Redwood City

Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Hills

Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Hills is a unique district that offers large, hillside homes, panoramic views and narrow, winding residential streets

Unincorporated Emerald Hills, included in the MLS area 336, is a singular place whose large, hillside homes, panoramic views and narrow, winding residential streets have more in common with neighboring Woodside than with the neat flatlands of Redwood City. And yet this large, unique district stretching from Alameda de las Pulgas almost all the way to Highway 280 is part of Redwood City, in the eyes of almost everyone.

Emerald Hills is part of an area the MLS calls “Cordilleras Heights,” after a road snaking east-west through the neighborhood. Cordilleras Road is but one of several similar streets, however – narrow residential lanes without sidewalks, meandering up and down hill through an area that was once part of Don Jose Dario Arguello’s Rancho de las Pulgas and is now home to some of the Redwood City region’s most expensive real estate.

It’s difficult to find any of the old rustic 1920s cabins in the hills anymore. Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Hills real estate now tends more to the grandiose. With single-family properties starting at around $2 million and ranging all the way up to the mid-$3 millions, Cordilleras Heights homes emphasize size (many have over 4,000 square feet of space) and luxury. Most homes are no more than 20 years old – the area lacked a sewer system until 1982 and operated under a building moratorium between the 1970s and 1986 – and are filled to the brim with modern amenities. Huge master suites, home theaters, terraced yards with swimming pools, dramatic living rooms and chef-quality kitchens are easy to find, along with sometimes spectacular views reaching all the way to San Francisco Bay.

Though the area is hilly, many homes have very large lots – often with more than an acre of land. Compared to similar properties in Woodside and Hillsborough, Cordilleras Heights homes offer great value for their asking prices, though there’s no confusing those asking prices with anything other than the high end of the market.

Don’t mistake Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Lake Hills for a wealthy enclave, however. Residents are very aware of their district’s funky past. What few rustic cabins remain are greatly appreciated as windows into the area’s roots and the few businesses in Cordilleras (the district has a Walkscore somewhere in the 20s; not a big draw for those seeking a pedestrian-friendly urban lifestyle) include the Canyon Inn, a casual restaurant/bar with a definite “down home” vibe.

The homes surrounding both Emerald Lakes still sell at a premium, as they are not only waterfront but also very rarely change hands. The streets closer to Alameda de las Pulgas are more accessible to Redwood City amenities, and include among them some modest homes that more closely resemble “standard” Redwood City housing than the sprawling, multi-level properties further into the hills. There are blocks throughout Cordilleras Heights that appear classically suburban; there are also ones that seem to have transported completely intact from the north side of Lake Tahoe or somewhere in western Marin County. Cordilleras Heights is not a standard San Mateo County post-war housing tract. Its only constant is change.

Most homes in Cordilleras Heights are within the boundaries for the highly-regarded Roy Cloud K-8 public school which, along with spacious, luxurious homes with views, is another draw for high-end buyers. The district is not close to downtown or freeways, so residents must factor some extra minutes into their daily commutes and their trips to the grocery store. Homebuyers looking to buy in Cordilleras Heights don’t emphasize convenience, though; they’re looking for a little bit of seclusion and a whole lot of living space, with a touch of a colorful past thrown in for balance. They find it in the hills behind Redwood City, where a 1920s dream to build a resort eventually turned into the top of the Redwood City real estate market.

To view a detailed google map of the Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Hills neighborhood, click here. The MLS area is 336.

  • 1407

    Homes

  • $2.75M

    Median Sale Price

  • $3M

    Average Sale Price

Pricing data based on single-family homes

Cordilleras Heights/Emerald Hills on the Map

Schools & History

Schools

The elementary school for Emerald Hills is sought after Roy Cloud Elementary.

History

Cordilleras Heights was slow to develop, thanks to its challenging hills, and its origins differ from those of “regular” Redwood City districts.

It began with a dream; developer George Irvine planned to capitalize on the optimism of the Roaring 20s by building a resort for fog-fleeing San Franciscans in the hills behind Redwood City. Lacking funds, Irvine created a name – Emerald Hills – and a brochure, before losing the property to foreclosure. Banker Charles Holt and builder George Leonard stepped in, building a golf course and enticing would-be buyers with free picnics at Emerald Lake, once a pond used as a watering hole for cattle and horses in the 19th century. In 1926, when 20 lakeside homeowners bought Emerald Lake, creating the Emerald Lake Country Club (which still exists), Holt and Leonard built a second lake, called Upper Emerald Lake, with a beach, a playground, diving platforms and an outdoor amphitheater.

Then came the Great Depression. A planned 3,000-unit subdivision never materialized, nor did a grand hotel, to be called the Hacienda or the Alhambra. Holt and Leonard lost everything and Emerald Hills/Cordilleras Heights development went quiet. When it resumed, it was as a collection of one-off rustic cabins, not as a resort.

In 1968, the unincorporated district counted 430 occupied homes. By 2010, the population of the neighborhoods making up Cordilleras Heights – Emerald Lake and Emerald Hills – was 4,278. The area’s per capita income, $68,966, made it the 82nd-wealthiest place in the U.S. that year. Cordilleras Heights quirky origins and resistance to annexation resulted in its becoming a singular residential district; there is nowhere else like it in Redwood City.

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