HomeCaliforniaSan Luis Obispo CountySan Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, California: commercial real estate data.
San Luis Obispo is a Census city of 48,491 people across 13.64 square miles of land, in San Luis Obispo County. Median household income is $73,685, 40.3 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 125 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $85.7 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
San Luis Obispo
What San Luis Obispo is
- Census place typecity
- Land area13.64 sq mi
- Water area0.15 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land3,555
- County holding the largest share of its areaSan Luis Obispo County, 100.0 percent
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
San Luis Obispo
How many people live in San Luis Obispo
- Population48,491
- Median age26.3
- Population under 184,991
- Share under 1810.3 percent
- Population 65 and over7,210
- Share 65 and over14.9 percent
- Households20,441
- Family households8,327
- Share of households that are families40.7 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
San Luis Obispo
Income and work in San Luis Obispo
- Median household income$73,685
- Per capita income$48,106
- Civilian labor force27,649
- Employed25,720
- Unemployed1,929
- Unemployment rate7.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over25,381
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher96.6 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher54.4 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree24.1 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
San Luis Obispo
Housing in San Luis Obispo
- Housing units22,250
- Occupied units20,441
- Vacant units1,809 plus or minus 418
- Vacancy rate8.1 percent plus or minus 1.9
- Owner occupied8,228
- Renter occupied12,213
- Ownership rate40.3 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$935,100
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,965
- Annual rent as a share of median income32.0 percent
- Single family units12,383
- Share single family55.7 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more8,639
- Share in buildings of two or more38.8 percent
- Mobile homes1,228
- Median year structure built1977
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
San Luis Obispo
How San Luis Obispo gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute20,686
- Commuting under 15 minutes11,337
- Share commuting under 15 minutes54.8 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more2,321
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more11.2 percent
- Drove alone63.8 percent
- Carpooled6.8 percent
- Public transport1.0 percent plus or minus 0.6
- Walked6.1 percent plus or minus 1.4
- Worked from home17.1 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
San Luis Obispo
SBA loans in San Luis Obispo (7(a))
- Approvals125
- Gross approval$85,687,500
- Average approval$685,500
- Median approval$300,000
- Ninetieth percentile approval$1,758,000
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported2,086
- Jobs per approval16.7
- Loans with a final outcome22
- Paid in full22
- Charged off0
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more16.8 percent
- Share to franchises7.2 percent
- Distinct lenders42
- Distinct industries by NAICS77
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in San Luis Obispo, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 22 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
San Luis Obispo
SBA loans in San Luis Obispo (504)
- Approvals65
- Gross approval$55,888,000
- Average approval$859,815
- Median approval$548,000
- Largest approval$3,818,000
- Jobs supported761
- Loans with a final outcome20
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs11
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in San Luis Obispo, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 20 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
San Luis Obispo
Flood risk in San Luis Obispo
- NFIP communityCity of San Luis Obispo
- NFIP community number060310
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classClass 7
- Currently effective map date06/06/24
The City of San Luis Obispo participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 060310 and carries Community Rating System class 7, a flood insurance premium discount for policies written there.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
San Luis Obispo County, not San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo County context, not San Luis Obispo figures
- Establishments in San Luis Obispo County8,962
- Covered employment, San Luis Obispo County121,958
- Average annual pay, San Luis Obispo County$61,334
- Housing units permitted, San Luis Obispo County1,104
Every figure in this section is published for San Luis Obispo County as a whole and is not a measurement of San Luis Obispo.
All San Luis Obispo County figures →
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
San Luis Obispo questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in San Luis Obispo, California?
48,491, in 20,441 households. San Luis Obispo city covers 13.64 square miles of land, which is 3,555 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is San Luis Obispo in?
San Luis Obispo County, which holds 100.0 percent of the place by area. Source: US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage.
What is the median household income in San Luis Obispo?
$73,685. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $935,100. Median gross rent is $1,965 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to San Luis Obispo businesses?
125 7(a) approvals totaling $85.7 m since FY2020, across 42 lenders, median approval $300,000, plus 65 504 approvals worth $55.9 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in San Luis Obispo, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to San Luis Obispo borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for San Luis Obispo. Only 22 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is San Luis Obispo in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. San Luis Obispo appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as San Luis Obispo, city of, community 060310, carrying Community Rating System class 7, which is a premium discount for exceeding the program minimum. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page San Luis Obispo figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for San Luis Obispo County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of San Luis Obispo.
Is zoning published for San Luis Obispo?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.