Contracts Rose 23% in October. Buyers Still Aren't in a Hurry

October's contract count jumped 23%, the most in 15 months, but don't mistake it for a frenzy. Closed sales fell, prices barely moved and buyers are negotiating hard.

• If you're 55 or older, your old property tax bill can follow you to Wine Country

• Ten local restaurants will open the bottle you brought for free, and here's which night to go

• One Wine Country rental market grew revenue 25% in two years, and the hot tub math is wild

Pour something local, find the patio and settle in.

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Market Insight

U.S. Contracts Fell 10.5%. Ours Rose 23%. Nobody's in a Hurry

Nationally, buyers hit pause in October: the number of U.S. homes under contract fell 10.5% from last year, and one in five listings cut its price. Sonoma County went the other way, with pending sales up 23% (408 to 501), the most in any month of the past 15. Before anyone pops a cork, local buyers are behaving a lot like national ones: comparing, negotiating and in no hurry.

Where the contracts came from:

• Under $1M: up 20% (289 to 348)

• $1M to $3M: up 34% (106 to 142)

• $3M and up: down 15% (13 to 11), with homes averaging 141 days on market

Why it still feels slow:

• Closed sales fell 10% (413 to 373), and the county median sale barely moved, up 1% to $790,000

• Buyers have choice: about 3.6 months of supply countywide between $1M and $3M in October, and 7 months in Healdsburg, where homes in that range took 110 days to sell

• Sellers are giving ground: $1M to $3M homes closed at 94% of their original asking price, down from 96% a year ago. Above $3M, 90%

Our take. This is a patient market, not a frozen one. Buyers are out there, but they're comparing, negotiating and passing on homes still priced for 2022. Selling? Price it right on day one and expect a conversation, not a bidding war. Buying? You finally have time to think before you sign.

Real Estate News

55 or Older? Your Property Tax Bill Can Retire Here Too

Retiring to Wine Country sounds dreamy until California's tax code shows up uninvited. In his latest video, David walks through where to retire in Sonoma County in 2027, and the rule that can make the math work.

The tax reality:

• California doesn't tax Social Security at all. Pensions, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income, at rates up to 13.3%

• Prop 19 lets homeowners 55 and older carry their current property tax base to a new primary home anywhere in California, up to three times. Buy pricier and only the difference is added

• Without it, expect property tax of roughly 1.15% to 1.2% of the purchase price a year

• Get an insurance quote before you fall in love with a house. Wildfire risk moves premiums

Pick your retirement:

• Oakmont (Santa Rosa): golf, pools and concerts, with homes from the high $600s into the $800s. Bring the car

• Petaluma: two SMART stations, free rides for 65+ and a ferry connection into San Francisco

• Sebastopol: pottery classes, The Barlow and free concerts under the redwoods, with homes around $1 million

• Healdsburg: Walker's Paradise around the Plaza, typical homes from about $1.1 million, and roughly two-thirds of recent buyers paid cash

• Windsor and Temelec: the budget-friendlier 55+ picks, from manufactured homes to mid-century charm

The move: Run your Prop 19 numbers before you list your Bay Area home, not after. Then pick the town that matches your Saturday, not your spreadsheet.

Lifestyle News

Restaurant Wine Hit $18 a Glass. These Spots Charge $0 Corkage

An $18 glass of wine in Wine Country is like buying sand at the beach. Luckily, a handful of local restaurants will uncork the bottle you brought home from the tasting room, free.

Free corkage, by night:

• Monday: La Gare in Santa Rosa (classic French), Stella in Kenwood (unlimited bottles with housemade pasta) and Sugo Trattoria in Petaluma

• Tuesday: Central Market in Petaluma, free corkage plus 40% off its own bottles

• Wednesday: Glen Ellen Star's Neighborhood Night, two courses for $49 and no corkage

• Wednesday to Friday lunch: The Madrona in Healdsburg, home of an epic burger

• Thursday: Baked on the River in Guerneville, three courses for $25 and free corkage

Any night:

• Dry Creek Kitchen and Folia Bar & Kitchen in Healdsburg waive corkage on your first two bottles of Sonoma County wine

• Sonoma Wine Shop & La Bodega in Sebastopol never charges corkage on bottles from its on-site shop

Next best thing: Poppy in Glen Ellen skips free corkage, but its Tuesday-to-Thursday family-style dinner is three courses, wine included, for $65.

