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Unreal Estate
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Ian Anderson
Thomas K. Arnold
Eric Bartl
Don Bauder
Ed Bedford
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Robert Bush
Chad Deal
Joe Deegan
Barbarella Fokos
Leorah Gavidor
Dave Good
Marty Graham
Moss Gropen
Andrew Hamlin
Dorian Hargrove
Garrett Harris
Ken Harrison
Patrick Henderson
Tam Hoang
Eve Kelly
Dryw Keltz
Eva Knott
Thomas Larson
Ken Leighton
Matthew Lickona
Mike Madriaga
Bill Manson
Scott Marks
Bob McPhail
Walter Mencken
Joseph O'Brien
Sheila Pell
Ian Pike
Matt Potter
H.G. Reza
Dave Rice
Elizabeth Salaam
Jay Allen Sanford
Julie Stalmer
DJ Stevens
Matthew Suárez
Amanda Tascher
More writers
Former writers
4S Ranch
Allied Gardens
Alpine
Baja
Balboa Park
Bankers Hill
Barrio Logan
Bay Ho
Bay Park
Black Mountain Ranch
Blossom Valley
Bonita
Bonsall
Borrego Springs
Boulevard
Campo
Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Carlsbad
Carmel Mountain
Carmel Valley
Chollas View
Chula Vista
City College
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Clairemont
College Area
Coronado
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Cuyamaca College
Del Cerro
Del Mar
Descanso
Downtown San Diego
Eastlake
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El Cajon
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Encanto
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Escondido
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Fletcher Hills
Golden Hill
Grant Hill
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Grossmont College
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Imperial Valley
Jacumba
Jamacha-Lomita
Jamul
Julian
Kearny Mesa
Kensington
La Jolla
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La Mesa
Lemon Grove
Leucadia
Liberty Station
Lincoln Acres
Lincoln Park
Linda Vista
Little Italy
Logan Heights
Mesa College
Midway District
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Mira Mesa
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Mission Valley
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Mount Hope
Mount Laguna
National City
Nestor
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Oak Park
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Oceanside
Old Town
Otay Mesa
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Pala
Palomar College
Palomar Mountain
Paradise Hills
Pauma Valley
Pine Valley
Point Loma
Point Loma Nazarene
Potrero
Poway
Rainbow
Ramona
Rancho Bernardo
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Rolando
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January 31, 2024
See previous issues
Dave Rice
Dave Rice
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Comments
Votes
San Diego's last ocean front lots
Thanks Ken! And also thanks for the link to the 2007 piece (which I'd missed, obviously), and for your Del Mar Resort piece, which informed my reporting here (some of what's available online about the parcel is rather confusing). Amazing how much you can find when armed with satellite imaging before heading out for a few days' drive along the coast - this was a fun one for sure.
— November 1, 2018 9:27 p.m.
La Jolla luxury high rise
There are others with comparable views/amenities in the Downtown area in the $3-4M range, but one could argue there are reasons some people prefer La Jolla to Downtown or vice versa. High-end units often take longer to market because the buyer pool is smaller, but if this one lasts for more than a few months without activity, the seller may eventually tire of hearing progress reports that begin with "You are still the highest bidder on your property."
— October 7, 2018 8:40 p.m.
La Jolla luxury high rise
One of the first things they teach in an appraisal class (granted, there are caveats): the value of something is what someone else is willing to pay for it. If there's at least one person who thinks a view is worth money and is willing and able to spend money purchasing a view (there are many, many more than that), then a view is worth money.
— October 7, 2018 11:42 a.m.
An entertainer’s dream with panoramic ocean views
I sold bank-owned property before I started writing - most of our pools could have been aptly described as "murky." But that doesn't create a mental picture you want to dive into.
— September 24, 2018 9:25 p.m.
Farewell to a professional love
Thanks for all the years of fascinating coverage, and especially the occasional kind word and helpful advice. Best wishes to you and yours in the days and years to come.
— September 17, 2018 9:31 p.m.
Cleveland Ave. and Ohio St. chimeras
Given that credit reports and background checks cost me about $30 to obtain, and that time spent processing an application (obtaining the credit/background, calling landlords and other references, showing the unit) is greater than zero, there's not really any profit in running a "scam" collecting application fees. An easy way to avoid finding that you're not qualified for a property is to be up-front about your credit, income, and references, and to inquire beforehand whether there are other applicants. 90% of the applications I process and don't approve are due to someone lying about their credit history, employment, or rental history - maybe one in ten is a case where I get multiple qualified applicants and have to make a tough decision on who gets a unit. A real-life application scam I've encountered, though not lately, is a company selling credit reports for $90 or more accompanied with an alleged list of available properties. These firms don't actually manage any of the properties on the list, most have been culled from Craigslist without the actual landlord's permission, and many have already been rented, sometimes months ago. Even the credit report is of dubious value - I'll look at it and tell you whether or not you'd potentially qualify for a place before you pay an application fee, but I'm still going to run my own report to verify yours is legit. People collecting deposits and/or rent on units they don't manage are the worst - instead of a few bucks I've seen people get taken for hundreds, or even thousands of dollars on obviously too-good-to-be-true rentals. In some cases unsuspecting tenants even move into vacant units before they're discovered by the true manager and then end up getting evicted, which is really a black mark when they go looking for another place.
— July 13, 2018 11:09 p.m.
Should San Diego's trash collecting stay free?
