What is the average home price in California?
There is no single official average. Three widely quoted measures each describe a different slice of the market, and in September 2026 they ranged from about $753,000 to about $900,000. Knowing which one you are looking at matters more than the exact figure.
Zillow's typical home value: $761,538
Zillow's typical home value for California was $761,538 in September 2026. It is an estimate for every home in the state, sold or not, built from the middle third of values (the 35th to 65th percentile). Because it covers the whole housing stock, it moves slowly and is the best single number for "what is a normal California home worth right now". It rose 0.6% over the past year.
Redfin's median sale price: $752,837
Redfin's statewide median sale price was $752,837 in September 2026, based on homes that actually closed that month. It includes houses, condos, townhouses and small multifamily buildings. Half of the homes sold for more, half for less. It can swing from month to month with the mix of homes that happen to close, so a single month is less reliable than a trend.
C.A.R.'s median single-family price: $899,720
The California Association of Realtors reported a statewide median of $899,720 for existing single-family homes sold in September 2026, down 0.2% from August and up 1.7% from a year earlier. This is the figure most news stories quote. It is higher than the other two because it leaves out condos and townhomes, which sell for less. C.A.R.'s separate condo and townhome median was $640,000 the same month.
Which number should you use?
Use the measure that matches your question. To estimate what a typical existing home is worth, start with Zillow's typical value for your county or city. To see what buyers are paying for detached houses, use C.A.R.'s single-family median. To track what closed in a given month across every home type, use Redfin's median sale price. Do not compare one source's figure for one place with another source's figure for a different place: the methods differ enough to create a gap that is not real.
Average home price by county
County averages vary more than eightfold. Zillow's typical home value in September 2026 ran from $1,579,058 in San Mateo County to $192,295 in Modoc County. The table shows the ten highest-value counties, then the six lowest. Changes are Zillow's one-year and five-year figures to September 2026. Every county links to its data page, and the California market data page lists all 58.
| County | Zillow typical home value, Sept 2026 | 1-year change | 5-year change |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo County | $1,579,058 | +4.4% | +7.6% |
| Santa Clara County | $1,562,682 | +0.3% | +16.8% |
| Marin County | $1,484,731 | +4.8% | +8.1% |
| San Francisco County | $1,441,170 | +15.5% | +3.3% |
| Orange County | $1,174,873 | +3.2% | +36.6% |
| Santa Cruz County | $1,136,188 | +4.8% | +11.9% |
| Alameda County | $1,044,951 | -0.4% | +1.1% |
| Santa Barbara County | $988,595 | +4.3% | +30.2% |
| San Diego County | $926,979 | +0.8% | +21.6% |
| San Luis Obispo County | $897,661 | +2.0% | +22.6% |
| Tehama County | $315,084 | +3.1% | +3.9% |
| Lake County | $301,548 | -1.1% | -7.5% |
| Siskiyou County | $281,544 | -1.4% | +0.2% |
| Trinity County | $235,389 | -2.5% | -23.9% |
| Lassen County | $230,824 | +1.5% | +2.4% |
| Modoc County | $192,295 | +3.4% | +20.5% |
Two patterns stand out. First, the expensive coastal counties are not all moving the same way: Orange County's typical value hit a new high in September 2026 and is up 36.6% over five years, while Alameda County is still about 11% below its June 2022 peak of $1,175,803. Second, many inland and northern counties have barely moved in five years. Mendocino County's value is 20.1% lower than five years ago and Trinity County's is 23.9% lower.
Los Angeles County, home to about a quarter of Californians, sat at $871,674, and San Diego County at $926,979. Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the Inland Empire, were at $602,790 and $548,565.
Home prices by region
C.A.R. groups counties into five regions. These are its single-family medians for September 2026, with the change from September 2025. Because they are single-family figures, they run above the Zillow county values in the table above; compare regions with each other, not with that table.
San Francisco Bay Area: $1,325,000
The Bay Area's single-family median was $1,325,000, up 4.2% from August and 1.9% from a year earlier. San Mateo County had the highest county median in the state at $2,327,500. Prices in Silicon Valley cities run far above the regional figure; see the San Jose and Palo Alto guides.
Central Coast: $1,049,500
The Central Coast, from Santa Cruz to Santa Barbara, had a median of $1,049,500, up 4.4% on the year, the largest annual gain of the five regions. Supply is thin in coastal towns, and a few high-end sales move the median. Local detail is on the Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz pages.
Southern California: $895,000
Southern California's median was $895,000, up 3.0% from September 2025. The region spans beach cities priced in the millions and inland cities priced well under the state median, so the county and city you pick matter more than the regional figure. Start with the Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange County guides.
Central Valley: $500,000
The Central Valley's median was $500,000, unchanged from August and from a year earlier. It includes Sacramento, Fresno, Bakersfield, Stockton and Modesto. This is where buyers priced out of the coast most often look; see Sacramento and Bakersfield.
Far North: $377,150
The Far North had the lowest median, $377,150, down 3.4% from a year earlier and the only region with an annual decline. Lassen County had the lowest county median in the state at $237,500. Redding is the main market; see the Redding guide.
