Things You Need to Know Before Moving to Fairfax California in 2023

This Marin County town was once ranked one of the 50 best places to live anywhere because of the open space and outdoor activities available right at your doorstep. I'm talking about the town of Fairfax in Marin County, and in this video I'm going to break down what it's like to live there and how much homes cost. 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 been a Bay Area resident for over a decade, giving me in-depth firsthand knowledge of what it's like to both live and work there. If you're thinking about relocating or want more information about the San Francisco or Marin County real estate markets, definitely reach out to me. My contact information 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, 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 Fairfax in Marin County. It is one of the most nature-centric communities in all of Marin. The town has done a really great job about being very environmentally sensitive and hyper-focused on preserving the natural open space that is available there to residents and visitors. Fairfax is located in central Marin. It's about 20 miles north of San Francisco and about 3 miles northwest of the city of San Rafael. It's relatively small, you know, less than 8,000 people live there, and it's only a couple square miles large, about 2.2 square miles. Homes are largely built into like these forested hillside areas and green spaces. Fairfax is sort of an entry point into all of the natural wonders of Marin. It is right next to Mount Tam, uh, so it is sheltered by the mountain, sheltered from the wind, and sheltered from the fog that you get in other parts of Marin, like Mill Valley, for example,, which tend to be a lot foggier. So Fairfax tends to have pretty great weather all year round compared to other parts of Marin. As far as lifestyle goes, Fairfax offers a really good mix of small town and rural charm with actually a lot to do from a nightlife standpoint. It's known for its live music scene. There are like multiple venues throughout town for live music. Downtown has an old school, like Art Deco style movie theater. There are also a ton of boutique shops, restaurants, breweries, all of them are within a couple blocks, uh, walking from each other, uh, which makes it like really easy to get around walking or riding your bike place to place. Of course, if you wanna drive, you can. Um, there's a farmer's market every week during summer. There are beer festivals. They host like live music in the park. There is an annual Halloween parade held in downtown. So it's very much like a small town, rural, very suburban feel compared to especially San Francisco and other larger cities in Marin. Aside from those activities, Fairfax is actually known as as the birthplace of mountain biking. There are so many places to bike and hike in the area. As I mentioned, it's right next to Mount Tamalpais and all of the biking and hiking trails that Mount Tam has to offer. The Museum of Bicycling is actually in downtown Fairfax, so it really is the place to go if you are into biking. There are also a ton of parks great for biking, walking, you know, just lounging around having a picnic. There's Bolinas Park, Perry Park, Phoenix Lake, Cascade Canyon Open Space Preserve. There really is a ton of open space in Fairfax for residents and visitors compared to other cities in Marin. Now there's a lot to love about living in Fairfax, but there are a few downsides, the first of which is the commute. There aren't a lot of major businesses in Fairfax itself, which means unless you work remotely, you're likely going to have to commute. It takes about 45 minutes without traffic to get to San Francisco, and if you want to spend less time driving, you can drive about 20 minutes or so to get to the Larkspur Ferry Terminal at Larkspur Landing. The ferry can get you to the city in about 35 or so minutes, so the 20-minute drive to the ferry plus the ferry time is going to be a longer commute than just the drive, but that assumes there's no traffic, which, um, you know, is pretty rare if you're going to San Francisco, especially for work. You're going to be traveling most likely during the peak times that others are going to be traveling, and there's going to be traffic. So it's probably a better bet to drive and take the ferry. You're also going to save money, um, not having to pay the bridge tolls and then not having to pay for parking once you get into San Francisco. Um, as I mentioned, traffic is an issue. It can be a pain getting to and from Fairfax during rush hour. There's definitely going to be traffic through other parts of Marin. So that 45-minute drive time, you know, to San Francisco might actually be over an hour, you know, closer to 2 hours if the traffic is particularly bad. The last real downside of Fairfax are the windy roads. As I mentioned, Fairfax is built into sort of forested hillside areas, and with that comes a lot of narrow windy roads. While those narrow windy roads can be a little bit frustrating to navigate, those, you know, hillside roads are what get you up to the homes that have these amazing views of all the open space, the mountains, nature. So, you know, it is a little bit annoying to have to drive up, but as a result of that drive, that's how you get the privacy and the vistas that a lot of the homes in Fairfax offer. So if you're thinking about moving to the area or visiting that area, you know, those roads are something to keep in mind, but they do come with benefits as well. So what are homes like there? You know, homes in Fairfax tend to feel more like suburban homes than, say, homes in more densely populated areas as you get closer to San Francisco or in San Francisco itself. There are a lot of different architectural styles that you get there. You know, a lot of older Craftsman homes, mid-century designs there just because of the timing of when those homes were largely built. A lot of older construction, but there is some newer construction as well. Most of the area consists of single-family homes. You don't find a lot of multifamily units in that area. You know, they're not the biggest, most sprawling estates of Marin, but they are a great size for families, great starter homes if you want to get into Marin at a reasonable price point. And a lot of them have really great outdoor living space to take advantage of all of those open spaces and the greenery and the views of the mountains that you get in Fairfax. Homes in Fairfax are among the most affordable in all of Marin. So far this year, at the time that I'm making this video in July of 2023, 36 single-family homes have sold in Fairfax for an average price of about $1.3 million. And those homes have sold in about 18 days on the market. And if you compare that to all of Marin in 2023, the average home is sold for about $2.2 million, and it's taken about 30 days to sell those homes. So the price points are really compelling in Fairfax, and there are a lot of amenities there compared to other parts of Marin, so it makes housing there very desirable. Homes tend to sell there a lot faster as a result. Those homes also get access to incredible schools. Fairfax is part of the Ross Valley School District, which is among the best in Marin. So not only do you get great value from an amenities perspective, you also get access to great schools if you have school-aged children as well. Well, there you have it. That's a breakdown of all things Fairfax. If you're thinking relocating or want more information about the market there or other areas in San Francisco or Marin County, definitely reach out to me. My contact information is in the description below. I will personally answer every call, every email, every text, and I would 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.