House hacking in San Mateo (Hillsdale / Bay Meadows / Laurelwood).

What's actually happening in 94403

• Delivered

  Hillsdale Caltrain rebuild plus the 25th Ave Grade Separation: $205.9M, delivered (station reopened Apr 2021, project complete Sept 2021). Caltrain

• Under construction

  Bay Meadows Phase II: an 83-acre TOD with 1,250 units plus 1.25M sq ft office and parks, roughly two-thirds built. City of San Mateo

• Existing anchor

  Franklin Templeton global HQ (~12,000 employees), the San Mateo anchor employer. Franklin Templeton

• Early entitlement

  Hillsdale Mall redevelopment: early entitlement, ~1,392 homes proposed (~20% of the city RHNA); speculative upside only. City of San Mateo

The numbers

Median price

~$2.0M (Redfin, 3 months ending May 2026)

Market rent

~$3,500/mo avg, 2bd ~$3,999 (Zumper)

Property tax (San Mateo County)

1.26% combined effective average (range 1.08–1.52% by tax-rate area; purchase resets the assessed basis to sale price)

Per-bed rent band

$1,200–1,700/mo per bed

ADU rent band

$2,600–3,200/mo

Whole-home rent band

$4,300–5,200/mo whole-home

Underwriting vacancy

3–4% underwriting vacancy

Appreciation scenarios

3.0 / 4.5 / 6.0 %/yr (conservative / base / upside)

Bay Meadows condos and townhomes trade well below the SFR median; AB 1482 plus mild Nov 2025 relocation and rehab-notice ordinances. Appreciation basis: The delivered grade separation plus Bay Meadows under construction; enter via the condo pocket. Rent bands are city-level medians; confirm the specific parcel before trusting any of them. Run your own scenario in the calculator.

The house-hack angle

A Bay Meadows condo or townhome as the affordable entry near the grade-separated station; SFR plus ADU on the Hillsdale, Laurelwood, and Sugarloaf tracts.

What breaks it

• A ~$2.0M median compresses the S&P math outside the condo pocket
• Franklin Templeton consolidation risk on the jobs leg
• Hillsdale Mall is early and preliminary; Sugarloaf hillside slope constrains ADU adds