San Diego California Statistics and Facts for 2019
1. Predictions Of A Housing Slump In Early 2019
Despite a great economic outlook for 2019, the increased need for affordable housing due to the expanding employment market, will drive the prices up even further. Experts predict that the glut of homes for sale will benefit buyers whose employment situation has been upgraded and that San Diego will become a buyer’s market, and the slump will be reversed.
2. Navy Proposes San Diego Grand Central Station
The San Diego Association of Governments and the Department of the Navy are proposing to develop San Diego’s version of Grand Central Station at the northern edge of the peninsula of Point Loma. The transportation hub will connect all the rail entities in the area and provide convenient access to passengers and workers at San Diego International Airport. In addition, the Navy plans to use old WWII airplane hangers for administrative offices, lab space, storage, and warehouse facilities in addition to developing new facilities for those who work there. There’s also the possibility of multi-family housing, retail space, and both corporate and government office space.
3. Experts Posit That Home Prices May Have Peaked In San Diego
Even though San Diego is an extremely popular destination for vacations and tourism, experts are predicting that home prices may have peaked in San Diego. Although this is great news for the prospective home buyer and for those who want to invest in rental property, it may be a harbinger for those who want to sell their home. Housing values in major cities across the U.S. seem to be cooling off, remaining stable rather than increasing in value. San Diego, in particular, seems to be experiencing a slowdown in home value appreciation, due in part to the rapid rise experienced from 2012 to 2019, when housing prices almost doubled.
4. San Diego Grew Up Around The Hotel Del Coronado
The spectacular Hotel del Coronado opened in 1888 and quickly became the hub of the city. Wealthy developers and landowners frequented the hotel and purchased homes in the surrounding area. The suburb is now called Coronado, and it boasts some of the most expensive and most spectacular homes in the San Diego area, with a median price of almost $1.8 million. Coronado NAS helps to stimulate the local housing activity and the hotel has hosted many dignitaries and famous people throughout the years, including presidents and royalty, and many movies have been filmed there.
5. Homes In San Diego Still Have An Excellent ROI
Anyone who can afford to buy a home in San Diego can still expect an excellent rate of appreciation, although it may be less than in previous years. According to FortuneBuilders, homes purchased in San Diego in the past ten years have appreciated at three to four times the national average, making the expensive homes a good investment for both rental units and residences. Equity reflects the purchase price, minus payments and down payment, and the current market value.
6. San Diego Has New Upscale Apartments
Earlier this year, Greystar opened. It’s one of the most expensive apartment complexes in San Diego, and residents have already begun to move in. More than 50 leases have been signed for this 300-unit residential facility and rents average $4,000 per month. Located in the University Town Center, or UTC, area, this resort-like complex caters to those in the lucrative biotech field and other affluent San Diego residents.
Although these rents are high, they aren’t the most expensive in the area. Palisade, a nearby complex, charges more than $7,000 for a top-floor apartment, and Ocean House in La Jolla charges about $4,500 for their one-bedroom units. Those wealthy individuals who want a vacation home or who want to relocate to the San Diego area will find luxury living at its finest in one of these units that are far above the average rental unit in San Diego. Currently, about half of the building is occupied by retirees who have downsized and can afford the luxurious amenities of the Palisade, and for the low-income renter, the Palisade has 30 subsidized apartments. Construction took almost two years and employed almost 200 workers each day. Completion of the Palisade has increased traffic and sales in the UTC mall, and the developer plans to use the retail industry in its future developments of apartments, hotels, and office buildings.
7. Seaport Village’s New Space-Needle Tower
Those who want to make the San Diego area even more famous than it is, are proposing a new tower at Seaport Village that will bear quite a resemblance to Seattle’s Space Needle. Since nothing like this has ever been tried at the waterfront, the city planners are hesitant to approve it. Included in the proposed redevelopment of the Central Embarcadero downtown will be more than 2,000 hotel rooms, an aquarium of more than 170,000 square feet, an event center of more than 110,000 square feet, and almost 160,000 square feet of office space that will be reserved for research-related projects.
Approval of San Diego’s new Space Needle will require Coastal Commission approval since current regulations restrict building heights, but the Port Authority also has jurisdiction in the area. Currently, these two agencies have yet to reach a satisfactory agreement.
8. Real Estate And The High Cost of Living
San Diego is a beautiful vacation destination, attracting millions of visitors and tourists each year. However, its popularity makes it one of the most expensive cities in the United States, according to Business Insider. The cost of living includes the housing market, and San Diego has some of the most expensive housing in the world, with the being more than twice the national average, listing at about half a million dollars in June, 2019, according to Zillow.