What a local Hawthorne agent helps you decide
Hawthorne is a dense South Bay city of about 85,000 people with one main ZIP code, 90250, but its prices are not uniform. Zillow's typical home value for the city was $863,012 in September 2026, while its neighborhood figures ran from $679,840 in Moneta Gardens to $1,284,924 in Hollyglen. The gap between those two numbers is the first thing a local agent should help you understand.
Most Hawthorne buyers and sellers face three decisions. The first is the home type: the city has far more apartments and small multi-unit buildings than detached houses, so a buyer often chooses between a 1950s house on a small lot, a townhouse or condo in a gated complex, and a duplex or fourplex. The second is location relative to the freeways and big employers: the city has quick access to the I-405 and I-105, and large aerospace employers such as SpaceX, whose headquarters campus faces Crenshaw Boulevard. The third is the school district, because parts of Hawthorne are served by Wiseburn Unified rather than the Hawthorne School District, and that boundary shows up in prices.
Ownership is the exception here, not the rule. The Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2020-2024) counts 30,030 occupied homes in Hawthorne, and only 8,165 of them, about 27%, are owner-occupied. That shapes the market: fewer resale houses come up each month, and many listings are investor-owned rentals or small income properties.
Buying a home in Hawthorne
Redfin's median sale price in Hawthorne was $882,080 for the three months to September 2026, 4.0% higher than a year earlier. Redfin counted 52 sales in that period, 13.7% fewer than a year before, with a median of 47 days on market. Zillow's typical home value, a separate measure that covers all homes and not only those that sold, was $863,012 in September 2026.
Step 1 for Hawthorne buyers: budget at today's rate
Freddie Mac's 30-year average was 7.24% in the week of October 29, 2026. On the Redfin median of $882,080, a 20% down payment is $176,416 and principal and interest on the remaining loan come to about $4,809 a month. Add about $735 a month for the 1% base property tax, plus insurance and any HOA dues. Most Hawthorne condos and townhomes carry dues; recent sales we checked ranged from $330 to $826 a month.
Step 2 for Hawthorne buyers: pick a home type
Of 31,334 housing units the Census counts in Hawthorne, 8,380 are detached houses and 1,972 are attached townhouse-style homes. Another 4,445 sit in buildings of two to four units, and 16,374 are in buildings of five or more. Our Hawthorne condos guide covers the attached market and the Hawthorne new construction guide covers the Indigo townhomes on El Segundo Boulevard.
Step 3 for Hawthorne buyers: read the age of the house
The median Hawthorne home was built in 1970, and 15,566 units, about half the stock, date from before 1970 (ACS 2020-2024). Budget for a sewer lateral camera inspection, an electrical panel review and a check of permits for any added rooms or garage conversions. The city's building records are the place to confirm that an addition was permitted.
Step 4 for Hawthorne buyers: write an offer that fits the pace
Homes sold for 98.6% of list price on average in the three months to September 2026, and 29.4% sold above list (Redfin). About a third went under contract within two weeks. A well-priced house in a sought-after part of the city can still draw several offers, while overpriced listings sit. Ask your agent for the last three comparable sales on the same side of the city.
Selling a home in Hawthorne
Sellers face more competition than a year ago. Redfin recorded 75 new listings in the three months to September 2026, up 18.7% on a year earlier, and 65 homes for sale at the end of the period, which works out to 3.8 months of supply. Zillow reports that 24.4% of listings in the Los Angeles metro had a price cut in September 2026.
Step 1 for Hawthorne sellers: price by neighborhood, not by ZIP
Because almost all of Hawthorne shares ZIP 90250, a ZIP-level median hides big differences. Zillow's September 2026 values put Hollyglen about $400,000 above Bodger Park. Price your home from sales in the same neighborhood and of the same type. Redfin's median price per square foot citywide was $642.42 in the three months to September 2026.
Step 2 for Hawthorne sellers: plan for the buyer's inspection
With half the housing stock built before 1970, buyers' inspectors focus on roofs, sewer lines, foundations and unpermitted additions. A pre-listing inspection lets you fix or disclose problems before they become renegotiation points. California's disclosure rules are covered in our California seller disclosure guide.
Step 3 for Hawthorne sellers: count your closing costs
Los Angeles County's documentary transfer tax is $0.55 per $500 of value, or $1.10 per $1,000. Hawthorne is not one of the five cities in the county with an extra city rate, according to the County Registrar-Recorder. On a $882,080 sale that comes to about $971. See our California transfer tax guide and closing costs guide for the rest.
Step 4 for Hawthorne sellers: decide how to handle tenants
About 73% of occupied homes in Hawthorne are rented (ACS 2020-2024). If your property has a tenant, get advice on notice periods and relocation rules before you list, and decide whether to sell occupied to an investor or vacant to an owner-occupier.
