Union City has the lowest median price for condos and townhomes of the three Tri-City communities I work in, and its houses sell for about the same as Newark's. It also has a BART station in town, which matters if you commute to Oakland, San Francisco or the South Bay.Here is what buying in Union City looks like right now, using closed sales from the past 12 months.
What homes cost in Union City
These figures cover homes that closed between October 21, 2025 and October 21, 2026, from MLS data.Houses (238 sales)- Typical price: $1,400,000 median, or $796 per square foot. The middle half of sales closed between about $1.27 million and $1.58 million.
- Speed: A median of 13 days on market, and about 60% sold above the list price.
- Under $1 million: Only about 11% of houses sold below that mark, so buyers with smaller budgets often look at condos and townhomes.
- Compared with nearby cities: Newark's median for houses was $1,411,288 and Fremont's was $1,715,000.
- Typical price: $650,000 median, or $600 per square foot. The middle half of sales closed between about $490,000 and $790,000.
- Speed: A median of 23 days on market, and about 37% sold above the list price.
- Monthly dues: Median HOA dues were about $370 a month.
- Under $1 million: About 89% sold below that mark.
- Compared with nearby cities: Newark's median for attached homes was $820,000 and Fremont's was $835,000.
Getting around Union City
The BART station is the biggest draw for commuters.- BART. The Union City station sits on the Green and Orange lines, and the station is the starting point for the Dumbarton Express weekday buses to Menlo Park, Palo Alto and Stanford. That makes the city workable for people heading to the Peninsula without driving across the bridge.
- Driving. I-880 runs through the city, with access to Fremont and Newark to the south and Hayward and Oakland to the north.
- Coming soon. The City is building Quarry Lakes Parkway, a new four-lane street with bike lanes and a separated trail between Paseo Padre Parkway in Fremont and Mission Boulevard in Union City. It will also connect the east side of the BART station to 11th Street. The City's page gives phase timeframes (the first phases within two to three years), not firm dates, so do not plan around it yet.
What a typical home looks like
- A typical house that sold in the past year had about 1,671 square feet, 4 bedrooms and a 6,000 square foot lot, and was built in 1975. That is about 51 years old, so ask about the age of the roof, plumbing, wiring and heating and cooling.
- A typical condo or townhome had about 1,162 square feet and 2 bedrooms, and was built in 1974. Median dues were about $370 a month. Ask for the HOA's budget and reserve study before you make an offer.
Parks, shopping and things to do
According to the City's attractions page, Union City includes:- Parks and trails. The Alameda Creek Regional Trail has several entrances in town and is popular for biking. Other city parks include Kennedy Park, Casa Verde Park, Veteran's Memorial Park and Drigon Dog Park.
- Sugar Mill Landing Park. It is home to the Flight 93 memorial, across from Union Landing.
- Union Landing. A shopping and entertainment area with a movie theater, indoor skydiving and restaurants.
- Alvarado Historic District. It hosts a Saturday farmers' market.
- Station District. A transit-oriented neighborhood next to the BART station, on land that was once steel and pipe yards.
When Union City is worth a look
Union City tends to fit best when your priorities line up with these:- You want the lowest entry price for an attached home. Its $650,000 median for condos and townhomes is below Newark's $820,000 and Fremont's $835,000.
- You commute by BART. There is a BART station in the city, and the Dumbarton Express weekday buses run from the same station to the Peninsula.
- You want a house near $1.4 million. Union City's median matches Newark's, and it is about $315,000 below Fremont's.
- You want a newer neighborhood close to transit. The Station District near BART has newer homes within reach of transit, though it is only one part of the city.