HomeCaliforniaSan Mateo CountyFoster City
Foster City, California: commercial real estate data.
Foster City is a Census city of 32,792 people across 3.79 square miles of land, in San Mateo County. Median household income is $199,143, 50.8 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 5 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $1.2 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Foster City
What Foster City is
- Census place typecity
- Land area3.79 sq mi
- Water area16.05 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land8,659
- County holding the largest share of its areaSan Mateo 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.
Foster City
How many people live in Foster City
- Population32,792
- Median age39.5
- Population under 187,277
- Share under 1822.2 percent
- Population 65 and over5,759
- Share 65 and over17.6 percent
- Households12,998
- Family households8,739
- Share of households that are families67.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Foster City
Income and work in Foster City
- Median household income$199,143
- Per capita income$98,585
- Civilian labor force17,641
- Employed16,785
- Unemployed856 plus or minus 222
- Unemployment rate4.9 percent plus or minus 1.2
- Adults 25 and over23,941
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher96.2 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher73.8 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree40.6 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Foster City
Housing in Foster City
- Housing units13,617
- Occupied units12,998
- Vacant units619 plus or minus 232
- Vacancy rate4.5 percent plus or minus 1.7
- Owner occupied6,606
- Renter occupied6,392
- Ownership rate50.8 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$1,838,200
- Median gross rent, monthly$3,501
- Annual rent as a share of median income21.1 percent
- Single family units7,327
- Share single family53.8 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more6,285
- Share in buildings of two or more46.2 percent
- Mobile homes0
- Median year structure built1976
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Foster City
How Foster City gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute10,951
- Commuting under 15 minutes2,015
- Share commuting under 15 minutes18.4 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more5,218
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more47.6 percent
- Drove alone51.8 percent
- Carpooled7.5 percent plus or minus 1.7
- Public transport2.9 percent plus or minus 0.8
- Walked1.7 percent plus or minus 0.8
- Worked from home34.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Foster City
SBA loans in Foster City (7(a))
- Approvals5
- Gross approval$1,222,400
- Average approval$244,480
- Median approval$50,000
- Largest approval$600,000
- Jobs supported24
- Jobs per approval4.8
- Loans with a final outcome1
- Paid in full1
- Charged off0
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more0.0 percent
- Share to franchises0.0 percent
- Distinct lenders3
- Distinct industries by NAICS5
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Foster City, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 1 loan has 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.
Foster City
SBA loans in Foster City (504)
- Approvals2
- Gross approval$4,231,000
- Average approval$2,115,500
- Median approval$2,115,500
- Largest approval$2,466,000
- Jobs supported39
- Loans with a final outcome1
- Charged off0
- Median term270 months
- Distinct CDCs2
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Foster City, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 1 loan has 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.
Foster City
Flood risk in Foster City
- NFIP communityCity of Foster City
- NFIP community number060318
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classNone
- Currently effective map date04/05/19
The City of Foster City participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 060318 and carries no Community Rating System class, so no CRS premium discount applies to it.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
San Mateo County, not Foster City
San Mateo County context, not Foster City figures
- Establishments in San Mateo County21,569
- Covered employment, San Mateo County416,422
- Average annual pay, San Mateo County$196,441
- Housing units permitted, San Mateo County1,088
Every figure in this section is published for San Mateo County as a whole and is not a measurement of Foster City.
All San Mateo 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
Foster City questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Foster City, California?
32,792, in 12,998 households. Foster City city covers 3.79 square miles of land, which is 8,659 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Foster City in?
San Mateo 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 Foster City?
$199,143. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $1,838,200. Median gross rent is $3,501 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Foster City businesses?
5 7(a) approvals totaling $1.2 m since FY2020, across 3 lenders, median approval $50,000, plus 2 504 approvals worth $4.2 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Foster City, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Foster City borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Foster City. Only 1 loan has reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is Foster City in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Foster City appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Foster City, city of, community 060318, with no Community Rating System class, so no CRS discount applies. 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 Foster City figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for San Mateo 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 Foster City.
Is zoning published for Foster City?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.