Los Banos, CA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·California·Los Banos

Merced County · Merced · population 48,684

Los Banos, CA
Image: Wikipedia · Los Banos, California
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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55
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Los Banos stands

Home values down 3.1% in the last year.

Median home $463,425
1-year -3.1%
5-yr CAGR +2.9%
vs 5-yr peak -6.6%
Population +1.7%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2022-07$463k$237k$330k$423k$516k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
32/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
79/100
Strong remote-work fit
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$2,307/mo$1,787$2,132$2,476202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent94121100120202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 16.7
Lean buy

At a 16.7 price-to-rent ratio, Los Banos is in the 'depends on horizon' zone. Buy if you'll be there 5+ years and value flexibility on the home; rent if you might move, want zero maintenance friction, or expect rates to drop.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
34 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
53 · w22%
Distance from peak
55 · w18%
Population growth
75 · w16%
Rent YoY
60 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
69 · w10%
Long thesis

Los Banos has held up across the cycle: home values at $463,425 with +2.9% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Los Banos is a West Coast market off recent highs, and the regional fundamentals (taxes, regulation, out-migration) are still working against it. The bear case isn't that prices go to zero — it's that they don't recover meaningfully for years.

About Los Banos

Los Banos is a city in Merced County, California, with an estimated population of 48,684. It anchors the Merced metro area. The population grew 1.7% annually from 2020 to 2024, a moderate gain. The median home value in Los Banos is $463,425 as of 2026-04, down 3.1% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +2.9% annual growth (-6.6% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Los Banos average $2,307 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+2.2%). The composite momentum score is 55 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Net positive migration: population up 1.7% per year — demand fundamentals are intact.
○The data is the data: Los Banos has at least 5 years of Zillow tracking, full Census identification, and is included in the 2-criteria momentum score on this page.

▼ Bear case

●Cooling: -3.1% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.
○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Los Banos (Wikipedia)

Los Banos, alternatively Los Baños, is a city in Merced County, California, United States. It is located in the San Joaquin Valley in Central California, near the junction of State Route 152 and Interstate 5. Its population was 45,532 at the 2020 census, up from 35,972 at the 2010 census. The city is served by Los Banos Municipal Airport for air transport access.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Merced County right now.

NWS active alerts (CA)California Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Merced County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Cities like Los Banos

Rancho Cordova, CA52 · StableLodi, CA54 · StableWest Sacramento, CA49 · StableMarina, CA53 · Stable

Run the numbers for Los Banos

ToolCan I afford Los Banos?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Los Banos rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Los Banos to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolLos Banos cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
60° / 41°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
82° / 60°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
258
~71% of year
Annual precip
22″ rain
8″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very low
Wildfire
Very high
Earthquake
Very high
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Los Banos listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Merced area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
65%
Moderate climate
Median household income
$91,500
California state median
Top industries (state-level)
TechEntertainmentAgriculture

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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