El Dorado County · Relocation
Relocating to El Dorado County From the Bay Area or Farther
Moving to the Sacramento region from out of the area? Get a local who knows the neighborhoods and can help you line up financing before you land.
Moving from the Bay Area? Compare home prices
Typical home prices here are the median sold price, existing single-family homes, August 2026. They are medians for context, not a quote on any one home.
| Place | Typical home price (median) | What it is known for | Getting to downtown Sacramento | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where Maggie works | ||||
| Sacramento County | $549,000August 2026, C.A.R. | The state capital, where the Sacramento and American rivers meet. Named the first U.S. "City of Trees" in 1978. | Downtown is in the county. SacRT Gold Line light rail runs from Folsom to downtown. | Moving to Sacramento County |
| Placer County | $692,500August 2026, C.A.R. | Roseville, Rocklin and Gold Rush Auburn, with the county reaching up I-80 to Lake Tahoe's north shore. | I-80 is the main route. Amtrak Capitol Corridor stops in Roseville, Rocklin and Auburn. | Moving to Placer County |
| El Dorado CountyThis page | $690,000August 2026, C.A.R. | Sierra foothills to Lake Tahoe. Coloma is where the 1848 gold find set off the Gold Rush. | US 50 is the main route. El Dorado Hills sits on it at the Sacramento County line, next to Folsom. | You are here |
| Yolo County | $648,000August 2026, C.A.R. | Davis, Woodland and West Sacramento, with farmland and the Yolo Bypass floodplain between them. | West Sacramento sits directly across the Sacramento River from downtown. | Moving to Yolo County |
| Bay Area and statewide, for comparison | ||||
| San Francisco | $1,875,000August 2026, C.A.R. | A city and county in one, at the tip of the peninsula. | Not yet published | For comparison |
| Santa Clara County | $1,900,000August 2026, C.A.R. | Silicon Valley. San Jose is the county seat. | Not yet published | For comparison |
| San Mateo County | $2,250,000August 2026, C.A.R. | The Peninsula between San Francisco and San Jose, home to San Francisco International Airport. | Not yet published | For comparison |
| Alameda County | $1,285,000August 2026, C.A.R. | The East Bay: Oakland, Berkeley and Fremont. | Not yet published | For comparison |
| Contra Costa County | $875,000August 2026, C.A.R. | Walnut Creek, Concord and Antioch, around Mount Diablo. | Not yet published | For comparison |
| California statewide | $901,420August 2026, C.A.R. | The statewide median, for comparison. | Not yet published | For comparison |
Prices change monthly. Ask Maggie for current numbers on a specific area.
Sources. Prices: California Association of REALTORS®, county sales activity, August 2026. C.A.R. notes that medians shift with the mix of homes sold. Place facts and travel notes, checked October 2026: Sacramento, Folsom, Placer County, El Dorado County, El Dorado Hills, Yolo County, West Sacramento, San Francisco, Santa Clara County, San Mateo County, Alameda County, Contra Costa County (Wikipedia). Drive times are not listed until a dated source is available.
Planning the whole move? Read the Sacramento relocation guide, with guides on the Bay Area move, Prop 19, downsizing, culture and healthcare.
Relocating to El Dorado County: What the Move Trades For
Relocating to El Dorado County usually means trading a shorter commute for more room, a lower price and the Sierra at the end of the road. You may be selling in San Jose or Oakland, or moving in from out of state for a job in Sacramento. Either way, you are choosing a town you have only seen on a map.
Bay Area moves into this county have deep roots. The county's 2018 economic profile, using IRS migration records for 2015 to 2016, listed Sacramento County as the largest source of new residents, followed by Placer, Santa Clara, Alameda and Contra Costa. A California Policy Lab study of credit data found the Sierra region, El Dorado County included, saw one of the largest arrivals of Bay Area movers in late 2020. ABC7 described the same pattern as people moving outward into a larger Northern California region rather than leaving it.
The county is steady rather than booming. The Department of Finance shows net migration of about minus 20 people in 2024, while California as a whole lost about 62,700. What you are buying into is a place holding its own.
Plan My Move to El Dorado County
Why People Relocating to the Foothills Choose Surroundings
Moving from out of the area means trusting someone else's eyes. At Surroundings, those eyes belong to Maggie B. Hopkins, a licensed real estate broker and a licensed mortgage broker in one. You get video tours of the homes and the streets around them, a plain read on each town, and a pre-approval in hand before you book a trip. Give yourself options: Maggie shops your loan across a network of approved lenders, so the financing is competitive, and you are welcome to shop us against anyone. From a distance, the convenience counts most: one call, one team, one plan. Prefer to keep a lender you already know? That is always your call.
Maggie has been licensed in real estate since 2006, with 23 years in loans and real estate combined. Surroundings works four counties around Sacramento. If El Dorado County turns out to be the wrong fit, you can compare relocating to Placer County or relocating to Sacramento County with the same agent.
Buyers leaving the Bay Area often carry equity and a home still to sell. With the purchase and the financing under one roof, the timing of your sale, your down payment and your closing date are planned in one place, and nothing gets lost in a handoff.
