San Francisco County has moved ahead of Santa Clara County as the second-most expensive place in California to buy a home. San Mateo County remains No. 1.
San Francisco buyers need to earn $535,600 a year to afford a median-priced home, compared with $510,800 in Santa Clara County, according to a new affordability report from the California Association of Realtors. In San Mateo County, buyers need to earn $579,600 annually, according to the report. The three counties are now the only ones in California where the median home price tops $2 million, and the minimum qualifying income exceeds $500,000.
Despite the high home prices, affordability has held steady or improved in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties from a year ago. In Santa Clara County, 22% of households could afford a median-priced home in the second quarter, up from 18% a year earlier. San Mateo County remained at 18%, while affordability in San Francisco fell from 20% to 18%.
San Mateo and Santa Clara counties
Santa Clara County’s median home price reached $2.05 million in the second quarter of this year, while San Mateo County’s was $2.3 million, and San Francisco County’s was $2.15 million.
Under the report’s affordability calculation, a household is considered able to afford a home if its income is high enough to keep monthly housing costs at or below 30% of gross income. The calculation assumes a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at a 6.54% interest rate and includes principal, interest, taxes and insurance.
That means estimated monthly payments for a median-priced home was about $12,770 in Santa Clara County, $14,490 in San Mateo County and $13,390 in San Francisco County.
San Mateo County has the highest qualifying-income requirement in the state, but that doesn’t make it the least affordable county, since household incomes there are also relatively high.
Statewide
Housing affordability in California slipped in the second quarter of 2026 after reaching a four-year high in the previous quarter. Still, affordability improved from a year ago.
Overall, 19% of California households could afford a median-priced home of $916,750, up from 17% a year earlier. Buyers needed a minimum annual income of $228,400 to qualify for a mortgage payment on that home.
Affordability declined in 44 of the 53 counties tracked by the report compared with the first quarter of this year. Compared with a year ago, however, affordability improved in 41 counties, declined in six and remained unchanged in six.
Condos and townhomes were more affordable than a year ago. According to the report, 30% of households could afford a median-priced condo or townhome, up from 28% a year earlier but down from 32% in the first quarter. The median price was $670,000, with a minimum qualifying income of $166,800.
Lassen County remained the most affordable in California, with 50% of households able to afford a median-priced home, followed by Glenn County at 43% and Shasta County at 41%.
Nationally, affordability was considerably higher, with 40% of households able to afford a median-priced home of $434,900. That was down from 44% in the previous quarter but up from 38% a year earlier.
