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San Bernardino County

San Bernardino County: fewest September escrows on record as homes take longer to sell

By Dr. Hamid Rowshan, Choice of America

September escrows hit a record low for the month while active listings climbed to a new high for the year, giving buyers more leverage as asking prices hold flat and homes take longer to sell.

San Bernardino County had 1,952 pending listings in September 2026, according to Realtor.com housing data published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED series PENLISCOU6071). Pending listings are homes with an accepted offer that are in escrow. That is the lowest September count in the series, which began in mid-2016, and about 8% below the 2,130 pending listings in September 2025. It is also down from 1,997 in August and from this year's high of 2,137 in June, and it is the lowest monthly count since February.

Supply, meanwhile, keeps building. Active listings reached 6,141 in September (FRED ACTLISCOU6071), the highest count of 2026 so far, up from 6,114 in August and about 1% above the 6,079 active listings a year earlier. New listings came to 2,138 (FRED NEWLISCOU6071), down from 2,264 in August but a little above the 2,066 new listings in September 2025.

Put those together and buyers have more leverage. There were roughly 32 homes in escrow for every 100 active listings this September, compared with about 35 per 100 a year earlier and about 37 per 100 in June.

Asking prices are essentially flat. The median listing price was $531,944 in September (FRED MEDLISPRI6071), down from $534,900 in August and from $538,500 in June, and almost exactly even with the $532,500 median in September 2025. Measured per square foot, the median asking price was $331 (FRED MEDLISPRIPERSQUFEE6071), down from $335 a year earlier.

About 30% of listings had a price cut. 1,856 San Bernardino County listings had a price reduction in September (FRED PRIREDCOU6071), down from 1,924 in August but above the 1,724 price-reduced listings a year earlier.

Homes are taking longer to sell than in the spring. The median listing spent 65 days on the market in September (FRED MEDDAYONMAR6071), up from 64 in August and 53 in April, and it has risen every month since April. That is still faster than the 71 days recorded in September 2025.

What this means day to day: from Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario, Chino, Chino Hills, and Upland to Fontana, Rialto, San Bernardino, Redlands, Yucaipa, and the High Desert communities of Victorville, Hesperia, and Apple Valley, buyers this fall face less competition than they did at midyear. With more homes on the market and fewer going into escrow, there is room to ask for seller credits toward closing costs or a rate buydown, particularly on listings that have been sitting for a month or more. For sellers, prices have held up, but a typical listing now takes a little over two months to sell, so pricing close to recent comparable sales from the first day matters more than it did in the spring. Both sides should look at the full monthly cost, including the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, and any HOA dues or Mello-Roos assessments common in newer communities, rather than the list price alone.

At Choice of America, we help buyers and sellers across San Bernardino County read these numbers city by city and neighborhood by neighborhood. Visit our San Bernardino County page for local guidance, or call or text us to talk through your plans.

Choice of America · San Bernardino County real estate

Dr. Hamid Rowshan, DRE #02004794, company DRE #02240008. Choice of America, serving Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties. Call or text 833-THIS-BROKER, (833) 842-7465.

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