Real estate · County · California
Real estate businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA
How Santa Cruz County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,070 of 2,229 scored counties
#46 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 497
- 34 chain locations (7%)
- Official establishments
- 267
- +9.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $20,961 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 94
- 6% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 51.3
- 33% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 258,852
- −4.7% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Santa Cruz County
The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Santa Cruz County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Santa Cruz County scores 30 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #2,070 of 2,229 scored counties and #46 of 55 scored counties in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 497 real estate businesses in Santa Cruz County. 34 of them (7%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 51.3 for every 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
At $20,961 per household (26% above the U.S. average), households in Santa Cruz County spend about $2B a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 6% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.
Official counts show 267 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Santa Cruz County in 2023, up 9.9% from 2019. That is one for every 363 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $4.8M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Santa Cruz County. Population estimates show Santa Cruz County declined 4.7% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Santa Cruz County compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Santa Cruz County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 51.3 | 49.0 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 94 | 94 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 363 | 293 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.9% | +13.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.7% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $20,961 | $19,977 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $111,093 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 32 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 243 → 267+9.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 983
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $66.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,534Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 49734 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 469The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 8
- Amount
- $4.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Santa Cruz County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Santa Cruz County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 258,852−4.7% since 2020
- Households
- 96,898
- Median age
- 40.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 60%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 445 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 595
- Median household income
- $111,093+35.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $156,435
- Median home value
- $1,027,500
- Jobs located here
- 95,587
- Daytime population
- 247,989Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Santa Cruz County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Santa Cruz County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in California for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in California, with Santa Cruz County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yuba County, CA | 85 | 32 | 11.2 | 359 | +8.2% | #7 of 2,229 |
| 2Inyo County, CA | 72 | 12 | 14.9 | 270 | −4.4% | #162 of 2,229 |
| 3Colusa County, CA | 67 | 10 | 13.3 | 301 | −0.1% | #292 of 2,229 |
| 4Merced County, CA | 64 | 210 | 24.4 | 157 | +5.1% | #424 of 2,229 |
| 5Trinity County, CA | 63 | 10 | 17.9 | 203 | −2.3% | #455 of 2,229 |
| 6Kings County, CA | 61 | 85 | 19.3 | 203 | +1.0% | #540 of 2,229 |
| 7Glenn County, CA | 59 | 17 | 17.3 | 219 | −2.6% | #610 of 2,229 |
| 8Tulare County, CA | 56 | 347 | 24.2 | 163 | +2.4% | #775 of 2,229 |
| 9Madera County, CA | 56 | 132 | 29.1 | 140 | +7.4% | #787 of 2,229 |
| 10San Joaquin County, CA | 54 | 868 | 35.4 | 124 | +5.5% | #882 of 2,229 |
| 46Santa Cruz County, CA | 30 | 497 | 51.3 | 94 | −4.7% | #2,070 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Santa Cruz County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Santa Cruz County, CA?
There are 497 real estate businesses on map listings in Santa Cruz County as of September 2026. 34 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 267 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 9.9% from 2019. Official counts also show 1,534 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Santa Cruz County, CA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $2B a year, or $20,961 per household. That is 26% above the U.S. average (an index of 126, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 497 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 6% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 96,898 households in Santa Cruz County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Santa Cruz County, CA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Santa Cruz County has 51.3 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 94, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Santa Cruz County would have about 469, against 497 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 363 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Santa Cruz County, CA growing?
Population estimates put Santa Cruz County at 258,852 people in 2025, down 4.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 96,898 households. The median household income in Santa Cruz County is $111,093 a year, 38% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 35.1% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Santa Cruz County scores 30 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #2,070 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Santa Cruz County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Santa Cruz County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Santa Cruz County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Santa Cruz County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.