Sea Cliff is San Francisco's small oceanfront enclave of single-family houses, and in 2026 it ranks among the city's highest-priced blocks by the foot. The median single-family sale over the last six months was $5.63M, more than three times the citywide median, and homes closed in a median of 8 days.
Unless otherwise noted, all market figures in this guide are from MLS data.
Sea Cliff sits at the city's northwest corner, a compact grid of a few dozen blocks that drops toward the Pacific between China Beach and Baker Beach, with Lands End and the Eagle's Point Overlook at its western edge (OpenStreetMap). It is one of the few places in San Francisco built almost entirely as detached houses on view lots, and the numbers reflect that scarcity. After running comp sets on the eleven Sea Cliff closings over the past year, the pattern I keep seeing is a market with almost no supply, very short marketing times, and a price floor that rarely dips below the $3M line.
Sea Cliff by the numbers
The recent windows tell the story better than any twelve-month average. The last 30 days is thin at just two sales, so I lean on the trailing six months for a stable read.
For context, the San Francisco median across all closed sales was $1.8M over the same twelve months, at about $1,200 per square foot and a median of 12 days on market. Sea Cliff runs well above the city on price and price per foot, and slightly faster on time to sell. Year over year, the median single-family price rose about 8%, and the average time on market fell from 29 days to 9, so demand tightened even as prices climbed.
How the price tiers actually break down
Sea Cliff is not a neighborhood with a broad price ladder. Over the past year, sales split almost evenly between two segments: five single-family houses closed between $3M and $5M (about 46% of sales), and five more closed above $5M (another 46%). There was nothing under $1M and nothing in the $2M to $3M range. The only sale below $3M was a single condo at $1.77M, which sold in September 2025 and stands apart from the detached-house market that defines the neighborhood.
Inside the single-family segment, size and view drive most of the spread. Three-bedroom houses closed at a median of $3.87M this year, four-bedrooms at $5.0M, and houses with five or more bedrooms at $7.0M. The one two-bedroom sale is the exception that proves the rule: 580 El Camino Del Mar, a 2-bedroom, 2,395-square-foot house on the view side, closed at $6.3M in May 2026 after three days on the market. In Sea Cliff, a small house on the right block can outprice a larger house a few streets inland, because the Pacific frontage is the scarce asset, not the bedroom count.
The comp set makes the tiers concrete. At the top, 22 25th Avenue, a 5-bedroom, 3,542-square-foot house, sold as-is for $7.0M in June 2026 in eight days, which tells you buyers will pay for scale and location even when the condition note says the house needs work. In the core $5M to $6.5M range, 251 28th Avenue (a renovated 1916 house) closed at $6.5M and 238 28th Avenue (renovated down to the studs) closed at $6.252M, both in the spring. The clearest signal of demand: 228 32nd Avenue asked $3.695M and closed at $5.0M in August 2026, more than $1.3M over its list price. When a neighborhood prices this thin, sellers underprice to draw a crowd, and the crowd bids it back up.
Two more sales fill in the middle of the range and show how condition sets the number. 298 32nd Avenue, a renovated 4-bedroom of about 3,010 square feet, closed at $5.0M in seven days in June 2026, and 284 32nd Avenue, a renovated 3-bedroom, closed at $4.688M in February 2026. Both traded quickly and near the low end of the single-family market, which is roughly where a turnkey house without a premium view settles in Sea Cliff. The lesson from a full year of comps: the $3M floor is real, the ceiling stretches toward $10M, and where a specific house lands inside that spread comes down to view tier, size, and whether the work is already done.
The blocks where homes actually trade
With only eleven sales in a year, no single street turns over often, but three block ranges accounted for most of the activity. The 200 block of 32nd Avenue led with three sales at a median of $5.0M and about $1,547 per square foot, and it carries a Walk Score of 86. The 200 block of 28th Avenue saw two sales at a median of $6.38M and roughly $2,299 per square foot, with a Walk Score of 85 and a Bike Score of 92. The 500 block of El Camino Del Mar, the ocean-facing street, posted two sales at a median of $8.14M and about $2,396 per square foot.
That last block is worth pausing on. El Camino Del Mar carries the highest prices and the highest price per foot, but it also scores lowest on walkability at a 65, which Walk Score rates "Somewhat Walkable." The inland avenues near California Street are more walkable but trade at a discount to the view blocks. In Sea Cliff, the walk-to-coffee convenience and the water view sit on opposite ends of the neighborhood, and buyers pay for the view, not the errands.
There is also a quieter market that never hits the public feed. Our off-market records show six private Sea Cliff sales since 2021, at a median of about $3.85M, including a 28th Avenue house that changed hands at $5.85M in May 2026 with just one day of exposure. Off-market deals matter more here than in a high-volume neighborhood, because a single quiet sale can be a meaningful share of a year's activity. If you are serious about buying in Sea Cliff, the pocket-listing network is not a nice-to-have, it is often the only way you see the right house before someone else does.
How the housing inventory breaks down
The building inventory is overwhelmingly detached houses. Over the last twelve months, 10 of 11 sales were single-family homes and only one was a condo, so the "market" here is effectively a single-family market with a thin condo footnote. The houses skew early-twentieth-century: the two dated comps this year were built in 1916 and 1919, and the Census puts the median year built across the surrounding block group at 1938 (Census ACS). Many trade after a full renovation. Five of the eight single-family comps I reviewed carried a "renovated" condition flag, several taken down to the studs, which is part of why price per foot runs high even on modest footprints.
