Housing data for Emerald Lake Hills, CA
Emerald Lake Hills, CA has an estimated 4,235 residents and 1,572 homes (US Census Bureau, 2020–2024 American Community Survey).
It is an unincorporated community in San Mateo County.
9.2% of households rent.
The median gross rent is $3,500 or more a month.
Figures last updated on .
- Residents
- 4,235 (±539)
- Housing units
- 1,572 (±171)
- Households that rent
- 9.2%
- Median gross rent
- $3,500 or more
- Residents since 2015–2019
- −10.3%
What stands out in Emerald Lake Hills
Households that rent: 9.2% (±3.8 points) in Emerald Lake Hills, lower than in San Mateo County (41.5%).
Homes in buildings of 5 or more units: 0.0% (±4.7 points) in Emerald Lake Hills, lower than in San Mateo County (28.7%).
Working from home: 40.9% (±8.2 points) in Emerald Lake Hills, higher than in San Mateo County (24.3%).
Households without a vehicle: 0.8% (±1.3 points) in Emerald Lake Hills, lower than in San Mateo County (5.8%).
- Renters and owners in Emerald Lake Hills
- Types of homes in Emerald Lake Hills
- Commute and cars in Emerald Lake Hills
Housing in Emerald Lake Hills at a glance
- Median rent: $3,500 or more median gross rent a month
- Rent by bedrooms: $3,500 or more median gross rent, 2 bedrooms (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Rent burden: 12.4% of renters pay 30% or more of income (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Renters and owners: 9.2% of households rent
- Income and affordability: $250,000 or more median household income
- Home values: $2,000,000 or more median home value
- Homeowner costs: $4,000 or more median monthly cost with a mortgage
- Property taxes: $10,000 or more median real estate taxes a year
- Types of homes: 0.0% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
- Bedrooms: 83.8% of homes have 3 or more bedrooms
- Age of homes: 42.0% of homes were built before 1980
- Vacancy rate: 0.0% rental vacancy rate (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Heating fuel: 85.0% heat with utility gas
- Commute and cars: 27.0 minutes average trip to work
- Growth: −10.3% residents since 2015–2019
- How long people stay: 14.8% moved in since 2020
- Crowding and facilities: 2.1% of homes have more than 1 person per room
Emerald Lake Hills against San Mateo County, its state and the nation
| Emerald Lake Hills | San Mateo County | California | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 4,235 (±539) | 742,340 (exact) | 39,287,377 (exact) | 334,922,499 |
| Housing units | 1,572 (±171) | 287,184 (±144) | 14,644,735 (±1,665) | 143,775,355 |
| Households that rent | 9.2% (±3.8 points) | 41.5% (±0.7 points) | 44.1% (±0.2 points) | 34.8% |
| Median gross rent | $3,500 or more | $2,922 (±$40) | $2,036 (±$5) | $1,413 |
| Median household income | $250,000 or more | $158,855 (±$2,851) | $99,122 (±$310) | $80,734 |
| Median home value | $2,000,000 or more | $1,559,600 (±$16,159) | $734,700 (±$1,307) | $332,700 |
| Median real estate taxes (a year) | $10,000 or more | $9,519 (±$153) | $5,124 (±$17) | $3,119 |
| Built before 1980 | 42.0% (±9.3 points) | 72.5% (±1.1 points) | 56.0% (±0.2 points) | 49.7% |
| Average commute | 27.0 minutes (±2.6) | 26.4 minutes (±0.3) | 28.7 minutes (±0.1) | 26.4 minutes |
| Households with broadband | 99.0% (±1.1 points) | 95.7% (±0.4 points) | 93.5% (±0.1 points) | 91.0% |
| Median age of residents | 45.4 years (±3.0) | 40.9 years (±0.2) | 37.9 years (±0.1) | 38.9 years |
Emerald Lake Hills covers 1.2 square miles of land, about 3,583 residents per square mile (Census Bureau Gazetteer).
How Emerald Lake Hills has changed since 2015–2019
| 2015–2019 | 2020–2024 | Amount of change | Verdict | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 4,721 (±435) | 4,235 (±539) | −10.3% | Not a measurable change |
| Housing units | 1,698 (±105) | 1,572 (±171) | −7.4% | Not a measurable change |
| Households that rent | 9.6% (±4.9 points) | 9.2% (±3.8 points) | −0.4 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
| Rental vacancy rate | 0.0% (±19.6 points) | 0.0% (±25.6 points) | 0.0 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.
Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.
The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.
