By Stephanie Johnson
Published August 2026
July is usually when San Francisco real estate starts to catch its breath. The spring rush winds down, San Franciscans go on vacation and showings tend to slow along with the summer fog rolling through the neighborhoods. But this year has bucked all of the trends.
The Big Picture: Prices Keep Climbing Into Summer
Single family homes led the way this July. The median sale price climbed to $2,050,000, up a whopping 25% from $1,640,000 a year earlier. That is one of the steepest year-over-year jumps we have seen in recent memory, and it reflects just how few available homes are reaching the market relative to the number of buyers chasing them.
Condominiums moved at a gentler pace by comparison. Median prices rose to $1,250,000, up 9% from $1,145,000 last July. A healthy gain, and an indicator that demand in the single family market has pushed some would-be house buyers into the condo market instead.
Inventory: An Already Tight Market Gets Tighter
Inventory is the thread that ties every other metric in this report together, and July made that more obvious than usual. Single family months of supply fell to just 0.8, down from 1.4 last July, a drop of nearly 43%. Condominium supply dropped as well, falling to 1.6 months from 3.6, a decline of more than 55%.
Anything below 1.0 indicates a very strong sellers’ market. Buyers hoping for a little more breathing room this summer are instead finding even fewer choices and stiffer competition than just a year ago.
Days on Market: Homes Moving at Record Speed
Homes are selling faster across the board. Single family listings spent an average of 22 days on the market this July, down from 28 days last year, a pace improvement of about 21%. Condominiums saw an even bigger shift, with average days on market dropping to 44 from 62, a decline of 29%.
Faster sales usually go hand in hand with tighter inventory, and that is exactly what is playing out here. Well-priced, well-presented homes are getting snapped up before many buyers even get a second showing.
Price Per Square Foot: A Broad-Based Climb
Price per square foot tells a similar story of sustained demand. Single family homes averaged $1,221 per square foot this July, up nearly 20% from $1,018 a year ago. Condominiums climbed to $1,151 per square foot, up just over 14% from $1,009 over the same period.
How This July Compares to Seasonal Trends
July typically marks a shift out of the spring frenzy and into a steadier summer rhythm. Some of that seasonal pattern is showing up this year. Some of it clearly isn’t.
What aligns with seasonal trends
- Buyer urgency has eased slightly from the April and May peak
- New listing inventory has dropped as is normal for the summer season
What stands out this year
- Price growth has not slowed the way it typically does heading into late summer
- Competition remains unusually intense for a month that is normally quieter
Seller Takeaways
- Inventory remains historically low, particularly for single family homes
- Well-priced and well-positioned homes are attracting strong, fast competition
- Homes are routinely selling significantly above asking price
- Market conditions continue to favor sellers heading into fall
Buyer Takeaways
- Competition remains intense, particularly for single family homes
- Multiple-offer situations are common and highly competitive
- Homes are frequently selling well above list price
- Limited inventory means fewer options to choose from
Looking Ahead
San Francisco’s July market makes one thing clear: this isn’t a spring-only story. Supply remains tight, demand hasn’t cooled, and prices keep climbing across both single family homes and condominiums.
Unless a meaningful wave of new listings hits the market, expect these conditions to carry into the fall. Sellers are well-positioned heading into the next few months, while buyers should be ready to move decisively once they find a home that fits.
For more information on the San Francisco market, or for data specific to your neighborhood or property type, feel free to reach out and book a call. I’m here to help you navigate it.