Davis, CA Real Estate

The charming college town of Davis is located in Yolo County, 13 miles west of Sacramento and 72 miles northeast of San Francisco. Home to the University of California, Davis, the city has a population of 64,938 and is the largest city in Yolo County.

Davis is well known in the state of California as being a socially and environmentally conscious, university, bike, and railroad town and in 2006 was ranked as the second most educated city in the United States by CNN Money Magazine, after Arlington, Virginia. In keeping with this reputation, Davis has an award-winning public school system that outranks many private schools in the area.

Davis grew around a Southern Pacific Railroad depot built in 1868. It was then known as "Davisville," named for Jerome C. Davis, a prominent local farmer. However, the post office at Davisville shortened the town name to simply "Davis" in 1907. The name stuck, and the city of Davis was incorporated on March 28, 1917.

Housing in downtown Davis consists of smaller lots featuring a variety of well-kept homes including Tudor, contemporary and cottage-style homes. Surrounding downtown lots increase in size and homes vary from Spanish-style to mansions.

The climate in Davis resembles that of nearby Sacramento. Davis is also close to San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento River Delta, which moderate the more extreme temperatures found elsewhere in the Sacramento Valley and nearby San Joaquin Valley. The dry, hot summers and mild, wet winters are typical of a Mediterranean climate.

Davis lies in the Sacramento Valley, the northern portion of the Central Valley, in Northern California, at an elevation of about 52 ft above sea level. The topography of Davis is very flat, which has helped Davis to become known as a haven for bicyclists which led to the city’s motto: Most bicycle friendly town in the world.

Bicycle infrastructure became a political issue in the 1960s, culminating in the election of a pro-bicycle majority to the City Council in 1966. By the early 1970s, Davis became a pioneer in the implementation of cycling facilities. As the city expands, new facilities are usually mandated. As a result, Davis residents today enjoy an extensive network of bike lanes, bike paths, and grade-separated bicycle crossings. The flat terrain and temperate climate are also conducive to bicycling.

In 2005 the Bicycle-Friendly Community program of the League of American Bicyclists recognized Davis as the first Platinum Level city in the U.S. In March 2006, Bicycling magazine named Davis the best small town for cycling in its compilation of "America's Best Biking Cities."