Cordelia, Fairfield vs Rockridge, Oakland
Cordelia, Fairfield carries an effective property tax rate of 1.18% of assessed value and Rockridge, Oakland carries 1.36%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,864 and $10,104 — $240 apart, with Cordelia, Fairfield lower. To Oakland City Center at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 60 min by car from Cordelia, Fairfield and 12 min by BART from Rockridge, Oakland. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Cordelia, Fairfield (Solano County) · Rockridge, Oakland (Alameda County)
| Metric | Cordelia, Fairfield | Rockridge, Oakland | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $380 | $1,000 | −$620 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.18% | 1.36% | −0.180% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,864 | $10,104 | −$240 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 85 min | 25 min | +60 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 75 min | 35 min | +40 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 70 min | 12 min | +58 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 60 min | 15 min | +45 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 95 min | 70 min | +25 min |
Difference is Cordelia, Fairfield minus Rockridge, Oakland. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
Fairfield (Cordelia) is the cheaper foot by $620, 62% below Rockridge. What that buys is a different house, not a different bill: at $1,600,000 the two are $240 apart a month at 1.18% and 1.36%.
Square footage per dollar
Cordelia comps run $330-$400 per square foot. $1.4M in Rockridge is a 1910s-20s Craftsman bungalow, 1,400-1,700 sq ft, on a 4,000-5,000 sq ft lot. The median foot costs $380 in Fairfield (Cordelia) against $1,000 in Rockridge; on a 2,000 sq ft house that is $1,240,000 of purchase price.
The monthly, matched
Holding the loan constant — $1,600,000, 20% down, 6.5% on a 30-year fixed, $2,400 of insurance, no HOA — Fairfield (Cordelia) totals $9,864 a month at 1.18% and Rockridge $10,104 at 1.36% — tax lines of $1,573 and $1,813. Cordelia HOAs run $50-$150 a month, with gated Rancho Solano and Eastridge higher. Oakland library, parks, paramedic and school parcel taxes stack $800-$1,500 a year on a Rockridge parcel. Neither figure includes dues or a district assessment, and both belong on the worksheet before an offer.
Commute, measured
To FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART): 75 minutes by driving from Fairfield (Cordelia), 25 by BART from Rockridge — a 50-minute edge to Rockridge, or 8.3 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 60 minutes by driving from Fairfield (Cordelia), 12 by BART from Rockridge — a 48-minute edge to Rockridge, or 8.0 hours across a ten-trip week. Walnut Creek is 35 minutes from Cordelia via I-680. Rockridge BART is 15 minutes to Embarcadero and 12 to Montgomery.
Hazard and insurance
Green Valley and the hills west of I-680 are mapped High fire hazard. The Hayward Fault runs along the Rockridge hill base, and the bungalows carry brick foundation and knob-and-tube disclosures. 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.
Choosing between them
Cordelia fits a 3,000-plus square foot requirement with a three-car garage. Rockridge is the answer when commute length is the binding constraint. Write the requirement down before the search: these two answer different ones.
Sources. Tax figures come from Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; City of Fairfield CFD reports; Alameda County Tax Rates by TRA FY 2025-26, composited in build/assets/metrics.json. They are county-level and not yet verified at the TRA, so the parcel's bill governs. Travel times are AM-peak door-to-door estimates 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 | Cordelia, Fairfield | Rockridge, Oakland |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $380 | $1,000 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.18% | 1.36% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,864 | $10,104 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 75 min | 25 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 60 min | 12 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 95 min | 70 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.
Cordelia, Fairfield detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.010% |
| School district measures | 0.090% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD assessment | 0.080% |
| Effective rate | 1.18% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | Yes |
Source: Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; City of Fairfield CFD reports (Solano 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.
Rockridge, Oakland detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.152% |
| School district measures | 0.208% |
| Effective rate | 1.36% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | None recorded |
Source: Alameda County Tax Rates by TRA FY 2025-26 (Alameda 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.
Cordelia, Fairfield vs Rockridge, Oakland: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Cordelia, Fairfield or Rockridge, Oakland?
- Cordelia, Fairfield, at 1.18% of assessed value against 1.36% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.180%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Cordelia, Fairfield and Rockridge, Oakland?
- $240 per month on the identical reference loan: Cordelia, Fairfield $9,864, Rockridge, Oakland $10,104. Cordelia, Fairfield is lower. Principal and interest are held constant, so the difference is the tax line. Arithmetic only.
- Which has the shorter commute to Oakland City Center, Cordelia, Fairfield or Rockridge, Oakland?
- Rockridge, Oakland. Cordelia, Fairfield is 60 min by car; Rockridge, Oakland is 12 min by BART. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Cordelia, Fairfield and Rockridge, Oakland?
- $620 per square foot: Cordelia, Fairfield $380, Rockridge, Oakland $1,000. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.