Folsom

Home To Historic Sutter Street

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Folsom is a city of 80,000 in the foothills of Sacramento County, 25 miles northeast of the state capital. Its history goes back to gold miners seeking their fortune in the Sierra Nevada foothills, around mid 1800’s. It is famous for its famous Folsom Prison (Where Johnny Cash performed live in 1968), Folsom Lake which gets its water from the American River, and its great public schools. Niche.com calls it one of the best places to live in California. One will not get bored in this city: There are plenty of restaurants, coffee shops, parks, shopping malls and outdoor activities. A lot of Folsomers, use “Sacramento RT  Light Rail”  to access downtown. The  schools here are top ranked  and  (see below) make this city  a great place to plant roots for those with children. Another one of  this city’s features which makes it a great destination for nature lovers, is  this city’s proximity to Lake Tahoe (84 miles) to access all it has to offer: ski resorts, beaches, hiking, gambling, to name a few.

Would you like to search for homes 🏠 here? Your search is just one click away. Click on your desired home🏠 category below and start looking. Or you can set up your own search by going to the top 🔝 of the page and clicking on “Buyers” tab and filling out the criteria. Or just call 📞 me. 

Things to do in Folsom:

  • Visit Sutter  St in Folsom Historic District where the roads are closed to traffic every Friday-Sunday on the 700 block between the Folsom Hotel and Snook’s Chocolates.
  • Visit Folsom History Museum
  • Go fishing, boating, kayaking or stand up paddle boarding on Folsom Lake , located in the State Recreation Area.

    Courtesy of CaliforniaBestCamping.com

  • Take rowing or sailing classes at Sac State Aquatic Center on Lake Natoma. (Good to know: Lake Natoma is ranked No. 3 top rowing venue by rowing news)  They also rent paddle boards, kayaks, etc.  Days and hours of operation must be checked.

    Tons of summer activities are available at Sacramento State Aquatic Center. Rent a kayak, paddle board or sign up for a class.

  • Take a field trip to  Nimbus Fish Hatchery with the family where they “raise Chinook salmon and steelhead for release to the American River.”

    Perfect place for the kids to learn about the life cycle of salmon and kinds of fish.

  • Go for a bike ride (5 miles roundtrip) on Johnny Cash Trail

    Another one of Folsom’s attractions is Johnny Cash Trail.

  • Go for a horseback riding experience around Folsom Lake. (We did that for our anniversary and had a blast) Boarding on the Lake is the one we chose and had good experience.

    There are plenty of places to go for a trail-ride

  • Take the family to Folsom Zoo Sanctuary where they care for “non-releasable” animals. In June of 2022, they welcomed an African serval, which was a confiscated illegal pet. They have bears, coyotes, tigers and even smaller animals like prairie dogs.
  • Visit Folsom State Prison Museum. On their website, it states “The museum features a wealth of photographs, old hemp ropes used to hang prisoners, memorabilia from Johnny Cash’s famed concert shows, ……..”

    Folsom State Museum

  •  Shop at Folsom Premium Outlets, an outdoor shopping plaza with 80 stores. One can find famous brands such as Under Armour, Michael Kors, Kay Jewelers, Adidas, all  in one mall. There is plenty of parking available or one can reach it via Historic Folsom Light Rail.

    Looking for bargains? Look no further. Come to  Premium Outlet. Photo courtesy of The Business Journal

  • Attend a concert or play  at Harris Center. Anything from Grease to Beauty and The Beast. Harris Center was initially conceived as an instruction center for students at Folsom Lake College but it evolved into a main stage for arts and culture in Folsom area.
  • Go for a free game of disc golf at Shady Oaks Park in Orangevale (ten minutes drive) It has 18 holes with rotating pin positions. Here is a link to a page where you can watch a video of the park to get an idea.
  • Seaquest Folsom  can keep the family (particularly younger ones) entertained. It takes visitors to the depths of the ocean and beyond. There, you can see otters, sharks, stingrays, chameleons, sloths and frogs. Watch the video on their homepage to get an idea about what to expect.
  • Granite Arch is an indoor rockclimbing center, only 15 minutes from Folsom, in Rancho Cordova. If a total beginner, one can take classes too. You don’t know if you like it until you try it.

