CA Median Home Price Slips Below $900K
California's housing market cooled in July, but the numbers underneath are more balanced than the headline suggests. The statewide median price eased back below $900,000 while sales slipped from June's rebound, yet still finished above year-ago levels for a fourth straight month. Mortgage rates near 6.7% keep some buyers sidelined even as supply improves and well-priced homes still sell in under a month. Nationally, sales are drifting lower while prices grind higher and sellers compete harder on price. Softer pricing, more listings, and motivated sellers is the combination California investors have been waiting on.
In The News:
C.A.R. — Home sales pull back in July as California’s median price slips below $900,000 (August 17, 2026) — Existing single-family sales fell to a seasonally adjusted annualized 263,170 in July, down 6.0 percent from June but up 1.1 percent from a year ago — a fourth straight month above year-ago levels. The statewide median price dropped 1.9 percent to $887,680, still 0.3 percent higher than July 2025. Homes sold in a median 26 days.
Freddie Mac — Mortgage Rates Average 6.67% (August 13, 2026) — The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.67 percent, down from 6.69 percent a week earlier but above the 6.58 percent posted a year ago. The 15-year average eased to 5.96 percent. Purchase and refinance applications have picked up, a sign borrowers still respond quickly to modest moves in financing costs.
Redfin — U.S. Pending Home Sales, New Listings Show Flickers of Life to Start August (August 13, 2026) — Pending sales edged up 0.4 percent week over week during the four weeks ending August 9, while new listings rose 1.7 percent for their largest weekly gain in five months. The average mortgage rate hit 6.69 percent, lifting the median monthly housing payment to $2,626. San Jose led the nation in new listings growth.
NAR — Existing-Home Sales Report Shows 1.7% Decrease in July (August 11, 2026) — U.S. existing-home sales slipped 1.7 percent in July to a 4.06 million annual pace, a second straight monthly decline, though sales held 0.7 percent above last July. The national median price rose 2.0 percent to $434,100. Western sales were flat from June and up 1.4 percent annually, with a regional median of $622,200.
HousingWire — Home price cuts near 2025 levels as markets battle for leverage (August 12, 2026) — For the week ending August 7, 41.44 percent of active single-family listings nationally had taken a price cut, nearly matching the 41.85 percent posted a year earlier as the 2026 gap narrowed to less than half a point. Price-cut share alone does not signal weak demand — local supply and absorption decide who holds leverage.
