AI Money Fuels Surge in Second-Home Buyers From Bay Area

The expansion of artificial intelligence wealth across the Bay Area is reshaping luxury residential markets throughout Northern and Central California, driving a surge in purchases from Napa to Carmel.

Brokers said that many of these properties are not primary residences, but weekend retreats, long‑term investments or future retirement homes for tech professionals with growing liquidity, the San Francisco Business Times reported. Data confirmed the trend.

In the North Bay, there has been a strong influx of affluent buyers acquiring second, third and even fourth homes, Ohana Realty’s Soren Olsen said. At Montage Residences Healdsburg, a project with 25 turnkey luxury homes, only one remains unsold, with roughly 30 percent of buyers coming from the Bay Area. Olsen attributed the demand to the spillover of new AI wealth from Silicon Valley and the East Bay into drive‑to destinations like wine country.

Since September, luxury and ultraluxury home sales in Napa and Sonoma counties have risen 58 percent year‑over‑year, according to Compass analyst Patrick Carlisle. The region now has the highest number of $5 million‑plus homes in contract in at least two years. Napa and Sonoma also offer the widest selection of high‑end listings in the Bay Area, including 114 active listings above $5 million, 31 above $10 million, and eight above $20 million. A key differentiator for these markets is the amount of land that comes with the house.

“The median lot size for homes listed in the two counties at $10 million-plus is well over 50 acres, while in the rest of the Bay Area, it is just a little above 1 acre,” Carlisle told the San Francisco Business Times. “It’s a completely different style of living for the most affluent homebuyers.”

Agents across the region described a diverse mix of tech buyers.

Grace Lucero of Vanguard Properties said she has seen weekend home seekers, early retirees and long‑term planners building multi‑lot compounds. Many are in their 30s and 40s, often paying all cash and leveraging stock wealth.

Tech buyers, especially those tied to AI, continue to favor Napa Valley, with some acquiring large tracts of land for future vineyard estates, Robyn Bentley of Christie’s International Real Estate said. Several brokerages have expanded their wine country agent count, including Christie’s Sereno and Coldwell Banker.

The trend extends beyond wine country.

Marin County’s Stinson Beach is seeing increased AI‑driven demand, while Carmel and Pebble Beach are attracting Bay Area professionals seeking a two‑hour escape with natural beauty and hybrid‑work convenience. Monterey County’s largest 2025 sale so far involved buyers from an AI infrastructure company, according to agent Simona Martin.

Farther south, San Luis Obispo County is drawing younger tech buyers, many in their early 30s, purchasing second homes, Airbnbs and investment properties near Avila Beach, Pismo Beach and Paso Robles. Many have ties to Cal Poly.

Some AI‑affluent buyers are even looking internationally. Compass agent Joske Thompson said he has seen growing interest in second homes in Panama and other countries, driven by asset diversification and favorable currency exchange rates.

— Joel Russell