Moraga vs Gale Ranch, San Ramon
Moraga carries an effective property tax rate of 1.08% of assessed value and Gale Ranch, San Ramon carries 1.35%, both for fiscal year 2025-26. On one identical reference loan the monthly carrying costs are $9,728 and $10,086 — $359 apart, with Moraga lower. To Oakland City Center at AM peak the fastest published commutes are 30 min by car from Moraga and 45 min by BART from Gale Ranch, San Ramon. Every figure is an objective public metric or arithmetic on one, and names its source.
Moraga (Contra Costa County) · Gale Ranch, San Ramon (Contra Costa County)
| Metric | Moraga | Gale Ranch, San Ramon | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,000 | $700 | +$300 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.08% | 1.35% | −0.269% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,728 | $10,086 | −$359 |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — BART | 50 min | 65 min | −15 min |
| FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) — Drive | 50 min | 70 min | −20 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — BART | 32 min | 45 min | −13 min |
| Oakland City Center (12th St BART) — Drive | 30 min | 45 min | −15 min |
| Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) — Drive | 70 min | 50 min | +20 min |
Difference is Moraga minus Gale Ranch, San Ramon. Sources are cited on each submarket page.
San Ramon (Gale Ranch) is the cheaper foot by $300, 30% below Moraga. What that buys is a different house, not a different bill: at $1,600,000 the two are $359 apart a month at 1.08% and 1.35%.
Square footage per dollar
Moraga comps run $780-$860 per square foot, the lowest in Lamorinda. Windemere next door prices about the same as Gale Ranch. At $1,000 and $700 per foot respectively, a fixed budget buys about 43% more floor area in San Ramon (Gale Ranch).
The monthly, matched
Against an identical $1,600,000 note at 6.5% with 20% down and $2,400 a year of coverage, Moraga totals $9,728 a month at 1.08% and San Ramon (Gale Ranch) $10,086 at 1.35% — tax lines of $1,437 and $1,796. Moraga's fixed levies are municipal measures, not a developer district. A Gale Ranch offer should be priced off the actual tax bill, not the county composite rate.
The trip each morning
To Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain): 70 minutes by driving from Moraga, 50 by driving from San Ramon (Gale Ranch) — a 20-minute edge to San Ramon (Gale Ranch), or 3.3 hours across a ten-trip week. To FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART): 50 minutes by BART from Moraga, 65 by BART from San Ramon (Gale Ranch) — a 15-minute edge to Moraga, or 2.5 hours across a ten-trip week. Moraga has no BART; Orinda station is 12-15 minutes out and Lafayette 15, then 22-25 minutes to Embarcadero. Bishop Ranch and City Center are 5-8 minutes from Gale Ranch, which is where most of its commutes end.
Fire, flood and the premium
Moraga non-renewals track Orinda's; plan on FAIR Plan plus a wrap at $5K-$9K a year. Calaveras Fault distance is the other San Ramon disclosure item. Pull the parcel's own mapping — CAL FIRE severity zone, FEMA flood panel, CGS liquefaction zone — and get a written quote before the contingency date.
Choosing between them
Moraga assumes two-step access to BART is acceptable. Gale Ranch fits a five-bedroom new-construction requirement near Bishop Ranch. The decision is which requirement is load-bearing, because neither submarket satisfies both lists.
Sources. Effective rates and carrying costs: Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26; Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26; City of San Ramon CFD annual special tax reports, 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. Median price per foot is a trailing figure, not a valuation, and the local detail comes from the broker's own transactions.
Compare any two submarkets
| Metric | Moraga | Gale Ranch, San Ramon |
|---|---|---|
| Median $/sqft (SFR) | $1,000 | $700 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.08% | 1.35% |
| Monthly cost, reference loan | $9,728 | $10,086 |
| Fastest to FiDi SF (Montgomery St BART) | 50 min | 65 min |
| Fastest to Oakland City Center (12th St BART) | 30 min | 45 min |
| Fastest to Sunnyvale / Mountain View (Sunnyvale Caltrain) | 70 min | 50 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.
Moraga detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.012% |
| School district measures | 0.066% |
| 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.
Gale Ranch, San Ramon detail
| Component | Rate of assessed value |
|---|---|
| Prop 13 general levy | 1.000% |
| County / city voter-approved bonds | 0.012% |
| School district measures | 0.055% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD assessment | 0.280% |
| Effective rate | 1.35% |
| Mello-Roos / CFD | Yes |
Source: Contra Costa TRA Book FY 2025-26; City of San Ramon CFD annual special tax reports (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.
Moraga vs Gale Ranch, San Ramon: questions and answers
- Which has the lower effective property tax rate, Moraga or Gale Ranch, San Ramon?
- Moraga, at 1.08% of assessed value against 1.35% for fiscal year 2025-26 — a gap of 0.270%. Rates are composited from county tax rate books; each parcel bill governs.
- How much do monthly carrying costs differ between Moraga and Gale Ranch, San Ramon?
- $359 per month on the identical reference loan: Moraga $9,728, Gale Ranch, San Ramon $10,086. Moraga 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, Moraga or Gale Ranch, San Ramon?
- Moraga. Moraga is 30 min by car; Gale Ranch, San Ramon is 45 min by BART. Door-to-door, AM peak. Source: data/commute/static.csv.
- What is the price per square foot difference between Moraga and Gale Ranch, San Ramon?
- $300 per square foot: Moraga $1,000, Gale Ranch, San Ramon $700. Single-family medians, trailing twelve months. A median is not a valuation of any specific property.