Our Relocation Process, From First Call to Keys
- A call about how you will live. We ask where you work, how often you will drive to Sacramento or the Bay Area, and whether you want land, a planned neighborhood or a walkable downtown.
- Loan approval before travel. Your pre-approval reflects the real taxes and HOA dues in the towns on your list.
- Remote touring. Live video walk-throughs, plus a drive of the commute at the hour you would make it.
- One focused trip. Most relocating buyers come up Highway 50 once to see a short list in person.
- Escrow from a distance. California escrow allows most documents to be signed electronically, and we coordinate inspections while you are away.
The search step of our buying process explains how we narrow the list. This describes our general process and is not legal, tax or lending advice.
Highway 50, the Weather and Your First Winter
Highway 50 is the spine of the western slope, and nearly every main town sits on it or a short drive off it. El Dorado Hills is on the Sacramento County line next to Folsom, and a local guide puts it about 40 minutes from downtown Sacramento. A Cameron Park resident on Trulia reported a similar drive. Shingle Springs sits about 40 miles from Sacramento, and Pollock Pines about 58. In 2015 about 64% of the county's employed residents worked outside the county, so the commute is part of life here.
Weather changes with every thousand feet. Placerville averages a January low of about 32 degrees and a July high near 93, with about 38 inches of rain a year and little snow. Pollock Pines averages about 63 inches of snow. Someone moving from the coast should decide whether they want a foothill summer or a mountain winter before choosing a town.
Weekends are the payoff. South Lake Tahoe, Heavenly and Sierra-at-Tahoe are up the same highway. The South Fork of the American River at Coloma draws about 120,000 rafters in most years. Apple Hill opens around Labor Day, and the El Dorado and Fair Play wine regions run between about 1,200 and 3,500 feet.
El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park or Placerville
Most relocating buyers narrow the county to three towns, and each has a clear trade-off.
- El Dorado Hills has the shortest drive west, Folsom Lake on its northern edge and planned neighborhoods built from the 1960s onward, including Serrano, Blackstone and The Promontory. It grew from 42,108 people in 2010 to 50,547 in 2020. Expect higher prices and, in many neighborhoods, HOA dues and Mello-Roos. Elementary school districts include Rescue Union, Buckeye Union and Latrobe, and high school is in the El Dorado Union High School District.
- Cameron Park sits one exit east with older homes and more variety in lot size, from tract neighborhoods to horse property and the Airpark's taxiway homes. A community services district enforces CC&Rs and runs local parks, including Cameron Park Lake.
- Placerville is the county seat, with a Gold Rush Main Street, Imagination Theater and the paved part of the El Dorado Trail. It had a $448,500 median in Resideline's October 2026 report, and a longer drive west with more hills.
Buyers coming from the Bay Area often notice what is missing as much as what is here. A local guide describes El Dorado Hills as more of a dinner-and-drinks town than a late-night one. Shingle Springs, Rescue and Fair Play trade services within walking distance for land and open space.
Costs That Work Differently Than the Bay Area
Prices are lower, and other costs show up in new places. Resideline's October 2026 numbers put El Dorado Hills at a $900,000 median closing price and Placerville at $448,500. Many El Dorado Hills neighborhoods add HOA dues and Mello-Roos special taxes. El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park and Shingle Springs are unincorporated, so the county governs them, and community services districts run local parks.
Fire insurance is the cost that surprises most newcomers. The California Department of Insurance listed El Dorado among the 10 counties with the most homes in high or very high fire-risk areas. Rural parcels may run on a private well and septic system, which calls for inspections a city buyer has never ordered. See the Sacramento relocation guide and our relocation service, or start your move with a relocation call with Maggie. For a broader look at the county, read the El Dorado County area guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is the drive from El Dorado Hills to downtown Sacramento?
About 40 minutes, according to a local neighborhood guide, and longer at rush hour. El Dorado Hills sits on Highway 50 at the Sacramento County line, so it has the shortest drive west of any El Dorado County town.
Where do most people moving to El Dorado County come from?
Sacramento County is the largest source. The county's 2018 profile, using IRS records for 2015 to 2016, listed Sacramento first, then Placer, Santa Clara, Alameda and Contra Costa counties.
Does it snow where I would live?
It depends on the elevation. Placerville averages about 2.7 inches of snow a year, while Pollock Pines, near 3,980 feet, averages about 63 inches. El Dorado Hills and Cameron Park sit lower than Placerville.
Can I buy before I sell my Bay Area home?
Often, yes. Whether you buy first or sell first depends on your equity, income and loan options, and we work through both paths with your numbers before you write an offer.
Loans are arranged by Maggie B. Hopkins, NMLS #349517, at Surroundings · DRE #02220140 · NMLS #2528307. All loans are subject to credit approval and underwriting, and this page is not a commitment to lend.
El Dorado County
What relocation looks like in El Dorado County
El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park, Shingle Springs and Placerville, east of Sacramento along Highway 50.
El Dorado County climbs Highway 50 from El Dorado Hills through Gold Rush Placerville and Apple Hill to South Lake Tahoe.
The method
How we do it in El Dorado County
Relocation: keep exploring
Ready to make your move with Surroundings?