Is Now a Good Time to Buy in San Diego? Here's My Honest Answer.

Every week someone asks me some version of this question. Sometimes it's a text from a friend who's been watching Zillow for two years. Sometimes it's someone who just had a baby and is suddenly thinking about school districts. Sometimes it's a renter who's been in the same Pacific Beach apartment for four years watching rent go up every fall.

My answer is almost never "yes" or "no" — because the right answer depends on things the market doesn't control.

Here's how I actually think about it.

What the San Diego market looks like right now

San Diego home prices haven't crashed. They haven't spiked either. What we've had in 2026 is a market that's settled into something more like a normal pace — which feels jarring after the frenzy years, but is actually better for most buyers.

A few real numbers to anchor this:

• The San Diego County median home price is hovering around $850,000–$900,000 depending on the month and neighborhood.
• Homes are sitting on the market longer than they were in 2022 — typically 30–60 days in coastal neighborhoods, longer further inland.
• Mortgage rates have come down from their peak but are not back to the 3% world. Most buyers I'm working with are looking at rates in the 6–7% range, depending on their credit profile and loan type.

• Inventory is better than it's been — not abundant, but better. In neighborhoods like North Park and Pacific Beach, there are more choices on the market than there were eighteen months ago.

What that adds up to: buyers today have some negotiating room they didn't have before. Not a lot. But enough that the seller isn't always dictating every term.

The question underneath the question

When someone asks me "is now a good time to buy?", they're usually asking something more specific:

Will prices drop if I wait?

Honest answer: they might dip slightly, they might hold, they might climb again — I don't know, and anyone who tells you they do is guessing. What I do know is that San Diego has had positive appreciation over every ten-year window in my lifetime. The people who waited for a crash in 2019 were still waiting when prices hit new highs in 2021.

Should I wait for rates to drop?

Maybe. But here's the math worth running: if rates drop from 6.5% to 5.5%, a monthly payment on an $800,000 home goes from about $5,050 to about $4,540. That's real money. But if prices rise 5–8% while you wait for that rate cut — which is what happened the last time rates dropped — you might be borrowing more on a more expensive home and ending up in the same place or worse. The refinance option is real; you can always refinance if rates fall. You can't un-pay a higher purchase price.

I'm not sure if I can actually afford it.

This one is worth taking seriously, and it's the conversation I'm most willing to have. San Diego is expensive. Not every financial situation is ready to buy here, and I'd rather tell you that clearly than push you toward a payment that stresses you out for years. What I usually suggest: before you worry about the market, talk to a lender and get a real number. Not a ballpark — an actual preapproval. Once you see the real payment, you can make a real decision.

What I'm seeing from buyers who are moving forward

The buyers I've worked with this year who pulled the trigger have a few things in common:

They had a life reason, not just a market reason. A new job. A baby. A lease ending with no good renewal terms. They weren't trying to time the bottom — they were trying to solve a real problem.

They ran the rent-vs-own math honestly. In Pacific Beach, a two-bedroom that would rent for $3,200/month might carry a mortgage and costs around $4,800/month at current prices and rates. That gap used to be smaller. It's a real conversation to have, not a number to wave away.

They were patient but prepared. When the right home showed up, they were ready — preapproved, clear on what they needed, willing to move in a week if it made sense.

What I'd tell a friend right now

If you're financially stable, you have a down payment, and there's a real life reason to buy — I'd start the conversation now. Not because the market is screaming "go," but because the window to look around without competing against fifteen other offers is real, and that window tends to close when rates come down.

If you're buying because you're afraid of missing something, or because someone told you prices are about to explode, I'd pump the brakes. San Diego real estate is a long game, and the people who do best in it are the ones who buy because the home fits their life — not because they're chasing a market.

If you're not sure which category you're in, that's exactly the conversation I'm here to have. Pull up the numbers, talk through your situation, figure out which side of that line you're actually on.

No pitch, no pressure. Just an honest read. → Get in touch

If you want to talk through your situation — whether to buy now, wait, or figure out what you can actually afford in the San Diego neighborhoods you're watching — reach out. I work primarily in coastal-central San Diego: Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, North Park, Hillcrest, and North County coastal.

— Richard Torres, Realtor | Shore Realty | CA DRE# 02006826
Your Home. Your Story. Your San Diego.