Crime reported to police in San Mateo County
Emerald Lake Hills has no police department of its own in the FBI’s figures, so this is the figure for San Mateo County as a whole.
In 2025, the police departments that report for San Mateo County recorded 226 violent and 1,396 property crimes per 100,000 residents.
A county-wide figure describes the whole county, not this place; crime varies from one community to the next.
Places near Emerald Lake Hills
| Place | Distance | Median gross rent | Median home value | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Carlos | 2.3 mi | $2,854 | $2,000,000 or more | 32.2% |
| Woodside | 3.0 mi | $3,500 or more | $2,000,000 or more | 12.6% |
| North Fair Oaks | 3.5 mi | $2,314 | $1,276,900 | 52.3% |
| Atherton | 3.6 mi | $3,500 or more | $2,000,000 or more | 12.4% |
| Belmont | 3.7 mi | $2,875 | $2,000,000 or more | 45.2% |
| West Menlo Park | 4.0 mi | $3,324 | $2,000,000 or more | 21.7% |
| Redwood City | 4.4 mi | $2,968 | $1,801,700 | 51.4% |
| Highlands | 5.8 mi | $3,500 or more | $2,000,000 or more | 15.3% |
HUD Fair Market Rent for Emerald Lake Hills, fiscal year 2027
| Studio | 1 bedroom | 2 bedrooms | 3 bedrooms | 4 bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,574 | $3,003 | $3,697 | $4,832 | $5,439 |
HUD income limits for Emerald Lake Hills, fiscal year 2026
| Household size | Extremely low (30%) | Very low (50%) | Low (80%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $44,150 | $73,550 | $117,700 |
| 2 people | $50,450 | $84,050 | $134,500 |
| 3 people | $56,750 | $94,550 | $151,300 |
| 4 people | $63,050 | $105,050 | $168,100 |
| 5 people | $68,100 | $113,500 | $181,550 |
| 6 people | $73,150 | $121,900 | $195,000 |
| 7 people | $78,200 | $130,300 | $208,450 |
| 8 people | $83,250 | $138,700 | $221,900 |
These are the limits HUD sets for its housing programs in the San Francisco, CA HUD Metro FMR Area, where HUD’s median family income for fiscal year 2026 is $200,800.
A program can use its own limits; tax-credit and local programs often do.
Emerald Lake Hills is a census-designated place: an unincorporated community the Census Bureau draws for statistics, with no municipal government of its own.
Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.
Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.
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Questions about Emerald Lake Hills
What is the average rent in Emerald Lake Hills, CA?
The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Emerald Lake Hills is $3,500 or more a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.
How many renters are there in Emerald Lake Hills?
Emerald Lake Hills has an estimated 141 (±59) renting households, 9.2% of its occupied homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the median household income in Emerald Lake Hills?
The median household income in Emerald Lake Hills is $250,000 or more a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average home value in Emerald Lake Hills, CA?
The Census Bureau publishes the median: $2,000,000 or more for owner-occupied homes in Emerald Lake Hills (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average mortgage payment in Emerald Lake Hills?
The Census Bureau publishes total owner costs rather than the mortgage alone: the median for owners with a mortgage in Emerald Lake Hills, CA is $4,000 or more a month, including taxes, insurance and utilities.
How much are property taxes in Emerald Lake Hills?
The median real estate tax paid by homeowners in Emerald Lake Hills, CA is $10,000 or more a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Is Emerald Lake Hills growing?
In Emerald Lake Hills, the number of residents went from 4,721 in 2015–2019 to 4,235 in 2020–2024 (−10.3%), not a measurable change.
Sources
- Demographic and Housing Estimates (DP05), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Selected Housing Characteristics (DP04), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Selected Economic Characteristics (DP03), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Median Real Estate Taxes Paid by Mortgage Status (B25103), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Selected Social Characteristics (DP02), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Total Population (B01003), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- Median Gross Rent (B25064), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California
- HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal year 2027: San Francisco, CA HUD Metro FMR Area
- HUD Income Limits, fiscal year 2026: San Francisco, CA HUD Metro FMR Area
- Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, all items, US Bureau of Labor Statistics: annual averages 2019 and 2024
- US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files
To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Emerald Lake Hills CDP, California (place:22587, in state:06).
Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).
The 2015–2019 figures are B01003_001E, B01003_001M, B25064_001E, B25064_001M from the 2019 release.
The API needs a free key.
DP05_0001E, DP05_0001M, DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP03_0062E, DP03_0062M, DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.
Figures last updated on .