Published November 1, 2026 in Market Update

More sellers are cutting price, and parts of Irvine are taking longer to sell

By Jason & Susan Zwolak

Real estate, Expired Listings

I was looking at the numbers for our area this week, and one thing stood out. Realtor.com reported that 20.8% of listings nationally had a price reduction in September 2026. That is the highest share since October 2022. It lines up with what the Real Estate Data Aggregator counted right here.

That national number matters because it tells us where buyer patience is right now. When buyers know cuts are common, they wait. And waiting costs sellers time and leverage.

How long homes are sitting in Irvine

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted median days on market across Irvine ZIP codes for the three months ending August 31, 2026. The range is wide. Some parts moved faster than last year. Others slowed down noticeably.

ZIP 92618 had the longest wait: 60 days on market, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. That is 10 days shorter than a year ago, which is a real improvement. But 60 days is still a long time for a home to sit.

ZIP 92604 came in at 57 days, and that is 13 days longer than the same period in 2025. That shift matters. Homes that took a month and a half last year are now taking nearly two months.

What sellers are getting at closing

Days on market is one signal. Sale-to-list ratio is another. It tells you how close to asking price homes actually closed. When that number dips, it usually means buyers pushed back on price.

ZIP 92606 was the one bright spot: the Real Estate Data Aggregator showed an average sale-to-list of 100%, meaning sellers there got full asking price on average. That is up 1.1 points from a year ago.

ZIP 92612 came in at 97.2% and ZIP 92604 at 98.8%. Those gaps sound small. On a $1.1 million home, 97.2% means leaving about $31,000 on the table. On a $1.38 million home, 98.8% is still a $16,560 gap.

Prices: a mixed picture across Irvine

Not every ZIP code saw prices fall. But several did, and a few dropped by more than you might expect.

ZIP 92612 saw a median price of $1,100,000, down 11.4% from the same three months in 2025, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. ZIP 92614 dropped 9.6% to $1,050,000. Those are real dips, not rounding errors.

ZIP 92603 and 92606 moved the other way. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put 92603 at $2,750,000, up 27.9% year over year. That kind of swing often reflects which homes sold, not just the market moving up.

Supply is building in some spots

More homes for sale means buyers have more choices. More choices mean less urgency. Realtor.com reported that active listings nationally grew to 1.16 million in September 2026, year over year. Locally, some ZIP codes are feeling the same thing.

ZIP 92618 had 5.8 months of supply, the highest among Irvine ZIP codes the Real Estate Data Aggregator tracked. That is down 1.2 months from a year ago, so it is improving. But it still gives buyers more room to negotiate than they had before.

ZIP 92604 added 1.2 months of supply year over year, reaching 4.4 months. That is a meaningful shift. More supply, slower sales, and longer days on market all point the same direction.

The national backdrop

Rates are part of this story. Realtor.com reported that mortgage rates topped 7% nationally in September 2026. That slows buyers down everywhere, including here.

When nearly 1 in 5 listings nationally takes a price cut, buyers expect it. They come in with that expectation. Pricing right from day one is the clearest way to stay ahead of that.

Some parts of Irvine are still moving

Not every corner of Irvine is slow. The Real Estate Data Aggregator showed that in ZIP 92606, 36% of homes sold above list price in the three months ending August 31, 2026. In ZIP 92604, 34.9% of homes went under contract within two weeks of listing, up 8.8 points from a year ago.

ZIP 92618 had the lowest share: only 16.7% of homes went under contract within two weeks. That means most homes there needed more time. Pricing and condition matter more when buyers are patient.

One more thing worth knowing: one street can read very differently from the whole ZIP code. The numbers above cover thousands of homes. Your home is one. If you want to know where yours fits, I am happy to pull that for you.