San José renters and would-be homebuyers are ending 2025 with the same story they started with: pricey, competitive and not a lot of slack. The city’s Housing Department released its fourth-quarter 2025 housing market update, showing an annual average effective apartment rent near $2,862, an average apartment vacancy rate of about 4.5% and a single-family median sale price hovering around $1.68 million. Quarter-to-quarter shifts suggest only modest easing inside an already punishing market.
According to the full Q4 2025 Housing Market Update from the City of San José Housing Department, the figures draw on CoStar rental data and sales information from the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors. The packet logs a Q4 average effective rent of $2,840, a 2025 annual average of $2,862 and a single-family median sale price near $1.68 million. It also notes that the city’s average apartment vacancy edged down to 4.5% in 2025 from 4.7% in 2024, a reminder that even slight tightening matters when housing costs this much.
Rents and Vacancies: Tight but Mixed Signals
The city’s packet shows Q4 average rents slipped 1.5% quarter over quarter to $2,840, even as the 2025 annual average climbed about 2.9% year over year to $2,862. In plain English, rents dipped a bit at the end of the year but are still higher than they were a year ago, and from an already steep starting point. Vacancy averaged 4.5% across 2025, down from 4.7% the year before, leaving San José notably tighter than the national rental vacancy rate of roughly 7.2%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Fewer empty units and higher rents are not exactly the combination renters are rooting for.
Single-Family Market Holds Near $1.68M
On the for-sale side, the packet cites local MLS data placing the 2025 median sale price for single-family homes at about $1.68 million, described as a small year-over-year gain after a choppy stretch. Typical days on market sit in the high 20s, which means that well-priced homes are still moving quickly in much of the city. With mortgage costs elevated, many would-be buyers remain parked on the sidelines even as seasonal sales activity continues to churn along.
Supply Shortfall Keeps Pressure on Prices
The update also flags a persistent supply gap: building permits issued in 2025 covered only a fraction of San José’s RHNA target. The Housing Department notes that this shortfall is constraining new, affordable supply and helping to keep upward pressure on rents. That gap, with limited new construction running into steady demand, forms the backdrop for the city’s stubbornly high prices. Outside market briefs such as Realtor.com list San José among metros with relatively low vacancy and continued rent pressure, echoing the city’s own conclusions.
