Photo: User:Serouj · Public domainEven on the area’s higher pay, Millbrae costs more to live in than almost every U.S. town
It ranks #762 of 846 in California for affordability. Up 7.4% in a year, more than twice the California typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area ($136K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Millbrae’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($136K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 30% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 50% of renters.
In dollars
- $2.1Mtypical home, 170% above the California typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $4,360a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
In paychecks the grade
- 14.2 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$136K, San Francisco-area income
- 29%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 50%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across California: 55%Census 2020–24
- 30%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What Millbrae’s housing numbers say
About two in three homes sell above asking
In September, 65% of the homes that sold went for more than the asking price and 67% went under contract within two weeks. There were about 1.3 months of homes for sale at that pace, against 3.6 across California: 16 listings for 13 sales that month. Expect competition on well-priced homes. How fast homes sell ↓
Homes haven’t kept up with new residents
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Millbrae gained 1,684 residents while 63 new homes were permitted: about 26.7 new residents per new home, against 2.7 across California. New homes ↓
Building at more than twice the California pace
Builders were permitted 150 new homes in 2025: 6.6 per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 across California. That’s 892 in the past 10 years. New homes ↓
Renting costs far less than owning
A two-bedroom rents for about $4,360 a month. Owning the typical Millbrae home, with 20% down at the calculator’s rate, runs about $11,660 with tax and insurance: more than twice as much. Can I afford it? ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for September 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025 (2025 partly estimated); incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Millbrae’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Millbrae is more affordable than 1% of U.S. towns, #762 of 846 in California. The four inputs sit close together, so no single cost explains the grade.
Values have outpaced California: the typical Millbrae home is up 18.5% in five years, against 13.3% statewide (Zillow).
Up 7.4% in a year
Faster than California (0.6%).
Show as a table
| January | Millbrae | California |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $1,304,000 | $451,000 |
| 2018 | $1,459,000 | $499,000 |
| 2019 | $1,524,000 | $537,000 |
| 2020 | $1,530,000 | $548,000 |
| 2021 | $1,620,000 | $604,000 |
| 2022 | $1,802,000 | $700,000 |
| 2023 | $1,755,000 | $723,000 |
| 2024 | $1,785,000 | $754,000 |
| 2025 | $1,909,000 | $778,000 |
| 2026 | $1,968,000 | $763,000 |
| September 2026 | $2,055,000 | $762,000 |
A typical Millbrae home worth $1.29M in October 2016 is worth about $2.05M today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
Too few sales to read the market
Only 13 homes sold in September 2026, the latest month in Redfin’s figures: too few to describe the market or quote a median sale price.
A typical home costs 14.2 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Millbrae’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $1.5M short of a typical Millbrae home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $4,360 a month here, $7,300 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Millbrae’s typical property tax (0.52% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $4,360
Renters already here pay a median of $3,272, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (San Francisco, CA HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
150 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 150 new homes in Millbrae in 2025: 8 single-family houses and 142 in buildings with two or more homes, worth about $43.9 million to build. That's 6.6 per 1,000 residents, faster than across California (2.7). Over the past 10 years, Millbrae has permitted 892 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Millbrae gained 1,684 residents while 63 new homes were permitted: about 27 new residents per new home. Population grew faster than building, so existing homes filled up: a sign of tight supply. Across California: 2.7 new residents per new home.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 159 | 7 | 152 | $46.8 million |
| 2025 | 150 | 8 | 142 | $43.9 million |
| 2024 | 255 | 19 | 236 | $74.1 million |
| 2023 | 7 | 7 | 0 | $1.9 million |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2021 | 80 | 0 | 80 | $22 million |
| 2020 | 400 | 0 | 400 | $112.9 million |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2012 | 54 | 0 | 54 | $8.7 million |
| 2011 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2010 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $3.9 million |
| 2009 | 12 | 12 | 0 | $5.9 million |
| 2008 | 146 | 0 | 146 | $25 million |
| 2007 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $3.4 million |
| 2006 | 110 | 1 | 109 | $22.6 million |
| 2005 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $2.7 million |
| 2004 | 3 | 1 | 2 | $575,000 |
| 2003 | 161 | 48 | 113 | $31.4 million |
| 2002 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $330,000 |
| 2001 | 3 | 3 | 0 | $1 million |
| 2000 | 5 | 3 | 2 | $1.6 million |
Millbrae's permit office reported 7 of 12 months in 2025; the Census estimated the rest.
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
High tax bills, but a low tax rate
The median bill is $9,996 (California: $5,124), because homes cost more. As a share of value it’s 0.52% a year, against 0.70% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
Millbrae vs. its neighbors
Of the 3 towns here with a Zillow value, Millbrae has the 2nd-lowest.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Millbrae | D− | $2.1M | $1.9M | 0.52% | $4,360 |
| San Bruno | D | $1.3M | $1.2M | 0.51% | $3,530 |
| Burlingame | D− | $2.8M | $2.0M | 0.50%+ | $3,660 |
“+”: the Census reports the tax bill only as $10,000 or more, so the rate is at least that.
Questions about the cost of living in Millbrae
Is Millbrae expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Millbrae costs more than 99% of U.S. towns: a D− for cost of living, #762 of 846 in California. The typical home costs 14.2 years of the median household income of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area ($136K).
How much does a house cost in Millbrae?
About $2.1M, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 7.4% in a year. The California typical home is $762K.
What salary do you need to live in Millbrae?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $500,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $11,660 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $174,000.
How much is rent in Millbrae?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $4,360 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $3,272 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Millbrae?
The median bill is $9,996 a year, 0.52% of the median home value (California: $5,124, 0.70%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Millbrae going up?
Yes: up 7.4% in the past year and 18.5% in five years, against 13.3% across California (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Millbrae buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.