Intel co-founder Gordon Moore’s $6 million estate now listed for $29.5 million

In 1991, Gordon Moore paid about $6 million for a large property in Woodside, California, adding a substantial private estate to the life of one of Silicon Valley’s best-known figures. Almost three decades later, Moore’s estate placed the property under a permanent conservation easement, limiting what could be built or changed across the site. According to The Wall Street Journal 2025 reports, the property was listed for $29.5 million, covers about 25 acres and includes an English Manor-style house dating to around 1927. There are gardens, redwood groves, walking trails, a creek and an old apple orchard, along with several buildings and recreational facilities. It is also surrounded by the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, giving the estate a setting that is unusually open for a property in the wealthy San Francisco Peninsula community. Gordon Moore bought the Woodside estate for $6 million in 1991 Moore and his wife, Betty, acquired the Woodside property in 1991 for roughly $6 million. At the time, Moore was already an important figure in the technology industry. He had co-founded Intel with Robert Noyce in 1968, and his observation about the growth in transistor numbers later became known as Moore’s Law. The couple remained connected to the Woodside estate for more than three decades. The property eventually became part of Moore’s estate, with the Peninsula Open Space Trust taking responsibility for selling it after his death. A 1920s manor house retained its original character At the centre of the property is an English Manor-style residence built around 1927. The main house measures about 9,300 square feet and contains six bedrooms. Rather than replacing its older character, the Moores spent years updating the infrastructure while retaining parts of the original design. Their work included replacing the electrical, plumbing and heating and cooling systems. The kitchen was enlarged, but features such as redwood panelling and five wood-burning fireplaces remained. An old call-button system, originally used by household staff, was also restored. There is even a vault in the butler’s pantry. It dates from the property's earlier history, when previous owners used it to keep valuables. A spiral staircase rises to a loft with cathedral ceilings, where he displayed fossils, mineral specimens and vintage fishing reels. PC: WSJ The Woodside estate expanded with gardens and a second house The Moores added a separate caretakers’ residence in 1994, measuring roughly 2,500 square feet, as reported by WSJ. Four bedrooms are located there, bringing the total number of bedrooms across the two homes to 10. Outside, the property is spread across a mixture of landscaped and more natural areas. There is a swimming pool and tennis court, as well as a greenhouse associated with Betty Moore’s gardening. The grounds include a rose garden, redwood stands, walking trails and a creek. A century-old apple orchard is also part of the estate. Three garages and other outbuildings add to the collection of structures. Despite its size, the property has remained tied to a landscape where much of the surrounding land is protected from intensive development. The conservation easement changed the future of the land The most significant long-term restriction on the property is its conservation easement. The easement prevents large-scale development, meaning the land cannot simply be treated as an unrestricted parcel for future construction. That protection is particularly relevant because the property sits in Woodside, around 30 miles south of downtown San Francisco, in an area where large estates command high prices. The conservation arrangement places a limit on how the acreage can be developed even as ownership changes. Moore’s estate left the property to the Peninsula Open Space Trust, which is marketing the home. The trust’s president, Gordon Clark, said the Moores had spent about $15 million renovating and improving the property during their ownership while paying close attention to the original structure. The result is a property that carries two very different kinds of value. There is the house itself, with its period features and extensive grounds, and there is the land, much of which is subject to a permanent restriction on large-scale development. From a $6 million purchase to a $29.5 million listing The property is currently listed for $29.5 million, almost five times the approximately $6 million the Moores paid for it in 1991. The listing is being handled by Hugh Cornish of Coldwell Banker Realty and Erika Demma of Compass. According to The Wall Street Journal, the community’s most expensive home sale the previous year reached $52 million. Cornish said demand had increased as affluent buyers from San Francisco looked for weekend properties outside the city. The Moores had another significant property in Hawaii. That home was listed for $28.8 million in February and was later reduced to $21.9 million. Gordon Moore died in March 2023 at the age of 94. Betty Moore died later that year at 95. Their long ownership of the Woodside estate ended with the property passing into the care of a conservation organisation, rather than simply becoming another unrestricted development site.