| Summary | National Percentile | Rank vs Metro |
|---|---|---|
| Housing | 87th | Best |
| Demographics | 55th | Poor |
| Amenities | 80th | Good |
Multifamily Valuation
| Property Details | |
|---|---|
| Address | 1280 El Camino Real, Millbrae, CA, 94030, US |
| Region / Metro | Millbrae |
| Year of Construction | 1979 |
| Units | 36 |
| Transaction Date | 1995-10-17 |
| Transaction Price | $890,000 |
| Buyer | FATICA BRUNO |
| Seller | CAVALLINI VITO |
1280 El Camino Real Millbrae Multifamily Investment
Stable renter demand in an Urban Core setting with high-cost homeownership supports leasing resilience, according to WDSuite’s CRE market data. Neighborhood occupancy trends and proximity to major employers underpin a durable tenant base.
Millbrae’s Urban Core location concentrates daily-needs retail and services around El Camino Real, with strong amenity density. Cafes, grocery stores, parks, and restaurants benchmark in the top tier nationally, signaling walkable convenience that helps with leasing velocity and renewal capture. In this neighborhood, occupancy is in the low-to-mid 90% range and is above the metro median (rank 90 among 193 neighborhoods), which supports operational stability and reduces downtime between turns based on CRE market data from WDSuite.
The building’s vintage is 1979, while the neighborhood’s average construction year skews newer (1993). Older vintage often requires targeted capital planning for systems and interiors, but it can also create value-add potential through renovations and modest repositioning to compete with the newer stock.
Tenure patterns indicate depth in the renter pool: the share of housing units that are renter-occupied ranks strong nationally (88th percentile) and is competitive in the metro (rank 56 of 193). This renter concentration supports demand for multifamily units and can aid occupancy stability through cycles.
Within a 3-mile radius, demographics show high median incomes and a household base that, while relatively stable, is projected to evolve toward smaller household sizes. This shift can expand the renter pool for well-located apartments, particularly larger floor plans that can accommodate work-from-home needs. Elevated home values and a high value-to-income ratio point to a high-cost ownership market, which tends to sustain reliance on rentals and can support pricing power. At the same time, the neighborhood’s rent-to-income ratio sits at levels that imply manageable affordability pressure for many households, aiding retention.
Local school ratings average closer to the middle-to-lower range, which may modestly limit appeal for family-oriented segments; however, the broader amenity set and employment access can offset this for a substantial share of renters focused on commute and convenience.
Safety metrics compare favorably in a regional context. The neighborhood’s overall crime positioning is competitive among San Francisco–San Mateo–Redwood City neighborhoods (rank 50 out of 193) and trends better than the national midpoint (66th percentile). Recent year-over-year improvements in both property and violent offense estimates indicate a downward trend in incidents, placing the neighborhood in a stronger improvement cohort nationally. As always, investors should evaluate property-level security measures and micro-location conditions alongside these area trends.
Nearby employers provide a diverse white-collar and life sciences employment base that reinforces renter demand and supports retention through commute convenience. The list below reflects major corporate offices and headquarters within a sub-10-mile radius that are most relevant to leasing.
- Sfo Airport Marriott Accounting Office — hospitality accounting office (1.6 miles)
- Walmart Global eCommerce HQ — e-commerce operations (1.8 miles)
- Core-Mark Holding — corporate offices (4.1 miles) — HQ
- Gilead Sciences — biotechnology (7.1 miles) — HQ
- Franklin Resources — asset management (7.5 miles) — HQ
1280 El Camino Real combines a central Millbrae location, dense amenity coverage, and proximity to multiple corporate employment nodes to support durable multifamily demand. Neighborhood occupancy sits in the low-to-mid 90% range and is above the metro median, while renter concentration is strong by national benchmarks, indicating a sizeable tenant base and potential for steady lease-up and retention. Elevated for-sale values in the area reinforce reliance on rentals, and rent burdens track at levels that help manage turnover risk, according to commercial real estate analysis from WDSuite.
Constructed in 1979, the asset is older than the neighborhood’s average vintage, suggesting targeted capital planning for building systems and interiors. This also opens value-add pathways to close the gap with newer competitive stock, especially given the amenity-rich context and employment access that can support post-renovation positioning. Key watch items include softer average school ratings and evolving household patterns, which call for thoughtful unit mix and amenity programming.
- Amenity-rich Urban Core location supports leasing velocity and renewal capture.
- Above-median neighborhood occupancy and strong renter concentration underpin demand stability.
- High-cost ownership market sustains rental reliance, aiding pricing power and retention.
- 1979 vintage offers value-add potential with targeted system and interior upgrades.
- Risks: softer school ratings and shifting household patterns require careful leasing strategy and amenity design.