Fall 2026 Real Estate Market Update
Huntington Beach, Neighborhood by Neighborhood, and How We Compare to the Rest of Orange County
Fall is here in Huntington Beach.
The days are getting shorter, summer is winding down, and the real estate market is entering a season that looks a little different from the one we saw a few years ago.
There are more homes available. Buyers have more choices. Homes are taking a little more time to sell. And sellers have to be more thoughtful about pricing and presentation.
But there is one thing I think gets lost when you look at real estate headlines:
Huntington Beach is not one market.
A home in Downtown is competing in a very different market than a home in Bolsa Chica. A waterfront property in Huntington Harbour isn't being valued the same way as a home in Seacliff. And an estate in Edwards Hill has almost nothing in common, from a pricing standpoint, with the typical Huntington Beach home.
Then you zoom out even further.
Huntington Beach is part of Orange County, and what happens in Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Fountain Valley and the surrounding communities all plays a role in our local market.
So instead of simply telling you whether the market is “up” or “down,” here's a closer look at what's actually happening.
The Big Picture
Let's start with Huntington Beach.
As of August 2026, Huntington Beach has approximately 612 homes for sale, with a median listing price of $1,499,425. The median sold price is approximately $1.30 million, the median listing price is about $811 per square foot, and homes are spending a median of 51 days on the market.
Compared with a year ago, the median listing price is up 2.10%, while the median sold price is up 1.17%. Active listings are up 1.10%, and median days on market are up 6.38%.
To me, that's an important combination of numbers.
We're not looking at a market where prices have suddenly fallen apart.
We're looking at a market where buyers have more time and more options, while sellers have to compete for their attention.
Now zoom out to Orange County.
The countywide market is operating at a different scale, with thousands of homes across dozens of communities and dramatically different price points. That's important because the Orange County median doesn't necessarily tell us much about a specific Huntington Beach neighborhood.
In other words:
The bigger the map gets, the less useful one number becomes.
Huntington Beach: The Numbers Don't Tell the Whole Story
If you only looked at the Huntington Beach median, you would miss a huge part of the story.
The citywide median listing price is approximately $1.50 million.
But the neighborhoods we're looking at range from roughly $1.16 million in Bolsa Chica-Heil to nearly $2.8 million in Sunset Beach, with Huntington Harbour around $2.48 million, Downtown around $2.15 million and Seacliff around $2 million. Edwards Hill sits in an entirely different luxury category, where the extremely small number of homes makes neighborhood-wide medians much less reliable.
That's an enormous spread.
And that's why I don't think the question should simply be:
“How is Huntington Beach real estate doing?”
The better question is:
“How is my part of Huntington Beach doing?”
Let's take a closer look.
1. Huntington Harbour
Median listing price: approximately $2.48M
Homes for sale: 58
Median sold price: $1.80M
Median days on market: 63
Listing price per square foot: $998
Huntington Harbour is a completely different market from much of the rest of Huntington Beach.
Waterfront properties, docks, views, boating access and limited supply make the Harbour one of the city's most specialized—and expensive—markets.
As of August, the median listing price was approximately $2.48 million, up 9.48% from a year earlier. There were 58 homes for sale, up 10.34% year over year, and homes were spending a median of 63 days on the market. The median sold price was approximately $1.80 million.
But this is one of those neighborhoods where I would be careful about looking at the median and assuming it represents every property.
Waterfront versus interior.
Dock versus no dock.
View versus no view.
Updated versus original.
Single-family versus attached.
Those differences can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Huntington Harbour homes were selling for approximately 98% of asking price on average in August, according to Realtor.com's neighborhood data.
My take: Huntington Harbour continues to command a premium because there simply isn't another neighborhood in Huntington Beach that offers the same combination of waterfront living and coastal location. Buyers are still willing to pay for the right property, but they're paying attention to value.
