Overview
About Carmel
Carmel covers 22.8 acres and holds 145 addresses across 154 mapped parcels, more lots than addresses, which is the signature of detached homes on individual lots. Four streets run inside it and each takes a plant name: Deerwood, Goldenrain, Lantana and Stone Pine. The city zones 14.1 acres Residential Low Density, where the municipal code allows up to eight units to the gross acre, and a further 4.7 acres Open Space Preservation. The measured figure is six addresses to the acre, the lowest but four of the fifty communities on this site.
Canyon View Park sits 56 feet from the boundary, 23.8 acres with sand volleyball, a tot lot, hiking trails, walkways and picnic tables, and it is the only park the city's facility layer places within reach of this boundary. Capistrano Unified's own address locator assigns the ground to Don Juan Avila Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High; the two Don Juan Avila campuses share a site 0.47 miles away and enrolled 672 and 863 students on the 2024-25 federal count.
View available homes in CarmelHistory
How Carmel was built
The name reaches for the Monterey coast, and the four streets inside take plant names: Stone Pine, Goldenrain, Lantana and Deerwood. One hundred and forty five homes on 22.8 acres, in the western part of the city.
The county approved the Aliso Viejo master plan in 1979, the first homes were offered for sale in March 1982 and the first residents moved in that November. Of the 6,600 acres, 2,600 went to the county for the Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park, which opened in 1990 and runs to about 4,500 acres of old growth oak and sycamore.
By the Numbers
Carmel by the numbers
Lifestyle
The Carmel lifestyle
Schools
Schools serving Carmel
Capistrano Unified serves Carmel, and the district's own address locator returns one set of campuses across the boundary: Don Juan Avila Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High. Both Don Juan Avila campuses share a site 0.47 miles away, so the assigned elementary and middle school are also the nearest of their kind. Aliso Niguel High is the furthest campus at 2.01 miles. The tiles below carry federal enrollment counts and distances measured from the city's published boundary. Confirm the campus for a specific address with the district before it matters to an offer.
9-12 · 2,563 students
6-8 · 863 students
6-8 · 803 students
K-5 · 672 students
K-5 · 569 students
K-5 · 533 students
FAQs
Common questions about Carmel
How big is Carmel, and how many homes are there?
Measured against the boundary the City of Aliso Viejo publishes, Carmel covers 22.8 acres. The city's address layer records 145 addresses inside it and its parcel layer records 154 parcels, more lots than addresses.
Which schools serve Carmel?
Capistrano Unified's own address locator returns Don Juan Avila Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High, and it returns the same three at every interior point across the boundary. Both Don Juan Avila campuses are 0.47 miles away and enrolled 672 and 863 students on the 2024-25 federal count; Aliso Niguel High is 2.01 miles off with 2,563.
When was Carmel subdivided?
Eight maps cover it, all recorded in 1994 between 30 March and 13 October, none of them taking in more than a quarter of the boundary. Van Dell and Associates engineered every one and John Strawbridge, professional land surveyor 4200, signed every one. A recorded map dates the subdivision rather than the buildings on it.
What zoning applies here?
The city zones 14.1 acres of the boundary Residential Low Density, where the municipal code allows up to eight units to the gross acre, and a further 4.7 acres Open Space Preservation. Measured across the whole 22.8 acres the address count works out to six to the acre.
What parks are nearby?
Canyon View Park is 56 feet from the boundary, 23.8 acres kept by the Aliso Viejo Community Association with sand volleyball, a tot lot, hiking trails, walkways and picnic tables. It is the only park the city's facility layer places within reach of this boundary.