Ventura County Housing Market Report — August 2026

Ventura County's housing market in August 2026 is a split decision. Simi Valley, Moorpark, and the city of Ventura are still posting modest year-over-year gains and closing at or near asking price, while Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, and parts of the coastal plain have softened noticeably. Medians in this report run from the mid-$500K portal cross-checks in Port Hueneme (thin market — only four June sales) to about $1.49 million in Westlake Village (Chicago Title, June 2026).

Direct answer: The Ventura County housing market in 2026 is neither uniformly hot nor uniformly cooling. East-county cities (Simi Valley +3.2%, Moorpark +3.2%, Ventura +2.3% year over year) remain seller-leaning with sub-30-day sale times, while Conejo Valley luxury markets (Thousand Oaks −15%, Westlake Village −25% on thin volume) and slower coastal segments have shifted toward buyers. Mortgage rates near 6.5-7.0% continue to cap how fast anything appreciates.

The county at a glance

Ventura County has always been several markets wearing one name. The 118/23 corridor (Simi Valley, Moorpark), the Conejo Valley (Thousand Oaks, Oak Park, Westlake Village), the Camarillo plain, and the coastal cities (Ventura, Oxnard, Port Hueneme) each respond to different buyer pools, different price points, and different commute patterns. In August 2026 those differences are wider than they have been in years.

The through-line is financing. With 30-year fixed rates holding in the 6.5% to 7.0% range (roughly 6.7% on a typical quote as of mid-2026), buyer purchasing power is the governor on the whole county. Where inventory is tight and price points are attainable — Simi Valley, Moorpark, Camarillo — well-priced homes still draw multiple offers and close at or above list. Where price points are higher and the buyer pool thinner — Thousand Oaks and especially Westlake Village — sellers are conceding on price, and it shows up in double-digit year-over-year declines.

City-by-city numbers

The table below covers the Ventura County cities we track. Figures are Chicago Title Market Trend Report — June 2026 full-value sales, compiled from MLS and public recorded data (pulled 2026-08-15) · checked against public portals August 2026. Medians are city-level, all residential types combined unless noted.

City	Median Sale Price	Days on Market	List-to-Sale	YoY Change
Port Hueneme	No reliable median — 4 sales, Jun 2026 (Chicago Title)	40	98.0%	—
Oxnard	$926,000	36	99.6%	0.0%
Simi Valley	$836,000	30	100.2%	+3.2%
Camarillo	$988,000	24	100.1%	−5.1%
Ventura	$1,022,000	24	99.4%	+2.3%
Moorpark	$904,000	25	100.2%	+3.2%
Thousand Oaks	No single median — ZIPs $1,050,000–$1,368,000 (Chicago Title, Jun 2026)	35	98.7%	Varies by ZIP
Oak Park	$1,250,000	21	99.1%	+9.8%
Westlake Village*	$1,490,000	29	98.0%	−1.5%

*Westlake Village straddles the Los Angeles/Ventura county line; its figures blend both sides, and its small, luxury-skewed sales volume makes the median volatile month to month. Compiled regional MLS data, as of June 2026 · checked against public portals August 2026.

What jumps out

Simi Valley and Moorpark are the county's steadiest markets. Both are up about 3.2% year over year, both are closing a hair above asking (100.2% list-to-sale), and Moorpark homes are going pending in about 25 days. That combination — positive appreciation, full-price closings, sub-month sale times — is what a healthy, supply-constrained market looks like at 6.7% mortgage rates.

The Conejo luxury tier is repricing. Thousand Oaks is off roughly 15% from a year ago and Westlake Village nearly 25%. Some of that is genuine softening; some of it is mix — when fewer $2M+ homes trade, the median falls even if individual home values do not move that much. Westlake Village in particular runs on thin monthly volume, so read its number as a directional signal, not a repricing of every house in the zip code.

The coast is two speeds. Ventura is quietly solid: up 2.3%, 24 days on market. Oxnard is flat and slower at 36 days, and Port Hueneme — the county's most attainable coastal entry (thin market, no reliable median) — is the slowest of the group at 40 days, with sellers accepting about 98% of list. Buyers priced out of the east county should be looking here.

Oak Park is the speed leader. At 21 median days on market, the small Ventura County school-district enclave remains one of the most demand-dense pockets in the region, and its +9.8% June 2026 annual gain has held up at a $1.25M median (Chicago Title).

How these figures reconcile with Zillow and Redfin

A note on honesty in sourcing, because it matters. When we cross-checked this report against public portals in early August 2026, the freshest publicly available city-level medians — Redfin feeds with May, June, and July 2026 vintages — ran roughly 5-10% below the compiled MLS figures above for most cities (about −5.3% for Simi Valley, −6% for Camarillo, −7.5% for Ventura, −9.6% for Oxnard, and as much as −11% for Moorpark and Thousand Oaks). Part of that gap is methodology: portals blend property types differently, draw city boundaries differently, and lag closings differently. But the consistent direction of the gap is a real signal that the market has continued to soften through 2026, and that some compiled figures may sit toward the high end of the honest range.

Rather than splice methodology-mismatched portal numbers into an MLS-based table, we keep the compiled series intact, date it clearly (June 2026 vintage, portal-checked August 2026), and tell you which direction the wind is blowing. When we complete a fresh MLS pull for the September report, any revisions will be published, not papered over. If you are pricing a specific home, none of these citywide numbers substitute for a dated comparable-sales analysis anyway.

