Sold Oct 27
$697,500
Altadena Avenue
2 bd · 1 ba · 812 sq ft
84.5% of list price
Listing courtesy of Lineage Real Estate
San Diego Neighborhood Guide
Talmadge is a historic residential neighborhood in San Diego’s Mid-City area, east of Kensington and a short drive from San Diego State University. Developed from the mid-1920s and named for silent film stars Norma, Constance and Natalie Talmadge, it is known for its ornamental entry gates, candlestick-style streetlights, canyon edges and a large stock of Spanish Colonial Revival, Minimal Traditional and early Ranch homes. Much of the original tract became the Talmadge Park Estates Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2024.
Quick Facts
| Area | The Talmadge Park Estates Historic District alone covers about 138 acres; the wider neighborhood has no single official acreage |
|---|---|
| Planning area | Kensington-Talmadge (part of the Mid-City Communities planning area; City of San Diego Council District 9) |
| ZIP codes | 92115, 92116 |
| Boundaries | Informally Fairmount Avenue on the west, Montezuma Road on the north, Collwood Boulevard or 51st Street on the east, and Monroe Avenue or El Cajon Boulevard on the south; canyons edge the neighborhood on the north and west. Definitions vary by source. |
| Founded | Mid-1920s; the City dates Talmadge to 1925, and the Talmadge Park Unit 1 subdivision was dedicated in January 1926 |
| Home types | Mostly single-family homes, with mid-size and larger apartment buildings, especially toward El Cajon Boulevard |
| Signature style | Spanish Colonial Revival, Minimal Traditional and early California Ranch, with Tudor Revival and Colonial Revival examples |
| Price tier | Upper |
| Best for | Buyers who want a historic 1920s-1950s neighborhood with quiet streets, canyon views, original architecture and a central Mid-City location near SDSU |
Jeff’s Take
I’ve sold and leased a lot of homes in Talmadge. Its ornamental gates, candlestick streetlights and Spanish Colonial Revival homes make it one of the most distinctive historic neighborhoods in Mid-City.
Much of it is a National Register historic district, and it’s a place I show luxury buyers who want a period home without paying coastal prices.
Who it’s not for: Talmadge doesn’t have a walkable main street of its own. If that matters to you, look at Kensington’s village or Normal Heights.
Talmadge vs. Kensington: Talmadge offers a similar historic, canyon-rimmed setting with a later mix of 1930s and 1940s homes, but less of a walkable main street of its own.
What buying in Talmadge often looks like
Say you find a 1928 Spanish Revival inside the Talmadge Park Estates historic district. Before we write, I check what the district means for exterior changes, look at the original plumbing and electrical, and review the slope if the lot sits on a canyon edge.
Market Snapshot
| Measure | Oct 2026 | Oct 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | $921,500 | $845,000 | +9% |
| Avg. price per sq. ft. | $750 | $718 | +4% |
| Homes sold | 18 | 22 | −18% |
| New listings | 37 | 34 | +9% |
| Median days on market | 31 | 19 | +63% |
| % of list price received | 99% | 100% | −1% |
| Months of inventory | 2.7 | 2.0 | +35% |
Single-family homes, ZIP 92115, as of October 2026. Source: San Diego Multiple Listing Service (SDMLS) closed sales, compiled by Jeff Brick. ZIP 92115 also includes the College Area; part of Talmadge is in 92116.
| Measure | Current listings |
|---|---|
| Median asking price | $1,019,500 |
| Median asking price per sq. ft. | $696 |
| Homes for sale | 88 |
| Median days on market (current listings) | 48 |
| Months of supply | 4.6 |
| HouseCanary 1-year price forecast | 0.0% |
Single-family homes, ZIP 92115, listings on the market as of November 3, 2026. Source: HouseCanary Market Insights. Asking prices are what sellers are listing for, not final sale prices.
Jeff’s note (Q4 2026): 18 homes sold in October at a median of $921,500, up 9% from a year ago. At 2.7 months of inventory the market is fairly balanced: well-priced homes sell, and overpriced ones sit.
A Few Recent Sales
Not every sale, just a few recent closings I picked to show what buyers are actually paying in Talmadge right now. Updated monthly · November 2026.
