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

Buying a home in Pasadena, California

In Pasadena, the median value of owner-occupied homes is $1,093,300, 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 $2,265 a month.

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

Pasadena home costs, fact by fact

About Pasadena

Part of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, Pasadena in California sits in a region of 12,927,614 residents, ranked 2nd among U.S. metro areas.

Reading the Pasadena figures

Start with the state yardstick. Pasadena's owners put their homes at $1,093,300, while California's median is only $770,700. Pasadena sits inside a tight cluster of covered cities, so the gaps between neighbours are small. San Jose tops the group at $1,233,200, with Irvine behind it at $1,191,500. Costa Mesa lands within a whisker, at $1,115,100, while Daly City follows at $1,115,000. Just below sit Glendale ($1,102,300) and Huntington Beach ($1,100,000). Burbank's estimate is $1,089,100, while Torrance's is $1,074,700. Los Angeles, at $921,200, is well below. Owners supplied these figures instead of closings, so treat small differences with caution.

Rent reads differently from value. Pasadena's $2,265 a month beats Glendale, which asks $2,182, and Burbank, which asks $2,192. Oakland asks $1,979, Los Angeles $1,933. Going the other way, Torrance asks a little more, $2,280, Orange asks $2,327, Costa Mesa $2,446. Daly City rises to $2,551, San Jose to $2,669, Irvine to $2,997. A buyer weighing Pasadena against Burbank or Glendale finds a similar entry price with rents that shift only slightly, which is why the rent-versus-buy question deserves a real calculation rather than a rule of thumb.

Even the lowest rents on that list, in Oakland and Los Angeles, sit well below the HUD figures quoted below, a reminder that a benchmark describes a wide area. Tenure is the other signal. In Pasadena, 42.5% of households are owners. Oakland sits right beside it at 42.3%, as does Burbank at 43.3%. Costa Mesa has an owner share of 39.6%, Glendale 35.2%, whereas Daly City stretches to 60.2%. A city with this profile has a large renter base, which matters if you plan to buy and later let the home.

Yearly carrying costs come from the county, not the city. Los Angeles County's median value is $834,200, its effective rate 0.68%, and its median tax bill $5,675. Because that county value sits below Pasadena's own estimate, a Pasadena purchase would probably draw a bill above the county median if the assessed value followed the estimate. Use $5,675 only as a reference point and work from the rate.

Looking at borrowing, the county's 2025 data covers 32,309 loans with a typical cost of $11,266, and the central spread runs between $7,619 and $18,640. A gap that wide rewards anyone who compares lenders instead of accepting the first quote. HUD publishes $2,964 and $3,760 as its rent benchmarks for the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale area, by home size. HUD's numbers are not market medians, though both top Pasadena's own median rent by a wide margin. Pasadena counts 137,195 residents; the larger Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area holds 12,927,614 and ranks 2nd across the country.

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 Pasadena

How much is property tax in Pasadena?

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 Pasadena?

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 Pasadena?

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 Pasadena?

It depends on your mortgage rate, down payment and how long you stay. As a benchmark, the median value of owner-occupied homes in Pasadena ($1,093,300) equals 40.2 years of the median gross rent ($2,265 a month), both from Census ACS 2020-2024.

What natural hazards affect home insurance in Pasadena?

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 Pasadena

Other large cities in California

Who licenses each trade in California · All covered cities

Sources

California · All states · Federal guides