One in four active listings in Sonoma County cut its asking price in September 2026. Of the 1,174 homes for sale on October 1, 294 had a price reduction during the month. That is a 25.0% cut rate, ahead of the national figure of 20.8%, which Realtor.com calls a four-year high.
The cuts are not spread evenly. Homes under $1 million cut more often, homes above $1 million cut deeper, and the biggest discounts are happening in the window between a listing's first and third month. Some of the county's priciest markets barely cut at all, but their homes are sitting much longer.
Here is what the September data shows, market by market.
Why prices are coming down now
The national backdrop is mortgage rates. According to Realtor.com's September 2026 Housing Trends report, rates climbed nearly 40 basis points in the month, from 6.66% in late August to 7.03% on September 24. That was the first time above 7% since January 2025. The report estimates the jump cut about $11,500 from the buying power of a shopper on a fixed budget.
Nationally, pending sales fell 4.1% year over year and active inventory rose 5.4%. In the West, the share of listings with a price cut rose 1.8 points from last year to 22.8%, the biggest jump of any region.
Sonoma County is running hotter than all of those national and regional numbers.
At 25.0%, the county's cut rate is above the West region (22.8%), the Sacramento metro (22.0%), the San Jose metro (16.4%) and the San Francisco metro (13.4%). For Bay Area buyers looking north, the gap is the story: there is more room to negotiate here than in the market they are leaving.
Under $1 million: more cuts, smaller cuts
Of the 630 homes listed under $1 million, 189 (30%) cut their price in September. Above $1 million, 105 of 544 listings (19%) cut.
The size of the cut flips the other way. The median reduction under $1 million was 4.8%, or about $30,000 off the original asking price. Above $1 million, the median was 8.4%, or about $185,000.
By price band:
- Under $500,000: 29% cut, median reduction 5.3%
- $500,000 to $750,000: 33% cut, median 4.8%
- $750,000 to $1 million: 28% cut, median 4.5%
- $1 million to $1.5 million: 27% cut, median 8.3%
- $1.5 million to $2 million: 23% cut, median 8.6%
- $2 million to $3 million: 15% cut, median 8.2%
- $3 million to $5 million: 9% cut, median 10.3%
- Above $5 million: 13% cut, median 12.6% (roughly $1 million off)
The pattern makes sense. Entry-level and mid-market buyers are the most rate-sensitive, so sellers there adjust early and in small steps. Luxury sellers tend to hold, and when they finally move, they move a long way.
Some sellers are also cutting to land in a lower search bracket. Ten listings dropped from $1 million or more to under $1 million in September, and eight dropped from $2 million or more to under $2 million. Buyers who set a filter at $999,000 or $1.99 million will see homes this month that they could not see in August.
The danger zone: day 30 to day 90
How long a home has been on the market is the best predictor of a cut.
- 0 to 30 days: 10% cut
- 31 to 60 days: 42% cut
- 61 to 90 days: 49% cut
- 91 to 180 days: 26% cut (median reduction 8.3%)
- More than 180 days: 14% cut (median reduction 13.4%)
Taken together, 45% of the homes listed for one to three months cut their price in September. Most of the reductions came from summer listings: 57% of the homes that cut first went on the market in July or August. These are not stale listings. They are homes priced for a spring market that met a fall one.
Homes past the six-month mark cut less often, mostly because many have already been reduced once or twice. When they do cut, the median is over 13%.
City by city: where sellers are cutting most
Sonoma County is a collection of very different markets, so a countywide number only tells part of the story. This chart covers markets with at least 20 active listings. If you are still choosing the right town, the city-level picture matters as much as the county one.
- Russian River and West County: 37% of 94 listings cut, median cut 6.7% (about $48,000)
- Petaluma: 37% of 68 listings, median 4.5%. Under $1 million, half of Petaluma's listings cut
- Cloverdale: 34% of 38 listings, median 4.5%
- Rohnert Park: 34% of 47 listings, median 2.9% (about $17,000)
- Santa Rosa: 28% of 436 listings, median 5.7% (about $49,000)
- Sonoma (the city): 21% of 131 listings, median 7.4% (about $100,000)
- Sebastopol: 21% of 62 listings, median 8.7% (about $100,000)
- Windsor: 16% of 44 listings, median 5.1% (about $50,000)
- Healdsburg: 13% of 113 listings, median 6.5% (about $100,000)
- Sonoma Coast (Bodega Bay and The Sea Ranch): 13% of 46 listings
- Glen Ellen: 13% of 32 listings
The Russian River and West County group covers Guerneville, Forestville, Monte Rio, Rio Nido, Camp Meeker, Cazadero, Jenner and Occidental. That is the most vacation-rental-heavy part of the county, with a median asking price of about $649,000. Investors there are working out the numbers with 7% money, and sellers are adjusting to match. For anyone thinking about buying a vacation rental in Sonoma County, this is the corner of the market with the most room to negotiate right now.
