In this video Austin Klar, a former lawyer turned Bay Area real‑estate agent and developer, presents an in‑depth overview of Ross, a small town in Marin County known for its sprawling luxury estates on massive lots. He highlights the town’s notable past residents (Governor Gavin Newsom, Julia Child, Sean Penn), its strict zoning that preserves privacy and limits new development, and the resulting high‑end, architecturally aspirational homes built largely in the 1800s. Klar describes Ross’s geography (1.6 sq mi, ~18 mi north of San Francisco), commute options (30‑minute drive, 40‑minute ferry from Larkspur), and walkable, flat‑to‑gentle‑hills layout with a charming downtown, parks, the Marin Art & Garden Center, and easy access to Mount Tam. He notes the town’s highly ranked schools, making it family‑friendly, while also acknowledging limited nightlife, with nearby Larkspur, Corte Madera, and San Rafael serving that need. Market data is provided: only 28 single‑family homes sold from Jan 2022 to May 2023, averaging $6 million—well above Marin’s $2.24 million average—yet with a relatively quick 34‑day market time versus 4 days county‑wide. Klar repeatedly invites viewers to contact him for personalized real‑estate assistance and to subscribe to his channel.
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This Marin County town has the most sprawling luxury estates in all of Marin on massive lots and has been home to some very noteworthy residents, including Governor Gavin Newsom, cooking sensation Julia Childs, and famous actor Sean Penn. I'm talking about the town of Ross, and in this video I'm going to break down all things Ross, including what it's like to live there and how much it costs. What's up everyone, this is Austin Klar, your lawyer turned real estate agent and real estate developer in San Francisco and Marin County. I've lived in the Bay Area for over a decade, giving the in-depth firsthand knowledge of what it's like to live and work there. If you're thinking about relocating or want more information about the market, definitely reach out to me. My contact information's in the description below, and I will personally answer every call, every email, every text, and I'd be more than happy to help you. And if you like videos just like this, please subscribe to my channel, and don't forget to click the bell so you're alerted every single time I post a video. All right, so this video is all about the town of Ross. It is my favorite town in all of Marin, so probably not going to do it justice in this video, but I am gonna do my best. It is seriously so pretty there. The homes there, I wouldn't even call them homes. They're more like aspirational architectural estates built on these incredible lots with like stunning landscaping. Um, there's incredibly strict zoning in Ross that really limit development there, which I know is a hot topic right now because we have a housing shortage. But as a result of limited development, everyone's property is extremely private and the houses there are very spaced apart. And many of these estates were built in the 1800s by very wealthy San Franciscans who used to use them as homes. Holiday homes. Ross is located about 18 miles north of San Francisco, and it's really small, about 1.6 square miles large, and there's just a few thousand residents there. Uh, takes about 30 minutes to get to San Francisco driving, or you can take the ferry from Larkspur, take you about 40 minutes to get there. So not the easiest commute, but it's not that bad, especially if you only have to go into the city a couple times a week. From a lifestyle standpoint, Ross is like quintessential small town vibes. Everything in Ross, super walkable. Most of the area is flat. It is easy to drive or bike around. There are there's some parts of Ross that go up into the hills, but even those are pretty easily navigable compared to like the hills of Mill Valley or San Anselmo, which get really steep and really narrow. Most of Ross is not like that at all, even the ones that are up into the hills, not super steep, not super narrow. Um, there's a really cute downtown area in Ross with like these little galleries and restaurants, and there's a great open park to enjoy like the awesome weather there right next to downtown. There's also the Marin Art and Garden Center, which is my favorite place in Ross, has like incredible landscape scaping. Great place for like a picnic or just like walking around in the afternoon. Ross is also very close to Mount Tam, so like hiking and biking at Phoenix Lake, all the activities you enjoy living in other parts of Marin, you have direct access to them from Ross as well. But your lifestyle in Ross at, you know, at home is unlike what you're going to get in any other town in Marin. Schools there are also very highly regarded, you know, several highly ranked schools. So great place to raise a family. Now Ross itself is really small and there are things to do in Ross, but not like a ton. So, you know, chances are if you want to go out like for a night out somewhere, you're either going to go to like nearby Larkspur or San Rafael, or you'll drive to the city. And all of those are very easy to get to, especially like Larkspur, Corte Madera, San Rafael. So definitely a great place to live and have like that private secluded, you know, exclusive luxurious lifestyle, but also be close enough to the action where you're not like totally deserted and gonna get bored. Now with all that Ross has to offer and the types of homes and lots that are in Ross, as you can imagine, it is not cheap to live there. It is consistently the most or the second most expensive place to live in all of Marin, depending on which year you take the statistics from. And it's also so desirable that you don't see a lot of turnover from homes there. A lot of people don't leave their homes there once they have them. So there's not a ton of trading, uh, a lot of selling in that area. Only 28 single-family homes have sold there since January of 2022 to when I'm filming this video in May of 2023. And those homes have sold for an average of $6 million. So a lot more expensive than the average home in the rest of Marin of $2.24 million. And even though they are that much more expensive, they don't take that much longer to sell. Only about 34 days on the market on average compared to about 4 days for all of Marin. Well, there you have it. That's the scoop on the town of Ross. It is hands down my favorite place in Marin, so definitely worth checking out if you're just visiting, or, you know, if you could afford it and you're thinking about relocating. Definitely a can't-miss town. If you're thinking about relocating or want more information about the market, please reach out to me. My contact information is in the description below. I will personally answer every call, every email, every text, and I'd be more than happy to help you. And if you like videos just like this, thank please subscribe to my channel and don't forget to click the bell so you're alerted every single time I post a video.
