Photo above: The historic Patrick Rodgers Farm house on Cortsen Road in Pleasant Hill, California, August 2008. Sanfranman59, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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Price it against the homes buyers will compare it with, fix what an inspector will flag, and know your costs before you sign anything. In August 2026, the median Pleasant Hill sale closed at 101.8% of list price in 18 days, yet 23.8% of homes had a price cut along the way (Redfin, Pleasant Hill housing market page, August 2026, checked September 24, 2026).
Those two numbers are the whole story. Priced right, you’re in the group getting over asking. Priced high, you’re in the group chasing the market down.
What are Pleasant Hill homes selling for right now?
A bit over asking, and fast. Here are Redfin’s August 2026 figures for Pleasant Hill, all home types combined (Redfin, Pleasant Hill housing market page, August 2026, checked September 24, 2026):
| Pleasant Hill, August 2026 | Figure |
|---|---|
| Median sale price | $948,372 (up 0.6% year over year) |
| Homes sold that month | 97 |
| Median days on market | 18 |
| Sale-to-list ratio | 101.8% |
| Share sold above list price | 43.2% |
| Share with a price drop | 23.8% |
| Median price per square foot | $609 |
Treat the median as a headline, not your price. It blends condos, townhomes and detached houses, and a month with more condos closing pulls it down even if no single home lost value.
How do I pick the right list price?
Work from closed sales, not from the city median or an online estimate. Pull the last few months of sales that match your house on type, size, lot, condition and location, then look at what’s active right now. Buyers shop your house next to those listings the week you go live.
Use the $609 median price per square foot only as a gut check (same source). If your number sits above both the recent sales and the current competition, you’re writing yourself into that 23.8%.
What should I fix before listing?
Whatever a buyer’s inspector will write up. Roof wear, active leaks, drainage, an old electrical panel, a water heater past its life: these turn into repair requests or credits in escrow either way. A pre-listing inspection hands you that list early, so you choose what to fix, what to price in and what to disclose.
Small, cheap work usually pays. Paint, lighting, clean carpets, a trimmed yard. A full kitchen or bathroom remodel is a bigger bet. Before you spend, look at what updated homes near you actually closed at, and have your agent walk the house with you and rank the fixes.
What will Pleasant Hill buyers ask me?
Have answers ready for these three. They come up, and a vague answer costs you trust.
- Which schools serve the house. Mt. Diablo Unified assigns schools by street address. Most Pleasant Hill elementary areas feed College Park High, but MDUSD’s feeder chart sends the Fair Oaks Elementary area to Ygnacio Valley High in Concord (MDUSD, School Feeder Pattern page, checked September 24, 2026). Don’t promise a school in your listing. Tell buyers to confirm with the district. Our Pleasant Hill schools answer has the details.
- Whether the lot, or the one next door, was rezoned. The city rezoned 1,072 parcels under Ordinance No. 978, effective December 17, 2025 (City of Pleasant Hill, 2026 General Plan Land Use and Zoning Map Study page and Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance Amendment page, checked September 24, 2026). Check your parcel on the city’s map before buyers do. Our rezoning answer shows how.
- How far BART is. The Pleasant Hill / Contra Costa Centre station carries a Walnut Creek mailing address, 1365 Treat Blvd., Walnut Creek, CA 94597 (BART, station page, checked September 24, 2026). Describe the distance from your house honestly in your listing rather than saying the city has a station.
One more: fire hazard maps. The Contra Costa County Fire Protection District adopted updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps effective July 10, 2025, and posts a Pleasant Hill map (ConFire, Local Responsibility Area Maps page, checked September 24, 2026). Your Natural Hazard Disclosure report will say whether your home is in a mapped zone.
What does it cost to sell a house in Pleasant Hill?
Plan for each of these. Ask your escrow officer for an estimated seller net sheet before you sign a listing agreement.
- Agent commission. No law sets the rate. Commissions are always negotiable, and so is anything you choose to offer toward a buyer’s agent. Get the agreed terms in writing.
