August 2026 Market Data •Redfin City-Limits Figures

Here’s where the Palm Desert market stands as of August 2026, the most recent full month of closings, with year-over-year comparisons to August 2025. Figures are Redfin city-limits data.

At a Glance — Palm Desert, August 2026

“Competition” reflects Redfin’s Compete Score — a 0–100 rating of how hard buyers compete for homes over the trailing three months, based on how many offers homes receive, how often they sell above asking, how quickly they go pending, and the sale-to-list ratio.

Prices and Pace

Palm Desert closed August at a $555,133 median, down 3.5% from last August and off about 8% from its June figure. The bright spot is transaction activity: 305 homes closed, up 14.5% year over year, the strongest volume gain in the valley. Buyers are showing up; they are simply buying at lower price points.

Pace is the slowest in the Coachella Valley. Median days on market rose 11 days year over year to 105, and the typical Palm Desert home goes pending in about 103 days, up from roughly 99 in June. The city carries a not very competitive rating with a Compete Score of 16 — the lowest of any market in this report.

Where the Leverage Sits

Buyers are firmly in charge. The sale-to-list ratio held at 96.0%, meaning the average sale closed about 4% below asking, and 10.1% of homes sold above list. The genuinely encouraging number is the reduction rate, which fell from 39.5% in June to 30.8% — a sharp improvement that says sellers who came to market over the summer did so at considerably more realistic prices than their spring counterparts.

What This Means for Buyers

A three-and-a-half month clock and an average 4% discount from asking give you every reason to be deliberate. Request the full listing history, watch for prior reductions, and remember that a long day count in Palm Desert is normal rather than a red flag — it describes the market, not the property.

Palm Desert covers everything from country-club communities south of Highway 111 to established neighborhoods on the north end, and pricing varies widely between them. HOA dues and any club membership obligation can change your real monthly cost significantly, so factor them in before comparing two homes on purchase price. Price your search off comparable sales in the specific community you want.

What This Means for Sellers

This market demands the most pricing discipline of any city in the valley. With a Compete Score of 16 and homes taking three and a half months to go pending, there is no mechanism to correct an ambitious opening price other than time and a reduction — and roughly three listings in ten are still taking one.

The good news is that volume is up 14.5% year over year, so buyers are active. Meet them where they are: price to recent comparable sales in your own community, invest in presentation before launch, and build a realistic three-month timeline into your plans. If you can wait for the fall season, the buyer pool will be materially deeper.

Bottom Line

Palm Desert is the slowest market in the valley, with homes taking about three and a half months to go pending and prices down 3.5% year over year — but volume is up 14.5%, and the price-reduction rate fell sharply from 39.5% to 30.8%. Buyers have time and room; sellers need an accurate price and patience.

Data provided by Redfin (redfin.com). Figures are city-limits monthly data for August 2026; competitiveness and time-to-pending reflect Redfin’s trailing three-month Compete Score.