Down Payment by City

How Much Is a Down Payment on a House in Pasadena?

Updated November 1, 2026

By Vinura Abeysundara

Head of Growth at TurboHome

Reviewed by:

Vinura Abeysundara

Head of Growth at TurboHome

Kevin Kretzmer

Head Agent, California · CalDRE #01997822

A 20% down payment on the median Pasadena home is $250,000, based on 566 Pasadena homes that closed between May 1 and October 31, 2026 at a median price of $1,250,000. Most buyers put down less: an FHA loan at 3.5% down needs $43,750, a 5% conventional loan needs $62,500 and 10% down is $125,000. The median home fits inside the $1,249,125 Los Angeles County FHA limit, and 52.1% of all Pasadena sales in the period were FHA-eligible at 3.5% down.

TurboHome Market Analysis · Pasadena, California · Sales closed from May 1, 2026 to October 31, 2026

Key findings

On the median Pasadena home ($1,250,000), the down payment ranges from $43,750 at 3.5% (FHA) to $250,000 at 20%.
Home type changes the number more than anything else: 10% down is $159,500 on the median single family home ($1,595,000) and $79,250 on the median condo or townhome ($792,500).
52.1% of Pasadena sales were priced within the $1,249,125 Los Angeles County FHA limit at 3.5% down, and 33.4% needed a jumbo loan even with 20% down (2026 conforming limit $1,249,125).
How Pasadena buyers actually paid: 37.7% conventional, 35.3% cash, 1.2% FHA and 0.8% VA, based on the 87.1% of closings that record a financing type.
The Pasadena median fell 1.3% year over year in our MLS feed ($1,266,845 to $1,250,000), which moved a 20% down payment by about $3,369.

Down payment on the median Pasadena home

The table uses the $1,250,000 median sale price for Pasadena homes that closed between May 1 and October 31, 2026 (single family homes, condos and townhomes). Monthly principal and interest is estimated at the Freddie Mac average 30-year fixed rate of 7.24% for the week of October 29, 2026; mortgage insurance, property taxes, homeowners insurance and HOA dues come on top.

Down payment. Every figure is in the table below.

Down payment on the median Pasadena home, data table
Down payment option	Down payment	Loan amount	Loan type at this price	Est. monthly principal and interest
3.5% down (FHA minimum)	$43,750	$1,206,250	Within FHA limit	$8,221
5% down (conventional minimum)	$62,500	$1,187,500	Conforming	$8,093
10% down	$125,000	$1,125,000	Conforming	$7,667
20% down (no mortgage insurance)	$250,000	$1,000,000	Conforming	$6,815

Putting 20% down instead of 3.5% on the median Pasadena home cuts the monthly principal and interest by about $1,406 and avoids mortgage insurance, but it takes $206,250 more cash at closing. Closing costs typically add another 2% to 3% of the price on top of any option in the table.

Down payment by home type in Pasadena

Single family homes and condos sell at very different prices in Pasadena, so the home type you target sets your savings goal.

Down payment by home type in Pasadena, data table
Home type	Sales (6 mo)	Median sale price	3.5% down	5% down	10% down	20% down
Single family home	338	$1,595,000	$55,825	$79,750	$159,500	$319,000
Condo or townhome	228	$792,500	$27,738	$39,625	$79,250	$158,500
All homes	566	$1,250,000	$43,750	$62,500	$125,000	$250,000

Entry level, median and upper tier in Pasadena

One in four Pasadena homes sold for $845,625 or less (the 25th percentile), and one in four sold for $1,813,750 or more. The entry tier is usually the better target for a first-time buyer's down payment plan.

