Baywood, San Mateo vs Walnut Creek
Baywood, San Mateo carries an effective property tax rate of 1.11% of assessed value and Walnut Creek carries 1.08%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,764 and $9,733 — $31 apart, with Walnut Creek lower. To Oakland City Center at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 45 min by car from Baywood, San Mateo and 27 min by BART from Walnut Creek. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Baywood, San Mateo (San Mateo County) · Walnut Creek (Contra Costa County)
| Metric | Baywood, San Mateo | Walnut Creek | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,400 | $800 | +$600 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.11% | 1.08% | +0.023% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,764 | $9,733 | +$31 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 48 min | 45 min | +3 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 45 min | 55 min | −10 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 62 min | 27 min | +35 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 45 min | 32 min | +13 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 30 min | 62 min | −32 min |
Difference is Baywood, San Mateo minus Walnut Creek. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
San Mateo (Baywood) carries $600 more per square foot than Walnut Creek — 75% — and that single spread decides most searches that start with both names on the list. The tax rates land 1.11% in San Mateo (Baywood) against 1.08% in Walnut Creek, close enough that price per foot, not the levy, is what moves the payment.
What the same money buys
Baywood comps run $1,200-$1,400 per square foot. Northgate, Woodlands and Rudgear Estates hold Walnut Creek's four-bedroom stock. At $1,400 and $800 per foot respectively, a fixed budget buys about 75% more floor area in Walnut Creek.
What the bill looks like
Modelled the same way in both ($1,600,000 purchase, 20% down, 6.5% fixed, $2,400 insurance, dues excluded), San Mateo (Baywood) totals $9,764 a month at 1.11% and Walnut Creek $9,733 at 1.08% — tax lines of $1,473 and $1,443. No Mello-Roos in Baywood. Which district a Walnut Creek parcel falls in changes the fixed levy, so the bill has to be pulled.
The trip each morning
To Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain): 30 minutes by Caltrain from San Mateo (Baywood), 62 by driving from Walnut Creek — a 32-minute edge to San Mateo (Baywood), or 5.3 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 45 minutes by driving from San Mateo (Baywood), 27 by BART from Walnut Creek — a 18-minute edge to Walnut Creek, or 3.0 hours across a ten-trip week. Door to door from Baywood to FiDi is 55-65 minutes. Door to door from Northgate to FiDi is 55-65 minutes.
What the disclosure stack holds
Baywood's hillside lots west of Alameda de las Pulgas carry moderate fire mapping, with no non-renewals observed. The Walnut Creek flats near downtown and the Northgate valley floor are not WUI. 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
Baywood assumes either a stretch to $2.2M or the flats east of El Camino at $1.4M. Walnut Creek covers a four-bedroom-with-pool need without a hillside insurance file. The decision is which requirement is load-bearing, because neither submarket satisfies both lists.
Sources. Rate and payment figures: San Mateo County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; Contra Costa TRA 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. The per-foot medians are trailing and carry no appraisal weight; the neighborhood detail is first-hand broker observation.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Baywood, San Mateo | Walnut Creek |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,400 | $800 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.11% | 1.08% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,764 | $9,733 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 45 min | 45 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 45 min | 27 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 30 min | 62 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.
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.
Walnut Creek detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.012% |
| School district measures | 0.070% |
| Effective rate | 1.08% |
| 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 vs Walnut Creek: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Baywood, San Mateo or Walnut Creek?
- Walnut Creek, at 1.08% of assessed value against 1.11% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.030%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Baywood, San Mateo and Walnut Creek?
- $31 per month on the identical reference loan: Baywood, San Mateo $9,764, Walnut Creek $9,733. Walnut Creek 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, Baywood, San Mateo or Walnut Creek?
- Walnut Creek. Baywood, San Mateo is 45 min by car; Walnut Creek is 27 min by BART. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Baywood, San Mateo and Walnut Creek?
- $600 per square foot: Baywood, San Mateo $1,400, Walnut Creek $800. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.