Santa Rosa, with 436 listings and more than a third of the county's inventory, is the market that sets the tone. Its cut rate is flat across price points: 28% of homes under $1 million and 29% of homes over $1 million cut in September. In most of the county, luxury sellers held firm. In Santa Rosa, they did not.
Rohnert Park cuts often but cuts small, with a median under 3%. Its median listing has been on the market just 26 days, the fastest in the county. Sellers there are making small, early adjustments rather than waiting.
Windsor holds up
Windsor is the strongest seller market of the big towns. Only 16% of its 44 listings cut in September, the median listing has been on the market 41 days, and the median cut was about 5%. That is a mid-market town, with a median asking price of about $813,000, behaving more like a seller's market than its neighbors in the same price range. If you are thinking about selling your Windsor home, the data says pricing it right from day one still works here.
The Healdsburg paradox
Healdsburg looks calm on price cuts: just 13% of its 113 listings were reduced in September, one of the lowest rates in the county. But the median Healdsburg listing has been on the market 99 days, more than double Santa Rosa's 43.
Glen Ellen (92 days, 13% cut) and the Sonoma Coast (88 days, 13% cut) show the same pattern. These are luxury and second-home markets where sellers have the means to wait, and most of them are waiting. The median asking price in Healdsburg is about $2 million, and 87 of its 113 listings are above $1 million.
Homes are not selling at their current prices in these markets, yet only a few sellers are cutting. In practice, that means a backlog of homes that will either cut in October and November or come off the market for the winter. For buyers, it means a seller who has been listed for three months is often more open to an offer than the price suggests. For sellers, it is a reminder that Healdsburg home values depend on where you price, not where your neighbor's listing has sat since June.
What this means for buyers
- Look at homes in the 30 to 90 day window. That is where sellers are most willing to move.
- Widen your search filters. Homes are dropping below $1 million and $2 million, and you may miss them if your range stops at a round number.
- Do not assume a low cut rate means a firm price. In Healdsburg, Glen Ellen and on the coast, homes are sitting rather than cutting, and that gives you room to negotiate.
- Get your financing sorted first. With rates above 7% nationally, knowing your real budget is what makes an offer stick.
What this means for sellers
- Price for the market you are in, not the one you hoped for. The homes cutting now were mostly listed in July and August.
- The first 30 days matter most. Only 10% of homes cut in their first month. If you price well at launch, you avoid the second-month reduction that 42% of sellers ended up making.
- One well-judged cut beats several small ones. Homes past six months are taking median cuts above 13%.
- Think about search brackets. A move from $1.05 million to $995,000 puts your home in front of a much bigger pool of buyers.
About the numbers
This analysis uses BAREIS MLS data for Sonoma County residential listings: price reductions recorded in September 2026 and all active listings as of October 1, 2026. Cut sizes measure the total drop from the original list price, so they can include reductions made before September. National, regional and metro figures come from Realtor.com's September 2026 Housing Trends report, which measures the share of listings with a cut during the month. The two methods are close but not identical. Markets with fewer than 20 active listings are left out of the city comparison because their samples are too small.
Have questions about how these price cuts affect your home, or the one you want to buy? Email me directly at david@bruingtonhargreaves.com.
About the Author
David Hargreaves is the co-founder of BruingtonHargreaves, one of Sonoma County's top-ranked real estate teams and part of W Real Estate. Originally from the UK and an Oxford University graduate, David built and ran a digital marketing agency serving Google, Facebook, and other major brands before becoming one of Sonoma County's top agents within three years of entering real estate.
Today he and business partner Jonathan Bruington have sold $232 million in Sonoma County homes over the past three years, earning recognition as a RealTrends No. 2 team in the county and the No. 1 team in Healdsburg. David specialises in helping Bay Area buyers and sellers with luxury properties and vacation rentals across Healdsburg, Windsor, Santa Rosa, and the Russian River communities.
He lives in Sonoma County with his wife Nancy and is happiest cycling the back roads, exploring local wineries, or behind a camera. Have a question about buying, selling, or building in Wine Country? Book a free call.