Pro tip: Taste on Saturday, buy the bottle you can't stop thinking about and save it for Monday. Suddenly the start of the week has a reason to exist.

Real Estate News

Rental Revenue Rose 25% Here. Most Hosts Still Price Like It's 2015

Nationally, vacation rentals have spent the year being treated like last season's fondue set. Fresh 2026 data on seven Sonoma County rental markets tells a cheerier story, and the hosts winning it have one thing in common: they don't price like it's 2015.

The good news:

• Healdsburg: average gross revenue per rental up 25% in two years ($86,952 to $108,487) on a 17% rise in nightly rates

• The value markets grew too: Coastal up 9%, Sebastopol 7%, Russian River 6%, Santa Rosa 5%

• Hot tubs pay: three-bedroom rentals with one out-earn those without by 70% in Kenwood/Glen Ellen and 62% in Santa Rosa (hot tub homes also tend to be nicer overall)

The bigger gap is the operator. The top quarter of rentals in every market earns 1.4 to 1.8 times the median, same town, same bedrooms. Meanwhile, about 4 in 10 U.S. rentals still use one flat rate, or close to it.

How the top quarter prices:

• Separate rates for weekdays, weekends and seasons. Discount winter weekdays, not July ones

• Harvest weekends, holidays and big concerts priced like peak season, set months ahead

• Minimum stays that flex. Half of Friday check-ins nationally stay exactly two nights

• No panic discounts. A fully booked calendar usually means the rate is too low: 70% booked at $300 a night beats 90% at $220

Looking for one? 2563 Mill Creek Rd in Healdsburg is vacation-rental eligible and already has the hot tub, plus a cold plunge and sauna.

Translation: your rental might not need a new hot tub to earn more. It might just need a smarter calendar.

Local News

Sonoma County Plans 800 Miles of Bikeways. It Has 114 Now

Sonoma County has world-class cycling roads and a commute where 73% of workers drive alone. The county just adopted a plan to make those two facts less awkward.

The Board of Supervisors approved a new Active Transportation Plan in late October, replacing the 2010 version that helped deliver the SMART Path and the Joe Rodota/West County Trail. It covers unincorporated Sonoma County and stitches 10 local plans, including all nine cities, into one connected network.

What's in it:

• About 800 miles of planned bikeways, against 113.7 miles today

• 247 miles of car-free multi-use paths, 136 of them top priority

• 144 miles of separated bike lanes and 18 crossing improvements

• A construction estimate of $459 million and up

• A goal of zero deaths and serious injuries for people walking and biking, after 25 fatal and 97 severe-injury collisions from 2015 to 2019

What it isn't: a check. Adoption doesn't fund or build anything. It ranks projects so the county can compete for state and federal grants, which are easier to win when cities apply together.

Explore the interactive project map

Bottom line for buyers: If a bike path to the nearest tasting room is on your wish list, look up your future street on the map before you fall for the house. Then pack a corkscrew.

Lifestyle News

Podcast Studio Requests Are Up 90%. Your Guest Room Is Nervous

Your guest room sits empty roughly 350 days a year, which makes it the priciest storage unit you own. Homeowners have noticed. Taskrabbit's booking and search data for January to July 2026, against the same months of 2025, shows where spare rooms are heading.

What the spare room is becoming:

• Podcast studios: up 90%

• Home gyms: up 59%

• Saunas: up 35%

• Craft rooms: up 33%

Bay Area homeowners lean toward rooms that do several jobs at once, and new floor plans are catching up.

How floor plans are changing:

• Open, but with doors: the kitchen and great room stay open, while offices and "away rooms" close off for calls, hobbies or a quiet glass of wine

• Flex rooms with a job: location decides it. Next to a full bath, it's a future bedroom. Near the garage, a workshop. With outdoor access, a wellness room

• One-story living gains ground: two-story homes were still over half of U.S. single-family starts in 2025, but single-level is inching up, with 55+ and multigenerational buyers among the fans

• Wet rooms: tub and shower share one tiled enclosure, for a spa feel without extra square footage

• Storage built into the house: drop zones, Costco closets and under-stair book nooks

Our take. Selling? Give the spare room a purpose a buyer can picture, not a mattress and a treadmill. Buying? That single-level home with a room off the garage is your future pottery studio. Guests can have the Murphy bed.

