As of September 2026, the typical home in the Santa Cruz metro costs $1,136,154 and typical rent is $3,469/month — a price-to-rent ratio of 27 and a gross rental yield of 3.7%. Santa Cruz scores 22/100 on the Star Score index, ranking #174 of 174 tracked US rental markets.
The Santa Cruz metro posts a price-to-rent ratio of 27 on a typical home value of $1,136,154 and typical rent of $3,469/month — a gross rental yield of 3.7% before expenses. Factor scores below show how it stacks up on landlord law, taxes, growth and risk.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Typical home value (ZHVI) | $1,136,154 |
| Typical rent (ZORI) | $3,469/mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 27 |
| Gross rental yield | 3.7% |
| Star Score | 22/100 ★☆☆☆☆ |
| Rank among tracked markets | #174 of 174 |
| Factor | Score | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Gross yield | 0 | 35% |
| Entry price (vs $100K reference budget) | 0 | 15% |
| Landlord-friendliness | 35 | 15% |
| Equity growth | 21 | 15% |
| Property-tax drag (inverted) | 81 | 10% |
| Climate & insurance risk (inverted) | 55 | 10% |
More context: Living in Santa Cruz — economy, industries & affordability
See how it stacks up in the full rankings — head-to-head pages cover the top 15 markets.
Active listings our scanner flagged for under-market signals — price cuts, long days on market, below-comp pricing. Leads to underwrite, not appraisals; verify everything locally.
Run one through the BRRRR calculator. Rent figures are modeled from metro data, not appraisals.
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Assumable-mortgage pocket: 13.6% of CA's 2019-21 mortgage originations were government-backed (FHA/VA/USDA) — assumable by law, mostly at ~3% rates. VA loans can be assumed by non-veterans, including for investment purchases. The Assumability Index →
National rule-of-thumb renovation costs (2026, per square foot) applied to a typical ~1,400 sq ft single-family in this market — every house differs, so treat these as planning ranges, not bids:
| Scope | $/sq ft | Typical house |
|---|---|---|
| Paint & refresh (cosmetic light) | $15–25 | $21K–35K |
| Cosmetic full (floors, kitchen refresh, baths) | $25–45 | $35K–63K |
| Full renovation (systems + finishes) | $45–75 | $63K–105K |
| Gut / structural | $75–120 | $105K–168K |
Run your own numbers for Santa Cruz in the BRRRR & rehab calculator. Run a rehab crew in Santa Cruz? Founding crews list free →
Santa Cruz scores 22/100 on the Star Score index (#174 of 174 tracked markets), with a gross rental yield of 3.7% at September 2026 prices. At current prices it works better as a place to live than a place to snowball rental equity.
27 — the typical home value ($1,136,154) divided by a year of typical rent ($3,469/month × 12). Ratios under about 15 generally favor buying and landlording.
With a typical home at $1,136,154 and rent of $3,469/month (3.7% gross yield), Santa Cruz can work for BRRRR in select submarkets, but higher prices or thinner yields mean deals need bigger discounts to snowball.
Typical asking rent in the Santa Cruz metro is $3,469 per month as of September 2026, per Zillow's Observed Rent Index.