Walnut Creek · Neighborhood guide
Downtown Walnut Creek
Downtown Walnut Creek: condos, townhomes, and high-rises near BART, Broadway Plaza, and the Lesher Center, where the town began. A guide from Tanja Odzak.
Where is Downtown Walnut Creek?
Downtown sits in the middle of the city, around the old crossroads of Main Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard, close to Interstate 680 and the Walnut Creek BART station. Its edges vary from one source to the next.
At a glance: In the 12 months through September 2026, the median sale price of a condo in Downtown Walnut Creek was $795,000, across 21 sales. Homes sold for about 99.8% of their list price, and the middle sale took 10 days on the market.
Downtown Walnut Creek on the Map
Where Downtown Walnut Creek sits, with the streets and places around it.
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Homes for Sale in Downtown Walnut Creek
Current listings in Downtown Walnut Creek, updated from the MLS.
Downtown Walnut Creek Condos
Sales through September 30, 2026
Only 1 single-family home sold in Downtown Walnut Creek in the past 12 months. This section shows condos instead, because that is what has been selling here.
Few sales, weak data. Downtown Walnut Creek had only 21 condo sales in the last 12 months. Too little data means the numbers are weak, and weak numbers can misrepresent the market: one or two homes can swing every chart on this page. Read them as a rough guide, not a firm picture.
$795,000
Median sold price
9.7% up from the 12 months before
$741,810
Average sold price
6.2% down from the 12 months before
$1,120,000
Highest sold price
Sold August 13, 2026
21
Homes sold
Condos
Median price by quarter
The middle sold price for each of the last eight full quarters. Each quarter is only about 6 sales, so a few homes can move it. Hover a dot for the quarter's sales count.
’24Q1
’25Q2
’25Q3
’25Q4
’25Q1
’26Q2
’26Q3
’26
Sale price vs. list price
The list price is what a home is advertised for. The sale price is what it sold for. Over 100% means homes sold for more than the list price. Last 12 months, 21 sales.
- $743,464
- Average list price
- $741,809
- Average sale price
- 38
- Average days on market
The middle sale took 10 days; a few slow ones pull the average up.
On average, homes sold for 0.2% below their list price.
How hot is the market?
How competitive buying is in Downtown Walnut Creek right now, from how homes actually sold.
Market temperature
44Balanced
Homes in Downtown Walnut Creek sold for about 99.8% of their list price, and the middle sale took 10 days.
How it is scored: half comes from how far above list price homes sold (100% scores zero, 125% or more scores full) and half from how fast they sold (45 days scores zero, 5 days or fewer scores full). Both come from the MLS numbers on this page. It is a gauge we calculate, not an official industry score, and it changes as each month’s sales come in.
Price by number of bedrooms
Median sold price by bedroom count over the last 12 months. Few 5-bedroom homes sell here, so read that one with care.
Bigger bubble = more homes sold. The number inside is how many.
Homes sold by price range
Where the last 12 months of sales landed.
- Under $750K1048%
- $750K to $1M943%
- $1M to $1.25M210%
- $1.25M to $1.5M00%
- $1.5M and up00%
Price range by number of bedrooms
The lowest and highest sold price for each bedroom count over the last 12 months, with the median marked between them. The bar runs from the cheapest sale to the most expensive, so condition, lot and street explain most of the spread.
1 bedroom (6 sold)
Median $588K$460K to $795K
2 bedrooms (15 sold)
Median $819K$319K to $1.12M
3 bedrooms (0 sold)
No sales
4 bedrooms (0 sold)
No sales
5+ bedrooms (0 sold)
No sales
lowest sale highest sale median
These numbers count condos only, because only 1 single-family home sold in Downtown Walnut Creek in the past 12 months. They are the condos that closed in Downtown Walnut Creek, from the MLS. A neighborhood this size can swing from one quarter to the next on a handful of sales, so these show where the market has been, not what your home will sell for. When doing neighborhood stats, it is imperative to use the correct boundaries, as overlapping into adjacent neighborhoods may skew results. These numbers cover only homes the MLS lists under Downtown Walnut Creek. Want the numbers for your street? Ask Tanja.
Source: Bridge MLS, through IDX Broker. Based on closed sales listed under the Downtown Walnut Creek area in the MLS. List price and days on market: Bridge MLS, for the same sales. Information is believed accurate but not guaranteed.
Living in Downtown Walnut Creek
What it is like on the ground in Downtown Walnut Creek: getting around, errands, nature and schools, from Local Logic.
How did downtown begin?
Downtown is the oldest part of Walnut Creek. In 1849, William Slusher built a cabin near what is now the corner of Main Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard, where the road from Pacheco to San Jose crossed the road from Oakland to Antioch. The village that grew up there was called The Corners until the post office renamed it Walnut Creek in 1862. Albert Sherburne's store, from 1872, is the oldest commercial building still standing downtown.
The railroad arrived in 1891, and the San Ramon Valley Bank went up at Main Street and Railroad Avenue in 1908. The town incorporated in 1914 so it could pave its downtown streets, and the paving was finished in 1921. Commuter train service ended around 1940, but the biggest change came in 1951, when Broadway Shopping Center opened as the first major retail center in Contra Costa County. It was built over sections of Walnut and San Ramon creeks and designed as an open-air main street rather than an enclosed mall, which it still is today as Broadway Plaza. Interstate 680 and Highway 24 were finished around 1960, BART opened in 1973, and the Lesher Center for the Arts opened in October 1990.
What kind of homes are in Downtown Walnut Creek?
Mostly condos and townhomes, from older complexes to newer high-rise buildings near BART and the center of downtown, plus apartment buildings. On some of the streets around the commercial core, there are older single-family homes, a few from the town's early decades.
