Santa Cruz County Market Stats
Published
I track Santa Cruz County market conditions every week. The numbers below come from Altos Research for the week ending August 10, 2026, the most current data available.
Data from Altos Research, week ending August 10, 2026. Single-family homes. Sponsored by Padraic Collins, Stewart Title. Data deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Contact me for neighborhood-specific breakdowns.
What the numbers mean
Santa Cruz Median List Price Holds at $1,499,000. Inventory Eases to 396
The Santa Cruz County median list price is $1,499,000 this week, inside the band the market has held since June. Active single-family inventory is 396, down from the July peak of 411 and off 400 last week. Supply built through the summer and has started to slip, so buyers still have more homes to weigh than they did in spring, though the count is thinning.
Price cuts moved up again. This week 39% of active listings carry a reduction, above 38% last week and the low 30s that ran from May into July. Sellers who price to current comps keep finding buyers. The rising share of reductions tells you more homes came on above what the market will pay, and those owners are now adjusting.
Market Action Index Holds at 38. Sellers Still Have the Edge
The Market Action Index reads 38 for Santa Cruz County. Altos treats any figure above 30 as a seller’s market and anything below as a buyer’s market. At 38 the county stays in seller territory, level with last month.
The index weighs how fast homes sell against how much inventory is listed. Santa Cruz ran at 39 through spring and June, then settled to 38 in mid-July and has stayed there. That reads as a plateau, not a turn. A slide toward 30 is the mark to watch, since that is where the balance tips to buyers.
Median Days on Market Steady at 63
Median days on market for active Santa Cruz County listings is 63, the same as last week and up from 56 in early summer. This figure covers every home for sale now, not the ones that already closed.
A well-priced home in a strong location still goes under contract inside two weeks. The 63-day number gets pulled higher by listings that sit stale or start above the comps. If a home has been on the market more than a month with no offer, price is the first place to look.