San Bernardino Home Prices Finally Rebound from Great Recession

Residential housing prices in the City of San Bernardino appear to have finally recovered from the Great Recession of 2008.

Sales prices for the first quarter of 2021 in San Bernardino provide evidence that homes are now selling near or above what they were valued at in 2007.  According to real estate website Redfin.com, in just the last year sales prices have increased another 11, 23 and 19 percent respectively for the 92404, 92407 and 92410 zip codes.

While this recovery is years behind other communities to the east of San Bernardino it is a welcome sign for long-time property owners who rode out the last recession or invested later.

“As long-time homeowners in San Bernardino, my family has persevered along with our neighbors through this long housing recovery,” stated Mayor John Valdivia.  “Our community has been patient and worked hard over the last decade, and while we have a lot of work still to do, this is a great sign that we have turned our economy around.”

Beginning in December 2007, housing prices in California collapsed along with much of the country.  This was driven by the increase in subprime mortgages and loose lending practices that had quickly inflated housing prices.

The City of San Bernardino was hit especially hard by the housing collapse with homes dropping in value by up to 50 percent or more.  While other communities closer to Los Angeles and Orange Counties began rebounding 8 to 10 years ago, San Bernardino and some other inland communities continued to lag far behind in recovering lost value.

Homes that were impacted by the subprime mortgage situation were often repossessed by banks or even handed back to banks by owners as the collapse in value destroyed any equity homeowners might have had due to the “no or low” down payment requirements of the subprime mortgage system.

Beyond the equity benefit to homeowners, the recovery also benefits local governments like the San Bernardino Unified School District and the City of San Bernardino that provide services to property owners and families in the city.  Property owners remain protected from large spikes in property tax increases thanks to 1978’s Proposition 13, but as these properties sell to new owners and assessments rise over time, property tax revenues will steadily increase to these government agencies for schools, public safety and other services.