Santa Monica Real Estate Market Update - Santa Monica Home Prices by Zip Code Fall 2026

By Jocelyn Kelley | Last updated September 29, 2026

The question I hear most from friends and clients is not "how is Santa Monica doing?" It is "how is my part of Santa Monica doing?" My office has been on Wilshire Boulevard for years, and I grew up just up the coast in the Palisades. Santa Monica has always been four or five towns sharing one name, and this fall the numbers show it more clearly than ever.

1. Santa Monica Market at a Glance

Single-family homes, closed July–August 2026 (same period 2025 in parentheses), MLS:

90402 North of Montana: 25 sold (31), median $6,412,195 ($5,930,000), 32 days (12), 90.4% of list (96.7%)
90403 Wilshire-Montana: 7 sold (7), median $3,350,000 ($3,595,000), 5 days (14), 101.9% of list
90404 Mid-City and Pico: 3 sold (2), median $1,550,000, 22 days, 102.0% of list
90405 Ocean Park, Sunset Park and Main Street: 22 sold (18), median $2,755,000 ($2,387,500), 10 days (16), 104.9% of list

Across the four zip codes, 57 homes sold, compared with 58 last summer. Volume was flat. The pace underneath was anything but.

2. Ocean Park and Sunset Park: The Hottest Market in the City

In 90405, the median rose 15% to $2,755,000, and 19 of 22 homes sold within a month. This is where young families and move-up buyers in the $2 million to $3.5 million range are competing, many of them Palisades families who have made Santa Monica home since the fire. If you own in Sunset Park or Ocean Park, this is as strong a selling position as I have seen.

3. North of Montana: The Top of the Market Is Negotiating

North of Montana is the one zip where buyers hold the upper hand. Median time on market went from 12 days to 32, and homes sold for 90.4% of list on average. The median still rose 8%, because well-located, well-presented homes command strong prices. The homes that priced right sold quickly and above asking. The rest sat and gave up real money. Near $8 million, Measure GS, the city's transfer tax that rises to 5.6% of the full price at that level, shapes how the top of this market is priced and negotiated.

4. What Is New in Santa Monica This Fall

On September 25, the City Council voted 4 to 2 to upzone 89 single-family parcels in the Pico area near the Expo/Bundy station, a decision that will reshape that part of 90404 over the coming years. Three days later, the council received its review of the city's Palisades Fire response. An earlier independent after-action report found the response effective and made 36 recommendations, and a citywide evacuation study is still awaiting a contract.

On the ground, the Pier Bridge replacement closed the Moomat Ahiko Way ramps to PCH for about two months starting September 28, so expect heavier traffic on Ocean Avenue. Gott's Roadside opens October 2, while Starbucks is closing its Main Street and Wilshire locations. And the council endorsed a plan to add purified recycled water to the city's tap supply within a decade.

5. The Rate Picture

Freddie Mac's 30-year fixed averaged 7.03% on September 24, above 7% for the first time in more than a year. On a home at the 90405 median with 20% down, that adds roughly $1,070 a month in principal and interest compared with a year ago. Families in Ocean Park and Sunset Park are still paying over asking. For sellers in financed price ranges, a credit toward a rate buydown can do more than a price cut and protects your sale price as a comparable for your neighbors.

6. What It Means for You

If you are selling in 90405 or 90403: This is a very good fall to list a well-prepared home. Price to the closest recent sales, not the zip code median.

If you are selling North of Montana: Get the price right from day one and invest in presentation. Near $8 million, your Measure GS strategy matters more than almost any other number.

If you are buying: North of Montana offers the most room to negotiate, especially on homes listed for more than a month. In Ocean Park and Sunset Park, come in fully underwritten with a clean offer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Santa Monica zip code is strongest right now? 90405, Ocean Park, Sunset Park and Main Street. Homes sold in a median of ten days at 104.9% of list this summer, according to the MLS.

Are North of Montana prices falling? No. The median rose 8% to about $6.4 million, but homes took longer to sell and sold for about 90% of list on average.

What is Measure GS? Santa Monica's transfer tax on higher-priced sales, which rises to 5.6% of the full sale price at $8 million.

Work With a Born-and-Raised Westside Realtor

I was born and raised on the Westside of Los Angeles. I grew up in Pacific Palisades, rode horses in Malibu as a girl, and have built my career from my Berkshire Hathaway office on Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica. Santa Monica is where I have worked for years, and where so many of my Palisades neighbors have found a home since the fire. These are not markets I study from a distance. They are my home, my family's home and my friends' home, and it is an honor to help my neighbors through one of the most important decisions they will ever make.

I will pull the exact MLS sales on your street, tell you what your property would likely sell for this fall, and walk you through whether to sell, hold, rebuild or buy.

When you work with me, you get a born-and-raised local and the full strength of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties:

Chairman's Circle Gold, top 2% of more than 50,000 Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices agents worldwide, and Leading Edge Society
The reach of a global network and one of the most trusted names in business, bringing qualified buyers to your door from across the country and around the world
Luxury marketing, private buyer and seller connections, and a trusted network of Westside lenders, builders, architects and insurance advisors
Nearly two decades of Westside experience, licensed since 2007

Ready to talk? Request a private home valuation at jocelynkelleyrealestate.com, call or text me directly at (310) 963-2524, or email [email protected]. I answer personally, and I would love to hear from you.

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