Long-Term Rentals · Market playbook

Buying Rental Properties in San Diego, CA

Buying rentals in San Diego is a 3.51% gross yield play at a $1.0M median entry — $2,942/mo rent gross before expenses. The math has to clear before the property does.

DATA · Zillow Research (via scrape.do) · AS OF APRIL 2026

Tough 40/100

San Diego fights the math for straight rentals — pivot to BRRRR (recycle capital) or flip-and-sell if the numbers don't pencil.

TL;DR — data signals

→ Gross yield 3.51% — below national baseline
→ Rent $2,942/mo vs. national $1,930 — rent-strong
→ Cash flow expectation at 25% down / 7.5%: flat to slightly negative
→ Appreciation: softening, cash flow must carry the deal

Long-term rentals in San Diego sit at the intersection of two numbers: typical home value $1,006,261 and median rent $2,942/mo. That's a 3.51% gross yield — below the national 4-5% baseline. Rentals here pay you back through appreciation, not cash flow. Underwrite with that in mind.

Run the cash-flow math. Assume 20-25% down on a 30-year conventional rental loan at 7.5%, plus taxes + insurance + 8% property management + 8% vacancy/maintenance reserve + 8% capex reserve. At those inputs San Diego rentals will likely cash flow flat-to-slightly-negative on standard 25% down financing. The math requires either more cash down (35-50%) or an explicit appreciation thesis.

Rent demand context: San Diego rents ($2,942) run 52% above the national median ($1,930). Above-average rent demand on below-average prices is the rental sweet spot.

Appreciation thesis: San Diego home values are -2.9% YoY. That's a softening market. Cash flow has to do all the work; don't underwrite expecting price growth to bail out a marginal deal.

Net: San Diego is a difficult straight-rental market right now — neither yield nor appreciation favor the holder. Wait or buy with significant equity.

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San Diego at a glance