Los Angeles - CA vs San Diego - CA: 2026 Housing Comparison

What this means for buyers

Los Angeles - CA is roughly 2% more expensive than San Diego - CA in typical home value. San Diego - CA sees more listings with price cuts (28.8% vs 24.4%), a sign of softening seller expectations.

Los Angeles vs San Diego: what the numbers say

At today's 7.40% average 30-year rate with 20% down, the typical home would cost about $5,262 a month in principal and interest in Los Angeles and $5,134 in San Diego, a gap of $128 a month.

Typical rent runs $2,929 in Los Angeles and $2,967 in San Diego, so the mortgage payment alone is 1.8 times rent in Los Angeles and 1.7 times rent in San Diego, before taxes and insurance.

Home prices are 27.0 years of rent in Los Angeles and 26.0 in San Diego; the lower ratio in San Diego means buying there is cheaper relative to renting.

Over the last 23 months typical values moved -0.2% in Los Angeles and -1.8% in San Diego; over just the last three months the change was +0.3% in Los Angeles and +0.3% in San Diego.

Homes sell for 99.9% of list price in Los Angeles and 99.3% in San Diego, after 26 and 25 days on the market, with price cuts on 24% and 29% of listings. The signs are mixed: Los Angeles has longer time on the market, while San Diego has more price cuts and sales further below list.

The number of homes for sale is down 0% on a year ago in Los Angeles and down 6% on a year ago in San Diego.

Payments assume a 30-year fixed loan at the Freddie Mac weekly average rate (2026-10-15), 20% down, principal and interest only. Home values, rents and market figures are Zillow Research metro data.