California · San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area

Buying a home in Concord, California

In Concord, the median value of owner-occupied homes is $797,600, Contra Costa County's effective property tax rate is 0.83%, a purchase mortgage carried a median $8,605 in total loan costs in 2025, and median gross rent is $2,274 a month.

Data as of : Census ACS 2020-2024, Census Vintage 2024, HMDA 2025, HUD FY 2027. Sources

Concord home costs, fact by fact

About Concord

Concord is a city in California with 124,016 residents, and it lies in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, ranked 13th among U.S. metro areas. Homeowners occupy 61.6% of homes, and the effective property tax rate (median tax as a share of home value) in Contra Costa County is 0.83%.

Reading the Concord figures

Concord is a close call against the California-wide figure. Concord owners value their homes at $797,600, and the state as a whole reads $770,700, so this city sits just above the statewide middle. The cities nearby in value show how tight that band is. Downey is estimated at $796,600, with Inglewood comes in near $792,800; Santa Clarita reaches $784,700, then West Covina lands at $779,800 while Oceanside closes the band near $770,300. Moving up from Concord, the estimates for Long Beach, Garden Grove, Simi Valley, Ventura and Anaheim run from $806,600 to $831,200, in that order. Hayward reads $854,400, while Los Angeles, at $921,200, is higher still.

What sets Concord apart inside that cluster is the property-tax picture. The Contra Costa County median bill is $7,156 annually, giving an effective rate of 0.83% when applied to a median home value of $866,800. A buyer comparing Concord with Downey or Inglewood should look at that rate and not at the home value alone. The county value also sits above the city's own number, which means the dollar bill for a Concord home near its city median would not necessarily equal the county figure.

Renting tells a similar story. The median rent in Concord is $2,274, well above Downey, at $1,937, with Inglewood, at $1,787, yet below Santa Clarita, where it is $2,544, with Simi Valley, where it is $2,579. Hayward is higher than Concord, at $2,391, with Oceanside is at $2,303. HUD's Oakland-Fremont reference shows $2,805 where the home is smaller and $3,592 where it is larger. Because that benchmark is a HUD reference and not a market median, it is useful as an upper marker for comparing against the observed rent, not as a prediction of it.

Ownership is at 61.6%. That is a little above both West Covina (60.3%), with Chula Vista (59.8%), and far above Long Beach, where owners are 41.2%, or Anaheim, where they are 46.2%. Simi Valley, with 72.9%, with Santa Clarita, with 71.8%, show how owner-heavy the suburban cities can become, while Inglewood (36.2%) leans heavily toward renters. Concord falls between these groups.

The metro context matters too. The San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont area ranks 13th in the country with 4,648,486 residents, and the city itself counts 124,016. Loan costs in Contra Costa County for 2025 were reported on 7,395 HMDA loans, with a median of $8,605 and a core spread from $6,435 to $14,789. That median is below several other counties on this page, but the distance to the top of the range is wide, so compare quotes line by line. Every home value here was given by owners rather than taken from closings, so treat the neighbors as a frame of reference and not a ranking.

Calculate for California

If you buy

California state transfer tax

California has no state transfer tax; counties and cities may charge one.

Price$770,700
State transfer taxnot computed
Who paysSet by the purchase contract

Default price: the California median value of owner-occupied homes, $770,700 (Census ACS 2025). Not computed: No state tax. The tax is set by county and city, so it cannot be computed from the state alone. Who pays: Neither the state statute nor the City of Los Angeles FAQ assigns the tax; the purchase contract and escrow instructions decide. Not included: county and city transfer taxes, recording fees, title insurance and lender charges. California transfer tax guide · all 50 states.

If you sell

Capital gain and the federal tax on it

Same federal rule in every state: Section 121 of the Internal Revenue Code excludes up to $250,000 of gain on a main home ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly).

Capital gain$350,000
Section 121 exclusion$250,000 (limit $250,000)
Taxable gain$100,000
Type of gainLong-term (owned over 1 year), 15% chosen
Federal tax on the gain$15,000

Section 121 excludes $250,000; the rest is taxable.

Gain = sale price minus your adjusted basis (purchase price, buying costs and improvements); selling expenses reduce it (IRS Publication 523). Long-term rates for sales in 2026, by taxable income including the gain (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, section 4.03): 0% up to $49,450 single or $98,900 married filing jointly, 15% up to $545,500 single or $613,700 jointly, 20% above. Not included: California state income tax on the gain (not computed), the net investment income tax, depreciation recapture on a rental or home office, and the reduced exclusion for an early sale. Agent commissions are negotiated and never set by law. Capital gains on a home sale.

Questions about buying a home in Concord

How much is property tax in Concord?

Homeowners in Contra Costa County pay a median $7,156 a year in property tax, 0.83% of the county median home value of $866,800 (Census ACS 2020-2024). Your bill depends on your assessed value and local rates.

What are closing costs on a mortgage in Concord?

Home-purchase mortgages in Contra Costa County carried median total loan costs of $8,605 in 2025; half of the 7,395 loans fell between $6,435 and $14,789 (HMDA). Total loan costs are the lender and settlement-service charges of the Closing Disclosure; transfer taxes and prepaid items come on top.

Is there a transfer tax when you buy a home in Concord?

California has no state transfer tax. Counties may charge $0.55 per $500 of value under the Documentary Transfer Tax Act, and cities such as Los Angeles add their own, with Measure ULA adding 4% or 5.5% on very high-priced sales.

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Concord?

It depends on your mortgage rate, down payment and how long you stay. As a benchmark, the median value of owner-occupied homes in Concord ($797,600) equals 29.2 years of the median gross rent ($2,274 a month), both from Census ACS 2020-2024.

What natural hazards affect home insurance in Concord?

Across California, the main hazards for home insurance are earthquake, wildfire, flood and landslide, and the insurer of last resort is California FAIR Plan. A standard California homeowners policy does not cover earthquake damage; insurers must offer earthquake coverage (Insurance Code 10081), and the FAIR Plan sells limited fire coverage up to $3 million for residential policyholders.

Run your own numbers: rent vs buy calculator · closing costs calculator.

California rules that apply in Concord

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Sources

California · All states · Federal guides