California · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area

Buying a home in Glendale, California

In Glendale, the median value of owner-occupied homes is $1,102,300, Los Angeles County's effective property tax rate is 0.68%, a purchase mortgage carried a median $11,266 in total loan costs in 2025, and median gross rent is $2,182 a month.

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

Glendale home costs, fact by fact

About Glendale

Looking at Glendale, California: median gross rent is $2,182 a month, and 35.2% of homes are owner-occupied. Glendale lies in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, ranked 2nd in the country, and Los Angeles County has an effective property tax rate (median tax as a share of home value) of 0.68%.

Reading the Glendale figures

Glendale is a renter's city by the figures: only 35.2% of households own, the lowest owner share among the cities named on this page, a notch under Los Angeles at 36%. Costa Mesa follows at 39.6%, and Pasadena, Burbank and Irvine sit at 42.5%, 43.3% and 44.5%. At the other extreme, Carlsbad reaches 62.9%. Read the value and rent numbers with that in mind, because a median built mostly on rented homes behaves differently from one built on owner-occupied streets.

Glendale's owners estimate $1,102,300, far above the state's $770,700 and above Los Angeles County's $834,200. Costa Mesa reports $1,115,100. Daly City reports $1,115,000. Both are a little higher. Huntington Beach reports $1,100,000. Pasadena reports $1,093,300. Both are a little lower. Burbank sits near $1,089,100, with Torrance lower at $1,074,700. Higher up, San Francisco shows $1,394,500. Carlsbad shows $1,257,000, with San Jose a little lower. Orange is lower, at $945,800, and so is Los Angeles, at $921,200.

Rent, at $2,182, is almost level with Burbank's $2,192. Pasadena charges $2,265. Torrance charges $2,280. Orange charges $2,327. Compared with San Jose's $2,669 and Irvine's $2,997 it is far lower, though Los Angeles, at $1,933, is lower still. For Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, HUD's benchmark sits between $2,964 and $3,760 by home size, both higher than the city's median rent. It is an estimate for a wide area, not a market median, so do not read it as Glendale's going rate.

The county supplies the tax figures. Los Angeles County's median bill is $5,675 and a 0.68% effective rate, against county homes valued at $834,200. Glendale's owners estimate more than the county does, so a typical bill here could exceed the county's middle figure. That is a reasoned guess from the county numbers and not a Glendale measurement, and each value is an owner's estimate rather than a sale price.

Loan costs vary widely in this county. The 2025 data covers 32,309 loans, centered on $11,266, with ordinary costs between $7,619 and $18,640. Anyone buying should obtain a written estimate and compare it with that range, since the gap between the low and high ends is wide.

Glendale has 187,823 residents, a figure that matters when you read these medians as the experience of a large place and not a small one; more than Pasadena, Burbank or Torrance. Within the same price band, it is the renter-heavy one: Torrance has 55% owners. Huntington Beach has 55.4%. San Jose has 55.8%. Glendale has only 35.2%. Its rent of $2,182 is still lower than those cities, at $2,280, $2,510 and $2,669, so renting here costs less than in cities where more households own. Glendale's 35.2% owner share and $2,182 rent also differ from Pasadena's 42.5% and $2,265, which suggests a market tilted a little further toward renters.

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 Glendale

How much is property tax in Glendale?

Homeowners in Los Angeles County pay a median $5,675 a year in property tax, 0.68% of the county median home value of $834,200 (Census ACS 2020-2024). Your bill depends on your assessed value and local rates.

What are closing costs on a mortgage in Glendale?

Home-purchase mortgages in Los Angeles County carried median total loan costs of $11,266 in 2025; half of the 32,309 loans fell between $7,619 and $18,640 (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 Glendale?

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 Glendale?

It depends on your mortgage rate, down payment and how long you stay. As a benchmark, the median value of owner-occupied homes in Glendale ($1,102,300) equals 42.1 years of the median gross rent ($2,182 a month), both from Census ACS 2020-2024.

What natural hazards affect home insurance in Glendale?

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 Glendale

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Sources

California · All states · Federal guides