How do I sell a San Diego condo when condo prices are falling?
Price it on what the unit has that nobody can change, make it easy to show, and offer a credit before you cut the price. That's how a City Heights one-bedroom I listed sold at its $355,000 list price in 2026, when the last sale in its building was $315,000. I'm Jared Harman, a San Diego REALTOR®.
Published . Last updated . Figures are from my own records unless a source is linked.
Are condo prices falling in San Diego?
In most of the county, yes. Through September 2026, the median condo price fell in 18 of 32 San Diego zip codes compared with the same months of 2025 (San Diego MLS via GSDAR).
In the central neighborhoods: down 8.6% in 92104, North Park, to $555,000. Data: San Diego MLS via GSDAR, thru September 2026.
Down 4.4% in 92103, Bankers Hill, Hillcrest and Mission Hills, to $765,000. Data: San Diego MLS via GSDAR, thru September 2026.
Down 1.2% in 92116, Normal Heights and Kensington, to $607,500. Data: San Diego MLS via GSDAR, thru September 2026.
How do I price a condo when the last sale in the building came in low?
Look at what your unit has that the others in the building do not. On that City Heights one-bedroom, we had a garage, an extra parking space, high vaulted ceilings, big windows and a lot of light. It was in decent condition, not super updated.
The one that had sold for $315,000 was more updated. It still did not have what ours had.
Pay more attention to what nobody can change about a unit than to what anyone can. A buyer can redo a kitchen. They can't add a garage or raise a ceiling. That is how I justified $355,000 without strong comps behind it.
What if there are no good comps for the appraiser?
Then you show the appraiser why. I sent comps and explained that this unit had an unusual mix: vaulted ceilings, a skylight, the light, a nice bathroom, a garage, an extra parking space, and a low HOA.
In the 12 months before, nothing similar had sold within a mile of it. So I pulled comps from further back, which appraisers usually avoid, and walked the appraiser through why they were the right ones.
Once the appraiser had the properties I was using to back the price, it clicked. It appraised at $355,000. The whole deal.
What makes a condo sit in a soft market?
Making it hard to show. Agents touring nearby with buyers will want to pop in on the fly, and your access setup has to make that easy.
Nobody's making blind offers on condos. Every once in a while it happens with a detached house, because demand is so much higher, but with condos it doesn't. People have to get in the door.
Should I cut the price or offer a credit?
Try the credit first. Instead of cutting the $355,000 price, we advertised a $10,000 credit from the seller. A buyer could put it toward closing costs, a rate buydown to lower the monthly payment, whatever they wanted.
Advertising that $10,000 was enough to get people in the door and talking.
One thing to know before you name a number: lenders cap seller credits. On a conventional loan with less than 10% down, Fannie Mae caps them at 3% of the price. On this sale the buyers asked for $15,000, the cap held it to 3%, and she paid $10,650.
What does this mean if you are selling a condo in San Diego?
If the last sale in your building came in low, don't cut first. Find what your unit has that the comp didn't, and be ready to make that case to the appraiser.
Want the number first? Tell me about your place and I will personally research what you would actually walk away with. That is a Net Number, back to you in 24 hours.
Who is Jared Harman?
Jared Harman is a real estate agent and REALTOR® in San Diego, California, licensed under DRE 02193879 with MatchPoint at eXp Realty of California, Inc. He is based in North Park and works with buyers and sellers across the central San Diego neighborhoods.
Jared Harman has 46 Google reviews, all five stars. He has sold $14M+ in real estate so far in 2026. His videos reach about 250,000 people in San Diego every month, which is where his listings get seen. He personally toured 800+ homes in 2025. In the last 12 months he negotiated about $990,000 in credits and price reductions for his clients.