2. Downtown Huntington Beach
Median listing price: approximately $2.15M
Homes for sale: 62
Median days on market: 61
Listing price per square foot: $996
Downtown remains one of the most distinctive real estate markets in Orange County.
You're not just buying a house here.
You're buying proximity to the beach, Main Street, the Pier, Pacific City, the boardwalk and the lifestyle that comes with being able to walk or bike to so much of what makes Huntington Beach Huntington Beach.
The current median listing price is approximately $2.15 million, with 62 homes for sale and a median of 61 days on market. At approximately $996 per square foot, Downtown also sits well above the Huntington Beach citywide figure of $811 per square foot.
But Downtown is one of those areas where the citywide and neighborhood numbers only tell part of the story.
The housing stock ranges from smaller beach cottages and condos to remodeled homes, larger lots and newer custom construction.
And particularly around the numbered streets, two homes that look similar on paper can have dramatically different values depending on the lot, street, condition, proximity to the beach and potential.
That's why price per square foot can be useful here—but it should never be the only number you look at.
My take: Downtown remains one of Huntington Beach's strongest lifestyle-driven markets. The market is more selective than it was during the most competitive years, but the right property, at the right price, can still stand out very quickly.
3. Seacliff
Median listing price: approximately $2.25M in the latest neighborhood-specific report
Active listings: 14 in that report
Median sold price: approximately $1.97M
Median days on market: 48 in the latest neighborhood-specific report
Seacliff is another great example of why inventory matters.
The latest neighborhood-specific Realtor.com report available for Seacliff shows a median listing price of approximately $2.249 million, a median sold price of approximately $1.975 million, 14 active listings and 48 median days on market. Active inventory was down approximately 19% year over year in that report.
That limited supply can create a very different dynamic from neighborhoods with dozens or hundreds of available properties.
Seacliff also has a strong lifestyle component. Buyers are drawn to the community itself, proximity to the beach and the overall quality of the surrounding area.
But again, the neighborhood median isn't a valuation for every home.
A highly upgraded property in the right location can compete in a completely different price bracket than an original or smaller home.
And with relatively few homes available at any given time, buyers who are specifically looking for Seacliff may not have many comparable alternatives when the right home comes along.
My take: Seacliff is one of the neighborhoods where I would watch inventory closely. When there aren't many homes available, the individual property becomes even more important—and buyers don't always have the luxury of waiting for five nearly identical homes to compare.
4. Bolsa Chica
Median listing price: approximately $1.165M
Homes for sale: 13
Listing price per square foot: $789
Median days on market: 48
Bolsa Chica offers a very different entry point into the Huntington Beach market.
For the standardized market data, Realtor.com groups this area as Bolsa Chica-Heil, where the August 2026 median listing price was approximately $1.165 million. There were 13 homes for sale, listings were up significantly from the prior year, and the median days on market was 48.
That puts Bolsa Chica below the overall Huntington Beach median while still offering buyers the opportunity to be in Huntington Beach and close to the coast.
And this is another neighborhood where geography matters.
The broader Bolsa Chica area includes different housing types and locations, so I wouldn't use a single median price to determine what any particular property should be worth.
In fact, different real estate data providers can define neighborhood boundaries differently. That's why when we're talking about a specific property, I care much more about the comparable homes around it than a generalized neighborhood statistic.
My take: Bolsa Chica is an interesting part of the market for buyers looking for a balance between location and price. It doesn't carry the same price premium as Downtown, the Harbour or some of the city's luxury communities, but you're still buying into Huntington Beach—and location continues to matter.
5. Sunset Beach
Approximately 11 homes for sale
Median listing price: approximately $2.79M in the August citywide neighborhood dataset
Listing price per square foot: approximately $1,237
Sunset Beach is one of the most unique markets in Huntington Beach.
It's small.
It's coastal.
And there simply aren't many properties.
The August Huntington Beach neighborhood data shows approximately 11 homes for sale, with a median listing price of about $2.788 million and approximately $1,237 per square foot—the highest listing price per square foot among the Huntington Beach neighborhoods in that dataset.
