Alamo vs Baywood, San Mateo
Alamo carries an effective property tax rate of 1.07% of assessed value and Baywood, San Mateo carries 1.11%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,713 and $9,764 — $51 apart, with Alamo lower. To Sunnyvale / Mountain View at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 62 min by car from Alamo and 30 min by Caltrain from Baywood, San Mateo. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Alamo (Contra Costa County) · Baywood, San Mateo (San Mateo County)
| Metric | Alamo | Baywood, San Mateo | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,000 | $1,400 | −$400 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.07% | 1.11% | −0.038% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,713 | $9,764 | −$51 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 52 min | 48 min | +4 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 58 min | 45 min | +13 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 34 min | 62 min | −28 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 35 min | 45 min | −10 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 62 min | 30 min | +32 min |
Difference is Alamo minus Baywood, San Mateo. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
Alamo is the cheaper foot by $400, 29% below San Mateo (Baywood). What that buys is a different house, not a different bill: at $1,600,000 the two are $51 apart a month at 1.07% and 1.11%.
Square footage per dollar
Single-story ranches with room for a workshop or ADU are Alamo's characteristic stock. At $1.4M the search moves across El Camino to Hayward Park or Sunnybrae for 1,200-1,400 sq ft. The median foot costs $1,000 in Alamo against $1,400 in San Mateo (Baywood); on a 2,000 sq ft house that is $800,000 of purchase price.
The monthly, matched
Against an identical $1,600,000 note at 6.5% with 20% down and $2,400 a year of coverage, Alamo totals $9,713 a month at 1.07% and San Mateo (Baywood) $9,764 at 1.11% — tax lines of $1,423 and $1,473. Septic on some older Alamo acre lots is a $20K-$40K inspection conversation. No HOA on Baywood's detached homes; downtown townhomes and condos run $400-$800 a month. Neither figure includes dues or a district assessment, and both belong on the worksheet before an offer.
Commute, measured
To Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain): 62 minutes by driving from Alamo, 30 by Caltrain from San Mateo (Baywood) — a 32-minute edge to San Mateo (Baywood), or 5.3 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 34 minutes by BART from Alamo, 45 by driving from San Mateo (Baywood) — a 11-minute edge to Alamo, or 1.8 hours across a ten-trip week. Bishop Ranch is 12 minutes south of Alamo. San Mateo Caltrain is a 10-minute walk from lower Baywood.
Fire, flood and the premium
New Alamo policies are coming with brush-clearance conditions written in. 1920s foundations, knob-and-tube and sewer laterals are the Baywood inspection items. Pull the parcel's own mapping — CAL FIRE severity zone, FEMA flood panel, CGS liquefaction zone — and get a written quote before the contingency date.
Which search this actually is
Alamo fits a large-lot, single-story requirement with room for a workshop or ADU. Baywood assumes either a stretch to $2.2M or the flats east of El Camino at $1.4M. Rank the requirements first; the pair rarely splits on anything except the one that is non-negotiable.
Sources. Rate and payment figures: Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26; San Mateo County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26, as composited in build/assets/metrics.json — unverified at tax-rate-area level, so read the bill. Minutes shown are AM-peak and door to door, from data/commute/static.csv. Price per square foot is a trailing median and is not an appraisal. Qualitative detail is the broker's own field observation.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Alamo | Baywood, San Mateo |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,000 | $1,400 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.07% | 1.11% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,713 | $9,764 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 52 min | 45 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 34 min | 45 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 62 min | 30 min |
Same reference loan on both sides; the tax line is the only variable. Commute figures are door-to-door AM-peak estimates. Sources are listed on each submarket page.
Alamo detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.012% |
| School district measures | 0.055% |
| Effective rate | 1.07% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | None recorded |
Source: Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26 (Contra Costa County), composited in
build/assets/metrics.json.
Tax Rate Area not yet verified parcel-by-parcel — confirm the rate on the parcel’s own tax bill.
Baywood, San Mateo detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.010% |
| School district measures | 0.095% |
| Effective rate | 1.10% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | None recorded |
Source: San Mateo County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26 (San Mateo County), composited in
build/assets/metrics.json.
Tax Rate Area not yet verified parcel-by-parcel — confirm the rate on the parcel’s own tax bill.
Alamo vs Baywood, San Mateo: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Alamo or Baywood, San Mateo?
- Alamo, at 1.07% of assessed value against 1.11% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.040%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Alamo and Baywood, San Mateo?
- $51 per month on the identical reference loan: Alamo $9,713, Baywood, San Mateo $9,764. Alamo is lower. Principal and interest are held constant, so the difference is the tax line. Arithmetic only.
- Which has the shorter commute to Sunnyvale / Mountain View, Alamo or Baywood, San Mateo?
- Baywood, San Mateo. Alamo is 62 min by car; Baywood, San Mateo is 30 min by Caltrain. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Alamo and Baywood, San Mateo?
- $400 per square foot: Alamo $1,000, Baywood, San Mateo $1,400. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.