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

All states·California·Windsor

Sonoma County · Santa Rosa-Petaluma · population 25,846

OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
50
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Windsor stands

Steady, no major recent move.

Median home $806,383
1-year -1.0%
5-yr CAGR +1.5%
vs 5-yr peak -3.0%
Population -0.5%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2022-06$806k$524k$638k$751k$865k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
32/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
15/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
47/100
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 vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 17.7
Lean buy

At a 17.7 price-to-rent ratio, Windsor is in the 'depends on horizon' zone. Buy if you'll be there 5+ years and value flexibility on the home; rent if you might move, want zero maintenance friction, or expect rates to drop.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
45 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
44 · w22%
Distance from peak
72 · w18%
Population growth
38 · w16%
Home 10-yr CAGR
52 · w10%
Long thesis

Windsor has held up across the cycle: home values at $806,383 with +1.5% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Windsor carries a $806,383 median home with only -1.0% 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 Windsor

Windsor is a city in Sonoma County, California, with an estimated population of 25,846. It anchors the Santa Rosa-Petaluma metro area. The median home value in Windsor is $806,383 as of 2026-04, down 1.0% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +1.5% annual growth (-3.0% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Windsor average $3,800 per month. The composite momentum score is 50 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: Windsor 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 $806,383 with only -1.0% YoY. You’re paying premium pricing for a flat trend.
●Flat or shrinking population: -0.5% per year. Housing demand has to come from somewhere — verify the source.

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 Windsor

South Lake Tahoe, CA51 · StableAuburn, CA49 · StablePlacerville, CA55 · StableRohnert Park, CA56 · Stable

Run the numbers for Windsor

ToolCan I afford Windsor?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Windsor rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Windsor to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolWindsor 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 Windsor 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.

Cities similar to Windsor

Explore other places with comparable momentum or affordability.

See all California cities →    Browse best-of lists →