Caltrain, BART or neither, which agency supplies the water, and will the city add a transfer tax at sale (Mountain View charges $1.65 per $500 on every sale, and San Jose’s Measure E tax starts at transfers of about $2 million).

This guide compares places only by housing types and lots, jurisdiction, utility service, transportation, local rules and ownership costs. It does not describe residents, safety or schools, and it gives no prices or market statistics. For listings, start on our Santa Clara County homes page.

Step one: city, unincorporated island or rural county?

Santa Clara County’s cities and towns are Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Mountain View, Palo Alto, San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga and Sunnyvale. Under Santa Clara LAFCO’s Urban Service Area policies, cities are solely responsible for planning urban development inside their adopted Urban Service Areas, and urban services are provided upon annexation to a city. Land outside an Urban Service Area, such as agricultural and open space land, floodplains and very high fire hazard areas, is not intended to be urbanized.

Two kinds of unincorporated land matter to buyers. The first is the island: unincorporated land surrounded by a city’s Urban Service Area, which often looks and feels like the neighboring city but follows county rules until it is annexed. LAFCO’s policy encourages cities to annex their islands. The second is rural county land, such as San Martin, Coyote, New Almaden, Mount Hamilton, and the Santa Cruz Mountains communities around Redwood Estates and Holy City, where parcels are larger and services are limited. Stanford’s campus is also unincorporated. Confirm jurisdiction by parcel number before you rely on any rule below, and see our unincorporated Santa Clara County page and rural land guide.

Town-by-town comparison

The table summarizes verified differences. Water entries show whether the city or district is a member of BAWSCA, the group of agencies that buy San Francisco regional system water; other areas are served by different retailers, so confirm the provider for the exact parcel.

Sources for each column are in the sections below.

Water, sewer and septic

The Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency represents the agencies that buy water wholesale from the San Francisco regional water system. In Santa Clara County its members are the cities of Milpitas, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, North San Jose, the Purissima Hills Water District and Stanford University. Elsewhere in the county, including most of San Jose, Cupertino, Saratoga, Campbell, Los Gatos, Morgan Hill and Gilroy, homes are served by other city or private water retailers. The retailer name on the water bill tells you who sets rates, connection fees and conservation rules.

Sewer inside a city usually runs through the city or a sanitation district listed on the tax bill. On rural county land outside the Urban Service Areas, expect a well and septic system. Septic rules were not verified for this guide; ask the seller for permits and confirm requirements with the County of Santa Clara Department of Environmental Health. Our property evidence workbook lists the records to request.

Transportation: Caltrain, BART, VTA and highways

Caltrain’s station list runs from Palo Alto through California Avenue, San Antonio, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Lawrence and Santa Clara to San Jose Diridon, with College Park served by only a few trains a day. South of Diridon, trains stop at Tamien, and then at Capitol, Blossom Hill, Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy during weekday commute hours only. A Stanford stop is listed for football service only. BART’s station list includes two Santa Clara County stations, Milpitas and Berryessa/North San Jose. Cupertino, Saratoga, Campbell, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills have no Caltrain or BART station.

VTA runs the county’s light rail and bus network; its route pages could not be opened for this guide, so check VTA’s current maps for stops near a specific address. By car, US 101 and I-280 carry most north-south trips, I-880 and I-680 serve the east side of San Jose and Milpitas, SR 85 links the West Valley with Mountain View and South San Jose, and SR 17 crosses the Santa Cruz Mountains from Los Gatos.

Rental rules

Statewide, the Tenant Protection Act limits most rent increases to 10% or 5% plus inflation, whichever is lower, over 12 months, and adds just-cause rules after 12 months, according to the California Attorney General. Two cities layer their own rules on top:

• San Jose. The Apartment Rent Ordinance covers apartments in buildings of three or more units built and occupied before September 7, 1979, and allows a single increase of up to 5% in any 12-month period, with petition options for capital improvements and fair return. Single-family homes, condominiums, townhomes, duplexes and ADUs are exempt. See our San Jose rent ordinance guide for investors.
• Mountain View. Under the Community Stabilization and Fair Rent Act (Measure V, 2016), most apartments in buildings of three or more units are covered. Units built before 1995 are fully covered by rent stabilization and eviction protections; units built from 1995 through 2017 get eviction protections only. The city offers an address lookup to check coverage.

