Short answer: Per Redfin's Redondo Beach city guide, updated July 31, 2026, the median single-family home was $1,675,305 and the median condo or co-op was $837,240, a gap of $838,065. Townhouses sat at $1,576,383. That gap buys land, no monthly dues and the right to change the building. The condo buys a lower entry price and shared upkeep. Which is better depends on your numbers, not mine.
When I taught elementary school, the lesson that stuck was the number line. You cannot compare two points until you put them on the same line. House versus condo is the same problem. People compare list price to list price and stop, when the real comparison includes dues, upkeep, taxes, insurance and time.
Right now I have a condo listed at 902 Camino Real #204 in Redondo Beach for $625,000, and in June I sold a house at 4611 Vanderhill Road in Torrance for $1,530,000.
What do Redfin's July 31, 2026 medians say?
Redfin's city guide for Redondo Beach, updated July 31, 2026, breaks the market into property types.
| Property type | Median sale price | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| Single-family house | $1,675,305 | Redfin city guide, July 31, 2026 |
| Townhouse | $1,576,383 | Redfin city guide, July 31, 2026 |
| Condo or co-op | $837,240 | Redfin city guide, July 31, 2026 |
| All homes | $1,575,211 | Redfin city guide, July 31, 2026 |
The house-to-condo gap is $838,065. The house-to-townhouse gap is only $98,922.
Why do Redfin, Zillow and the MLS disagree on the median?
Three reasons, and none of them is a mistake. First, the period. Redfin's city guide figure is a snapshot as of July 31, 2026, while Redfin's rolling figure for the three months ending September 2026 puts the Redondo Beach median for all homes at about $1.5M, up 0.4% from a year earlier, with about 47 days on market and about 2 offers per sale. Same city, different window, different number.
Second, labels. One source calls an attached home with its own lot a townhouse, another calls it a condo.
Third, sample size. Redondo Beach is not a big city, and one month of sales in a single large complex can move the condo median. When I price a home, I pull CRMLS sales for the exact street and building, and those numbers can differ from anything you read online, including this post.
What does the extra $838,065 buy?
The honest answer is land and control. With a house you own the dirt under it, and in the South Bay the dirt is often most of the value. You decide when to replace the roof, what color to paint, and, subject to city permits, how to add on. There are no monthly dues and no board vote on your kitchen.
- Land, which does not wear out.
- No association dues and no special assessments.
- Room to remodel or add an accessory dwelling unit, subject to permits.
- Private outdoor space and, often, a garage.
Every one of those also comes with a bill. The roof, the plumbing, the water heater, the sewer line and the yard are all yours. I will not give you a percentage rule for annual upkeep because I have not seen one I trust. I give clients a blank column and we fill it with real quotes.
What does the condo buy?
The condo buys a lower entry price in the same zip code, and it buys a schedule. At 902 Camino Real #204, $690 a month covers water, trash, sewer, earthquake insurance on the buildings, the grounds, 24-hour security, two pools, a hot tub, saunas, a fitness center, tennis courts and a clubhouse. The owner does not call a roofer. The association does.
The trade is control. You follow the CC&Rs on rentals, pets, flooring and remodeling. You pay your share of the building's repairs through dues or a special assessment even when the problem is on the other side of the complex. You vote, but you do not decide.
How do HOA dues compare fairly with house upkeep?
Line them up on the same number line. For the condo, write down the dues and what they replace: water, trash, sewer, exterior insurance, exterior maintenance, amenities. For the house, write down what you would pay for each of those directly, plus a reserve of your own for the roof and the big systems. Then add property tax and insurance to both.
In my experience, the gap between the two columns is almost always smaller than the gap between the two list prices, and sometimes it points the other way.
Where do townhouses fit?
Redfin's July 31, 2026 townhouse median of $1,576,383 sits far closer to houses than to condos. The label tells you the home is attached, often with its own entrance and garage, and often with a smaller HOA that covers less than a big condo association's. In my experience many South Bay townhomes are newer and larger than the condo stock, which is part of why the median lands where it does.
How I help a client decide: two real addresses
Take 902 Camino Real #204 at $625,000 with $690 in monthly dues, and 4611 Vanderhill Road, which sold for $1,530,000 in June 2026, 2% over asking, in 9 days. We write down price, dues, taxes, insurance, likely upkeep, commute minutes and weekend time. Then we look at the whole line, not the first number.
I do not tell clients which to pick. I tell them what each column costs and what each one gives back, and most people know their answer by the bottom of the page.
Questions I get asked
Are condos a worse investment than houses?
I do not predict appreciation, and past sales do not guarantee anything. What I can do is pull the CRMLS resale history for a specific building or street so you can see how it has behaved through more than one market. In my experience the building matters more than the category.
Can I buy an attached home with no HOA?
Some attached homes in the South Bay sit on their own lots with a small association or none at all, and the MLS listing and the preliminary title report will say which. Ask early. A home with no association still has shared walls and sometimes a shared driveway, so you want any maintenance agreement in writing before you remove contingencies.
Do I need 20% down for a condo?
That is a lender question. Some programs look at the association's finances and owner-occupancy before approving a loan in a complex, and the annual budget report must state whether the project is FHA or VA approved under California Civil Code 5300. Talk with your lender before you tour, not after.
If you want to run the two columns on a real home, start with the mortgage, cash-to-close and net sheet tools at beckyhomes.com/calculator, then send me the two addresses.
This post is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Talk with a California real estate attorney, CPA or lender about your situation.
Becky Davidson, DRE# 01894087. Beachside Ventures, Inc. (Estate Properties) DRE# 01879720 ©2026. Information provided is from the California Regional Multiple Listing Service (CRMLS) and Combined LA/Westside MLS (CLAW). Data is for personal, non-commercial use to identify prospective properties and is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Buyers should verify all information independently or with appropriate professionals. Estate Properties has not verified data from other sources and is not responsible for errors or omissions. Properties may or may not be listed by the office/agent presenting this information. All data is copyrighted by CRMLS, CLAW, i-Tech MLS, PSRMLS, and VCRDS. Unauthorized use or distribution is strictly prohibited. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Becky Davidson is a REALTOR® with Estate Properties in Riviera Village, Redondo Beach (DRE# 01894087). She has lived in the South Bay since 1993, taught elementary school before earning her license in 2011, and has sold 240+ homes and $205M+ across the South Bay and Los Angeles. She lives in Seaside with her husband and daughter and often co-lists homes with her mother, Jenna Christensen of Compass (DRE# 01341901). Call or text 310.920.9287.
