Madrone Canyon

If you like the feeling of living away from it all, Madrone Canyon may be the place for you. Although it is just down the road from the rest of Larkspur, the feel of the area is remote--as if you were living much farther up the coast not just across the bridge from San Francisco. The narrow winding streets the make up this neighborhood give way to homes that are perfectly perched (in many cases) to catch glimpses of the Bay. These are big homes often with more than 5000 ft. of space, often multiple stories, though you can’t always see how big they are from the street because of tree cover and the need to pay attention to the road.

The median price for homes here is easily a million dollars and I know that some rise to 2 million. You probably won’t find anything in this neighborhood for under $750,000.

This is hillside living at it most extreme, so although it beautiful and the schools are great, you should also be ready for the downsides of owning a home in a location like this. First, of course, you should be ready for the maintenance issues involved in living in place with these kinds of topographical features. First, there are problems with erosion when ever you live on hillsides. This means, in many cases, fighting a constant battle against sliding off the hill.

Second, this kind of living also requires constant home maintenance, as you fight off the elements, keep trees trimmed, and are constantly trying to keep nature at bay. Next, don’t forget nuisances like critters getting into your garbage on trash day, skunks getting under your house and skunking you when the dogs bark, deer eating your vegetable garden, and having to drive the winding roads everyday to take kids places,etc.

Finally, don’t forget that you will also have wildfire worries in such a woody area. During fire seasons, which climatologists tell us will become more intense, but which are intense already, you will have to cross your fingers and hope you don’t have you house razed.

So it is not just paradise. However, if you can afford to live in a place like this, you will probably find it one of the best places to raise children. It is close to nature, has great schools, is super safe and still has nearby restaurants and movie theaters. What else could you ask for?