Short-term rental rules were not verified against current official pages for this guide. Check the city’s code, or the county’s for unincorporated parcels, and see our overview of California short-term rental rules.

Ownership costs that differ by town

Transfer tax. California counties may levy a documentary transfer tax of $0.55 per $500 under Revenue and Taxation Code section 11911, as the Alameda County Clerk-Recorder explains for its own county; confirm the rate with the Santa Clara County Clerk-Recorder. Two city taxes were verified for this guide:

San Jose’s Measure E took effect July 1, 2020, and its thresholds are adjusted for inflation, so check the current figure before you budget; San Jose also has a base conveyance tax that this document does not state. Our Santa Clara County city transfer taxes guide covers the other cities, and California transfer tax explains who customarily pays.

Tax-bill charges. Sanitation, water, lighting and special assessments vary by parcel. Request the current bill and plan for a supplemental tax bill after closing. If you are looking at mid-century tracts, read our Santa Clara County Eichler homes guide for the inspection and design questions they raise.

Building a short list

1. Decide whether you need Caltrain, BART, or neither within reach, and check whether your station has all-day or commute-only service.
2. Confirm whether the parcel is in a city, an unincorporated island or rural county land.
3. If you will rent the home, check whether San Jose’s or Mountain View’s rules apply.
4. Confirm the water retailer, sewer provider, transfer tax and tax-bill charges for the exact parcel.

Town pages to start from: Palo Alto real estate, Stanford real estate, Mountain View real estate, Los Altos real estate, Los Altos Hills real estate, Sunnyvale real estate, Santa Clara real estate, Cupertino real estate, Saratoga real estate, Monte Sereno real estate, Campbell real estate, Los Gatos real estate, San Jose real estate, Willow Glen San Jose real estate, Almaden Valley San Jose real estate, Cambrian Park real estate, Alviso San Jose real estate, Milpitas real estate, Morgan Hill real estate, Gilroy real estate, San Martin real estate, Coyote real estate, New Almaden real estate, Mount Hamilton real estate, Redwood Estates real estate and Holy City real estate.

We can pull parcel records and listings for your short list; start on our Santa Clara County buyer page or contact us.

Questions people ask

Which Santa Clara County cities have a Caltrain station?

Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose, Morgan Hill and Gilroy, plus San Martin. Stations south of Tamien have weekday commute service only.

Where can I take BART in Santa Clara County?

At Milpitas and Berryessa/North San Jose.

What is an unincorporated island?

Unincorporated land inside a city’s Urban Service Area. It follows county rules until a city annexes it, and Santa Clara LAFCO policy encourages cities to annex their islands.

Does Mountain View have a city transfer tax?

Yes: $1.65 for each $500 of value, on top of the county documentary transfer tax.

When does San Jose’s Measure E transfer tax apply?

On transfers of about $2 million or more, adjusted for inflation: 0.75% up to $5 million, 1.0% up to $10 million and 1.5% above that.

Is a single-family home in San Jose covered by rent control?

Not by the Apartment Rent Ordinance, which exempts single-family homes, condos, townhomes, duplexes and ADUs. State Tenant Protection Act rules may still apply.

Which Mountain View rentals are rent stabilized?

Most apartments in buildings of three or more units built before 1995. Buildings from 1995 through 2017 get eviction protections only.

Sources & notes

1. Santa Clara LAFCO: Urban Service Area policies.
2. BAWSCA: Member agencies.
3. Caltrain: Stations.
4. BART: Stations.
5. California Attorney General: Landlord-tenant issues.
6. City of San Jose: Learn about rent stabilization.
7. City of Mountain View: Rent stabilization (CSFRA).
8. Alameda County Clerk-Recorder: Real property transfer tax (R&T Code 11911 explanation).
9. City of Mountain View: Real property transfer (conveyance) tax.
10. City of San Jose: Measure E transfer tax document.

Notes: VTA, Valley Water and several San Jose city pages could not be opened for this guide, so light rail stops, the county’s water wholesaler role, San Jose’s base conveyance tax and short-term rental rules are not covered. Transfer taxes for cities other than Mountain View and San Jose were not verified here. Water retailers for non-BAWSCA areas and septic rules were not verified. Rules change; verify before you buy.

General information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Updated November 2026. Primary sources are linked in this guide.

Related: Santa Clara County homes · Santa Clara County city transfer taxes · San Jose rent ordinance for investors · Eichler homes