Homes in Arden-Arcade are taking longer to find buyers than they did a year ago, a shift that stands out even as prices continue to climb. According to newly released Redfin data for the three months ending August 2026, the typical home in this Sacramento-area community of roughly 95,000 people spent 27 days on the market — up from 23 days during the same period in 2025, a 17.4% increase. In practical terms, sellers are waiting about four days longer than they were last summer, and considerably longer than the 17-day pace of two years ago and the 7-day pace of five years ago.

A slower pace, but still a sellers’ market

The longer selling times point to a market that has cooled somewhat from its recent peak, but not one that has tilted toward buyers. Arden-Arcade had 400 active listings against 183 homes sold, translating to just 2.2 months of supply — a level that still favors sellers and leaves buyers with limited choice. A balanced market is generally considered to have four to six months of supply.

Other signals reinforce the seller-friendly picture. Homes sold at a median of 99.7% of their asking price, and 32.6% of sales closed above list price during the three months ending August 2026, up from 27.7% a year earlier. The modest uptick in days on market appears to reflect a market settling from a frenzied pace rather than a broad shift in leverage.

Month over month, the slowdown was slight. The median time on market edged up to 27 days from 26 days in the three months ending July 2026, a 3.9% change. Some seasonal easing is typical as summer winds down and the busiest buying months pass.

Prices keep rising despite fewer sales

The median sale price reached $554,633 in the three months ending August 2026, up 7.7% from $515,000 a year earlier. Price per square foot, which controls for home size, rose 6.7% to $356 from $334 — confirming that the gains reflect genuine price appreciation rather than a shift toward larger homes. Over the past five years, prices in Arden-Arcade have risen 16.8% from a median of $475,000 in the summer of 2021.

The price increase came even as sales activity thinned. Homes sold totaled 183, down 6.2% from 195 a year ago, and active inventory slipped 3.1% to 400 listings. Two years ago, 201 homes changed hands during the comparable period, and five years ago the figure was 368 — underscoring how much quieter the transaction volume has become. Compared with the three months ending July 2026, prices held essentially flat, dipping 0.1% from $555,000, while sales fell 2.1%.

Affordability remains stretched

Rising prices, combined with elevated borrowing costs, have pushed the cost of homeownership higher for local buyers. At the current median price, a buyer putting 20% down on a 30-year fixed mortgage would face a monthly principal-and-interest payment of about $2,854 — roughly $226 more per month than a year ago, when the same purchase cost about $2,628. That reflects both the 7.7% price gain and a small move in mortgage rates, which averaged 6.67% in August 2026 according to Freddie Mac, up from 6.59% a year earlier.

That monthly payment represents about 44.3% of the area’s median household monthly income. With a median household income of $77,321, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, a median-priced home now costs roughly 7.2 times annual household income — well above the level generally considered affordable, which is around three times income.

Nationally, home prices continued to rise year-over-year, with the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index up from a year earlier.

The bottom line

Arden-Arcade’s summer market reflects a common pattern across the region: prices continue to advance while the pace of activity moderates. Homes are still selling above their asking price more often than not, and supply remains tight at 2.2 months. But the four extra days it now takes to close a sale, along with fewer transactions than in recent years, suggests a market that has stepped back from its earlier intensity even as it remains firmly in sellers’ favor.