Photo above: Oak trees and a picnic table at Round Valley Regional Preserve south of Brentwood, California, March 2009. Windward1, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Late winter through early summer is when homes have moved fastest. Across Contra Costa County, single-family homes that closed from February through June 2026 sold in a median of 12 to 13 days, and supply was tightest in May and June (C.A.R., monthly home sales and price reports, January through August 2026, checked September 25, 2026).
Brentwood runs slower than the county, though. The median Brentwood home sold in August 2026 took 30 days (Redfin, Brentwood housing market page, August 2026, checked September 24, 2026). So the month helps, but the price you start at matters more. Here’s the data and what to do with it.
How is the Brentwood market moving right now?
Slower and more price-sensitive than most of the county. Redfin’s August 2026 numbers for Brentwood (Redfin, Brentwood housing market page, August 2026, checked September 24, 2026):
- Median sale price: $759,497, down 2.6% from a year earlier.
- Homes sold: 209.
- Median days on market: 30.
- Sale-to-list: 99.2%, with 31.4% of homes selling above list.
- Homes for sale with a price drop: 40.6%.
Read that last number twice. Four in ten Brentwood listings had a price drop in August. That tells you buyers were comparing hard and walking past homes that started too high.
Which months sell fastest in Contra Costa County?
February through June, in 2026. We don’t have a Brentwood-only monthly series, so here’s the county’s, for existing single-family homes (C.A.R., monthly reports, January through August 2026, checked September 25, 2026):
| Month (2026) | Median days on market | Months of supply |
|---|---|---|
| January | 29 | 3.6 |
| February | 13 | 3.0 |
| March | 13 | 2.4 |
| April | 12 | 2.6 |
| May | 13 | 2.3 |
| June | 13 | 2.3 |
| July | 15 | 2.6 |
| August | 20 | 2.7 |
“Months of supply” is C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index: how many months it would take to sell every listing at that month’s pace. Lower means fewer homes competing with yours.
C.A.R. counts a sale in the month it closes. Add escrow on top of days on market, and a June closing usually means a listing that went live in April or May.
Was 2025 the same pattern?
Close to it. The same C.A.R. reports show the prior year for comparison: 26 days in January 2025, 11.5 in February, 12 in March, then 14 in May, 17 in June, 18 in July and 21 in August (checked September 25, 2026). Supply ran higher in 2025 than 2026 in most months: in the 2025 months we have from March on, it ranged from 2.7 to 3.2 months.
Two years, one shape. January is slow, spring is quick, and late summer stretches back out.
Does spring get me a higher price in Brentwood?
Not reliably. The county’s single-family median climbed from $802,000 in January 2026 to a high of $935,000 in May, then eased to $920,000 in June and $875,000 in July (C.A.R., monthly reports, checked September 25, 2026).
Some of that is timing. Some is simply which homes happen to sell that month. A month with more large homes closing pushes the median up without any one house gaining a dollar. And that’s the county, not Brentwood, where Redfin shows the median down 2.6% year over year in August. Price your house to recent sales of homes like it, not to the season.
I need to sell this fall. Am I making a mistake?
No. Fall is slower, not closed. In August 2026, county supply was 2.7 months, still lower than August 2025’s 3.1 (C.A.R., August 2026 report, checked September 25, 2026). Fewer listings means less competition for yours.
The trap in Brentwood is the first price. With 40.6% of Brentwood listings taking a price cut in August (Redfin), starting high and chasing the market down costs you time and gives buyers a reason to wait. Price it right on day one and have the house ready before the photos. That’s the whole game.
What should I line up before I list in Brentwood?
Paperwork that comes from outside offices. Start it before your list date, not after you get an offer.
- The Mello-Roos notice. Many newer Brentwood homes sit in one of the city’s four Community Facilities Districts, which collect a yearly special tax (City of Brentwood, Combined CFD Annual Report, fiscal year ended June 30, 2024). If yours does, state law says you must make a good faith effort to get the special tax notice from the agency that levies it and give it to your buyer (California Civil Code 1102.6b, checked September 25, 2026). Tax questions go to a tax professional.
- Your current tax bill. Buyers will ask what they’ll pay. Pull it from the Contra Costa County Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Tax Lookup at taxcolp.cccttc.us/lookup/ (checked September 25, 2026).
- Your next move. If you’re buying your next home too, that timing may matter more than the sale month. Settle the order before you pick a date.
Should I wait for spring 2027?
Only if waiting works for your life and your money. Nobody knows where Brentwood prices will be next spring, and we won’t guess. Spring has been faster two years running in the county data. Waiting also means more months of mortgage, taxes and upkeep. If a sale this year or next changes your tax picture, ask a tax professional before you pick a season.
Questions people also ask
What is the best month to list a house in Brentwood?
If speed matters most, aim to list in March or April. Contra Costa single-family homes that closed from February through June 2026 had median times on market of 12 to 13 days, per C.A.R.’s monthly reports checked September 25, 2026. Escrow takes a few weeks on top of that, so an April listing usually closes in May or June.
How long does it take to sell a house in Brentwood?
About a month in August 2026. Redfin shows a median of 30 days on market for Brentwood homes sold that month, with 209 sales, per its Brentwood housing market page checked September 24, 2026. That’s slower than the Contra Costa single-family median of 20 days in August 2026 from C.A.R. Price and condition move that number more than the month.
Is fall a slow time to sell in Contra Costa County?
Slower than spring, but not empty. C.A.R.’s Contra Costa single-family median time on market was 20 days in August 2026, up from 13 in June, while supply was 2.7 months, below August 2025’s 3.1, per reports checked September 25, 2026. Brentwood itself ran 30 days in August, per Redfin. Plan for a few extra weeks.
Is winter a bad time to sell in Brentwood?
It’s the slowest stretch, not a dead one. Contra Costa single-family homes that closed in January 2026 took a median of 29 days, compared with 13 in February, per C.A.R.’s reports checked September 25, 2026. Fewer homes compete in winter. A well-priced, ready house can still sell, but plan for more time.
Your next step
Thinking about a list date? We’ll pull recent Brentwood sales of homes like yours and map out spring against this fall, side by side, with the costs of waiting. Talk to a Brentwood agent on our team or call (510) 949-5525.
More on Brentwood: Selling a home in Brentwood · Brentwood market update · Is Brentwood a good place to live? · What’s my home worth?
By Bill Davis, DRE #01880656, The Davis Team at eXp Realty, Brentwood, CA. Updated September 25, 2026.
Sources
- Redfin, Brentwood housing market page, August 2026: redfin.com/city/2112/CA/Brentwood/housing-market (checked September 24, 2026)
- C.A.R. (California real estate association), monthly home sales and price reports for January, February, March, May, June, July and August 2026, Contra Costa County single-family tables; April 2026 figures are the prior-month column of the May report: car.org (checked September 25, 2026)
- City of Brentwood, Combined Community Facilities District Annual Report for Special Taxes Levied, fiscal year ended June 30, 2024 (read September 25, 2026)
- California Civil Code 1102.6b: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov (checked September 25, 2026)
- Contra Costa County Treasurer-Tax Collector, Tax Lookup: taxcolp.cccttc.us/lookup/ (checked September 25, 2026)