East Palo Alto Real Estate Agent
Single-family streets near a restored Bay shoreline, under a Development Code that reviews every addition. Read the permit history before you name a price.
Lisa M. Lum is an East Palo Alto real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Realty, working from the office at 1706 El Camino Real in Menlo Park. East Palo Alto is bordered by Palo Alto to the south, Menlo Park to the west and San Francisco Bay to the east.
Its residential streets center on the Ravenswood area, where many tree-lined blocks of single-family homes date from the 1940s through the 1960s.
Along University Avenue, the Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley and the University Circle mixed-use development anchor the commercial corridor. Newer townhome and condominium projects add to the housing stock.
On the Bay, Cooley Landing is a restored waterfront park with access to the San Francisco Bay Trail. The city also has Jack Farrell Park and community gardens.
US-101 runs along the city, and the Dumbarton Bridge leads to the East Bay. The Meta campus is next door.
Zoning, design review, the tree ordinance and rent stabilization each apply differently by property type. Check with the City of East Palo Alto on the specific address before you commit to a number.
Meet Lisa M. Lum
Lisa is a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty, working from the brokerage’s Menlo Park office at 1706 El Camino Real. She has been licensed in California since 2018 (DRE #02005150) and studied Legal Studies at UC Berkeley.
More about Lisa →Selling your East Palo Alto home
An East Palo Alto sale is priced street by street. A mid-century single-family home in the Ravenswood area and a newer townhome or condominium answer to different buyers.
So Lisa prices from comparable sales in your neighborhood, down to your street and micro-neighborhood.
Disclosure depends on the property type. Single-family homes are exempt from the city’s rent caps, while sellers of covered multi-unit buildings should disclose rent control status, rent rolls and any pending rent petitions.
If a past addition or garage conversion was never permitted, the city’s Design Review process also covers legalizing existing structures. Raise it early with the Planning Division.
Through her Home Refresh program, Lisa manages the vendors for repairs, paint, staging and curb appeal, and you approve every estimate before work begins.
Home Refresh also covers a pre-listing inspection and a disclosure package, prepared before the listing goes live.
When offers arrive, Lisa reviews each one with you on price, terms, contingencies and the buyer’s financing.
Go deeper: current East Palo Alto seller data and the Home Refresh program.
Lisa’s guide
The Home Refresh Guide
How Lisa prepares a home before it goes to market, from the pre-listing inspection to staging.
Buying a home in East Palo Alto
Start with the zoning. Title 18 of the Municipal Code, the 2018 Development Code, governs residential property, and R-LD is the city’s primary single-family zone, with a 5,000 square foot minimum for newly created lots.
Any plan to change a home needs Design Review first. The city requires a Design Review permit before a building permit for new buildings, additions and garage conversions, and for legalizing existing structures.
Medium and major projects go to the Design Review Committee at a public hearing, and Planning staff review smaller ones. If you plan to add on, talk with the Planning Division before you sign.
Trees matter as well. The revised Tree Ordinance requires a permit before removing most private trees, and construction must not threaten a protected tree.
If you’re buying a building with two or more units built before January 1, 1988, rent stabilization under Municipal Code Chapter 14 applies, along with just-cause eviction rules. Review the rent rolls and any pending petitions.
Ravenswood City School District serves TK-8. For high school, the Sequoia Union High School District has assigned East Palo Alto households to Menlo-Atherton High since a 2013 boundary change. Confirm the assignment for the exact address with the district before you write an offer.
Sewer service comes from the East Palo Alto Sanitary District or West Bay Sanitary District, and neither district lists a point-of-sale lateral certificate requirement as of May 2026. Confirm with the district for the specific address.
For the full picture of the market, see the East Palo Alto community guide and Lisa’s buyer’s guide.
East Palo Alto neighborhoods served
- Ravenswood areaTree-lined residential streets with single-family homes, many from the 1940s through the 1960s.
- University Avenue corridorThe commercial spine, home to the Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley and the University Circle mixed-use development.
- Cooley LandingA restored waterfront park on the Bay, with Bay Trail access and views from the Dumbarton Bridge to the salt ponds.
Every neighborhood above has a full profile in the East Palo Alto community guide.