Entry level, median and upper tier in Pasadena, data table
Price tier	Sale price	3.5% down	5% down	10% down	20% down	Loan at 10% down
Entry level (25th percentile)	$845,625	$29,597	$42,281	$84,562	$169,125	$761,063 (conforming)
Median	$1,250,000	$43,750	$62,500	$125,000	$250,000	$1,125,000 (conforming)
Upper tier (75th percentile)	$1,813,750	$63,481	$90,688	$181,375	$362,750	$1,632,375 (jumbo)

2026 loan limits in Los Angeles County and what they mean for your down payment

2026 loan limits in Los Angeles County and what they mean for your down payment, data table
Limit (one unit, 2026)	Amount	Max purchase price at minimum down	Share of sales within limit
FHA loan limit, Los Angeles County	$1,249,125	$1,294,430 at 3.5% down	52.1%
Conforming loan limit, Los Angeles County	$1,249,125	$1,314,868 at 5% down	54.9%
Jumbo needed even at 20% down	above $1,249,125 loan	above $1,561,406 price	33.4% of sales

Los Angeles County is a high-cost area, so both the FHA and conforming limits sit at the national ceiling of $1,249,125 for 2026. FHA loans allow 3.5% down with a 580 or higher credit score but carry an upfront premium of 1.75% of the loan and monthly mortgage insurance for the life of the loan at less than 10% down. Conventional loans allow 3% to 5% down for first-time buyers with private mortgage insurance that drops off at 20% equity. Jumbo loans above the conforming limit usually require 10% to 20% down and higher reserves. Limits are from the FHFA and HUD announcements for 2026 (fhfa.gov, hud.gov).

How Pasadena buyers actually paid

Of the Pasadena closings in the period, 87.1% record the buyer's financing type in the MLS. Among those:

Share of closings. Every figure is in the table below.

How Pasadena buyers actually paid, data table
Financing type	Share of closings	Median sale price for this type	Minimum down payment
Conventional	37.7%	$1,100,000	3% to 5%
Cash	35.3%	$1,290,000	100%
FHA	1.2%	$882,500	3.5%
VA	0.8%	not calculated	0%

FHA buyers in Pasadena bought at a median $882,500, against $1,100,000 for conventional buyers, so the low-down-payment route is concentrated in the lower half of the market.

Nationally, first-time buyers put down a median 10% and repeat buyers 23% according to the NAR 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (nar.realtor), and Redfin found the typical buyer put down 15%, or about $64,000, in March 2026 (redfin.com).

Where a down payment goes furthest in Pasadena

These are the three lowest-median neighborhoods in Pasadena with at least 15 closings in the period, out of 14 that qualified. Entry prices come with trade-offs: older buildings, higher HOA dues or longer commutes.

Where a down payment goes furthest in Pasadena, data table
Neighborhood	Sales (6 mo)	Median sale price	3.5% down	5% down	10% down
South Lake	31	$700,000	$24,500	$35,000	$70,000
Playhouse District	43	$739,000	$25,865	$36,950	$73,900
Catalina Villas	17	$765,000	$26,775	$38,250	$76,500
Citywide median	566	$1,250,000	$43,750	$62,500	$125,000
Lower Arroyo (highest median)	33	$2,180,000	$76,300	$109,000	$218,000

Local notes for Pasadena buyers

Pasadena's citywide median of $1,250,000 is condo-heavy on the low end and historic-house-heavy on the high end. South Lake, the Playhouse District and Catalina Villas condos closed at $700,000 to $765,000 medians, so a 10% down payment there is between $70,000 and $77,000. The median single family home sold for $1,595,000, which means $319,000 for 20% down, and the Lower Arroyo and Linda Vista areas ($2,180,000 median) are firmly jumbo territory. Cash buyers covered 35.3% of recorded closings, one of the highest shares in Southern California, which is a reminder that a financed buyer with 10% down needs clean terms to compete. The condo stock within walking distance of the Lake, Del Mar and Memorial Park Metro A Line stations is where most first-time buyers land, and HOA dues there typically run $400 to $700 a month, which lenders count against your qualifying payment.

