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August & September 2025: Bay Area Real Estate Market Trends

With our engineering background, we analyze data carefully to help you achieve the best outcomes. Below is a snapshot of the August 2025 real estate market in San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Alameda Counties.

County Insights

San Mateo County

Compared to July 2025, San Mateo continued to lose momentum:

  • Overbidding dropped further (from 65% to 45% in July; now from 61% to 46%).

  • The sales price-to-list ratio weakened (from 103% to 99% in July; now from 102% to 100.5%).

  • Days on market stretched longer (19 → 26 in July; now 21 → 28).

📌 Conclusion: San Mateo is clearly cooling, with more price cuts and slower sales. Still, prestige markets like Atherton and Hillsborough remain resilient, anchoring high-end demand.


Santa Clara County

From July to August, Santa Clara also softened:

  • Overbidding decreased (from 67% to 46% in July; now 62% to 47%).

  • The sales price-to-list ratio slipped (from 104% to 99% in July; now from 103% to 100%).

  • Days on market rose (18 → 25 in July; now 21 → 29).

📌 Conclusion: Even with rising inventory and longer selling times, Santa Clara remains the most competitive county, thanks to tech-driven demand and luxury sales strength.


Alameda County

Alameda saw the steepest correction across both months:

  • Overbidding fell sharply (64% → 40% in July; now 60% → 39%).

  • Sales price-to-list ratio weakened (103% → 98.5% in July; now 102% → 99%).

  • Days on market increased (15 → 23 in July; now 20 → 27).

📌 Conclusion: Alameda shows the fastest cooling, especially in condos/townhomes (–10% to –11% YOY). Still, relative affordability draws steady buyer interest in Fremont, Dublin, and Pleasanton.


Bay Area Conclusion

Between July and August 2025, the Bay Area overall continued its cooling trend:

  • Overbidding dropped across all counties.

  • Sales-to-list ratios converged closer to 100%.

  • Days on market extended another week.

📌 Final Takeaway: The Bay Area is shifting from a frenzied seller’s market into a more balanced environment. Buyers now enjoy more leverage, while sellers must adjust expectations with realistic pricing. Long-term, though, appreciation remains robust. San Mateo and Santa Clara have nearly doubled values since 2014, proving the resilience of core Bay Area markets.


Short-Term Appreciation (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: –2% for single-family homes; –5% for condos/townhomes.

  • Santa Clara: +2% for single-family homes; –5% for condos/townhomes.

  • Alameda: –10% for single-family homes; –11% for condos/townhomes.

 


Long-Term Appreciation (2014 → 2025)

  • San Mateo: +75% for single-family homes; +59% for condos/townhomes.

  • Santa Clara: +90% for single-family homes; +61% for condos/townhomes.

  • Alameda: +67% for single-family homes; +50% for condos/townhomes.

Chart of San Mateo County median house prices, 2005–2025, with recession, high-tech boom, and pandemic boom annotations.

Santa Clara County home-value chart from 2005–2025, with house bars and townhouse and condo trend lines.

Chart of Tri-Valley and South Alameda County condo and townhouse prices from 2005 through August 2025.


Sales Volume (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: –3.5% closed sales.

  • Santa Clara: –8% closed sales.

  • Alameda: –10% closed sales.

Bar chart of San Mateo County monthly home sales from 2021 to August 2025, highlighting an August year-over-year decline.

Santa Clara County monthly home sales chart, updated through August 2025, with recent year-over-year declines highlighted.


New Listings (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: +7%.

  • Santa Clara: +9%.

  • Alameda: +11%.

Bar chart of San Mateo County new listings, with September surges highlighted in yellow, from 2021 through August 2025.

Bar chart of monthly new listings in Santa Clara County, January 2021–August 2025, showing seasonal fluctuations.

Bar chart of monthly new listings in Tri-Valley and South Alameda County, January 2021 through August 2025.


Active Listings (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: +14%.

  • Santa Clara: +18%.

  • Alameda: +19%.

Chart of San Mateo County active and coming-soon listings by month, February 2022–September 2025.

Chart of Santa Clara County active and coming-soon home listings from 2022 through September 2025.

Tri-Valley and South Alameda County active and coming-soon listings chart, updated September 1, 2025.


Listings Accepting Offers (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: –8%.

  • Santa Clara: –10%.

  • Alameda: –12%.

San Mateo County chart of listings going into contract, showing monthly seasonality from 2020 through 2025.

Santa Clara County chart of monthly listings going into contract, January 2020 to July 2025, with seasonal peaks and troughs.


Price Reductions (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: +31%.

  • Santa Clara: +40%.

  • Alameda: +45%.

Bar chart of San Mateo County listing price reductions, showing a 31% year-over-year increase in August 2025.

Santa Clara County price-reduction bar chart, January 2020–August 2025, with an August 2025 year-over-year increase callout.

 


Sales Price to Listing Price Ratio (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: 102% → 100.5%.

  • Santa Clara: 103% → 100%.

  • Alameda: 102% → 99%.

San Mateo County chart of monthly sale prices compared with original list prices, January 2018 through July 2025.

Chart of Santa Clara County sale prices versus original list prices, January 2019 to August 2025.

 


Days on the Market (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: 21 → 28 days (+7).

  • Santa Clara: 21 → 29 days (+8).

  • Alameda: 20 → 27 days (+7).

Chart of San Mateo County days on market, January 2021–August 2025, showing seasonal peaks and faster spring sales.

Bar chart of Santa Clara County days on market from 2021–2025, with seasonal trends and August 2025 figures.

Bar chart showing average days on market in Tri-Valley and South Alameda County from 2021 through summer 2025.


Median Price (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: Single-family homes flat; condos down ~6%.

  • Santa Clara: Houses $1,950,000 median (+1.5%); condos –3%.

  • Alameda: Townhomes –10%; condos –11%.


Months of Inventory (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: 2.0 → 2.4 months.

  • Santa Clara: 1.8 → 2.2 months.

  • Alameda: 2.1 → 2.5 months.

Santa Clara County inventory-supply chart from 2018 to August 2025, showing seasonal shifts and low current supply.

Chart tracks Tri-Valley and South Alameda County months of inventory from 2018 to 2025, rising sharply in spring 2025.


Pending Sales (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: –7%.

  • Santa Clara: –9%.

  • Alameda: –11%.

Chart of San Mateo County pending ratios, with monthly orange bars from 2019 to August 2025 and market-event annotations.

Santa Clara County pending ratio chart, showing the pandemic-era peak and decline through August 2025.


Luxury Home Sales (August 2025 vs. August 2024)

  • San Mateo: $5M+ sales surged in spring but dropped sharply in August.

  • Santa Clara: $5M+ sales up 34% year-to-date compared to 2024.

  • Alameda: $2M+ sales down 12% year-to-date.


City Highlights (Median Prices – Last 12 Months)

  • San Mateo: Atherton $8.3M, Hillsborough $5.3M, Portola Valley $4.35M.

  • Santa Clara: Palo Alto $3.2M, Cupertino $2.4M, Sunnyvale $2.0M.

  • Alameda: Pleasanton $1.6M, Dublin $1.4M, Fremont $1.5M.


Here are two takeaways:

  1. Market activity remains muted but stable, with pending sales holding steady compared to last year.
  2. Inventory and pricing pressures are increasing, as more listings come to market and sellers adjust expectations.

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