California Real Estate - Appreciation on Steroids
For the last five years, owners of California real estate have
been hitting the ball out of the appreciation ballpark. Yes, a
real estate market on steroids.
California
California is heavily populated from north to south along the
coastline, but they state offers significantly different
ecologies. In Northern California, one is much more likely to
see signs of the four seasons, get cold temperatures and more
historic feel in locations such as San Francisco. Southern
California, on the other hand, has an extremely moderate climate
with temperatures rarely dipping below 60 degrees even in the
winter. Rainfall is also scant with San Diego receiving roughly
11 inches a year. If you are considering moving to California,
there are two constants throughout the state.
Traffic
So many people have moved to the state that traffic can be a
real issue even on weekends. Los Angles traffic is legendary,
but San Francisco and San Diego have their own congestion
problems.
Earthquakes
Earthquakes are a constant throughout the state as the San
Andres Fault bisects much of the state. Earthquakes happen all
of the time, but they are typically very small. If you live in
California for more than a month, you won't even notice them.
Beaches, Sun and Culture
There are serious benefits to living in California. Foremost, of
course, are the beaches. If the thought of spending weekends and
evenings on the beach appeals to you, this is the place. You'll
pay a premium for it, but there is nothing like it. For example,
the temperature in San Diego on October 5, 2005, the day I am
writing this, is 79 degrees!
California Real Estate
California is an incredible place to live and real estate prices
reflect it. Single-family home prices average as follows for the
three major metropolitan areas - $620,000 for San Diego,
$1,300,000 for central San Francisco and $750,000 for central
Los Angeles. As a general rule, the closer the home is to the
ocean, the more it will cost.
As shocking as the prices are, the rate of appreciation is
downright impossible to believe. In the last 12 months,
California real estate has appreciated over 25 percent. For a
500,000 home, that is a gain of $125,000 in 12 months. Steroids
indeed!
Real estate is all about location, location, location. While
this is certainly a clich