Housing Posts First Retreat in Five Months as Inventory Collapses

San Diego County's unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4% in June, ending a six-month run of consecutive monthly declines from 3.9% the prior month. State Employment Development Department data released July 17th attributed the jump largely to seasonal factors — specifically, teachers entering summer recess — while the county still added a net 200 jobs month-over-month, driven by 2,500 new leisure and hospitality positions. The June 2025 figure was 4.7%, and the county's current rate sits well below California's statewide rate of 5.2%.

The county's housing market posted its first significant pullback after five consecutive months of gains, with the countywide median home price retreating to approximately $1.02 million in July, down from a record $1.05 million in June — a roughly $30,000 drop, or about 2.9%, according to Redfin market data. The pullback, however, arrives against a backdrop of severe scarcity: detached active inventory fell 26.1% year-over-year to just 3,047 homes countywide, while detached single-family homes hit a new 12-month-high median of $1,125,000 in June, up 5.1% year-over-year.

With inventory down more than a quarter year-over-year in a county of more than three million people, analysts see little prospect of a meaningful correction absent either a significant supply addition or a demand shock. Construction starts have fallen approximately 24% year-over-year in the multifamily sector, and the political and environmental obstacles to large-scale single-family development remain formidable. A separate transaction worth noting: an 81-unit senior affordable multifamily property at 5035 to 5049 Guava Avenue in La Mesa sold for $12.5 million — roughly $154,320 per unit — in a deal that closed around July 24th. The buyer's plans for the property have not been publicly detailed.