Best Affordable Cities in California

by | May 16, 2019 | Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor, Where to Move | 6 comments

Rob Dawg’s neighborhood!  Hat tip to Eddie89 for sending this in:

Surf, sun and year-round moderate temperatures can sometimes come at a cost.

With a reputation as one of the most expensive states in the U.S., California (thankfully) still has some economically sound places to reside – if you know where to look.

Just to be clear: We didn’t just create this list based solely on the cheapest places to live. The cost of living was part of our methodology, but so was the quality of life, as well as the key components of transportation, housing, food and utilities.

Here are the 5 most affordable cities in California:

  • Oxnard
  • Ventura
  • Simi Valley
  • Vacaville
  • Camarillo

1. Oxnard

About an hour north of Los Angeles, Oxnard offers beachfront living at an affordable price.

The median household income here is $62,349 with median home value settling at $332,600, which is actually a great deal for California real estate.

Golf, winery visits and strolls on Mandalay Beach are all part of living in Oxnard.

With fertile agricultural land surrounding the city, many crops grow in the region. But Oxnard is most famous for its strawberries, with the popular California Strawberry Festival held here each year.

The city has the nickname of the “Gateway to the Channel Islands,” a nearby national park and marine sanctuary.

Link to Full Article

Inventory Watch

by | Apr 29, 2019 | Inventory, Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor | 2 comments

If you’d like to contribute to the Chabad of Poway in hopes of finding solutions to the senseless violence that plagues our society, click here:

Link to Donation Page

What’s the answer?

Let’s start by interviewing the murderers in jail and have them reflect on how stupid it was to throw their life away, and then share that with the kids.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is a real estate blog, and I’m going to plow ahead. Let’s keep living!

Here’s a fascinating example of the current market conditions between La Jolla and Carlsbad, and it shows that it’s not just about price.

Today there are 62% more homes for sale priced under $1,000,000 than there were last year – you can buy a cheaper home!  But buyers want quality – look at how the average list-price-per-sf of the pendings relates to the actives:

NSDCC Actives vs. Pendings

Price
# of ACT
Avg. $$/sf
# of PEND
Avg. $$/sf
0-$1.0M
99
$469/sf
84
$481/sf
$1M–$1.5M
193
$507/sf
128
$515/sf
$1.5M–$2M
148
$605/sf
77
$602/sf
$2.0M+
501
–
88
$873/sf

This is why pricing will likely plateau – people are willing to pay these prices if they can just get a suitable home. They are making their decisions based on location, condition, and schools, and are willing to pass on inferior homes even though they could save some money.

Buyers are decisive too, and are willing to act when they see the right fit. Look at how the average days-on-market compares:

NSDCC Actives vs. Pendings

Price
# of ACT
Avg. DOM
# of PEND
Avg. DOM
0-$1.0M
99
43
84
21
$1M–$1.5M
193
49
128
30
$1.5M–$2M
148
49
77
39
$2.0M+
501
97
88
116

The higher-end buyers are being very deliberate, but the rest are acting!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(more…)

Hike Carlsbad

by | Apr 13, 2019 | Carlsbad, Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor | 1 comment

From the Reader:

Denk Mountain is the unofficial name of the highest point in the City of Carlsbad. It may be a little presumptuous to call it a mountain, but at 1041 feet of elevation, it is high enough to offer dramatic views up and down the San Diego coast, especially west to where the Batiquitos Lagoon discharges into the Pacific.

The name honors the Denk family, who once owned much of the land that is now the Rancho La Costa Preserve, which is owned and managed by a non-profit, the Center for Natural Lands Management (tax deductible donations are appreciated). If you are a mountain biker and don’t already know about these trails, you should definitely check it out.

The preserve has over 6 miles of trails, some of which are very challenging. It can be a pleasant hike or trail run for anyone in moderately good physical condition. Many trails of varying difficulty lead to the peak. The route described here is only one of several possibilities.

The trails are open year-round from dawn to dusk, but the best times to go are mornings between January and June, preferably after a storm has left the area with clear air and perhaps some dramatic clouds.

Warning: rattlesnakes live here. Also, it is a very active mountain biking area. While hikers have the right-of-way, you should do whatever you need to do to avoid a collision with a rapidly moving bicycle. There is no shade, and the hillside tends to face toward the sun. Bring trekking poles if you have them, as they will be useful at times.

Link to Full Article


San Diego, 1978

by | Apr 6, 2019 | Historic Homes, Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor | 7 comments

Hat tip to Eliana for sending this in!

Back in July 1978 the average home price in San Diego was $73,000. That may sound inexpensive but that was still $22,000 higher than the national average at the time! La Jolla was much higher and you couldn’t find much for under $150,000. Scripps Ranch average was between $90,000-$100,000, Mira Mesa ranged between $55,000-$100,000, and the newer community of Rancho Penasquitos average was $75,000. Chula Vista had some good buys and Imperial Beach averaged about the same as the city of San Diego. In this three part series, Dave Cohen interviews century 21 realtor Jay Meetze on the housing market in the summer of ’78.

Housing Policy

by | Apr 1, 2019 | Documentary Film, Ideas/Solutions, Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor, Local Government, Market Conditions, NIMBY | 7 comments

The C.A.R. sent out this paper that reviews the current housing dilemma, which boils down to having to improve zoning regulations to facilitate more/better infill projects because the more-mature cities are out of land for the most part. She also included this:

However, the paper also offers evidence that cities can use their control over the development process to limit access to housing, sometimes in problematic ways. The finding that less housing is built in cities with both higher homeownership rates and White populations is sadly consistent with existing research on NIMBY opposition to local housing development (Lewis & Baldassare, 2010; Scally & Tighe, 2015; Whittemore & BenDor, 2018). These studies examined opposition to building multifamily or affordable housing; it is striking that in this study cities with more homeowners and larger white populations had less single-family development. This finding serves as yet another warning that racial exclusion from White communities continues to limit housing opportunities for people of color.

Link to Full Report

San Diego in Top 14

by | Feb 27, 2019 | Jim's Take on the Market, Local Flavor | 6 comments

Hat tip to Eddie89 for sending in this Forbes article that declares San Diego to be one of the Top 14 destinations this year – and this was before Manny mania!

For a destination to officially be having “a moment,” it needs more going for it than mere festivals or a few restaurant openings. The city has to be experiencing a shift in the way it looks and feels.

Maybe it’s posturing itself as a new cultural mecca with gallery or museum openings. It could be establishing itself on the epicurean radar with fresh food halls or eateries from top-notch chefs.

Those are the things that caught our Forbes Travel Guide editors’ eyes with the following cities. Some are traditional hot spots that somehow keep reinventing themselves. Others are new stops prepping for their first time in the spotlight. All are having monumental moments that are worthy of a visit in 2019.

Link to Article

Pin It on Pinterest