New Listings

$76,000 Off and Finally Under Your $1 Million Search Filter

8268 Valley View Dr, Sebastopol | 3 Bed, 2 Bath | 1,632 sq ft | 0.20 Acres | Now $999,000 (was $1,075,000) | Open House: Saturday, November 7, 12–2 p.m.

Plenty of buyers set their search to stop at $1 million. As of this week, they can finally see this one. The price on 8268 Valley View Drive just dropped $76,000 to $999,000, landing it in West County's busiest price band: Sebastopol contracts under $1 million rose 32% this fall, and those homes sold at 101% of list on average.

The remodel already did the heavy lifting. New windows, floors, doors, trim, paint and recessed lighting throughout, a redone kitchen with new cabinets and stainless appliances, and bathrooms finished in custom tile. Nothing here is waiting on your weekend.

Out back, a covered patio with a ceiling fan and lights works as a second living room, from morning coffee to a late glass of Pinot. Beyond it, a large fenced yard has room for a garden, a pool or whatever your Saturday looks like.

What actually sets it apart:

• Remodeled and under $1 million in a town where that combination sells over asking

• The Barlow's tasting rooms, breweries and restaurants are a short drive away

• Bodega Bay is just over 20 minutes out for beach days and fresh seafood

• A tucked-away, friendly street with orchards, trails and wineries all around

Come see it at the open house this Saturday, November 7, from 12 to 2 p.m. Remodeled Sebastopol homes under $1 million don't wait for spring.

New Listings

On the Market This Week

• 778 S Fitch Mountain Rd, Healdsburg — $2,695,000
  A remodeled single-level home with a heated pool on a private third-acre, under a mile from the Plaza and next to Badger Park's river access.

• 7616 Hwy 128, Healdsburg — $2,575,000
  The perfect wine country home for entertaining with pool and every outdoor living amenity imaginable

• 560 Matheson St, Healdsburg — $2,395,000
  An extensively renovated three-bedroom with a wraparound porch and private designer gardens with a hot tub, half a mile from the Healdsburg Plaza.

• 3229 W Dry Creek Rd, Healdsburg — $1,995,000
  Modern luxury meets peaceful Wine Country living on six private acres.

• 2563 Mill Creek Rd, Healdsburg — $1,400,000
  Mill Creek Road seclusion west of Healdsburg, and a great vacation rental.

• 14183 Chalk Hill Road, Healdsburg — $1,195,000
  A creek-fronted, remodeled retreat on a private oak-shaded lot offering rare seclusion and water frontage

• 8268 Valley View Dr, Sebastopol — $999,000
  Patio coffee, nearby wineries, and Bodega Bay 20 minutes away, from a remodeled 3-bed Sebastopol home.

• 180 Johnson St, Windsor — $499,000
  The rare sub-$600k entry point in Windsor — the county's tightest, fastest-moving price band.

• 2590 N Fitch Mountain Rd, Healdsburg — $299,000
  A two-unit fixer on Fitch Mountain, a rare way into Healdsburg to make your own river retreat, flip or rental.

What's Happening This Week

28th Annual Wine & Food Affair

Where: 45 wineries across Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley, Russian River Valley and Healdsburg (Healdsburg, CA)

When: Saturday–Sunday, November 7–8, 2026 • 11 a.m.–4 p.m. • Weekend tickets $135 plus tax

Why You Should Go: Forty-five wineries, forty-five food pairings, one weekend. Pick a valley, pace yourself and book a designated driver.

The Forager's Table

Where: Bricoleur Vineyards (Windsor, CA)

When: Saturday, November 7, 2026 • 5:30–8:30 p.m. • $195 per person

Why You Should Go: A foraging-themed, wine-paired dinner from Executive Chef Todd Knoll, with just 20 seats. Book it before the mushrooms do.

Leonid & Friends

Where: Luther Burbank Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Rd. (Santa Rosa, CA)

When: Saturday, November 7, 2026 • 7:30 p.m.

Why You Should Go: An 11-piece band that recreates Chicago's horn-driven hits so faithfully you'll check the program twice.

Share The Love

• Got friends dreaming of wine country life? Share this newsletter and save them from doomscrolling Zillow

• Follow our somewhat professional adventures on Instagram @bruingtonhargreaves

• Check our YouTube channel for weekly local market updates (and occasional winery mishaps)

David & Jonathan here – the guys who write about real estate but really just want to talk about our favorite taco trucks. Hit us up about anything Sonoma County (or beyond). Whether you're buying, selling, or just want to know which wineries actually welcome dogs – we've got you covered.