$697,500
Altadena Avenue
2 bd · 1 ba · 812 sq ft
84.5% of list price
Listing courtesy of Lineage Real Estate
$2,000,000
Caroline Drive
3 bd · 3 ba · 2,143 sq ft
133.8% of list price
Listing courtesy of Keller Williams San Diego Metro
$1,300,000
48th Street
4 bd · 3 ba · 1,498 sq ft
93.2% of list price
Listing courtesy of Tristani Real Estate
$1,175,000
Altadena Avenue
4 bd · 2 ba · 1,610 sq ft
98% of list price
Listing courtesy of Houserebate.com
$925,000
Licensed in 50 states.
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,067 sq ft
93% of list price
Listing courtesy of Compass
$1,220,000
49th Street
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,647 sq ft
99.3% of list price
Listing courtesy of Compass
$485,000
51st Street
2 bd · 2 ba · 898 sq ft
100% of list price
Listing courtesy of Allview Real Estate
$975,000
50th Street
3 bd · 1 ba · 1,099 sq ft
99.6% of list price
Listing courtesy of Checkal Real Estate and Development
$1,399,400
Norma Drive
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,584 sq ft
100.7% of list price
Listing courtesy of Compass
Sold information from the San Diego MLS (SDMLS®), deemed reliable but not guaranteed. These homes may have been listed and sold by other brokerages; they are shown to illustrate the local market, not as Jeff Brick’s own sales. Want the full list of recent sales or a value estimate for your home? Ask Jeff.
History
Talmadge sits on land that was rural mesa east of San Diego’s early neighborhoods until the 1920s. Real estate developers Roy and Guy Lichty began laying out the neighborhood in the mid-1920s, and Roy, who lived in Los Angeles, recruited Hollywood investors including producer Joseph Schenck, Buster Keaton and Louis B. Mayer. The developers named the project Talmadge Park after Schenck’s wife, silent film star Norma Talmadge, and her sisters Constance and Natalie, and gave their names to local streets to add a touch of movie glamour. The sisters attended the dedication of Talmadge Park Unit 1 on January 3, 1926, though they never lived here. The Lichtys built the decorative entry gates between 1926 and 1928. Construction slowed early in the Depression and picked up again after 1935, when Federal Housing Administration guidelines shaped smaller, efficient homes. Later subdivisions, including Talmadge Park Estates Units 1 through 6 (1928 to 1953) and Talmadge Park Manor (1944), filled in through the war years and after. Neighbors restored the gates beginning in 2002, installed more than 200 replica candlestick streetlights in 2004, and won National Register listing for the historic district in 2024.
Roy and Guy Lichty developed the original Talmadge Park subdivisions and made the first improvements, including the entry gates. More than ninety individual builders and firms then built out the lots. The National Register nomination names locally significant builders and architects including the Dennstedt Company, which built 58 houses, John H. Lovett, who built 83, Hays & Jackson, Chris Cosgrove, Charles H. Tifal, B.M. Torgerson, O.U. Miracle, H.H. Preibisius & Son, the Depew Building Company, Louise Severin and Cliff May. Severin, one of few women builders of her time, built homes here.
Architecture
Talmadge reads as a well-preserved catalog of Southern California homebuilding from 1926 to about 1951. The earliest houses are Spanish Colonial Revival, with stucco walls, red tile roofs and arched openings. After construction resumed in 1935, Minimal Traditional homes became the most common style, built to Federal Housing Administration small-house standards with compact, efficient plans and modest exterior detailing; some show Streamline Moderne touches. Tudor Revival and Colonial Revival homes appear throughout, and the neighborhood is closely tied to Cliff May, often called the father of the California ranch house, who built here early in his career. A typical Talmadge street mixes one-story stucco houses on regular lots with curving roads that follow the canyon rims, framed by the historic gates and replica candlestick streetlights.
The Talmadge Park Estates Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in March 2024. It covers about 138 acres bounded roughly by Monroe Avenue, 44th Street and 49th Street, with 419 contributing and 175 noncontributing resources and a period of significance of 1926 to 1951. Locally, the City of San Diego designated the Talmadge Gates historic corridor (No. 422) in 2000, and several houses hold individual historic designations. Owners of designated properties can ask the City about Mills Act contracts, which may reduce property taxes in exchange for preservation commitments.
