The value of homes destroyed in the Palisades and Eaton Fires that blazed through Southern California in January 2025 has reached a jaw-dropping tally.
The devastating fires collectively wiped out an estimated $8.3 billion in property value across the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, according to a Realtor.com analysis that tracked the dramatic shift in values between late 2024 and the second half of 2025.
The shocking total loss in values between the two communities was based on the average of home values collected by real estate analytics firms Cotality and Quantarium. Realtor.com’s analysis of the data included only properties assessed by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection — meaning that a substantial number of affluent Pacific Palisades and working-class Altadena properties were not even counted.
Despite its enormity, the $8.3 billion figure also excludes Malibu, Topanga and other areas that were also affected by the fires in early 2025.
Collective property values of destroyed, damaged and untouched homes in the Pacific Palisades took a roughly $5.2 billion hit, according to the analysis. Working-class Altadena fared little better, with approximately $3.1 billion in total property value losses.
In both the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, homes bought between 2020 and 2024, and later sold as lots last year, went for roughly 50% less than their pre-fire purchase prices, Realtor.com found.
The dramatic haircut reflects both lost structures and uncertainty about what the future holds.
Cory Weiss of Douglas Elliman told The Post that residents’ efforts to return are hampered by red tape, high overall costs and an immeasurable mental toll.
“The lots I’ve sold or am going to sell are people that are just not coming back, and they’re moving on with their lives,” Weiss said.
He has seen the decline in values and subsequent price drops firsthand. A client bought a $30 million brand new estate eight months before the fires. Weiss said initial efforts to help his client purchase the adjoining property valued in the $8 million range were unsuccessful. After the fires, his client was able to secure it for $6 million.
Those who are able to return to their neighborhoods face not only insurance headaches and soot, but the loss of their surrounding community and vegetation, as well as the constant company of surrounding construction crews.
“It’s really turned into a situation where it’s almost going to be like a new town in three to five years,” Weiss said.
Just less than 14% of properties destroyed in the Pacific Palisades listed over the past year, according to Realtor.com, with a median list price of $2 million.
In Altadena, where more than 41% of single-family homes were destroyed, nearly 10% of gutted homes were put on sale over the last year. Asking prices for livable homes — a local rarity — increased, and empty lots didn’t linger on the market long.
“Financially, the burden of rebuilding and finding a temporary home, a lot of people can’t afford that,” Weiss said. “That being said, a lot of people in the Palisades are running up against that as well”
The total value of the Pacific Palisades’ destroyed properties declined by 27%, according to Realtor.com. The analysis charted a drop from $14.7 billion in late 2024 to $10.8 billion this year. Weiss said a majority of his buyers for these lots are investors.
Even the mere risk of fire has radically affected values — the valuations of untouched homes within the A-lister enclave’s burn zone dipped by 10%.
Values in Altadena fared even worse.
The Eaton Fire’s impacts included a 33% loss in property values for destroyed homes — a dramatic loss in the area’s wealth. The area’s stock of damaged homes also took a 20% hit.
Altadena homes spared by Eaton saw a collective value loss from $3.8 billion to $3.2 billion, or 16%.
The Palisades market is seeing increased activity in recent quarters, luxury broker Rochelle Atlas Maize told The Post. Particularly for land purchases, she said, many of which are paid in cash.
Despite investor interest, Atlas Maize said she’s observed a larger uptick in returning local residents. This local contingent of the market has been able to purchase in neighborhoods they would have been unable to afford prior to the fires, she said.
Yet a majority of households that lost their homes remained displaced as of October, according to Department of Angels, a fire recovery nonprofit.
“There’s been so much frustration, because there’s been so many promises from the state and the city, saying they’re going to expedite permits and get everything done quickly, and it just hasn’t happened,” Atlas Maize said. “The permits are taking forever.”
Households face the decision of continuing to lease interim homes or leaving behind their former communities. The latter choice would result in even more destroyed lots being released to the market, adding to inventory pressure.
Inventory is expected to pick up even more in the near future, Atlas Maize said, as insurance claims are wrapped up.
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