Tag: housing bubble

Photo by Joe WilcoxSep 8, 202510:09 pm

The Rally at 1526 Meade Avenue

The city’s obsession with adding more housing shocks by the day. Cute, historic homes are leveled and replaced by multi-level residential buildings that are typically rentals (no condos for you, Bud) and explicitly turn out to be so-called micro-units (tiny space, big monthly payment). These new builds tower over single-family homes and/or two-story apartments/condos, dramatically obliterating local character and robbing existing homes of airflow and sunlight.

Justification: Housing shortage. That’s a lie. According to Zillow, there are currently 18,499 rentals available across San Diego County. For sale: 8,101 homes. That sure looks like plenty of inventory to me. According to Point2Homes, which business is helping people find places to rent, there are 6,142 “housing units” in my community of University Heights. Zillow says 279 of them are currently for rent; but not all list on the service, so the number should be higher.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 20, 202310:44 pm

Thinking About Moving?

Anyone not battened down with an exceptionally good-paying job or affordable home ownership should be thinking about fleeing from San Diego. My wife and I talk about doing so every day—not nearly but with certainty every. Rents rocket and home prices are beyond escape velocity.

According to Zillow, the city ranks third nationwide for highest average rents—behind New York and ahead of San Francisco. Yikes! Point2 crunches home prices, and you’ll need binoculars to see how high they are. Among the 30 largest U.S. cities, San Diego ranks fourth for the number of listings above $1 million (58.6 percent). Median home price: $910,000.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 12, 202310:06 pm

The Winslow

Sometime soon, I will share more about the evolution of the apartment complex that now occupies the property where was New Vision Christian Fellowship. I remember when families and old folks lined up for free food Fridays. Now the church’s former location is a cathedral for, according to promotional material, a “truly timeless, amenity-rich living experience”. Oh yeah?

The massive, block-long mixed-use structure, Winslow, packs in 379 apartments, which will lease in staggered fashion over the coming months. At a time when San Diego touts new buildings like this one as being the forebears of more affordable housing, Winslow rental prices sure make me wonder how.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 22, 202310:06 pm

The Caustic Costs of San Diego Housing

Some posts need little explanation, because the numbers so clearly speak for themselves. Based on a report from a Chamber of Commerce, the median annual income in San Diego is $66,536. The median monthly rent for a one-bedroom residence (presumably apartment): $2,543. Based on a “rent-to-income ratio of 30 percent”, the yearly salary necessary for that same flat: $101,720. Ah, yeah.

That’s an income shortfall of $35,184. Stated differently, that median one-bedroom costs $30,516 over 12 months. And that ignores other intangibles that jack up the cost of living. How much? San Diego ranks No. 1 in U.S. News World Report’s list of the “Most Expensive Places to Live in the U.S. in 2023-2024“. Hell, what an honor!

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 2, 202310:15 pm

All The Time (Zones) in the World

What do you make of this? The area along the Kindred Hospital property in San Diego village of University Heights is a bit of a homeless campsite. Makeshift tents tucked behind utility boxes or covered bodies stretched out on grass are commonly seen. Shopping carts chock full of junk—eh, personal belongings— are navigational hazards. Weave as you walk!

A lone cart containing a time-zone map of the world made an impression for seeming so out of place by any measure. Who did it belong to? Why did he or she abandon it? Was the wall hanging free for the taking? Discarded? Forgotten? You know, the shopping cart got left behind—accidentally detached from several carts strung together.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 17, 202311:07 pm

The San Diego Housing Boom is Bust

About two weeks ago, Reventure Consulting posted a YouTube short spotlighting a house for sale in my neighborhood: “$1 Million Listing in San Diego that has no buyers“. I wanted to snag a photo and write something sooner, but our daughter’s medical crisis and recovery consumed my time.

At the time that Reventure Consulting CEO and Founder Nicholas Gerli released the 53-second clip, the University Heights home listed for $1,099,000, following several price reductions. Recent history: For sale at $1,222,000 on Dec. 15, 2022. Less than a month later, January 12, price dropped to $1,192,000 and to $1,162,000 thirteen days later. That led to a pending sale for the lower list price on February 21, which quickly collapsed, and the home returned for sale at $1,162,000 on February 24. Sellers dropped the price, again, on March 1 to $1,135,000 and to $1,099,000 on the 23rd.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 12, 20239:26 pm

What Would You Pay to Live Here?

