Burlingame Condo vs Single-Family Home Prices: Understanding the Gap

In September 2026, Burlingame's single-family homes sold for a median $1,623 per square foot. That beat Hillsborough's $1,583. Burlingame condominiums sold for a median $858 per square foot that month, about 8% above the San Mateo County condo median and below the condo medians in Millbrae, San Carlos and Belmont.

So the city's premium attaches to the detached house and its land. Burlingame's attached homes price close to the rest of the Peninsula. They also take longer to sell and face a pipeline of new housing that is largely rental. A buyer who passed on Burlingame because of the roughly $3.2 million house median may have ruled out more of the city than the numbers justify.

The per-square-foot gap, city by city

The San Mateo County Association of Realtors posted its September 2026 figures on October 9. They are the latest full month available as this post goes up. SAMCAR splits each city into single-family residential and common interest development, its category for condominiums.

Burlingame has the widest spread in that group. Its houses sold about 39% above the county's per-square-foot median, and its condos about 8% above. A Burlingame mailing address adds little at the condo level. Most of the city's premium shows up once a lot comes with the home.

Speed and competition split the same way. In September 2026, SAMCAR's single-family report shows Burlingame houses selling at 109% of list price after an average of 18 days, with 0.8 months of inventory. The condo report shows Burlingame condos at 102% of list, 35 average days on market and 2.2 months of inventory.

August 2026 looked almost the same. Houses sold at $1,584 per square foot, 107% of list and 0.8 months of inventory. Condos sold at $739 per square foot, 103% of list and 2.1 months of inventory, with an average of 40 days on market. Two months in a row is a pattern worth taking seriously.

A handful of sales a month changes how a condo gets priced

The gap comes with a practical problem. Burlingame recorded seven condo sales in August 2026 and six in September. With so few closings, the monthly median swings on whichever units happened to sell. It was $950,000 in August and $1,512,500 in September. The six September sales averaged 1,843 square feet. That is much larger than the county's 1,251-square-foot average condo, and it explains most of the jump.

This is where condo transactions run into friction. A seller who looks at September's median may expect a price that August's comps would not support. A buyer's appraisal may draw on a different handful of sales than the listing agent used. Price per square foot moved as well, from $739 in August to $858 in September. Inventory changed less, from 2.1 to 2.2 months, and average days on market went from 40 to 35, so those two figures track the market better than the median does. On houses, 15 September closings and under a month of supply give both sides a much clearer reference point.

What weighs on condos across the county

Burlingame's condo market follows a countywide trend. In a 2026 report, the San Mateo Daily Journal described San Mateo County's single-family and condo markets moving in opposite directions, and gave several reasons.

• HOA costs. Monthly dues have gone up, and rising insurance premiums have strained the finances of many homeowner associations.
• Financing. An agent quoted in the story said many HOA reserves fall below funding guidelines, and that lenders require a minimum level of HOA financial health, which can make some units harder to finance.
• Rate sensitivity. Condo buyers tend to react more to interest rates than single-family buyers do.
• Rentals as substitutes. Most new Peninsula housing is apartments, and the paper noted that apartment tenants resemble condo owners more than single-family owners. More rental supply can hold condo prices down.

The last point is the one most specific to Burlingame, because of where the city's new housing is going.

Burlingame's new housing is mostly rental, and it is clustering

The North Rollins Road area is the main example. Community Development Director Neda Zayer told the City Council that 685 new homes had been built there since the city first planned it as a mixed-use neighborhood in 2019, including the One Adrian and Hanover apartment complexes, according to the San Mateo Daily Journal. More is on the way:

1. 30 Ingold Road. SummerHill Apartment Communities started construction on 320 apartments in spring 2026, with 50 units deed-restricted for low-income households, SFYIMBY reported in May.
2. 1755 Rollins Road. An application for a 395-unit residential development is in the pipeline next door.
3. Rollins Road itself. A $3.9 million redesign will add Class 4 protected bike lanes, on-street parking and a center turn lane.

The Daily Journal said those projects put Burlingame at about 1,400 new homes either built or in development. Zayer also told the council it would be prudent to hold off on new major residential projects while the existing buildings lease up.

Closer to downtown, a seven-story, 144-unit building from Windy Hill Property Ventures is proposed at 2 Park Road, at Park Road and Peninsula Avenue just off El Camino Real. It went before the Planning Commission on May 26, 2026. The Daily Journal reported that it uses a state density bonus, SB 330, AB 130 and AB 2097, and would still include 140 parking spaces. Its developer described it as transit-oriented because it sits close to the Burlingame Caltrain station. The city's meeting agenda listed 12 below-market-rate units.

One Adrian, Hanover, 30 Ingold Road and the 2 Park Road proposal are all apartment projects, the kind of supply the Daily Journal identified as a substitute for condos.

SB 79 points more density at the station areas

State law SB 79 took effect July 1, 2026. Burlingame's own 2026 briefing lists two qualifying stops, the Downtown Burlingame Caltrain station and the Millbrae multimodal station, and says the law allows housing within a quarter-mile of them under specified standards. The City Council chose to write its own version and adopted a Transit-Oriented Development Alternative Plan on June 15, 2026, by a 3–0 vote, according to the council resolution. The June 1 council agenda described the proposed implementation as overlay zones within a quarter-mile of both stations, with amendments to the General Plan, the Downtown Specific Plan and the North Rollins Specific Plan.

A city plan of this kind governs projects only after the state housing department approves it, according to HCD's SB 79 guidance. City Manager Lisa Goldman told SFGATE on July 24 that HCD was still reviewing Burlingame's proposal. Either way, the extra zoning capacity is aimed at the quarter-mile around the stations, where the 2 Park Road apartment proposal already sits.

What the split means for a buyer comparing towns

Burlingame's two markets respond to different forces. Detached homes have under a month of supply, and their price per square foot is on par with Hillsborough. New construction adds almost nothing to that segment, so the 109% sale-to-list ratio comes from a shortage that the current pipeline does nothing to ease.

Condos have more than two months of supply and sell close to the asking price. They also compete with the hundreds of new rentals near Rollins Road and the stations. That is why a buyer can find Burlingame condo pricing per square foot close to San Mateo's and below Millbrae's, along with more time and room to negotiate. The same forces affect resale. Many condo buyers will weigh a unit against a new rental with fresh finishes a mile away.

On any unit, the HOA's finances matter as much as the list price. They shape the monthly cost and, according to the Daily Journal's reporting, whether a lender will finance the purchase at all. This post is general market information, not legal, tax or financial advice, so please confirm HOA, lending and zoning questions for your own situation with the right professional.

Quick answers

Is Burlingame's condo median a reliable number? Not month to month. Six closed sales in September 2026 moved the median by more than half a million dollars from August. Inventory and days on market moved much less between those two months.

Are any of the new North Rollins buildings for sale? One Adrian, Hanover and 30 Ingold Road are described as apartment communities.

When will the Broadway grade separation be built? Caltrain finished 65% design in June 2026. It estimates the project at $662 million, with construction starting as early as November 2028 if funding comes through.

If you're weighing a Burlingame condo against a house in a neighboring town, or wondering which of the city's two markets your home will sell into, NEXTGEN Properties can go through the current per-square-foot comps, the HOA documents and the station-area pipeline with you, in English, Mandarin or Cantonese. Book a complimentary home strategy session.