Santa Cruz, CA housing market
Typical home value
$1.34M
▲ 5.8% 1 yr
Typical rent
$3,418/mo
▲ 3.3% 1 yr
Gross rent yield
3.1%
U.S. 6.3%
5-year home value change
+13%
U.S. +20%
Key takeaways
- 1The typical home in Santa Cruz is worth $1,338,649, up 5.8% over the past year and up 13% over five years.
- 2Typical rent is $3,418 a month (+3.3% YoY), a gross rent yield of 3.1% (below the Santa Cruz, CA metro's 3.7%).
- 3With 20% down at 7.32%, principal and interest on the typical home is about $7,356/mo, $3,938 more than typical rent.
- 4Zillow forecasts the Santa Cruz, CA metro's home values to change +0.3% over the next 12 months.
Market temperature (Santa Cruz, CA metro)
Buyer's market
Buyer'sNeutralSeller's
Zillow Market Heat Index: 40/100, #274 hottest of 546 metros. Below 44 favors buyers; above 55 favors sellers.
Home values and rent
Source: Zillow Research (ZHVI, ZORI and market activity data).
How Santa Cruz compares
| Measure | Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz, CA metro | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $1,338,649 | $1,136,154 | $366,157 |
| Home value, 1-yr change | +5.8% | +4.8% | +1.2% |
| Typical rent | $3,418 | $3,469 | $1,932 |
| Rent, 1-yr change | +3.3% | +3.6% | +2.7% |
| Gross rent yield | 3.1% | 3.7% | 6.3% |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 32.6 | 27.3 | 15.8 |
| Mortgage P&I, typical home | $7,356 | $6,244 | $2,012 |
Run the numbers
Rental property calculator
Cash flow on a typical Santa Cruz rental, pre-filled.
Rent vs buy in Santa Cruz
Which costs less over the years you'll stay.
Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment on a $1.34M home.
Landlord in California? See California deposit, late fee and notice rules.
Other cities in the Santa Cruz, CA metro
Watsonville, CA
$813K home$3,332 rent
▲ 1.5% 1 yr
Aptos, CA
$1.32M home$4,226 rent
▲ 2.9% 1 yr
Capitola, CA
$1.23M home$3,459 rent
▲ 7.5% 1 yr
City figures are Zillow's typical home value (ZHVI) and observed rent (ZORI). Gross yield is before expenses. Data refreshed Oct 26, 2026.