Hawthorne areas at a glance
Zillow publishes typical values for nine Hawthorne neighborhoods. The figures below are for September 2026, with one-year change in brackets. Our Hawthorne ZIP code guide covers 90250 in more detail.
Hollyglen: Hawthorne's highest-value area
Hollyglen had a Zillow typical value of $1,284,924 (up 0.1%), the highest in the city. Much of the area is served by the Wiseburn Unified School District, whose Hollyglen Elementary is at 5309 W. 135th Street. Confirm the district for each address, since the line does not follow neighborhood names.
Ramona and Parkside Village: central Hawthorne
Ramona was $890,242 (up 2.6%) and Parkside Village $874,314 (down 0.7%). These are mostly postwar single-family streets with some small apartment buildings mixed in. Ramona Elementary, at 4617 W. 136th Street, is a Hawthorne School District school.
North West Hawthorne and North Hawthorne: near the I-105
North West Hawthorne was $870,027 (up 2.5%) and North Hawthorne $732,568 (up 1.5%). For commuters, time the trip from the exact street to the Hawthorne/Lennox Metro station, which Metro lists as the start of bus Line 212.
Bodger Park and Burleigh Tract: east-side single-family streets
Bodger Park was $806,242 (up 0.7%) and Burleigh Tract $796,967 (up 2.2%). Both are largely single-family. On the city's east side, the 230-unit Millennium South Bay apartments on Crenshaw Boulevard, across from SpaceX's headquarters, were nearing completion in 2021.
Holly Park and Moneta Gardens: the lower-priced entry points
Holly Park was $794,629 (up 1.2%) and Moneta Gardens $679,840 (up 1.1%), the lowest Zillow value among the city's listed neighborhoods. Check the exact city and school district of any address in these areas on the county assessor's records, since a Hawthorne mailing address does not always mean the City of Hawthorne.
Local property checks before you buy in Hawthorne
- School district. Hawthorne addresses can fall in the Hawthorne School District, Wiseburn Unified or another district, and high school assignment differs again. Use the Hawthorne School District's Locate My School tool and confirm with the district. Our Hawthorne schools guide lists each school's Dashboard results.
- Flood and fire. Look up the parcel on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and check CAL FIRE's Fire Hazard Severity Zone map. Our California wildfire zones guide explains the tiers.
- Insurance. Get at least two quotes before you remove contingencies. Our California homeowners insurance guide and earthquake insurance guide cover the options.
- Taxes and assessments. Prop 13 sets the base levy at 1% of the purchase price, plus voter-approved debt and direct assessments that vary by tax rate area. Ask for the seller's last bill and read our Los Angeles County property tax guide. The first 2026-27 installment became due November 1, 2026 and is delinquent after December 10, 2026, according to the County Treasurer and Tax Collector.
- HOA documents. For a condo or townhouse, read the budget, reserve study and minutes. Older complexes may face balcony and walkway inspections; see our California balcony inspection law guide.
- Crime data. The Hawthorne Police Department publishes a community crime map, and the state publishes yearly counts. Our Hawthorne crime data guide shows how to use them.
How to choose a real estate agent in Hawthorne
Interview at least two agents and ask each the same questions. Look up every license on the California Department of Real Estate's public lookup before you sign a contract.
- How many Hawthorne sales have you handled in the past year, and in which neighborhoods?
- Have you sold homes on both sides of the Wiseburn and Hawthorne School District line, and how did the district affect price?
- Which three recent sales support your price for this home?
- Do you handle tenant-occupied sales and small income properties?
- What is your fee, what does it cover, and who on your team will I deal with day to day?
Commission practice changed in August 2024 after the National Association of Realtors settlement. Buyers now sign a written agreement with their agent before touring homes, and that agreement states the agent's pay. Fees are negotiable. Our California real estate commission guide explains how it works. If you want a starting point, read about our featured local agent and see how we choose agents.
What buyers and sellers ask about Hawthorne real estate
Are prices dropping in Hawthorne? Not on the latest data, though growth is slow. Zillow's typical value rose 1.6% in the year to September 2026 and 6.3% over five years, and it stood about 2.6% below its December 2024 peak of $885,874. Over ten years it rose 80.0%.
Is it cheaper to rent? Zillow's observed rent for Hawthorne was $2,151 a month in September 2026, up 2.3% in a year. The Census median gross rent across all rentals, including older leases, was $1,782 (ACS 2020-2024). The monthly cost of buying a median home at current rates is more than double the typical rent, so most buyers here are planning to stay for years.
Do people move out of Hawthorne? Most residents stay put: 90.6% of people lived in the same home a year earlier, according to the ACS 2020-2024. The Census median household income in the city was $75,848.