Los Altos Real Estate Agent
A lot near the village and a lot toward the foothills can follow different rules. In Los Altos, the details start with the parcel.
Lisa M. Lum is a Los Altos real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Realty, based at 1706 El Camino Real in Menlo Park. Los Altos covers 6.5 square miles at the northern edge of Santa Clara County, with a walkable village downtown at Main Street and State Street.
Most residential areas fall in the R1-10 Single-Family District, which sets a 10,000 square foot minimum lot. Existing lot sizes vary by neighborhood, so confirm a specific lot’s standards with Los Altos Planning. Some pockets, including parts of the Country Club and Highlands-Carmel areas, carry larger minimums.
Old Los Altos surrounds the village core on roughly 8,000 to 12,000 square foot lots. North Los Altos, between San Antonio Road and the Palo Alto border, is known for post-war ranch architecture.
In the south, Highlands-Carmel has lots often 12,000 square feet and up, with elevated views in some pockets. Loyola Corners centers on a small commercial district at Foothill Expressway and Magdalena Avenue.
The city’s character shifts by section, and the Los Altos Hills boundary crosses several streets in the south. Before you name a number, confirm which town governs the parcel, then check its lot standards with that town’s Planning department and its trees with an arborist.
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 Los Altos home
A Los Altos sale is priced by section of the city. A ranch home in North Los Altos and a home near the Country Club differ in lot size, era and setting.
Older housing stock and mature canopy often mean a more substantial inspection and disclosure package than newer construction nearby. That makes early preparation worth the time.
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, so the file is assembled before launch.
If a protected tree near the house needs work, start the permit early, before photography.
Lot size belongs in the marketing. In a pocket with a minimum above the 10,000 square foot standard, the land is part of what you’re selling.
Lisa prices from a hyperlocal comparable analysis and manages the marketing, from photography and showings to negotiations. When offers arrive, Lisa reviews them with you.
Go deeper: 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 Los Altos
Start with schools, because assignment follows the address. Los Altos School District serves the city for K-8, and high school students attend Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District, at Los Altos High School or Mountain View High School.
Some southwestern areas fall within Cupertino Union or Palo Alto Unified. Confirm the assignment for the exact address with the district before you write an offer.
Next, check the jurisdiction. Los Altos Hills is a separate town with its own minimum lot sizes and standards, and its boundary runs through several streets in southern Los Altos.
Then read the lot. New construction, second-story additions and substantial remodels go through Design Review, and Old Los Altos and the Country Club area carry added design-context considerations.
If you plan to build, map the floor-area envelope with Los Altos Planning before you commit.
Trees matter too. The tree preservation ordinance protects designated species and trees of designated size, and removing a protected tree needs a permit. Many parcels have at least one, so an arborist’s review belongs in due diligence.
At recording, the county’s documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000 applies, and Los Altos adds no municipal transfer tax. Anything beyond that is a question for your tax advisor.
For the full picture of the market, see the Los Altos community guide and Lisa’s buyer’s guide.
Los Altos neighborhoods served
- Old Los AltosWalkable streets around the downtown village, with 1930s to 1960s architecture under mature trees.
- Country ClubElevated lots, typically 10,000 to 15,000 square feet or larger, around the Los Altos Country Club, with mid-century estates and 1990s to 2010s construction.
- North Los AltosLots typically 8,000 to 11,000 square feet, with access to the Foothill Expressway corridor.
- Highlands-CarmelArchitecture from mid-century to substantial modern construction in the southern part of the city.
- Loyola CornersLots that vary from 8,000 to 15,000 square feet in southwestern Los Altos, close to the foothills.
Every neighborhood above has a full profile in the Los Altos community guide.