Zillow lists 30 places for rent in my neighborhood of University Heights. You are looking at the most expensive: $5,950 per month. For a rent like that, I think Manhattan or San Francisco—not a somewhat middleclass area of San Diego. But, hey, the deposit is only $5500 (plus another $500, if you have a small pet). Lucky you.

Strangely, the place is a bargain, because half-a-block distance is a $5,450 rental that may be less monthly but poorer value for the size:1,450 square feet, compared to 2,325 sq ft for the pricier property.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 9, 20229:52 pm

San Diego Housing is Beyond You

What I want to know: Who rented this University Heights home? When my wife and I passed by on Aug. 3, 2022, a “For Rent” sign welcomed interest—well, until looking at the asking price of, uh-hum, $5,450 monthly. Granted, by square feet, the place is one of the larger houses in our San Diego neighborhood. But who commits to $65,400—more than an annual salary for many locals—to rent?

Buying is no bargain. One of the, ah, affordable homes for sale nearby lists for $1.1 million. Zillow estimates a monthly mortgage payment, along with insurance and taxes, of $5,797; that’s after 20 percent down. Who can afford to buy? Answer: The fine folks at Visual Capitalist rank San Diego as the nation’s third costliest home market, with a median price of $905,000. Necessary salary: $166,828.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 9, 20229:48 pm

This is Progress?

I am not obsessed with the construction site at El Cajon Blvd and Louisiana Street, despite the number of recent photos and commentaries about it: Cave’s Grave; Wonder Wall; Shattered Serenity; Postal Convenience Center. My interest is what the project represents to San Diego neighborhoods Hillcrest, North Park, and University Heights, where relaxation of zoning rules is bringing down charming businesses and homes and replacing them with high-rises that are way out of character with the area.

The Featured Image, taken on May 7, 2022 using Leica Q2, captures before, during, and after multi-unit construction. Foreground looks across the aforementioned recent demolition to a four-story residential complex at Mississippi, overlooking the recently relocated Red Fox Steak House.

Living by Joe WilcoxMay 6, 202210:30 pm

Decorating the Cave’s Grave

The demolition site at El Cajon Blvd and Louisiana Street in University Heights returns five days later, because of alterations. Remnants remain of the Cave of Wonders building, but somebody has graffitied over some of the doodle drawings of the still-standing inner wall.

In reviewing the Featured Image, I see another change: The livable-looking property that was to the right behind in my previous shots is gone. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/8, ISO 100, 1/160 sec, 28mm; 4:48 p.m. PDT; Leica Q2.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 1, 20229:23 pm

The Cave of Wonders Wall

New construction is everywhere among several San Diego neighborhoods, following zoning changes meant to encourage multi-unit dwellings. ADUs—so-called accessory dwelling units—add large structures in spaces once considered to be back yards. The spin doctors who sprinkle marketing sugar onto urban renewal medicinals call these buildings Granny Flats. Oh yeah? So why does gran need four to seven residences?

The project at El Cajon Blvd and Louisiana Street is much bigger—and I see similar high-rises, or larger, going up around University Heights, as well as bordering Hillcrest and North Park.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 29, 20229:42 pm

Fenced Out of Affordable Housing

My daughter rents storage space at one of the local facilities. From my infrequent trips to the place over the years, I have observed stark changes. For starters: An increasing number of people, many of them clearly employed, living out of a vehicle and storing their stuff. With the cost of housing so incredulously expensive in San Diego, these working nomads are not surprising to find. What shocks is how many more I see compared to 18 months ago.

Since a new report about residential renting released this week, I will focus on that topic and let be soaring home selling prices for another time. (If you can’t wait: “Pop Goes Another Housing Bubble” and “Simply Stated: San Diego Unaffordable Housing“.) According to Zumper, rents rose 31.3 percent year-over-year in April 2022. “As a result, San Diego has leapfrogged San Jose and Los Angeles to become the nation’s fifth most expensive city”. Ugh, and I know it’s a fact from watching rents relentlessly rise.