{"id":5857,"date":"2026-07-30T17:46:28","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:46:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5857"},"modified":"2026-07-30T17:46:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:46:28","slug":"peninsula-enclave-reclaims-title-as-most-expensive-us-zip-code","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5857","title":{"rendered":"Peninsula enclave reclaims title as most expensive US ZIP code"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Francesca Maglione<\/strong> and Sophie Alexander<\/strong>, Bloomberg<\/p>\n

In the Silicon Valley enclave of Atherton, a six-bedroom, nine-bath mansion featuring a theater, a private rose garden and a spa hit the market earlier this year for nearly $32 million.<\/p>\n

Read more Hayward woman charged with shoving 78-year-old woman from sidewalk, killing her<\/a><\/p>\n

It found a buyer within 72 hours, more than half a million dollars above asking.<\/p>\n

Related: Photos of Atherton\u2019s most expensive mansion of 2025<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Even in one of the world\u2019s most exclusive communities, the deal was remarkably fast \u2014 a testament to the fresh wave of tech riches washing over the Bay Area from a booming AI industry and blockbuster IPOs. Nowhere is that wealth more pronounced than Atherton, a longtime billionaire refuge that\u2019s now seeing resurgent real estate demand.<\/p>\n

The town of roughly 7,000 residents has already recorded five property sales of at least $30 million this year, compared with a record of six in all of 2025, according Tom LeMieux, a broker associate with Compass in the area who collected data going back to 2019. The median home price has surged 20% to almost $10 million in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period last year, PropertyShark data show.<\/p>\n

With the boom, Atherton has regained the title of the most expensive US ZIP code, surpassing Miami\u2019s Fisher Island, according to PropertyShark.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe demand is among the strongest I have seen in my career,\u201d said Ken DeLeon, a luxury realtor in the area for more than two decades. He estimates that more than 50 homes will sell for at least $10 million this year, comparing the boom to the \u201cfrenzied feel\u201d of the 2000 dot-com era.<\/p>\n

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Atherton\u2019s heated demand offers a snapshot of the Bay Area\u2019s increasingly K-shaped economy as the artificial intelligence industry rapidly expands. The same AI boom that has created extraordinary fortunes for founders and investors has also been used to justify layoffs and worsened affordability challenges for much of the region.<\/p>\n

As inequality deepens across the state, drawing mounting backlash, California voters will decide on a ballot measure in November that would levy a one-time 5% tax on billionaires to help pay for healthcare. The measure has sparked concern of an exodus of the ultrawealthy, with prominent billionaires including Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin increasing ties to other states.<\/p>\n

Yet, the frenzy in Atherton suggests that there\u2019s still plenty of rich people willing to put down roots in the area. Many ultra-high-net-worth individuals \u201chave deep business, family, and social ties to Silicon Valley, so those connections tend to outweigh their overall decision making on where to own a home,\u201d said Dana Carmel, a luxury real estate agent in the area.<\/p>\n

Private Security<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Across the country, the number of ultra-expensive homes has also multiplied. Sales over $100 million have steadily increased since the milestone was first hit in 2007 and last year, 11 US homes sold for more than $100 million, according to data compiled by Jonathan Miller, director of markets at StreetMatrix. Seven of them were in Florida. The top 1% of priciest homes in the US start just under under $5.5 million, according to Realtor.com.<\/p>\n

Atherton\u2019s sprawling estates have long been a magnet for captains of the tech industry and investors. Century-old oaks line its quiet streets, with few sidewalks and no commercial downtown, shading the homes of venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum, as well as Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry and Republican gubernatorial candidate, Steve Hilton.<\/p>\n

The money pouring in is helping gradually transform the enclave. Older homes are being torn down, replaced by sleek new constructions, and private security forces can be spotted along residential streets, parked in front of gates and hedges.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump says he may pull Blanche nomination until dissenting senators leave office<\/a><\/p>\n

Dale Buckner, chief executive officer of Global Guardian, said Atherton is the company\u2019s top ZIP code for residential security \u2014 even bigger than the New York and Washington, DC, metro areas. Across town, Global Guardian has 60 people watching clients\u2019 properties 24\/7. Some homes have converted their garages or pool houses into surveillance footage stations.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you think about the wealth gap, the concept of the mob where the poor start to act out and target the wealthy, that\u2019s the concern,\u201d Buckner said.<\/p>\n

Privacy fears are also pushing more of Atherton\u2019s ultra-luxury real estate market to the shadows. Hugh Cornish, a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker Realty, said that an increasing number of homes have begun to sell off market for that reason. Last year, about 24% of homes in Atherton sold off public listings, up from 21% a year prior, according to Cornish.<\/p>\n

Purchases are also handled through limited-liability companies that shroud the actual residents\u2019 identities. The buyer of the $32 million house that sold earlier this year, for instance, was an LLC tied to Multi-Fineline Electronix, one of the world\u2019s largest manufacturers of flexible circuits, property records and state business filings show. The technology is a crucial yet obscure piece of smartphones and wearable devices, including emerging AI gadgets.<\/p>\n

Teardowns, IPOs<\/strong><\/p>\n

Developers are cashing in on the wealth boom by selling properties that were recently torn down and turned into modern mansions.<\/p>\n

Two years ago, a developer bought a property on Mandarin Way, then a modest one-story ranch house, for $5.7 million and tore it down. In its place rose a modern five-bedroom home with a retractable glass wall and oak floors throughout, that quietly sold in April for $31 million to a Silicon Valley developer who owns another home a few blocks away, according to property records.<\/p>\n

Sales at this price point, once exceedingly rare, are becoming a new normal.<\/p>\n

\u201cAtherton\u2019s luxury market hasn\u2019t simply gotten more expensive,\u201d said Carmel. \u201cThe market has migrated into entirely different price categories.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even more money is expected to flow in, as companies like OpenAI and Anthropic PBC, now worth close to $1 trillion, prepare to go public. Its employees have been rewarded with hefty pay packages and unprecedented liquidity access through secondary share sales.<\/p>\n

SpaceX\u2019s record-breaking initial public offering last month briefly made Elon Musk the world\u2019s first trillionaire and also created several other ultrawealthy Californians.<\/p>\n

\u201cI almost feel like there\u2019s the drummer in the background setting the tone,\u201d DeLeon said. \u201cAnd I just feel the pulse of the music picking up. The dance circle\u2019s getting more intense and the crescendos are coming upon us and so I\u2019m excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more New Japanese comfort food restaurant now open in Palo Alto<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a92026 Bloomberg L.P.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Atherton has regained the title of the most expensive US ZIP code, surpassing Miami\u2019s Fisher Island, according to PropertyShark.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5856,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\nPeninsula enclave reclaims title as most expensive US ZIP code - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5857\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Peninsula enclave reclaims title as most expensive US ZIP code - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Atherton has regained the title of the most expensive US ZIP code, surpassing Miami\u2019s Fisher Island, according to PropertyShark.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5857\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-30T17:46:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Peninsula enclave reclaims title as most expensive US ZIP code\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-30T17:46:28+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857\"},\"wordCount\":1090,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/fa04fd2dcf1d035cc95820949e63c1dc-scaled.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Business\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5857\",\"name\":\"Peninsula enclave reclaims title as most expensive US ZIP code - 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