States › California › 2020
State, one year
California in 2020
Index change and building permits for the year, with every county.
In 2020 the FHFA house price index for California changed +2.3%, against +3.0% for the United States and +3.2% in 2019.
106,075 housing units were authorised by building permits in the state that year (59,043 single-family), −3.7% on 2019; the national total was 1,471,141.
Counties in 2020
Ranked by the county index change from 2019 to 2020 (FHFA annual county index). Permits are units authorised in 2020; per 1,000 uses the vintage 2025 population.
| County | Index change 2020 | Units permitted | Single-family | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Del Norte County | +7.3% | 45 | 45 | 1.7 |
| Trinity County | +6.3% | 29 | 29 | 1.8 |
| Kern County | +5.3% | 2,502 | 2,209 | 2.7 |
| Sutter County | +5.3% | 144 | 144 | 1.5 |
| Kings County | +5.2% | 306 | 302 | 2.0 |
| Yuba County | +5.0% | 442 | 432 | 5.0 |
| Mono County | +4.9% | 85 | 85 | 6.8 |
| Tulare County | +4.9% | 1,575 | 1,406 | 3.2 |
| Stanislaus County | +4.8% | 552 | 512 | 1.0 |
| Humboldt County | +4.7% | 291 | 170 | 2.2 |
| Imperial County | +4.6% | 480 | 315 | 2.6 |
| Madera County | +4.6% | 852 | 732 | 5.1 |
| Sacramento County | +4.4% | 6,170 | 3,447 | 3.8 |
| Fresno County | +4.2% | 3,130 | 2,663 | 3.0 |
| Shasta County | +4.2% | 393 | 389 | 2.2 |
| Riverside County | +4.1% | 10,103 | 8,895 | 4.0 |
| Tehama County | +4.1% | 147 | 147 | 2.3 |
| San Bernardino County | +4.0% | 5,129 | 4,002 | 2.3 |
| Lake County | +3.9% | 104 | 104 | 1.5 |
| Mendocino County | +3.4% | 139 | 137 | 1.6 |
| Merced County | +3.4% | 1,019 | 998 | 3.4 |
| San Diego County | +3.4% | 9,472 | 2,900 | 2.9 |
| San Joaquin County | +3.4% | 3,914 | 3,086 | 4.8 |
| Lassen County | +3.2% | 21 | 7 | 0.7 |
| Monterey County | +3.2% | 753 | 415 | 1.7 |
| Plumas County | +3.2% | 42 | 42 | 2.3 |
| Calaveras County | +3.1% | 132 | 132 | 2.8 |
| Colusa County | +3.1% | 10 | 10 | 0.5 |
| Glenn County | +3.1% | 60 | 36 | 2.1 |
| Los Angeles County | +2.7% | 20,903 | 6,752 | 2.2 |
| Nevada County | +2.4% | 440 | 438 | 4.3 |
| Placer County | +2.4% | 3,169 | 2,627 | 7.2 |
| Ventura County | +2.3% | 1,501 | 669 | 1.8 |
| El Dorado County | +2.2% | 619 | 617 | 3.2 |
| Orange County | +2.2% | 6,027 | 2,985 | 1.9 |
| Solano County | +2.2% | 1,733 | 1,006 | 3.8 |
| Sierra County | +2.1% | 8 | 8 | 2.6 |
| Siskiyou County | +2.1% | 17 | 14 | 0.4 |
| San Benito County | +2.0% | 494 | 492 | 7.0 |
| Inyo County | +1.9% | 7 | 7 | 0.4 |
| Butte County | +1.8% | 1,837 | 1,430 | 8.8 |
| Mariposa County | +1.8% | 39 | 37 | 2.3 |
| Santa Barbara County | +1.8% | 1,027 | 479 | 2.3 |
| San Luis Obispo County | +1.7% | 911 | 744 | 3.2 |
| Amador County | +1.5% | 103 | 103 | 2.5 |
| Yolo County | +1.4% | 1,206 | 588 | 5.4 |
| Napa County | +1.3% | 770 | 137 | 5.8 |
| Tuolumne County | +1.3% | 56 | 52 | 1.1 |
| Contra Costa County | +1.1% | 2,803 | 1,552 | 2.4 |
| Sonoma County | +0.2% | 1,395 | 1,171 | 2.9 |
| Alameda County | 0.0% | 4,120 | 1,342 | 2.5 |
| Santa Cruz County | −0.5% | 244 | 173 | 0.9 |
| Marin County | −2.1% | 155 | 127 | 0.6 |
| Alpine County | −2.9% | 8 | 8 | 7.7 |
| Santa Clara County | −3.0% | 5,357 | 1,322 | 2.8 |
| Modoc County | −4.4% | 7 | 7 | 0.8 |
| San Mateo County | −5.2% | 1,074 | 344 | 1.4 |
| San Francisco County | −6.6% | 2,004 | 21 | 2.4 |
Permits by year, 1995–2025
Housing units authorised in California by yearsingle-family2+ unit buildings
Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency annual state and county house price indexes (updated March 31, 2026); Census Bureau Building Permits Survey annual state and county files. Public domain. Methodology.