Living Here
Talmadge is primarily single-family, with homes built mostly between the late 1920s and early 1950s on a regular grid that bends to follow the canyon rims, so many lots have slopes or canyon views. The City also notes mid-size to large apartment complexes in the neighborhood, concentrated toward its southern edge near El Cajon Boulevard. There is no master homeowners association. The neighborhood does have its own Talmadge Maintenance Assessment District, a property-assessment district with a monthly public meeting, and exterior changes to historic properties may involve design review.
Talmadge is quiet and residential, with tree-lined streets, canyon edges and a strong volunteer culture. The traffic circle and Talmadge Mini Park at its center serve as the neighborhood’s focal point, and longtime neighborhood traditions include a block party, a Fourth of July parade and a community garage sale. Volunteer groups run a neighborhood patrol and fire-safety efforts. For dining, Clem’s Station on Monroe Avenue acts as a local pub and coffee stop, while El Cajon Boulevard just south has long-running pho and banh mi shops. Adams Avenue in Kensington is a few minutes west for more restaurants and the Ken Cinema.
Getting Around
Walk Score: 74 (Very Walkable). Source: https://www.walkscore.com/CA/San_Diego/Talmadge · Transit Score: 49 (Some Transit) (https://www.walkscore.com/CA/San_Diego/Talmadge) · Bike Score: 52 (Bikeable) (https://www.walkscore.com/CA/San_Diego/Talmadge)
Talmadge is served by San Diego Unified School District. Franklin Elementary STEAM Magnet on Copeland Avenue is the neighborhood elementary school and doubles as a community meeting place, and Hoover High School sits on El Cajon Boulevard at the southwest edge of the area. Middle school and high school assignments vary by street, so buyers should confirm the schools for a specific address with the district.
Talmadge Mini Park at the central traffic circle with its historic gates, the canyon open space along the north and west edges.
Explore Talmadge
Public and charter schools closest to the heart of Talmadge.
San Diego Unified
San Diego Unified
San Diego Unified
San Diego Unified
San Diego Unified
San Diego County Office of Education
San Diego Unified
School assignment depends on the exact address, so confirm the schools for any home with the school district. Source: California Department of Education, 2024–25 school sites. Report cards link to the official California School Dashboard.
Green space, trails and play areas in and around Talmadge.
Park data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Distances are approximate, measured from the center of Talmadge.
Talmadge sits on the mesa in San Diego’s Mid-City area, between Kensington to the west and the College Area and San Diego State University to the east. Canyons drop away along its north and west sides toward Mission Valley and Interstate 8, and El Cajon Boulevard runs along its southern edge, with City Heights beyond. Downtown, Mission Valley and the SDSU area are all a short drive away.
Local Favorites
Neighborhood pub, coffee bar and bottle shop
4715 Monroe Ave, San Diego, CA 92115
Directions →Photos, ratings and links from Google Maps
FAQ
Talmadge has a Walk Score of 74, considered very walkable. Interior streets are quiet and residential, and most shops and restaurants are on El Cajon Boulevard to the south or Adams Avenue in neighboring Kensington.
It is a quiet, residential neighborhood with canyon edges, historic gates and an active volunteer community. Neighbors gather for an annual block party, a Fourth of July parade and other traditions, and errands are a short drive or walk away.
The developers named it for silent film stars Norma, Constance and Natalie Talmadge, whose relatives and associates helped finance the project. Streets such as Norma, Constance and Natalie Drive carry their names.
Yes. The Talmadge Park Estates Historic District, listed on the National Register in 2024, includes more than 400 contributing resources built between 1926 and 1951. The entry gates are also a City-designated historic corridor.
Talmadge is in San Diego Unified School District, with Franklin Elementary STEAM Magnet in the neighborhood and Hoover High School nearby. Assignments vary by address, so confirm with the district.
Downtown is typically about 15 minutes by car without traffic, using Interstate 15 or Interstate 8. The airport is about 15 to 20 minutes away.
The two share a community planning area and similar 1920s roots. Kensington has the Adams Avenue main street with shops and a theater, while Talmadge is more purely residential, with its own historic district and a slightly later mix of Minimal Traditional and Ranch homes.
Work With Jeff
Jeff Brick, San Diego REALTOR® at Compass, DRE# 02156850. Million Dollar Service at All Price Points. Call or text 858-324-4448.
Nearby neighborhood guides: Hillcrest · Mission Hills · North Park · Burlingame · South Park
Header photo: Marcahare (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
Sources
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