But there's an important caveat.
Sunset Beach is such a small market that I would be very careful about treating the median as a definitive measure of value. Realtor.com's dedicated Sunset Beach report has, at times, shown too few sales to calculate a meaningful median listing price or median days on market.
That's not a weakness of the neighborhood.
It's actually part of the story.
There just aren't enough transactions to make a city-style statistic as reliable as it is in a larger neighborhood.
Beach proximity, views, lot configuration, parking, condition and access can all have an outsized impact on what a property is worth.
My take: Sunset Beach is a niche market within an already specialized coastal market. Scarcity is a huge part of the value, and individual properties need to be evaluated on their own merits rather than simply compared with a neighborhood median.
6. Edwards Hill
Extremely limited inventory
Recent median sale price: approximately $3.21M
Median list price: approximately $3.30M
Average price per square foot: approximately $810
Approximately 10 sales over the last 12 months in the latest available dataset
Edwards Hill is where the Huntington Beach market gets particularly interesting.
This is not a neighborhood where you can look at 50 or 100 current listings and get a clean statistical picture.
It's a small, highly specialized community of larger homes, custom and semi-custom properties and larger lots.
The latest available Homes.com data reports a $3.2065 million median sale price, approximately $3.30 million median list price, about $810 per square foot, three homes for sale at the time of the report and approximately 10 sales over the prior 12 months. Homes were averaging about 72 days on market.
Recent individual sales show just how much the market can vary.
For example, a 4,270-square-foot Edwards Hill property sold for $3.4 million in April 2026, while other recent sales have ranged substantially higher and lower depending on size, condition and property characteristics.
That's exactly why I would not take the $3.2 million median and say, “That's what Edwards Hill homes are worth.”
The sample is simply too small.
Instead, Edwards Hill needs to be evaluated almost property by property.
Lot size.
Square footage.
Views.
Renovation level.
Pool.
Location within the community.
And the overall quality of the home.
My take: Edwards Hill is one of the clearest examples of why local knowledge matters. It sits at the top end of the Huntington Beach market, but there are so few transactions that the individual home matters much more than the neighborhood median.
What These Six Neighborhoods Tell Us
Put these six neighborhoods next to each other and you start to see the real Huntington Beach market.
You have Bolsa Chica around the $1.16 million median listing range.
You have Downtown around $2.15 million.
You have Huntington Harbour around $2.48 million.
You have Sunset Beach approaching $2.8 million.
And you have Edwards Hill operating in a $3 million-plus luxury segment.
Seacliff sits comfortably in the higher end of the market as well, with its latest neighborhood-specific median listing price around $2.25 million.
That's an enormous range for one city.
And that's the point.
Huntington Beach isn't one market.
It's a collection of very different markets that happen to share the same coastline.
Huntington Beach vs. Orange County
Now let's zoom out.
Orange County is a massive and diverse real estate market.
There are coastal communities, inland suburbs, master-planned neighborhoods, luxury enclaves, older established communities and everything in between.
Huntington Beach sits toward the higher end of the countywide market, but it isn't Newport Beach—and it isn't Irvine either.
That's important.
A countywide number can tell us what is happening broadly, but it can't tell us exactly what is happening on a particular street in Huntington Beach.
That's why I like to think about the market in layers:
Orange County → Huntington Beach → Neighborhood → Property.
The closer you get to the property, the more useful the information becomes.
What the Orange County Market Is Really Telling Us
The broader Orange County market has also become more selective.
Buyers have more choices than they did during the most competitive years, and that means they're paying closer attention to value.
But more inventory does not automatically mean falling prices.
It means buyers have more opportunities to compare.
If one home is overpriced, there may be another one down the street.
If one home needs $200,000 of work, buyers can compare it with the remodeled home that's already finished.
And if a seller prices correctly and presents a property well, that home can still attract serious attention.
This is why I think the most important word heading into fall is:
Selectivity.
