Ross jumbo loans and 2026 loan limits.

Ross became a town in 1908 and covers well under two square miles. Sir Francis Drake Boulevard runs through it, and the small center, around the Ross Common and the post office, is just off the boulevard on Lagunitas Road. The Marin Art and Garden Center occupies an old estate beside the boulevard. Lagunitas Road leads west out of the center toward Phoenix Lake and the water district’s land on the mountain.

The homes are houses, many of them from the late 1800s and early 1900s: shingled houses, Victorians and Colonial and Tudor revival homes, with later houses among them. Lots are large for Marin, and big oaks, redwoods and hedges line the lanes. Shady Lane, a street of tall trees, crosses the valley floor. Corte Madera Creek and its branches run through town on their way to the bay. There are almost no condominiums or apartments.

The flood map first, on the valley floor. Then the age of the house and the size of the loan.

Corte Madera Creek left its banks in January 1982 and again on the last day of 2005, flooding homes and the town center. A good deal of the valley floor is in a flood zone on FEMA’s map. A lender requires flood insurance on a financed home in a high-risk zone and counts the premium in your housing cost. Flood-control work along the creek has been under way for years across the Ross Valley, paid in part by a fee on property owners. Ask what the seller pays and whether the house has flooded.

Old houses bring questions about foundations, wiring, plumbing and drainage. An appraiser reports what is visible, and an insurer may ask more. The town reviews most exterior work, and it protects large trees, so plan time for any remodel.

Sales are few and houses differ, so an appraisal can take longer, and a second appraisal is common on a larger loan. For a hillside lot at the edge of town, check the address on the state’s fire hazard map.

The valley floor is the level middle of Ross, on both sides of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard: Shady Lane, Lagunitas Road, Bolinas Avenue and the lanes that run between and beside them. The Ross Common, the town hall and the Marin Art and Garden Center are here, and the creek winds through.

Lots are level and often large, with room for lawns, a pool or a guest house, and many of the town’s oldest houses stand here. That is what gives these streets their value, and also their main lending question, which is flooding. Check FEMA’s map for the address before you make an offer. If the house is in a high-risk zone, get the flood insurance quote and the elevation certificate early, since the premium counts toward what you can borrow. Ask whether the house was raised or the foundation vented after 2005. A guest house built with permits adds value in an appraisal and generally leaves the property a one-unit home. Creekside lots also have setbacks that limit new building. Mature trees are protected by the town, which matters if you plan to add on.

Winship Park is a neighborhood in the north of Ross, near Bolinas Avenue and San Anselmo, along Winship Avenue and the streets around it. Most of it is level ground, and Camino Bueno, beside it, climbs the hillside.

It is named for Emory and Kate Winship, who owned the land in the early 1900s. It was built up in the years after they sold, and its houses range from shingled homes of that time to mid-century and newer ones. Lots are mostly level, with mature trees, and some streets are narrow. San Anselmo Creek runs past the neighborhood and under the Winship Avenue bridge, so check the address on FEMA’s map before you make an offer, and ask whether the house has flooded. Homes on the hillside edge may be in mapped fire hazard zones, where an insurer looks at roofing, vegetation and access, so ask for quotes early. An appraiser notes the size and condition of the house and compares it with other homes on level ground in Ross, Kentfield and San Anselmo when local sales are few. Have the foundation and drainage inspected, since older houses here were often built on simple footings.