Average home price in major California cities
Zillow's typical home value for a sample of cities covered on this site, September 2026, with one-year and ten-year changes. Each city links to its local guide.
| City | Zillow typical home value, Sept 2026 | 1-year change | 10-year change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | $927,891 | -0.5% | +73.2% |
| San Jose | $1,353,869 | -0.5% | +87.5% |
| Irvine | $1,481,490 | -1.9% | +104.1% |
| Long Beach | $852,391 | +2.4% | +84.3% |
| Oceanside | $865,182 | +1.6% | +90.6% |
| Santa Barbara | $1,805,649 | +4.9% | +78.9% |
| Riverside | $641,514 | +0.9% | +81.9% |
| Roseville | $643,854 | +0.8% | +58.4% |
| Sacramento | $470,552 | -0.6% | +64.0% |
| Bakersfield | $385,686 | +0.0% | +78.9% |
| Redding | $385,253 | -0.4% | +60.5% |
The city of Los Angeles ($927,891) sits well above the state's typical value, while Sacramento ($470,552) and Bakersfield ($385,686) sit well below it. Beach and Silicon Valley cities sit in a different bracket: Zillow's typical value was $3,592,240 in Palo Alto and $3,353,430 in Manhattan Beach.
Prices by home type: houses, condos and townhomes
Single-family homes
Detached houses carry the highest prices. C.A.R.'s statewide single-family median was $899,720 in September 2026, and the median price per square foot was $434, up from $427 a year earlier. At that rate, a 1,800-square-foot house works out to about $781,000 (1,800 x $434), before adjusting for location and condition.
Condos and townhomes
C.A.R.'s condo and townhome median was $640,000 in September 2026, 1.5% lower than a year earlier, while single-family prices rose. Condos are the main way into expensive coastal cities, but check the HOA's reserves, insurance and any balcony inspection costs; see our California HOA laws guide and balcony inspection guide.
An example: Los Angeles County by home type
Redfin's September 2026 figures for Los Angeles County, which may be revised, show how wide the spread is inside one county: a median sale price of $999,433 for single-family homes, $729,858 for townhouses and $644,414 for condos and co-ops. Condos took a median of 73 days to sell against 46 days for houses.
How California home prices have changed
The last year: flat
Prices have barely moved. Zillow's typical California value rose 0.6% in the year to September 2026. Redfin's statewide median sale price was $752,837 in September 2026, against $745,745 a year earlier, a gain of about 1.0%. C.A.R.'s single-family median rose 1.7%.
Five and ten years
Over five years Zillow's typical value is up 13.3%, and over ten years it is up 72.0%. Working back from today's figure, that puts the typical value at roughly $672,000 in September 2021 and roughly $443,000 in September 2016. The fastest ten-year gains were in Mono County (105.1%), Madera (95.4%), Orange (94.3%) and Imperial (92.6%), so growth was not limited to the coast.
Distance from the peak
Zillow's California value peaked at $777,695 in January 2025. September 2026's $761,538 is about 2.1% below that. Many Bay Area and northern counties peaked in mid-2022 and have not returned, while seven counties, including Orange, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Imperial, set new highs in September 2026.
What it takes to buy an average-priced California home
Down payment
On Zillow's typical value of $761,538, a 20% down payment is about $152,300 and a 10% down payment about $76,150. Closing costs come on top; our California closing costs guide breaks them down, and the first-time homebuyer guide covers state assistance programs.
Monthly payment
Freddie Mac's 30-year fixed average was 7.24% for the week of October 29, 2026. At that rate, the loan on a $761,538 home with 20% down ($609,230) costs about $4,152 a month in principal and interest. With 10% down the loan is $685,384 and the payment about $4,671, plus mortgage insurance. Property tax starts at about 1% of the purchase price, roughly $7,615 a year here, plus local bonds and assessments; see the California property tax guide.
Income needed
C.A.R.'s Housing Affordability Index for the second quarter of 2026 put the minimum income needed to buy the median single-family home ($916,750 that quarter) at $228,400 a year, with a monthly payment including taxes and insurance of $5,710. Only 19% of California households could afford that home, against 22% in the first quarter. For a condo or townhome at $670,000, the income needed was $166,800 and 30% of households qualified.
Where the average price is lower
C.A.R. ranked Lassen (50% of households able to afford the median home), Glenn (43%) and Shasta (41%) as the most affordable counties in the second quarter of 2026, and Mono (6%), Santa Barbara (12%) and Monterey (12%) as the least. For a ranked list of lower-cost places, see the cheapest places to live in California.
Will California home prices go up or down?
We do not make our own forecast. C.A.R.'s 2027 forecast, released October 7, 2026, projects the statewide single-family median at $882,200 for all of 2026, up 0.8% from $875,600 in 2025, and $894,400 in 2027, up 1.4%. It expects sales to rise 3.7% in 2027 and assumes an average 30-year rate of 6.6%. C.A.R. points to the continuing shortage of homes for sale as the main support for prices.
Forecasts are often wrong, and statewide numbers hide local swings: in the year to September 2026, Zillow values fell in 22 of 58 counties while San Francisco County rose 15.5%. Watch the monthly data for your county in our California housing market guide before you time a purchase or sale.