COMMUNITIES | Atherton

Atherton is named for Faxon Dean Atherton, a wealthy trader from Chile, who purchased 640 acres and established the first large estate in the area. The completion of the railroad in 1863 attracted other prosperous citizens of San Francisco, hoping to escape the summer fog. The Town was incorporated in 1923, and adopted stringent zoning regulations.

As a result, Atherton retains the pastoral atmosphere enjoyed by those nineteenth century residents, with majority of properties in this exclusive zip code exceeding an acre. No sidewalks, an abundance of heritage oaks, and a ban on commerce, plus equal access to San Francisco and San Jose have made Atherton one of the most expensive addresses in the country. Atherton has been consistently ranked by a national magazine as one of the top five most affluent cities in the country.

2006 in Review | Atherton

2006 marked the year that the average price of an Atherton property finally surpassed the previous all-time high. Overall, the average home price for 2006 was $4,183,363, over $100,000 more than at the peak of the market in 2000, when it was $4,072,355. This was well above the average prices for 2005 and 2004, which were $3,407,260 and $3,540,560 respectively. The 2006 average was significantly above those of 2003 and 2002, which were both in the mid $2,000,000 range. Overall, the average home price for 2006 was $4,183,363

The median price of an Atherton home in 2006 was $3,256,410. This continues an upward trend for the fourth year in a row. The median price of Atherton property was $3,000,000 in 2005, slightly above the median price of 2004, which was $2,999,500. The 2006 median is over $1,000,000 higher than the median of 2003, which was $2,175,000. The median price for all of 2002 was $2,397,500.

It took approximately five and one half weeks longer to sell a residential property last year – 90 average days on the market as compared to 51 average days in 2005. This is also nearly two weeks longer than the 78 day average of 2004. The average for 2003 was 100 days on the market, and the average for 2002 was 65 days.