Salina KS Housing Market, October 2026: What the Data Shows

By John Klassen, The Klassen Group at Salina Homes | November 12, 2026 | Data from the South Central Kansas MLS and Freddie Mac

Closed sales in Saline County dropped 38.8 percent in October. Does that mean the Salina housing market is cooling off? Not exactly, and the reason is hiding in the contract numbers.

Every month, Amber, Keith, and I go through the Saline County MLS report line by line because the headline number rarely tells the whole story. Here is how I read October, what it means whether you are buying or selling, and where the numbers can mislead you.

A note on the data: The MLS report covers Saline County as a whole. It does not break out the Salina city limits, so I will not describe any of these figures as city only numbers.

Is Salina KS a Buyer's Market or a Seller's Market Right Now?

Saline County still leans toward sellers, with some softening at the edges. There were 1.7 months of supply at the end of October, and homes that closed sold in a median of 5 days at 100 percent of list price. A balanced market is commonly described as 5 to 6 months of supply, so we are well below that.

It is not a market where every home sells in a weekend, though. Active listings averaged 62 days on market compared with 39 a year ago, and the median was 28 days compared with 22. There were also 102 homes for sale, the highest month end count of 2026 so far, up from 96 in September and 81 in August.

How Did the Salina Housing Market Perform in October 2026?

Three terms matter here, and they are easy to mix up:

• Closed sales are deals that finished during the month.
• Contracts written are new deals signed during the month.
• Pending contracts are deals under contract that had not closed yet at the end of the month.

Saline County (October unless noted)	2026	2025	Change
Closed sales	41	67	Down 38.8%
Closed sales, year to date	580	609	Down 4.8%
Median sale price	$225,000	$229,000	Down 1.7%
Median days on market (closed)	5	16	Down 68.8%
Active listings (end of month)	102	117	Down 12.8%
Months' supply	1.7	1.9	Down 10.5%
New listings	71	76	Down 6.6%
Contracts written	58	59	Down 1.7%
Pending contracts (end of month)	73	75	Down 2.7%

Source: South Central Kansas MLS, Saline County Housing Report for October 2026, prepared by the WSU Center for Real Estate on November 5, 2026.

Why Did Closed Sales Fall 38.8 Percent, and Is the Market Crashing?

A 38.8 percent drop in closings would be alarming if contracts, prices, and days on market all fell with it. They did not. Here is why I read the closed sales number with caution:

• Closed sales look backward. A home that closed in October generally went under contract weeks earlier. September's contracts were soft, now revised to 48 and down 27.3 percent from 66 a year earlier, so fewer October closings is what that would predict.
• October 2025 was a strong comparison. 67 homes closed last October. The gap is 26 homes, which makes the percentage look dramatic.
• The full year is closer than the month. Year to date, Saline County has 580 sales compared with 609 at this point in 2025, down 4.8 percent.
• The current numbers held steady. Contracts written were 58, down only 1.7 percent from 59 a year ago, and pending contracts were 73, down 2.7 percent from 75.

What Changed From September to October?

Two numbers from last month's update have been revised by the MLS. September contracts written were first reported as 50 and are now 48. The median price of September contracts was first reported as $199,450, a 10.3 percent drop, and is now $219,900, about 1.1 percent below last year.

Compared with September, October looked steadier. Contracts written rose from 48 to 58, and pending contracts rose from 58 to 73 by the end of the month. That makes September look like a dip so far, but one month of data cannot tell us whether that will hold.

What Are Salina Home Prices Doing?

Salina home prices are holding up, though monthly numbers bounce around because the county only has a few dozen sales a month. The median sale price was $225,000, down 1.7 percent from $229,000, which was the highest monthly median of 2025. The year to date median is $212,000, up 3.4 percent. The average sale price was $238,824, down 6.5 percent, but with only 41 sales a few homes can move that number.

Most homes are still selling at list price. The median home sold at 100 percent of list. The average sale price as a percent of list was 98.1 percent, compared with 97.6 percent a year ago and 97.5 percent in September.

Why a lower median contract price does not mean values fell. The median price of homes that went under contract in October was $177,000, down 11.5 percent from $199,900. That number tells you which homes buyers chose that month, not what any individual home is worth. Of the 58 contracts written, 34 (59 percent) were for homes priced under $200,000, and none were priced above $500,000. A different mix of homes can explain much of the lower number.

Homes for Sale in Salina KS: Inventory by Price Range

Inventory edged up again but is still limited. There were 102 active listings at the end of October, 12.8 percent below last October's 117. New listings were 71, down 6.6 percent. Here is how supply looked in the middle of the market:

Price Range	Active Listings	Months' Supply	Median Days on Market
$50,000 to $99,999	10	2.1	32
$175,000 to $199,999	8	1.4	111
$200,000 to $249,999	30	2.7	39
$250,000 to $299,999	9	1.2	12
$300,000 to $399,999	9	1.3	16
$400,000 to $499,999	10	3.2	58
$500,000 to $749,999	9	5.4	6

The $175,000 to $199,999 range is the one to study. It had only 8 active listings and 1.4 months of supply, which sounds tight, yet the median days on market for those listings was 111. Compare that with $250,000 to $299,999, where 9 listings had a median of 12 days. Two ranges with low supply, very different results.

