The Shift · Published 2026-09-11
What the last three months of closed sales say heading into Q4
Houses and condos in Long Beach moved in opposite directions this summer. What the closed-sale data shows, what it means mechanically for a buyer or seller in Q4, and why nobody should be telling you what prices will do next.
Every agent publishes a market outlook this time of year. Most of them are guesses dressed up as analysis.
Here’s a different approach: what actually closed, what changed against the previous three-month period, and what those specific facts mean for a decision you’re making in the next ninety days. No forecast. I don’t know what prices will do next quarter, and neither does anyone telling you they do.
What the closed sales show
Comparing the three months ending July 2026 against the prior non-overlapping three-month period, single-family and attached housing separated noticeably.
Long Beach single-family homes: 386 closed sales, median $1,057,500 — up about 6% against the prior period, on roughly 16% more volume. Median days on market: 12. Sellers received a median of about 100.8% of list.
Long Beach condos and townhomes: 214 closed sales, median $519,500 — down about 1%. Median days on market: 28. Sellers received a median of about 99.3% of list.
Same city, same three months. Houses sold in twelve days at slightly over asking. Condos took more than twice as long and settled slightly under.
Around the region, single-family medians were mixed rather than uniform: Lakewood was essentially flat at $900,000 across 122 sales, Cypress eased about 2.5% to $1,150,000 on 73 sales, and the smaller markets moved in both directions on thin volume.
What that actually means, mechanically
Not a prediction. Just the consequences that follow from those numbers.
If you’re buying a condo, you have time and leverage that house buyers don’t. A 28-day median means listings are sitting long enough for sellers to reconsider. That shows up as willingness to negotiate on price, on closing costs, or on repairs. A buyer working the condo market this quarter is in a different negotiation than a buyer competing for a house.
If you’re buying a house in Long Beach, prepare to move fast and clean. Twelve days and just over asking means competitive offers, and the things that win at that speed are pre-underwriting, a realistic contingency plan, and knowing your true ceiling before you start.
If you’re selling a condo, price is doing the work, not time. The data doesn’t support waiting for a better number. It supports pricing to the market you’re actually in and being ready to contribute to a buyer’s closing costs.
If you’re selling a house, your leverage is real but not unlimited. Just over asking is not far over asking. Overpricing into a fast market still produces a stale listing, and stale listings sell for less.
The small-market caveat
Los Alamitos, Rossmoor and Seal Beach each closed a small number of single-family sales in this window. When a city produces fourteen sales, the median is effectively a handful of transactions, and a single unusual property moves it several percent.
That’s why the figures here come from a three-month window rather than a single month, and why I don’t publish a city’s numbers at all below a minimum sample. A market statistic built on too few sales isn’t information — it’s noise with a dollar sign in front of it.
What I won’t tell you
I won’t tell you whether prices go up or down from here. Rates, inventory, and the broader economy decide that, and anyone claiming to know is selling urgency.
What I will tell you is what closed, what it cost, how long it took, and what that implies for the specific decision in front of you. That’s the part that’s knowable, and it’s enough to act on.
If you want these numbers for a specific street, building, or price band rather than a whole city, ask. That’s a more useful conversation than any forecast.
Figures are compiled from California Regional Multiple Listing Service closed-sale data for the three months ending July 2026, compared against the prior non-overlapping three-month period. Single-family and condominium/townhome sales are reported separately; co-operative ownership is excluded. Statistics were independently calculated. Data is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. This is general market information, not a prediction, not investment advice, and not an offer of representation.
About the author
Michael Torres is a licensed California real estate broker, DRE #01469202, serving Long Beach, Cypress, Lakewood, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach and Rossmoor. To see what this looks like on a specific transaction, the rebate estimator is the fastest place to start.