    A perfect place for indoor rock climbing just outside of Folsom.

  • Have fun at Folsom Rodeo, taking place every year during the 4th of July weekend. Check out their website for more detail. https://www.folsomprorodeo.com/

Pros and Cons of Living in Folsom

Every neighborhood has its own “Pros and Cons”. Particularly for someone considering moving into that neighborhood, this can be very helpful.

I have gathered 5 pros and 3cons of living in Folsom. I hope you find them helpful.

  • Pros
  1. Folsom has some of the best schools in the whole state of California. If you have children, they will be able to attend great schools and receive a great education. Folsom-Cordova Unified School District has a student-teacher ratio of 22 to 1, according to Niche.com.
  2. There are plenty to do in or around Folsom: Folsom Lake means fishing, kayaking and other water sports. Folsom is located in the foothills that means one can reach the mountains of Sierra Nevada under an hour. There are also, lots of restaurants and bars in or within a short drive of Folsom.
  3. Sacramento Regional Transit, SacRT, helps lots of Folsomers get to downtown without needing to drive there. Yes, just drive to the train station, park your vehicle and take the train to work.
  4. Crime can take place in any neighborhood but Folsom tends to be safer than some of the other Sacramento cities and neighborhoods. According to KCRA.com, “Folsom ranks among California’s safest cities. “
  5. There are lots of great employers in this city. One of Sacramento region’s top employers, Intel, is right here in Folsom and it employs almost 6100 employees. Other big employers in Folsom are City of Folsom, Kaiser and Folsom Cordova Unified School District.
  • Cons
  1. Living in such beautiful city with great schools, comes with a price. Cost of living, including housing is higher than some of the nearby areas, like Citrus Heights.
  2. If one needs to commute to Downtown area, (Lots of Sacramento area residents are State of California employees and work in downtown) traffic to and from work can be heavy (nothing like the traffic one will experience if they live in the Bay Area or Southern California) . However, lots of Folsom residents are working from home now and don’t need to commute to downtown area.
  3. Folsom is beautiful and a very desirable place to live: lots of nature, hills and trees. And with that comes allergies. Not sure if you know it but Sacramento is famous for the number of trees it has.  After Paris, we have the most number of trees than any other city in the world. And Folsom is in Sacramento. So, you might want to keep that into consideration if you are allergic to pollen.

Folsom Schools

Some of the best schools in the state

Folsom schools fall under Folsom Cordova Unified School District. It has 26 preschools, 24 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, 4 high schools, 15 public district schools and 29 private schools. For a list of all the schools in the district, visit district’s website. 

To learn more about the District, you can subscribe to their youtube channel.

Top 5 Elementary Schools in Folsom

  • Sandra J. Gallardo Elementary  9/10
  • Russel Ranch Elementary 9/10
  • Oak Chan Elementary 9/10
  • Folsom Hills Elementary 9/10
  • Carl H. Sundahl Elementary 9/10

Top 2 Middle Schools in Folsom

  • Folsom Middle School 8/10
  • Sutter Middle School 7/10

Top 5 High Schools in Folsom

  • Vista Del Lago High School 10/10
  • Folsom High School 9/10

 

Folsom Homes For Sale

Great schools means higher prices

Folsom has a population of 79,000 which 69% of those own their homes and 31% rent.

Median Household Income  is $128,000, compared to $69,000 in California. There are currently (February 2023) 63 single family homes residential listings  in the city with median price of $753,000. Of those, 22 are older homes (built before 2000) with median price of $712,000. There are 34 newer homes (constructed after 2000) with a median price of $861,000. Eight homes are under construction with no “Built date”. Entry level homes in Folsom start at low to mid 500’s. I can easily set up a search for you according to your desired criteria so as homes come on the market, you receive a notification email. Just fill out the form below and I will be in touch.