Petaluma, CA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·California·Petaluma

Sonoma County · Santa Rosa-Petaluma · population 59,393

Petaluma, CA
Image: Wikipedia · Petaluma, California
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
51
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Petaluma stands

Steady, no major recent move.

Median home $907,304
1-year -2.0%
5-yr CAGR +2.2%
vs 5-yr peak -3.7%
Population -0.2%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2024-06$907k$576k$711k$845k$980k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
52/100
Somewhat walkable
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
44/100
Marginal for remote
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$2,756/mo$2,052$2,487$2,921202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent111126100120202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 27.4
Rent

At a 27.4 price-to-rent ratio, renting beats buying in Petaluma for most shorter holds. The premium you pay to own would take many years of rent savings to recoup, and that's before maintenance, taxes, and opportunity cost on the down payment.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
40 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
48 · w22%
Distance from peak
68 · w18%
Population growth
43 · w16%
Rent YoY
59 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
53 · w10%
Long thesis

Petaluma has held up across the cycle: home values at $907,304 with +2.2% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Petaluma carries a $907,304 median home with only -2.0% YoY. Premium pricing in a flat tape is the bear setup — you're paying for the trend that already ran while new buyers can't afford to extend it.

About Petaluma

Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County, California, with an estimated population of 59,393. It anchors the Santa Rosa-Petaluma metro area. The median home value in Petaluma is $907,304 as of 2026-04, down 2.0% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +2.2% annual growth (-3.7% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Petaluma average $2,756 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+2.1%). The composite momentum score is 51 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

○The data is the data: Petaluma has at least 5 years of Zillow tracking, full Census identification, and is included in the 1-criteria momentum score on this page.

▼ Bear case

●Expensive AND not growing: median home $907,304 with only -2.0% YoY. You’re paying premium pricing for a flat trend.
●Cooling: -2.0% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.

About Petaluma (Wikipedia)

Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

MayorKevin McDonnellCite web
Area14.52 sq mi
Elevation13 ft
Density4146.8/sq mi

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Sonoma County right now.

NWS active alerts (CA)California Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Sonoma County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Cities like Petaluma

Davis, CA50 · StablePleasant Hill, CA46 · CoolingWalnut Creek, CA52 · StableCitrus Heights, CA52 · Stable

Run the numbers for Petaluma

ToolCan I afford Petaluma?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Petaluma rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Petaluma to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolPetaluma cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
60° / 41°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
82° / 60°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
258
~71% of year
Annual precip
22″ rain
8″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very low
Wildfire
Very high
Earthquake
Very high
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Petaluma listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Santa Rosa-Petaluma area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
65%
Moderate climate
Median household income
$91,500
California state median
Top industries (state-level)
TechEntertainmentAgriculture

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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