What should you look for in a downtown condo? A condo purchase depends on the building as much as the unit. Read the association's budget, reserve study, rules, and recent meeting minutes, and ask about any planned special assessments or major repairs. Check the rules on renting the unit out, pets, and remodeling, and look at what the monthly dues cover. For an older single-family home nearby, check the electrical panel, the plumbing, the roof, the foundation, and permits for past work.
What schools are near Downtown Walnut Creek?
Downtown has no public school of its own, but several are a short drive away. Las Lomas High School is on South Main Street, Tice Creek School, for kindergarten through grade 8, is on Newell Avenue, and Walnut Creek Intermediate is on Walnut Boulevard. Las Lomas is part of the Acalanes Union High School District; Tice Creek and Walnut Creek Intermediate are in the Walnut Creek School District. St. Mary Elementary School, a private school for preschool through grade 8, is on Bont Lane. School boundaries don't follow neighborhood names, so check the district's boundary map for any address you're considering. The Walnut Creek page lists the public and private schools across the city.
What is nearby?
Broadway Plaza's shops and restaurants are at the center of downtown, and the Lesher Center for the Arts on Civic Drive has theater, dance, and music year-round. A year-round farmers market sets up on Locust Street every Sunday. The paved Iron Horse Regional Trail runs through the city for running and biking, and the city's open space on Shell Ridge and Acalanes Ridge is a short drive away. Walnut Creek's youth club programs, from swim teams to Little League, club soccer, and lacrosse, are all within a few minutes.
How do you get around from Downtown Walnut Creek?
The Walnut Creek BART station, close to downtown, runs toward Oakland and San Francisco. Interstate 680 and Highway 24 meet at the edge of downtown, so the freeways are minutes away in every direction.
What should sellers in Downtown Walnut Creek know?
Walnut Creek has no extra city transfer tax, only Contra Costa County's. On the state's 2025 map, downtown is not in a fire hazard severity zone. For a condo, gather the association's resale documents early, since buyers and their lenders review them during escrow. My Walnut Creek home selling page explains the steps.
What draws buyers to Downtown Walnut Creek?
Buyers who look at downtown are usually drawn to its condos and townhomes, having BART and the freeways close at hand, Broadway Plaza and the Lesher Center, and the Sunday farmers market.
Why do homeowners sell in Downtown Walnut Creek?
Homeowners move on for all kinds of reasons including (but not limited to): upsizing to a second or third home, divorce, relocating for work, or the passing of a family member.
Work with an agent who knows Walnut Creek homes
Tanja Odzak knows what to check in a condo purchase, from the association's budget and reserves to its rules, and how a Walnut Creek sale works. If you're weighing a move to Downtown Walnut Creek, that's worth a conversation.
What is Downtown Walnut Creek?
Tanja Odzak is a Top East Bay Realtor with eXp Realty, helping buyers and sellers in Walnut Creek and across the East Bay. Downtown Walnut Creek is the city's commercial center and its busiest place to live: condos, townhomes, and newer high-rise buildings close to BART, Broadway Plaza, and the Lesher Center for the Arts, with older single-family homes on some of the surrounding streets. It is also where Walnut Creek began.
Ready to find your next home?
Tell me what you're looking for and I'll get you real options.
Start Your Home SearchOr call/text (415) 722-0472
Ready to find your next home?
Tell me what you're looking for and I'll get you real options.
Start Your Home SearchOr call/text (415) 722-0472
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median home price in Downtown Walnut Creek?
In the 12 months through September 2026, the median sale price of a condo in Downtown Walnut Creek was $795,000 and the average was $741,810, based on 21 sales. The highest sale was $1,120,000. Only 1 single-family home sold in Downtown Walnut Creek in the last 12 months, so these numbers count condos instead.
How fast do homes sell in Downtown Walnut Creek?
Condos in Downtown Walnut Creek that sold in the 12 months through September 2026 spent an average of 38 days on the market, and the middle sale took 10 days.
Do homes in Downtown Walnut Creek sell above the list price?
In the 12 months through September 2026, condos in Downtown Walnut Creek sold for about 99.8% of their list price on average, which is 0.2% below the list price. The average list price was $743,464 and the average sale price was $741,809.
Is Downtown Walnut Creek a competitive market?
Our market temperature for Downtown Walnut Creek is 44 out of 100, which reads "Balanced". It combines how far above list price homes sold with how fast they sold, in the 12 months through September 2026.
Which main streets cross in Downtown Walnut Creek?
It sits in the middle of the city, around the crossroads of Main Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard, close to Interstate 680 and the BART station.
Are most Downtown Walnut Creek homes condos?
Mostly condos, townhomes, and newer high-rise buildings, plus apartments and some older single-family homes on surrounding streets.
What should I check before buying a downtown condo?
The association's budget, reserve study, rules, and meeting minutes, any special assessments, and the rules on renting, pets, and remodeling.
How old is Downtown Walnut Creek?
It is where the town began: William Slusher's 1849 cabin stood near Main Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard, and Albert Sherburne's 1872 store is the oldest commercial building still standing.
When did Broadway Plaza open?
In 1951, as Broadway Shopping Center, the first major retail center in Contra Costa County.
Is Downtown Walnut Creek in a fire zone?
No. On the state's 2025 map, downtown is not in a fire hazard severity zone.
Is there a public school in Downtown Walnut Creek?
Downtown has no public school of its own. Las Lomas High School on South Main Street, Tice Creek School on Newell Avenue, and Walnut Creek Intermediate on Walnut Boulevard are each a short drive away.
