Burlingame vs Walnut Creek
Burlingame 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 $9,768 and $9,733 — $35 apart, with Walnut Creek lower. To Oakland City Center at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 45 min by car from Burlingame and 27 min by BART from Walnut Creek. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Burlingame (San Mateo County) · Walnut Creek (Contra Costa County)
| Metric | Burlingame | Walnut Creek | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,500 | $800 | +$700 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.11% | 1.08% | +0.026% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,768 | $9,733 | +$35 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 40 min | 45 min | −5 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 40 min | 55 min | −15 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 55 min | 27 min | +28 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 45 min | 32 min | +13 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 35 min | 62 min | −27 min |
Difference is Burlingame minus Walnut Creek. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
Walnut Creek is the cheaper foot by $700, 47% below Burlingame. What that buys is a different house, not a different bill: at $1,600,000 the two are $35 apart a month at 1.11% and 1.08%.
Square footage per dollar
Burlingame comps run $1,300-$1,500 per square foot for detached. Northgate, Woodlands and Rudgear Estates hold Walnut Creek's four-bedroom stock. The median foot costs $1,500 in Burlingame against $800 in Walnut Creek; on a 2,000 sq ft house that is $1,400,000 of purchase price.
What the bill looks like
Holding the loan constant — $1,600,000, 20% down, 6.5% on a 30-year fixed, $2,400 of insurance, no HOA — Burlingame totals $9,768 a month at 1.11% and Walnut Creek $9,733 at 1.08% — tax lines of $1,477 and $1,443. No Mello-Roos in Burlingame. Rossmoor dues run $1,100-$1,500 a month including golf and services; downtown condos $400-$800. Neither figure includes dues or a district assessment, and both belong on the worksheet before an offer.
Commute, measured
To Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain): 35 minutes by Caltrain from Burlingame, 62 by driving from Walnut Creek — a 27-minute edge to Burlingame, or 4.5 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 45 minutes by driving from Burlingame, 27 by BART from Walnut Creek — a 18-minute edge to Walnut Creek, or 3.0 hours across a ten-trip week. Driving 101 from Burlingame to SoMa is 25 minutes at 6 a.m. and 45-55 at 8. Kaiser Walnut Creek and John Muir are 5-10 minutes out; Bishop Ranch is 15 minutes south on I-680.
Hazard and insurance
The Burlingame flats east of El Camino sit in FEMA flood zones tied to the bayfront and creeks. The Walnut Creek flats near downtown and the Northgate valley floor are not WUI. Run the address through CAL FIRE's severity-zone viewer, the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and the CGS seismic hazard maps, and treat the premium quote as a contingency item.
The housing need each answers
Burlingame assumes square footage will be traded to get both. Walnut Creek answers a need to be close to the John Muir and Kaiser medical campuses. The decision is which requirement is load-bearing, because neither submarket satisfies both lists.
Sources. Effective rates and carrying costs: San Mateo County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26, composited in build/assets/metrics.json; TRA-level verification pending, so confirm the rate on the parcel's own bill. Commute times: door-to-door AM-peak estimates, data/commute/static.csv. Price per square foot is a trailing median and is not an appraisal. Qualitative detail is the broker's own field observation.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Burlingame | Walnut Creek |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,500 | $800 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.11% | 1.08% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,768 | $9,733 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 40 min | 45 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 45 min | 27 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 35 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.
Burlingame detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.010% |
| School district measures | 0.098% |
| Effective rate | 1.11% |
| 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.
Burlingame vs Walnut Creek: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Burlingame 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 Burlingame and Walnut Creek?
- $35 per month on the identical reference loan: Burlingame $9,768, 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, Burlingame or Walnut Creek?
- Walnut Creek. Burlingame 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 Burlingame and Walnut Creek?
- $700 per square foot: Burlingame $1,500, Walnut Creek $800. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.