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Gearhart is a small coastal city of approximately 1,800 residents in Clatsop County, just north of Seaside. It is home to Gearhart Golf Links, Oregon’s oldest golf course (1892). This page aggregates publicly available facts about the community, current real estate market data from RMLS®, and active property listings.
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Searching in: Gearhart, OR
Facts about Gearhart compiled from official and public sources. Each data point shows its vintage (when the source published it) so you know what you’re looking at.
Small residential coastal community
Astoria is county seat
Named for Phillip Gearhart, 1848 settler
Shared with Seaside; USPS delivers both
Flat coastal plain · dunes to the west
Mix of year-round and seasonal
High second-home share; reflects resort heritage
Older than Oregon statewide median
Via US-26 W · typically 1h 45m drive
Schools located in Seaside, 3 mi south
25-bed hospital · ~9 miles north
~82 mi east · local Seaside Municipal (SSI) nearby
Mild year-round · wet winters, dry summers
Above Oregon statewide median
2023 ACS 5-year ·
Entire Oregon shoreline is public per state law
Est. 1892 · Oregon's oldest golf course
Gearhart is among the most distinctive markets on the North Oregon Coast — a small, low-density residential community of roughly 1,800 year-round residents, with a housing stock historically shaped by the presence of Gearhart Golf Links (established 1892, Oregon’s oldest golf course) and its adjacent cottage district. The city’s land area is only 1.9 square miles, which caps new inventory.
Gearhart’s housing reflects its heritage as a turn-of-the-20th-century retreat community. A meaningful share of the housing stock is older cottage-style second homes and architecturally significant early-20th-century cottages, especially in the Pacific Way / golf course corridor. Newer construction exists along the eastern and southern edges of the city.
Pricing tends to track the high end among North Coast peers given constrained supply and the golf/beach location combination. Market statistics shift quarter-to-quarter — the snapshot at right uses live RMLS® data via our MLS integration.
Note: Market statistics activate with our MLS integration and refresh automatically from RMLS® data. The housing units figure (1,513) is from the 2020 Census and will remain static until revised.
Gearhart is a single compact city with informal neighborhoods defined by street grid and golf course proximity rather than formal district lines. Descriptions reflect location only; price ranges populate from live RMLS® data via our MLS integration.
Distances are approximate driving distances from central Gearhart. Gearhart shares services with Seaside (schools, hospital, USPS ZIP) while remaining a separately incorporated city.
Quick answers about Gearhart, each backed by an authoritative source. For questions specific to a particular property or listing, call (800) 256-9702 to reach a licensed Oregon broker.
Gearhart had a population of 1,793 residents as recorded in the 2020 Decennial Census. The city has grown moderately since 2010 when the population was 1,462.
Gearhart was incorporated on January 28, 1918 following a series of fires at the original Hotel Gearhart that prompted residents to form a municipal government and water supply. The community is named for Phillip Gearhart, a settler who arrived in the area in 1848 and established a donation land claim on the Clatsop Plains.
Cannon Beach is approximately 80 miles west of Portland. Typical drive time via US-26 East is roughly 1 hour 45 minutes under normal conditions. Summer weekends, Friday evenings, and Sunday afternoons can add significant time during peak coastal traffic.
Gearhart students attend schools in Seaside School District 10. Elementary, middle, and high school are all located in Seaside, approximately 3 miles south. The high school is Seaside High School.
The nearest hospital is Providence Seaside Hospital, a 25-bed facility approximately 2 miles south of Gearhart in the city of Seaside. It provides 24-hour emergency care and general hospital services. There is no hospital within Gearhart city limits.
Gearhart Golf Links is a links-style public golf course established in 1892, making it Oregon’s oldest golf course and one of the oldest in the Western United States. It sits adjacent to the Pacific Ocean dunes and is a defining feature of Gearhart’s geography and housing market.
Yes. The City of Gearhart regulates short-term rentals through a municipal licensing program. Rules, caps, and permit availability are maintained by the city and can change. Verify current regulations directly with the City of Gearhart before purchasing a property intended for short-term rental use.
Yes. The entire Oregon shoreline, including the beach at Gearhart, is public up to the high-tide line under the Oregon Beach Bill (1967). The beach extends continuously from Warrenton through Gearhart into Seaside without interruption.
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