The people who own here tend to stay. Census ACS data for the block group shows owner-occupancy near 64%, a median household income of about $226,600, and a median age of 47, with roughly 48% of workers now working from home (Census ACS). Low turnover plus long tenure is a big reason inventory stays scarce: owners are not cycling in and out.
What to consider before buying in Sea Cliff
Every other part of this guide is about why Sea Cliff commands a premium. This section is about the parts of the pitch I would treat with skepticism before you write an offer.
Inventory is so thin you may wait months for the right house
There were zero active listings in Sea Cliff in August 2026, and only eleven homes changed hands all year. If you want a specific block, a specific view, or a specific floor plan, you may sit on the sidelines for a season or two. I don't sugarcoat this part: the scarcity that protects your resale value is the same scarcity that makes buying here a patience game.
The view blocks sit on coastal bluffs
The ocean-facing lots along El Camino Del Mar are the most expensive in the neighborhood, and they also sit closest to the bluff edge above the Pacific. I would order a geotechnical and soils review on any bluff-adjacent parcel before removing your inspection contingency, and budget for the drainage and foundation questions that come with hillside houses of this age. The view is real. So is the due diligence.
Parking, walkability, and errands vary block to block
Sea Cliff earns a 78 Walk Score overall, which Walk Score calls "Very Walkable," but that average hides a wide spread. The view blocks score in the mid-60s while the inland avenues score in the mid-80s. The neighborhood itself has almost no retail. Day-to-day shopping and dining happen a few blocks south on the Richmond's Clement Street corridor near spots like Pizzetta 211 (OpenStreetMap), not inside Sea Cliff.
Schools run on a city-wide lottery, not your address
Buyers often assume a house in the 94121 zone guarantees a nearby elementary. It does not. SFUSD assigns seats through a city-wide lottery rather than by street address, so proximity to Alamo Elementary, Argonne Elementary, or Lafayette Elementary raises your odds but never guarantees placement (NCES, SFUSD). Plan for that mechanic rather than against it.
The buyer's playbook for Sea Cliff in 2026
If you are buying in Sea Cliff this year, the comp set is your starting point, but the offer is won at the table, not on a spreadsheet. Anchor to the last six months of single-family closings, because with only about eleven sales a year, a 30-day window is too thin to price against. Then read the specific deal in front of you. A clean, well-capitalized offer with a short close can beat a higher financed one, especially on an estate or as-is sale like the $7.0M house on 25th Avenue that traded in June 2026.
The levers that actually move the outcome here are condition, view tier, and how many offers are already in. A renovated house on a walkable inland block competes differently than a fixer on the bluff. When a listing comes in underpriced, as 228 32nd Avenue did before selling more than $1.3M over ask in August 2026, expect a crowd and structure your offer to stand out on terms, not just price. I'd rather you win on a clean contingency timeline and a strong deposit than chase the number blindly.
How much does a house in Sea Cliff cost in 2026?
As of Q3 2026, the median single-family house in Sea Cliff sold for $5.63M over the trailing six months, and $5.0M across the full twelve months. Prices ran from the mid-$3M range up to nearly $10M, at an average of about $2,012 per square foot. There is no meaningful market below $3M except the occasional condo, which last closed at $1.77M in September 2025.
Are Sea Cliff home prices going up or down?
Prices are up: as of August 2026, the median single-family price rose about 8% year over year, from roughly $4.63M to $5.0M, while the average time on market fell from 29 days to 9. Both signals point the same direction, prices firmed and homes sold faster. With inventory this scarce, a handful of sales can swing the median, so read the trend as directional rather than precise.
Why are there so few homes for sale in Sea Cliff?
In 2026, Sea Cliff had zero active listings in August and only eleven sales across twelve months, because it is a small, built-out enclave where owners stay for decades. Census ACS data shows owner-occupancy near 64% and a median age of 47, both markers of a low-turnover neighborhood. The housing is almost entirely detached single-family houses, so there is no condo tower adding supply.
How competitive is it to buy a home in Sea Cliff?
It is very competitive on the right house: in 2026, the median time on market was just 8 days, and underpriced listings drew large premiums. The clearest example, 228 32nd Avenue, closed more than $1.3M over its $3.695M ask in August 2026. Well-priced, renovated houses routinely move in a week or less. The scarcity of inventory, not a shortage of buyers, is what sets the pace here.
What schools serve the Sea Cliff neighborhood?
As of the 2024-25 school year, the nearest SFUSD elementary options include Alamo Elementary on 23rd Avenue, Argonne Elementary on 18th Avenue, and Lafayette Elementary on Anza Street, each enrolling roughly 390 to 470 students (NCES). Keep in mind SFUSD assigns seats by a city-wide lottery, not by home address, so living near a school improves but does not guarantee placement.
Is Sea Cliff a walkable neighborhood?
Sea Cliff is partly walkable: as of 2026, it earns a 78 Walk Score ("Very Walkable") and a 92 Bike Score, but walkability varies sharply by block, from the mid-60s on the ocean-facing streets to the mid-80s on the inland avenues. Transit is decent, with the 1-California, the 1X-California Express, and the 29-Sunset lines running within a few hundred meters (SFMTA). There is no BART or Muni Metro rail stop.
Talk to me about Sea Cliff
I'm Chris Chour, founder and broker of EON Real Estate, and most of my work is single-family and condo transactions in San Francisco's luxury neighborhoods. EON is a member of Top Agent Network, an invite-only group for the top 1% of agents (Top Agent Network). Sea Cliff is a patience market, so when you are ready to look, I can pull the block-by-block comp set, flag which bluff-adjacent lots need a geotechnical read, and tell you honestly when a listing is priced to draw a bidding war. Reach out when you want that conversation.