What Buyers Should Know This Fall
If you're buying this fall, I think your biggest advantage is choice.
You don't necessarily have to make a decision based on fear of missing out.
You can compare homes.
You can study recent sales.
You can look at price per square foot.
You can look at how long a property has been sitting.
And, depending on the property, you may have more room to negotiate.
But there's an important distinction:
More inventory doesn't mean every home is a bargain.
A great house in a great location can still attract multiple buyers.
If you find a property that checks all the boxes, waiting simply because you think the market is going to drop can have its own cost.
The goal isn't to perfectly time the bottom of the market.
The goal is to buy the right property at a price that makes sense for you.
What Sellers Should Know This Fall
If you're thinking about selling, I don't think the answer is simply “wait until spring.”
There are still buyers in the market.
But today's buyer is more informed and has more options.
That means the first impression matters.
So does pricing.
So does photography.
So does preparation.
And perhaps most importantly, so does knowing what you're actually competing against.
If there are eight similar homes available in your neighborhood, your property needs a reason for a buyer to choose it.
If there are only two, the strategy may look very different.
This is why I don't believe in pricing a Huntington Beach home based solely on the citywide median.
The home down the street matters more.
The recent sale around the corner matters more.
The current competition matters more.
And the specific characteristics of your property matter more.
The Interest Rate Question
No Huntington Beach market update would be complete without talking about mortgage rates.
Rates remain one of the biggest variables influencing buyer purchasing power.
Even when home prices remain relatively stable, changes in monthly payment can materially change what buyers can afford.
That's why I don't recommend making a real estate decision based on rates alone.
If you're buying today and rates improve later, there may be an opportunity to refinance.
But if you find the right home, at the right price, in the right neighborhood, waiting indefinitely for the “perfect” rate can mean waiting for something that may never arrive.
For sellers, rates matter too.
A meaningful decline in rates could bring more buyers back into the market and potentially increase competition.
It's one of the biggest things I'm watching as we move through the rest of 2026.
What I'm Watching This Fall
There are five things I think will tell us where the market is actually headed.
1. Inventory
Are the number of available homes continuing to increase, or are homeowners continuing to hold onto their existing mortgages?
2. Days on Market
Are homes continuing to sit longer, or are well-priced properties still moving quickly?
3. Price Reductions
This may be one of the most useful signals for sellers.
If more homes are requiring price reductions, it tells us buyers are pushing back on unrealistic pricing.
4. Mortgage Rates
A change in rates can quickly change buyer behavior.
5. Neighborhood-Level Performance
This is the one I care about most.
Because the overall Huntington Beach number might tell you one thing while your neighborhood is doing something completely different.
The Hennessee Take
If there's one thing I want you to take away from this fall's market update, it's this:
Huntington Beach is not one market.
The citywide numbers are useful, but they don't tell you what your home is worth.
Huntington Harbour is different from Downtown.
Downtown is different from Seacliff.
Seacliff is different from Bolsa Chica.
Sunset Beach is different from Edwards Hill.
And all of Huntington Beach is different from Irvine, Newport Beach, Costa Mesa or Anaheim.
The market we're in today isn't the same market we had a few years ago—and that's okay.
Buyers have more choices.
Sellers need better strategy.
And both sides have to pay closer attention to the details.
That's actually what makes this market interesting.
If you're thinking about buying or selling, you don't need someone to tell you whether the entire market is “good” or “bad.”
You need someone who can tell you what is happening in the neighborhood you're actually interested in.
That's where local knowledge matters.
Thinking About Making a Move?
Whether you're considering buying your first home, moving closer to the beach, selling a longtime Huntington Beach property or simply wondering what your home could realistically sell for today, I'm always happy to talk through the numbers.
No pressure. No generic estimate.
Just an honest conversation about what's happening in your part of Huntington Beach.
Nik Hennessee
Hennessee Real Estate Group
Huntington Beach Real Estate Specialist