September 2026 at a Glance

House Prices and Trends

At local level, the typical home value (ZHVI) for California, MD was $435,183 in August 2026 according to Zillow Research, Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) — California, MD. That is +3.0% compared with a year earlier and +0.2% against the previous month. California is therefore outpacing the national trend (+1.2% YoY).

The national house price index for the United States rose 1.2% year on year in Q2 2026 and was +0.5% against the previous quarter, according to BIS, Residential property prices (nominal). A year earlier the annual rate was +2.0%, so growth has cooled over twelve months.

House price index, % change year on yearQ3 2024+3.7%Q4 2024+3.5%Q1 2025+2.8%Q2 2025+2.0%Q3 2025+1.4%Q4 2025+1.0%Q1 2026+0.7%Q2 2026+1.2%

Financing and Interest Rates

The Federal Reserve’s policy rate was 3.63% in August 2026 (BIS, Central bank policy rates). Rates have come down 0.75 points over the past year, easing mortgage costs and widening the pool of buyers who qualify for financing.

California in the News

• California Housing Market Forecast for the Next 2 Years: 2026-2028 – Norada Real Estate Investments (Norada Real Estate Investments, 23 Sep 2026)
• Is real estate still a viable career in California in 2026? The market data says yes – housingwire.com (housingwire.com, 21 Sep 2026)
• What can Chicago tell us about real estate in Southern California? – Orange County Register (Orange County Register, 19 Sep 2026)
• Tilting California voters toward raising local taxes often involves tricks, manipulation | Dan Walters – Santa Ynez Valley News (Santa Ynez Valley News, 26 Sep 2026)
• The California condo is dying. Can this affordable housing option be saved? – Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep 2026)
• Best California real estate markets revealed – 3 ranked among top regions in US – nypost.com (nypost.com, 25 Aug 2026)

Reading the Trend

What to watch next month

• The next quarterly release of the house price index for the United States (Q2 2026 is the latest) — whether annual growth holds near +1.2%.
• Upcoming decisions by the Federal Reserve — any move from 3.63% feeds through to mortgage pricing within weeks.

What This Means for Buyers, Sellers and Investors

Sources

• Zillow Research, Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) — California, MD
• BIS, Residential property prices (nominal)
• BIS, Central bank policy rates
• Headlines via Google News RSS; content belongs to the linked publishers.

Methodology: all figures are taken directly from the free public statistical sources linked above, for the periods stated; official statistics are published with a lag, so the latest available release is used. Commentary is generated from those figures by rule and reviewed before publication. Nothing here is financial advice.