- Transfer tax. Pleasant Hill is a general law city, so its $0.55 per $1,000 city tax is credited inside the county’s $1.10 per $1,000 total rather than added on top. You pay $1.10 per $1,000 of the price in all (California City Finance, city documentary and property transfer tax rates, effective December 1, 2025, checked September 24, 2026). On a sale at the $948,372 August median, that comes to about $1,043. The purchase contract says who pays it.
- Escrow and title fees. These vary by company and by price.
- Repairs or credits you agree to after the buyer’s inspection.
- Payoffs and prorations: your loan balance, your share of this year’s property tax bill, and HOA dues through closing if you have them.
For capital gains, talk to a tax professional. IRS Publication 523 covers the rules for excluding gain on a home sale. Questions about the contract or your disclosures belong with a real estate attorney.
What do I have to disclose?
Most California sellers owe buyers written disclosures, including the Transfer Disclosure Statement (Civil Code section 1102) and the Natural Hazard Disclosure (Civil Code section 1103). The simple rule: if you know about it, write it down. When you can’t tell whether something needs disclosing, ask a real estate attorney before you list, not after an offer comes in.
When should I list?
Spring has a small edge in the data, but price and readiness matter more. Our Pleasant Hill timing answer walks through the county’s month-by-month numbers.
Questions people also ask
What should I fix before selling a Pleasant Hill house?
Start with what a buyer’s inspector will write up: roof wear, leaks, drainage, an old electrical panel or a tired water heater. Those come back as repair requests or credits either way. A pre-listing inspection gives you the list early. Paint, lighting and a trimmed yard are cheap. Check what updated homes near you closed at before you pay for a remodel.
How much is the transfer tax when I sell in Pleasant Hill?
It’s $1.10 per $1,000 of the sale price, split evenly between the City of Pleasant Hill and Contra Costa County, per California City Finance’s table effective December 1, 2025. On a sale at August 2026’s median of $948,372, that’s about $1,043. The city charges nothing beyond that. You and the buyer agree in the purchase contract on who covers it.
What is the typical commission to sell a house in Pleasant Hill?
There isn’t a legal standard, so there’s no single typical number to quote you. Commissions are always negotiable, both what you pay your listing agent and anything offered toward the buyer’s agent. Interview two or three agents, compare the dollar amount at your likely price and what it pays for, and put the terms in writing.
Your next step
Thinking about selling? We’ll walk the house, pull the closed sales it will be judged against, and tell you straight which fixes are worth the money. Talk to a Pleasant Hill agent on our team or call (510) 949-5525.
More on Pleasant Hill: Best time to sell in Pleasant Hill · Pleasant Hill market update · Living in Pleasant Hill, CA · What’s my home worth?
By Bill Davis, DRE #01880656, The Davis Team at eXp Realty, Pleasant Hill, CA. Updated September 24, 2026.
Sources
- Redfin, Pleasant Hill housing market page, August 2026 figures: redfin.com/city/14983/CA/Pleasant-Hill/housing-market (checked September 24, 2026)
- California City Finance, “California City Documentary and Property Transfer Tax Rates,” effective December 1, 2025: californiacityfinance.com/PropTransfTaxRates.pdf (checked September 24, 2026)
- Mt. Diablo Unified School District, School Feeder Pattern page: mdusd.org (checked September 24, 2026)
- City of Pleasant Hill, Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance Amendment page (phillca.gov/1666) and 2026 General Plan Land Use and Zoning Map Study page (phillca.gov/1674) (checked September 24, 2026)
- BART, Pleasant Hill / Contra Costa Centre station page: bart.gov/stations/phil (checked September 24, 2026)
- Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, Local Responsibility Area Maps: cccfpd.org/205/Local-Responsibility-Area-Maps (checked September 24, 2026)
- IRS Publication 523, Selling Your Home: irs.gov
- California Civil Code sections 1102 and 1103 (seller disclosures): leginfo.legislature.ca.gov