Living in Kentfield, California: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 15.6% above the U.S. average in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metro area.
More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Kentfield to say.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI doesn't publish crime figures for unincorporated communities. Call the county sheriff's office (or the town or township police, where there is one) and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary and 2 middle. No public high school in town: the nearest is Redwood High, about 2 miles away.
A hospital close byMarinhealth Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySan Francisco is about 30 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Kentfield meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Kentfield runs into the built-up area around San Francisco (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $2,000,000 or moreU.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 4.4%Marin County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $2,741 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $249,896U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 81%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $10,000 or more a yearCalifornia: $5,124
Homes built before 1940: 12%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 2%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 3%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 115.6U.S. average = 100 (the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 4.4% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metro area, not Kentfield alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2020-2024 Census survey: 6,900The Census Bureau makes yearly estimates only for incorporated towns
Median age: 48.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 26%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 23%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 81%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 5%U.S.: 6%
College students: 8%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Professional and business services (29%); schools, health care and social services (20%); finance, insurance and real estate (19%)
Unemployment rate: 5%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 25 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 47%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 4%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Marinhealth Medical Center, Greenbrae, CA, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

3 public schools in Kentfield, run by Kentfield Elementary and Larkspur-Corte Madera. The nearest public high school is Redwood High, about 2 miles away.

Colleges in or next to town: College of Marin (1,000 to 4,999 students); Presidio Graduate School (under 1,000 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on California's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 86%U.S.: 76%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 42°F
July average high: 82°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 27 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 4 a year
Rain and melted snow: 44.4 inches a year
Snow: 0 inches a year
Elevation: 376 feet

Weather station: Kentfield (2 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

San Rafael, CACity of 59,0004

San Francisco, CAMetro of 4.6 million30

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: San Rafael, San Francisco.

Marin County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Golden Gate National Recreation Area1 mile
Muir Woods National Monument2 miles
Point Reyes National Seashore8 miles
Fort Point National Historic Site10 miles
Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park10 miles

Campus life. Check Presidio Graduate School's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Kentfield's history on Wikipedia.

Know Kentfield?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Larkspur, CA12,600 people, 2 miles
Ross, CA2,300 people, 2 miles
Mill Valley, CA13,800 people, 2 miles
Corte Madera, CA9,900 people, 3 miles
San Anselmo, CA12,600 people, 3 miles
Tamalpais-Homestead Valley, CA12,100 people, 4 miles

Smaller places

Alto, CA (unincorporated)1,024 people, 3 miles
Muir Beach, CA (unincorporated)311 people, 5 miles
Stinson Beach, CA (unincorporated)255 people, 5 miles
Woodacre, CA (unincorporated)1,627 people, 6 miles
San Geronimo, CA (unincorporated)583 people, 7 miles
Bolinas, CA (unincorporated)1,334 people, 8 miles
Lagunitas-Forest Knolls, CA (unincorporated)1,626 people, 9 miles
Black Point-Green Point, CA (unincorporated)1,655 people, 12 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.