Cordelia, Fairfield vs Vacaville
Cordelia, Fairfield carries an effective property tax rate of 1.18% of assessed value and Vacaville carries 1.09%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,864 and $9,737 — $127 apart, with Vacaville lower. To Oakland City Center at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 60 min by car from Cordelia, Fairfield and 70 min by car from Vacaville. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Cordelia, Fairfield (Solano County) · Vacaville (Solano County)
| Metric | Cordelia, Fairfield | Vacaville | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $380 | $360 | +$20 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.18% | 1.09% | +0.095% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,864 | $9,737 | +$127 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 85 min | 95 min | −10 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Ferry | 95 min | 105 min | −10 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 75 min | 85 min | −10 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 70 min | 80 min | −10 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 60 min | 70 min | −10 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 95 min | 105 min | −10 min |
Difference is Cordelia, Fairfield minus Vacaville. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
On a matched $1,600,000 purchase the payment gap is $127, and it is entirely a tax gap: 1.18% in Fairfield (Cordelia), 1.09% in Vacaville. Price per foot, $380 against $360, is the second question.
Square footage per dollar
Cordelia comps run $330-$400 per square foot. $1.4M in Vacaville is 4,000-plus sq ft on a half-acre to two acres in Browns Valley or Pleasants Valley. At $380 and $360 per foot respectively, a fixed budget buys about 6% more floor area in Vacaville.
The monthly, matched
Holding the loan constant — $1,600,000, 20% down, 6.5% on a 30-year fixed, $2,400 of insurance, no HOA — Fairfield (Cordelia) totals $9,864 a month at 1.18% and Vacaville $9,737 at 1.09% — tax lines of $1,573 and $1,447. The 1990s Green Valley core in Cordelia largely carries no Mello-Roos. The 1990s Vacaville core and Browns Valley generally carry no Mello-Roos.
The trip each morning
To FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART): 75 minutes by driving from Fairfield (Cordelia), 85 by driving from Vacaville — a 10-minute edge to Fairfield (Cordelia), or 1.7 hours across a ten-trip week. To Oakland City Center (12th St BART): 60 minutes by driving from Fairfield (Cordelia), 70 by driving from Vacaville — a 10-minute edge to Fairfield (Cordelia), or 1.7 hours across a ten-trip week. The Vallejo ferry is 25 minutes from Cordelia, then 60 on the water; Travis AFB is 20 minutes east and Napa 25 north. I-80 is Vacaville's only real route: 60 minutes to the Bay Bridge at 5:30 a.m., 90-120 at 7:30.
Hazard and insurance
The flats near Cordelia Junction are not WUI, and Suisun Marsh flood mapping touches the southern edge. The Vacaville city flats are not WUI; Alamo Creek and Ulatis Creek flood mapping touches the older core. None of this substitutes for the parcel: check CAL FIRE zoning, the FEMA flood panel and CGS seismic hazard mapping, then price the policy in writing.
Which search this actually is
Cordelia is the answer when square footage per dollar is the governing constraint. Vacaville assumes the Bay Bridge is an occasional trip, not a daily one. Write the requirement down before the search: these two answer different ones.
Sources. Rate and payment figures: Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; City of Fairfield CFD reports; Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26, as composited in build/assets/metrics.json — unverified at tax-rate-area level, so read the bill. Minutes shown are AM-peak and door to door, from data/commute/static.csv. The per-foot medians are trailing and carry no appraisal weight; the neighborhood detail is first-hand broker observation.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Cordelia, Fairfield | Vacaville |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $380 | $360 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.18% | 1.09% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,864 | $9,737 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 75 min | 85 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 60 min | 70 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 95 min | 105 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.
Cordelia, Fairfield detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.010% |
| School district measures | 0.090% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD assessment | 0.080% |
| Effective rate | 1.18% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | Yes |
Source: Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26; City of Fairfield CFD reports (Solano 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.
Vacaville detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.010% |
| School district measures | 0.075% |
| Effective rate | 1.08% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | None recorded |
Source: Solano County Tax Rate Book FY 2025-26 (Solano 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.
Cordelia, Fairfield vs Vacaville: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Cordelia, Fairfield or Vacaville?
- Vacaville, at 1.09% of assessed value against 1.18% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.090%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Cordelia, Fairfield and Vacaville?
- $127 per month on the identical reference loan: Cordelia, Fairfield $9,864, Vacaville $9,737. Vacaville 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, Cordelia, Fairfield or Vacaville?
- Cordelia, Fairfield. Cordelia, Fairfield is 60 min by car; Vacaville is 70 min by car. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Cordelia, Fairfield and Vacaville?
- $20 per square foot: Cordelia, Fairfield $380, Vacaville $360. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.