Irvine Market Report, September 2026: prices easing, sales rising
Irvine's city-wide median sale price was $1.52M for the three months ending August 2026, down 3.2% year over year, while August sales rose 12.7% to 572 homes. Homes sold in a median 53 days at about 97.7% of list.
Median down 3.2% year over year
Redfin puts Irvine's city-wide median at $1.52M for the three months ending August 2026, with price per square foot down 6.2% to $767.
More homes are selling
572 Irvine homes sold in August 2026, up 12.7% from August 2025.
About 53 days to sell
The median home sold in 53 days, down from 57 a year earlier, at about 97.7% of list price.
Village matters more than city-wide
Active listings ranged from under $1M to over $3M on September 29, 2026, so price to village-level comps.
Check HOA, Mello-Roos and district
HOA dues, Community Facilities District taxes and school district assignment all vary by address in Irvine.
Irvine prices are easing slightly while more homes are selling. Across the whole city, Redfin puts the median sale price at $1,518,995 for the three months ending August 2026, down 3.2% from the same period a year earlier. Price per square foot fell further, 6.2%, to $767. At the same time, 572 homes sold in August, up 12.7% year over year.
That combination matters more than either number alone. Softer prices with rising volume usually means buyers and sellers are meeting on price rather than the market stalling. The median home sold in 53 days, compared with 57 a year ago, and sold for about 97.7% of list price, essentially unchanged from last year (+0.08 points).
Read these as city-wide numbers. Irvine is a city of villages, and prices vary widely between them. Active listings on September 29, 2026 ran from under $1M, about 19% of what was for sale, to over $3M, about 11%. A city-wide median will not price a specific townhome in one village or a detached home in another. Recent sales in the same village and product type will.
For buyers. A sale-to-list ratio near 97.7% means most homes are closing a little under asking, so there is room to negotiate, but not much. The bigger swing items are often not the price at all. Many Irvine villages carry HOA dues, and some newer neighborhoods sit inside Community Facilities Districts with Mello-Roos special taxes. School district also follows the address: Irvine Unified serves most of the city and Tustin Unified serves western and northern areas. I confirm all three for the specific home before we write an offer.
For sellers. With price per square foot down 6.2% year over year, last spring's list prices are not this fall's comps. Price to recent closings in your village, disclose HOA and any Mello-Roos amounts up front, and expect a median of roughly seven to eight weeks on market.
I am a solo broker with my own firm, Knoblach Realty, Inc., and I handle the disclosures, the contract and the calls on every file myself.
Irvine as of August 31, 2026
These figures are frozen at publication. The Irvine guide carries the current month's numbers.
Every number, and where it came from.
Irvine median sale price $1,518,995 for the three months ending August 2026, down 3.2% year over year.
redfin.com ↗Irvine median sale price per square foot $767, down 6.2% year over year.
redfin.com ↗572 Irvine homes sold in August 2026, up 12.7% year over year (508 in August 2025).
redfin.com ↗Median 53 days on market, versus 57 a year earlier.
redfin.com ↗Sale-to-list price 97.7%, up 0.08 points year over year.
redfin.com ↗Active Irvine listings by price band on 2026-09-29: 169 under $1M, 249 at $1M to $1.5M, 220 at $1.5M to $2M, 162 at $2M to $3M, 102 over $3M.
redfin.com ↗Irvine Unified serves most of Irvine; Tustin Unified serves western and northern areas.
cityofirvine.gov ↗
City-wide Irvine figures from Redfin's Irvine housing market page (data through August 2026; median price is Redfin's three-month figure, homes sold is the August count), retrieved 2026-09-29. Days-on-market change is computed from Redfin's 53 days versus 57 a year earlier. Sale-to-list change is reported by Redfin in percentage points. Price distribution is a breakdown of active Irvine listings on Redfin by price filter on 2026-09-29 (902 listings across the five bands), not a closed-sale distribution.