California down payment assistance for Pasadena buyers

CalHFA's MyHome Assistance Program is a deferred-payment junior loan of up to 3.5% of the purchase price or appraised value (whichever is lower) when paired with a CalHFA FHA first mortgage, or up to 3% with a CalHFA conventional first mortgage, usable for the down payment and closing costs (calhfa.ca.gov). On the median Pasadena home ($1,250,000), that is up to $43,750 with an FHA loan, which covers the entire 3.5% minimum, or up to $37,500 with a conventional loan. MyHome requires the borrower to be a first-time buyer under CalHFA's income limits, which vary by county, and the first mortgage must stay within the county loan limit of $1,249,125, so it applies to homes priced up to about $1,294,430 with an FHA loan. CalHFA's Dream For All shared-appreciation loan reopens in limited rounds, and several cities and counties run their own programs; your TurboHome agent can check which ones apply to a specific address.

Methodology

TurboHome analyzed 566 Pasadena, California home sales recorded in the MLS with a close date between May 1 and October 31, 2026 and a sale price above $50,000. Single family homes, condominiums and townhouses are included; land, mobile and manufactured homes, multifamily and timeshares are excluded. Down payments are calculated as a straight percentage of the sale price and rounded to the nearest dollar; lender overlays, seller credits and closing costs are not included. FHA eligibility is the share of sales where the price less a 3.5% down payment is at or below the 2026 Los Angeles County FHA one-unit limit of $1,249,125; the conforming test uses a 5% down payment against the 2026 conforming limit of $1,249,125; the jumbo test uses a 20% down payment against the same limit. Loan limits are from the FHFA announcement of November 25, 2025 and HUD's 2026 FHA limits effective January 1, 2026. The financing mix counts only closings where the MLS records a single buyer financing type; multi-value entries and blanks are excluded, and the mix is omitted where fewer than 80% of closings have a recorded type. Neighborhood medians use the MLS neighborhood field and require at least 15 closings (Sacramento uses ZIP codes with at least 8 closings because of thinner feed coverage). Monthly payment estimates use the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey 30-year fixed average of 7.24% for the week of October 29, 2026 (freddiemac.com/pmms), principal and interest only. Year-over-year comparisons use the same method for May 1 to October 31, 2025 and are shown only where the prior period has at least 100 closings in our feed.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a down payment on a house in Pasadena?

On the median Pasadena home, which sold for $1,250,000 between May 1 and October 31, 2026, a down payment is $43,750 at 3.5% (FHA), $62,500 at 5%, $125,000 at 10% and $250,000 at 20%. One in four homes sold for $845,625 or less, where 5% down is $42,281.

What is the minimum down payment for a house in Pasadena?

FHA loans allow 3.5% down, which is $43,750 on the median Pasadena home, as long as the loan stays under the $1,249,125 Los Angeles County limit; 52.1% of Pasadena sales in the period qualified. Conventional loans allow 3% to 5% down for first-time buyers, and VA loans require no down payment for eligible veterans and service members.

Do I need 20% down to buy a house in Pasadena?

No. 35.3% of recorded Pasadena closings were all-cash and FHA plus VA loans covered 2%; the remaining 62.7% were conventional or other loans, many of them with less than 20% down and private mortgage insurance. Nationally, first-time buyers put down a median 10%. Putting 20% down ($250,000 on the median home) avoids mortgage insurance and lowers the payment by about $1,406 a month compared with 3.5% down.

Is Pasadena a jumbo loan market?

Largely, yes. 33.4% of Pasadena homes sold for more than $1,561,406, which means the loan exceeded the $1,249,125 conforming limit even with 20% down. Jumbo lenders typically want 10% to 20% down, higher credit scores and 6 to 12 months of reserves, so plan the down payment and the reserves together.

Is there down payment assistance in Pasadena?

Yes. CalHFA's MyHome program offers a deferred junior loan of up to 3.5% of the price with a CalHFA FHA loan ($43,750 on the median Pasadena home) or 3% with a conventional loan, subject to first-time buyer status, income limits and the $1,249,125 county loan limit. Local city and county programs may stack on top.

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