California real estate market update for September 2026

San Francisco Prices Surge 24% As Inventory Craters

September 16, 2026

California’s housing market is pulling in two directions at once this month. Mortgage rates on a 30-year loan have pushed past 7% for the first time in a year, yet demand in the state’s priciest metros hasn’t cracked — San Francisco just posted a 24% jump in its single-family median as buyers keep bidding above asking and inventory tightens further. Inland and secondary markets tell a different story: Sacramento’s single-family segment is holding steady while its condo sector buckles under oversupply, and nationally, resale inventory has swollen to its highest level since 2019. The net effect is a market rewarding well-priced, well-located listings while punishing everything else.

In The News:

Prism Group — San Francisco Home Prices Surge 24% As Inventory Craters (September 10, 2026) — San Francisco’s single-family median jumped to $1.855 million in August, up 24% year-over-year, while inventory fell 35% to just 570 active listings. Homes are selling in 21 days on average, down from 30, with 85% of single-family sales closing above asking price. Mortgage rates near 6.8% haven’t cooled competition for well-priced coastal listings, though sales volume itself slipped 9% year-over-year.

Prism Group — Sacramento Single-Family Prices Hold Steady As Condo Market Buckles (September 10, 2026) — Sacramento County’s single-family median held flat at $549,950 in August, with 35% of homes selling above list price, up seven points from a year ago. The condo segment tells a starkly different story — closings fell 42% year-over-year and the median price dropped 18% to $265,000, pushing months of supply from 3.1 to 6.3 as oversupply mounts.

Scherb Homes Group — South Bay Home Prices Hold Firm Despite Rising Rates (September 9, 2026) — The South Bay’s median sold price came in at $1,291,600 in August, down about $29,000 from a year earlier as the 30-year rate climbed to 6.97%. Coastal submarkets kept appreciating — Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach each rose 6.2% year-over-year — while inland Torrance and San Pedro stayed roughly flat, underscoring how location is driving Los Angeles-area pricing power.

HousingWire — Existing Home Sales Slip As Inventory Hits Highest Level Since 2019 (September 10, 2026) — National existing-home sales fell to a 3.98 million annualized pace in August, down 2% from July, as resale inventory climbed to 1.62 million homes — the most since November 2019 — pushing supply to 4.9 months. The West region posted the weakest performance, down 2.7% year-over-year, while the national median price rose 1.6% to $429,100, extending a 38-month streak of annual gains.

The Mortgage Reports — 30-Year Mortgage Rate Tops 7% For First Time In A Year (September 15, 2026) — The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate climbed to 7.001% this week, its highest mark in a year, even as the 10-year Treasury yield eased to 4.96%. Freddie Mac’s benchmark survey had rates at 6.76% just five days earlier, underscoring how fast borrowing costs are moving. Analysts say relief is unlikely without a clear signal the Federal Reserve is ready to cool policy.

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TNG Team

Insights from The Norris Group team on hard money lending, trust deed investing, and California and Florida real estate markets.

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