Marin: January 2026 Market Stats

In 2025, Bay Area real estate markets started the year seeing strong buyer demand, but had the wind taken out of their sails by the political/economic uncertainty that soared in early spring. Then, in mid-late summer, stock markets rebounded to hit new highs, and interest rates began a sustained decline, initiating a shift in the psychology of buyers and sellers that is still developing. Still, national consumer confidence readings showed a significant split between the outlooks of more and less affluent households, and that affected market segments in different ways.

Generally speaking, more expensive markets, powered by increasing demand from affluent buyers seeing substantial increases in household wealth from stock market gains, performed better than more affordable markets, which tended to be more impacted by concerns regarding inflation, affordability and employment. Of course, Marin is a very affluent market.

Most of the analyses in this report focus on annual statistics, which, of course, summarize a year of rapidly changing economic conditions. Overall, as measured by a range of standard indicators, the 2025 real estate market was similar to 2024, maybe slightly cooler. The median house sales price was essentially unchanged.

As 2026 begins, interest rates are near multi-year lows and stock markets are at or close to all-time peaks. Early in the new year, it is common for buyers, re-energized to move forward with major life decisions, to jump back into the market faster than sellers list their homes for sale. This disparity of increasing demand versus a low supply of new listings usually runs through the spring, typically making these months the most heated selling season of the year. Last year, this was upended by the tariff shock. Barring new, unexpected economic alarms, we expect this spring to be much stronger.