Best Real Estate Schools Near Santa Cruz, CA (2026)

Updated August 11, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Santa Cruz, California has 19 accredited schools offering real estate programs, with tuition ranging from $1,150 to $53,630 per year for indexed programs. Santa Cruz has a population of about 60,953. Median household income is $111,427 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 57.7% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In California, the top-earning real estate-related role is Real Estate Broker at a median $80,450 annually (BLS, May 2025).

Closest Real Estate Schools to Santa Cruz

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer real estate programs near Santa Cruz, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Santa Cruz city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

No school data available.

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California real estate page.

Real Estate Wages Near Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz is part of the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area (BLS area code 42100). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Real Estate Sales Agent$51,530Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA$46,888
Real Estate Broker$80,450CA statewide$73,203
Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Manager$71,070Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA$64,668

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Santa Cruz at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population60,953Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$111,427Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+57.7%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)109.9 (above U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024

Other Santa Cruz-Area Cities With Real Estate Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited real estate schools are near Santa Cruz, CA?

Our directory has 19 accredited schools offering real estate programs near Santa Cruz. The closest is Cabrillo College in Aptos, CA (6.1 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Chabot College (46.0 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying real estate roles near Santa Cruz?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying real estate-related roles near Santa Cruz are: Real Estate Broker ($80,450), Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Manager ($71,070), Real Estate Sales Agent ($51,530). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with California statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Watsonville instead of Santa Cruz?

Watsonville, CA is 15.1 miles from Santa Cruz and has its own set of local real estate programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Santa Cruz an affordable place to study real estate?

Santa Cruz’s median household income of $111,427 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Santa Cruz while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and California public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Real Estate Programs

Other Programs Available in Santa Cruz

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Santa Cruz:

Data verified: August 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

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