Danville vs Midtown, Palo Alto
Danville carries an effective property tax rate of 1.07% of assessed value and Midtown, Palo Alto carries 1.17%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,713 and $9,853 — $140 apart, with Danville lower. To Sunnyvale / Mountain View at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 55 min by car from Danville and 18 min by Caltrain from Midtown, Palo Alto. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Danville (Contra Costa County) · Midtown, Palo Alto (Santa Clara County)
| Metric | Danville | Midtown, Palo Alto | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $900 | $1,900 | −$1,000 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.07% | 1.17% | −0.105% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,713 | $9,853 | −$140 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 65 min | 65 min | 0 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 42 min | 90 min | −48 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 42 min | 50 min | −8 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 55 min | 18 min | +37 min |
Difference is Danville minus Midtown, Palo Alto. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
Put the two side by side and the gap is square footage, not tax: $900 per foot in Danville against $1,900 in Palo Alto (Midtown). On the same $1,600,000 purchase the monthly separation is $140, because Danville bills 1.07% and Palo Alto (Midtown) 1.17%.
The house at each price
The Danville gates change both the dues and the insurance file, so the $2M tier is a different market. Detached Midtown starts at $2.6M for a 1,300 sq ft 1950s Eichler-era three-bedroom on 6,000 sq ft. Posted medians are $900 per square foot in Danville and $1,900 in Palo Alto (Midtown), a $1,000 spread.
The monthly, matched
Against an identical $1,600,000 note at 6.5% with 20% down and $2,400 a year of coverage, Danville totals $9,713 a month at 1.07% and Palo Alto (Midtown) $9,853 at 1.17% — tax lines of $1,423 and $1,563. San Ramon Valley Unified parcel taxes on a Danville parcel run roughly $150 a year. No Mello-Roos in Palo Alto.
Getting to work
To Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain): 55 minutes by driving from Danville, 18 by Caltrain from Palo Alto (Midtown) — a 37-minute edge to Palo Alto (Midtown), or 6.2 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 42 minutes by BART from Danville, 50 by driving from Palo Alto (Midtown) — a 8-minute edge to Danville, or 1.3 hours across a ten-trip week. I-680 to 24 puts Danville 55 minutes from the Bay Bridge at 6 a.m. and 90 at 8. Driving 101 from Midtown to SoMa is 40 minutes at 6 a.m. and 70-90 at 8.
Fire, flood and the premium
Blackhawk and Diablo sit inside the High fire mapping and non-renewals there are current. Parts of Midtown south of Oregon Expressway sit in FEMA zones where lenders require flood insurance at $800-$2,000 a year. Verify any parcel against the CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zone map, the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and the California Geological Survey seismic hazard zones before removing contingencies.
Which search this actually is
Danville works for a buyer whose office is Bishop Ranch, not downtown. Midtown Palo Alto fits a bike-to-Stanford or bike-to-Caltrain requirement. Write the requirement down before the search: these two answer different ones.
Sources. Effective rates and carrying costs: Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26; Santa Clara County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26, composited in build/assets/metrics.json; TRA-level verification pending, so confirm the rate on the parcel's own bill. Commute times: door-to-door AM-peak estimates, data/commute/static.csv. Median price per foot is a trailing figure, not a valuation, and the local detail comes from the broker's own transactions.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Danville | Midtown, Palo Alto |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $900 | $1,900 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.07% | 1.17% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,713 | $9,853 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 60 min | 65 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 42 min | 50 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 55 min | 18 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.
Danville 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.
Midtown, Palo Alto detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.045% |
| School district measures | 0.127% |
| Effective rate | 1.17% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | None recorded |
Source: Santa Clara County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26 (Santa Clara 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.
Danville vs Midtown, Palo Alto: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Danville or Midtown, Palo Alto?
- Danville, at 1.07% of assessed value against 1.17% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.100%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Danville and Midtown, Palo Alto?
- $140 per month on the identical reference loan: Danville $9,713, Midtown, Palo Alto $9,853. Danville 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, Danville or Midtown, Palo Alto?
- Midtown, Palo Alto. Danville is 55 min by car; Midtown, Palo Alto is 18 min by Caltrain. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Danville and Midtown, Palo Alto?
- $1,000 per square foot: Danville $900, Midtown, Palo Alto $1,900. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.