That is the lesson of this report. Supply tells you how many homes are available in a range. It does not tell you whether a particular home is priced and presented well. Condition, presentation, location, and price are what separate the home that sells in a week from the one that sits for months. Last month the example was $300,000 to $399,999, which now shows a median of 16 days, so the range changes from month to month. The lesson does not. Each range also has only a handful of homes, so one or two listings can swing these numbers.

What Does This Mean for Salina Home Sellers?

Sellers compete with the homes available right now, not just the homes that sold months ago. With active listings averaging 62 days on the market, buyers can see which homes have been sitting, and they notice. A few practical takeaways:

• Price against today's competition. Recent sales matter, but so do the homes you will sit next to online.
• Low inventory does not guarantee a quick sale. The $175,000 to $199,999 range is proof.
• Condition and presentation count. Even in a tight market, buyers compare homes closely.
• Be ready for concession questions, such as help with closing costs.

What Does This Mean for Salina Home Buyers?

Buyers have more to choose from than in the summer, with 102 homes for sale compared with 81 in August. Homes that have been listed for a while may leave more room to negotiate, while well priced homes can still move quickly, as the 5 day median shows.

Rates are the other half of the picture. Freddie Mac's national 30 year average was 7.18 percent on November 5, its third weekly decline, compared with 6.22 percent a year earlier. That is a national benchmark for borrowers with strong credit and 20 percent down, so your rate may differ. On a $225,000 loan (a $250,000 home with 10 percent down), principal and interest at 7.18 percent is about $1,524 a month, compared with about $1,381 at 6.22 percent. That is roughly $143 more, and it excludes taxes, insurance, and mortgage insurance. It is for illustration only. I wrote more about how rates and loan applications fit with local activity in fewer mortgage applications and what they could mean for Salina buyers and sellers.

Why Countywide Numbers Only Tell Part of the Story

Countywide statistics are useful for seeing direction, but they do not tell you what your home is worth or what a home you are considering is worth. A median blends every price range, condition, and neighborhood in the county. The home across the street, the one that has been sitting for 111 days, and the one that sold in two days are all in the same average. I looked at why online estimates miss for the same reason in why your Salina home's online estimate is off, and if you are thinking about timing a sale, should you sell your home in the fall or wait until spring covers that question.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Salina KS a buyer's market or a seller's market?
Saline County still leans toward sellers, with 1.7 months of supply in October 2026 and homes closing in a median of 5 days. Active listings are sitting longer than a year ago, so buyers may find room to negotiate on some homes.

What is the median home price in Salina KS?
The median sale price in Saline County was $225,000 in October 2026, down 1.7 percent from a year earlier. The year to date median is $212,000, up 3.4 percent.

How many homes are for sale in Salina KS?
There were 102 active listings in Saline County at the end of October 2026, up from 96 in September and down 12.8 percent from October 2025.

Why did closed sales fall 38.8 percent in October?
Closed sales reflect contracts signed weeks earlier, and September contracts were soft. October 2025 was also a strong comparison, with 67 closings. Year to date, sales are down 4.8 percent, 580 versus 609.

Are Salina home prices falling?
Not overall. The October median was down 1.7 percent, but the year to date median is up 3.4 percent. The median price of homes under contract was $177,000, down 11.5 percent, largely reflecting which homes went under contract that month.

Are mortgage rates affecting the Salina housing market?
Higher rates raise monthly payments, which can lead some buyers to pause. Freddie Mac's national average was 7.18 percent on November 5, 2026, versus 6.22 percent a year earlier. The MLS report does not say whether rates affected local activity.

What is the difference between closed sales, contracts written, and pending contracts?
Closed sales finished during the month. Contracts written are new deals signed during the month. Pending contracts are deals under contract that had not closed by month end.

Where does this data come from?
Local figures come from the October 2026 South Central Kansas MLS report for Saline County, prepared by the WSU Center for Real Estate. Rate figures come from Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Links are in the sources section below.

Sources

• South Central Kansas MLS, Saline County Housing Report, October 2026, prepared by the WSU Center for Real Estate on November 5, 2026, courtesy of the Kansas REALTORS.
• Freddie Mac, Primary Mortgage Market Survey release, November 5, 2026. Current and historical rates are at freddiemac.com/pmms.

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John Klassen is a licensed REALTOR and co founder of The Klassen Group at Salina Homes, serving Salina, Saline County, and surrounding communities. Reach him at 785 201 4341 or through SalinaLiving.com/contact.