What it means for buyers

You have more leverage than the headlines suggest — in the right cities. In Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, Oxnard, and Port Hueneme, list-to-sale ratios below 99% mean sellers are negotiating. Ask for credits toward a rate buydown; on a $900,000 loan, buying the rate down from 6.9% to 6.4% does more for your monthly payment than a $25,000 price cut.

In Simi Valley, Moorpark, and Camarillo, come prepared. Homes there are still closing at or above list in under a month. Get fully underwritten (not just pre-qualified), and have your offer strategy set before the weekend open house, because well-priced homes in these cities do not wait for a second weekend.

Shop the spread. The gap between Port Hueneme ($575K) and Oak Park ($1.25M) is the widest affordability spread the county has seen in years. Buyers flexible on location can trade commute minutes for six figures of price. Our city guides break down schools, commutes, and neighborhoods for every city in this table.

What it means for sellers

Pricing discipline is everything in the softening cities. If you are selling in Thousand Oaks or Westlake Village, the comp from ten months ago is not your value today. Price to the last 60-90 days of closed sales, and expect to negotiate. Overpricing and chasing the market down costs more than pricing correctly on day one.

In Simi Valley and Moorpark, you still hold the cards — barely. A 100.2% list-to-sale ratio means the market will pay full price for a correctly priced, well-presented home. It does not mean the market will chase an aggressive one; buyers at 6.7% rates are price-sensitive and condition-sensitive. Updated, move-in-ready homes are commanding the premium; dated homes are sitting.

Watch the September data. Fall is historically when Ventura County inventory peaks and negotiating power tilts toward buyers. If you are on the fence about listing, the spread between now and November tends to favor now. For a comp-based read on your specific street, start with our Simi Valley real estate hub or reach out directly.

Rates, inventory, and the fall outlook

Three things to watch between now and the September report. First, mortgage rates: the 6.5-7.0% band has held through mid-2026, and every quarter-point move changes county-wide affordability by tens of thousands of dollars of purchasing power. Second, inventory: east-county supply remains tight enough to support prices, but the Conejo luxury tier is carrying more standing inventory than it has since 2019, and that overhang is doing the price-cutting. Third, the split itself: if softening spreads from the $1.2M+ tier into the $800K-$1M bread-and-butter tier, the county's 2026 story changes. So far, it has not.

Current data for every city we track — including Santa Clarita, the San Fernando Valley, and the Santa Barbara coast — lives on our market data hub, updated as new figures are verified.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Ventura County a buyer's or seller's market in 2026?

It is mixed by city. Simi Valley, Moorpark, and Camarillo still lean toward sellers, with homes closing at or near full asking price (list-to-sale ratios of 1.001-1.002) in under a month. Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, and Port Hueneme have shifted toward buyers, with sub-99% list-to-sale ratios and softer year-over-year prices.

What is the median home price in Ventura County in 2026?

There is no single countywide number that describes the market well. City medians in this report (Chicago Title Market Trend Report, June 2026) range from the mid-$500K portal cross-checks in Port Hueneme (thin market) to about $1.49 million in Westlake Village. Simi Valley sits near $836,000, Camarillo near $988,000, Ventura near $1,022,000, and Thousand Oaks spanning ZIP medians of roughly $1,050,000 to $1,368,000 (no single citywide figure published for June 2026; Chicago Title Market Trend Report).

Which Ventura County city is most affordable in 2026?

Port Hueneme is the most attainable coastal entry in this report (thin market — four June 2026 sales, too few for a reliable median; portal cross-checks mid-$500Ks), followed by Oxnard at about $926,000 and Simi Valley at about $836,000. Port Hueneme's smaller sales volume makes its monthly median more volatile, so treat it as a range rather than a precise figure.

Why do Zillow and Redfin show lower prices than this report?

In our August 2026 cross-check, public portal medians (Redfin, May-July 2026 vintages) ran roughly 5-10% below the compiled MLS figures in this report for most cities. The gap comes from methodology differences: portals mix property types, use different geographic boundaries, and update on different schedules. The direction of the gap suggests some softening through 2026, which is why each figure here is dated and labeled.

Are Ventura County home prices dropping in 2026?

Some markets, yes. Thousand Oaks is down about 15% year over year and Westlake Village about 25% (a thin, luxury-skewed sample), while Camarillo is off about 5%. Simi Valley and Moorpark are still up about 3.2%, Ventura up 2.3%, and Oxnard flat. It is a split market, not a uniform decline.

What are mortgage rates in Ventura County right now?

As of mid-2026, 30-year fixed rates have been running roughly 6.5% to 7.0%, with a typical quote near 6.7%. Rates move daily and vary by credit profile, points, and loan type, so always get a current quote from a lender.

Which Ventura County cities sell fastest in 2026?

Oak Park is fastest at about 21 median days on market, followed by Camarillo and Ventura at 24 days and Moorpark at 25. Oxnard (36 days) and Port Hueneme (40 days) are the slowest of the group, giving buyers there more room to negotiate.

When is the next Ventura County market report?

This report was published August 13, 2026 and runs on a monthly cadence. The September edition is planned for the first week of September 2026, and updated figures will be reflected as fresher MLS data becomes available.