Are price cuts coming? San Diego home price gains slow in national rankings

San Diego home prices haven’t risen this slowly in years.

In March, the San Diego metropolitan area’s home price increased 1.67% annually, said the S&P Case-Shiller Indices report released Tuesday. That’s the smallest increase since summer 2023 when rising mortgage rates, briefly, hit the brakes on the market.

San Diego metro, which includes all of San Diego County, ranked 15th in the 20-city index — a big change considering the region had the fastest-rising home prices in the U.S. for six months from late 2023 into the start of 2024.

The fastest-rising markets in March were New York, up 7.96%; Chicago, up 6.5%; and Cleveland, up 5.9%.

Zillow economist Orphe Divounguy said the share of nationwide listings with a price cut in March hit their highest rate in six years. He said homes were taking longer to sell, resulting in some sellers slashing prices.

“A price correction is expected,” he wrote, “(which will) result in a modest recovery in sales over the coming year, with Zillow forecasting sales to continue bouncing along the bottom.”

Economists tend to track the Case-Shiller Indices more closely than the median home price or studies on home values. The index tracks repeat sales of identical single-family houses — and are seasonally adjusted — as they turn over through the years. It is often seen as a bellwether of the economy as a whole.

San Diego County’s median home price for single-family homes in March was $1 million, said Attom Data Solutions. While it rose at a slower rate, homes in San Diego are still much more expensive than other areas that topped the index. For instance, the median single-family home price in Chicago was $335,000 in March, and $120,000 in Cleveland.

At the same time, San Diego metro is seeing more price drops. Redfin said 31% of listed homes in San Diego County had a price drop in March, compared to 24% in Cleveland and 14% in Chicago.

The one thing still pushing up prices, in some areas, is persistent supply shortages, wrote Nicholas Godec, head of fixed income, tradeables and commodities at the S&P Dow Jones Indices. Even with sluggish sales and price drops, he argued demand is still strong.

“Many existing homeowners remained reluctant to sell and give up low pandemic-era mortgage rates, and new construction activity stayed limited,” he wrote, “a combination that kept inventory levels extremely tight.”

There were about 4,900 homes for sale in March in San Diego County, said the Redfin Data Center, up from roughly 3,800 at the same time last year.

Tampa, Fla., was the only market on the index to see prices decrease, down 2.16% in a year. Dallas was close to negative territory, with an annual rise of 0.19%.

Annual price growth by metropolitan area

S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, March 2025

New York: 7.96%Chicago: 6.50%Cleveland: 5.90%Detroit: 5.77%Boston: 4.72%Las Vegas: 4.66%Washington, D.C.: 4.47%Seattle: 4.15%Los Angeles-Anaheim: 4.14%Minneapolis: 2.82%Charlotte: 2.65%Atlanta: 2.46%Phoenix: 1.92%Miami: 1.78%San Diego: 1.67%San Francisco: 1.63%Portland: 1.37%Denver: 1.35%Dallas: 0.19%Tampa: -2.16%

National: 3.37%