I haven't done a detailed analysis of city tax bills as compared to when I lived in El Cajon or unincorporated county land, but I've got to assume $95, even if paid every couple years, for a new can is cheaper than the $40/month I was paying Edco, and later Waste Management, to rent a single trash bin - in the early 2000s before I moved to the city they were throwing in as many recycling and yard waste bins as you wanted for free with at least one paid trash bin. But the nice thing was my trash with the private companies was picked up almost every week - before I moved to a condo with a private dumpster city staff skipped my pickup at least once or twice a month, usually because someone coming home late at night would move my can out of the street to park.
— June 27, 2018 12:13 a.m.
No wonder they went after the bike tracks
Dick was actually more receptive than most to the idea of cooperating with the Housing Commission, asking its representatives to arrange a tour of other affordable developments in upscale areas to gauge how they fit with the community. That said, he was among others also open to rescinding the board's recommendation letter, as many seem to have been caught off guard by the specific site recommendation.
— June 16, 2018 2:56 p.m.
No wonder they went after the bike tracks
"Low-income" housing is that which would eat 30% of the annual pay of a family earning 80% of the area's median income - for a family of four, that's $77,850, or about $1950/mo for rent. "Affordable" housing includes anything under 120% of area median - for the same family of four that's $116,775, with a corresponding monthly rental budget of $2920.
— June 16, 2018 2:47 p.m.
How I learned to stop worrying about the Chargers and love rugby
"As the largest U.S. city that has never won a professional team championship..." Never forget 1963! Or, maybe forget it after all.
— May 24, 2018 11:52 p.m.
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Joseph O'Brien
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Excerpts
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Feast!
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— What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives
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Golden Dreams
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Letters
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Movie Reviews
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Neighborhood News from Stringers
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Obermeyer
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Outdoors
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Overheard in San Diego
— Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry
— The old and the new
Reader Travel
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Reading
— The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama
— SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer
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SD on the QT
— Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats
— Places of worship
Special Issues
— The best of
Street Style
— San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego
— Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater
— On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork
— Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar
— Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable
— Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate
— San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week
— Daily event picks
Chris Ahrens
Ian Anderson
Thomas K. Arnold
Eric Bartl
Don Bauder
Ed Bedford
Siobhan Braun
Robert Bush
Chad Deal
Joe Deegan
Barbarella Fokos
Leorah Gavidor
Dave Good
Marty Graham
Moss Gropen
Andrew Hamlin
Dorian Hargrove
Garrett Harris
Ken Harrison
Patrick Henderson
Tam Hoang
Eve Kelly
Dryw Keltz
Eva Knott
Thomas Larson
Ken Leighton
Matthew Lickona
Mike Madriaga
Bill Manson
Scott Marks
Bob McPhail
Walter Mencken
Joseph O'Brien
Sheila Pell
Ian Pike
Matt Potter
H.G. Reza
Dave Rice
Elizabeth Salaam
Jay Allen Sanford
Julie Stalmer
DJ Stevens
Matthew Suárez
Amanda Tascher
More writers
Former writers
4S Ranch
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San Diego's last ocean front lots
Thanks Ken! And also thanks for the link to the 2007 piece (which I'd missed, obviously), and for your Del Mar Resort piece, which informed my reporting here (some of what's available online about the parcel is rather confusing). Amazing how much you can find when armed with satellite imaging before heading out for a few days' drive along the coast - this was a fun one for sure.— November 1, 2018 9:27 p.m.
La Jolla luxury high rise
There are others with comparable views/amenities in the Downtown area in the $3-4M range, but one could argue there are reasons some people prefer La Jolla to Downtown or vice versa. High-end units often take longer to market because the buyer pool is smaller, but if this one lasts for more than a few months without activity, the seller may eventually tire of hearing progress reports that begin with "You are still the highest bidder on your property."— October 7, 2018 8:40 p.m.
La Jolla luxury high rise
One of the first things they teach in an appraisal class (granted, there are caveats): the value of something is what someone else is willing to pay for it. If there's at least one person who thinks a view is worth money and is willing and able to spend money purchasing a view (there are many, many more than that), then a view is worth money.— October 7, 2018 11:42 a.m.
An entertainer’s dream with panoramic ocean views
I sold bank-owned property before I started writing - most of our pools could have been aptly described as "murky." But that doesn't create a mental picture you want to dive into.— September 24, 2018 9:25 p.m.
Farewell to a professional love
Thanks for all the years of fascinating coverage, and especially the occasional kind word and helpful advice. Best wishes to you and yours in the days and years to come.— September 17, 2018 9:31 p.m.
Cleveland Ave. and Ohio St. chimeras
Given that credit reports and background checks cost me about $30 to obtain, and that time spent processing an application (obtaining the credit/background, calling landlords and other references, showing the unit) is greater than zero, there's not really any profit in running a "scam" collecting application fees. An easy way to avoid finding that you're not qualified for a property is to be up-front about your credit, income, and references, and to inquire beforehand whether there are other applicants. 90% of the applications I process and don't approve are due to someone lying about their credit history, employment, or rental history - maybe one in ten is a case where I get multiple qualified applicants and have to make a tough decision on who gets a unit. A real-life application scam I've encountered, though not lately, is a company selling credit reports for $90 or more accompanied with an alleged list of available properties. These firms don't actually manage any of the properties on the list, most have been culled from Craigslist without the actual landlord's permission, and many have already been rented, sometimes months ago. Even the credit report is of dubious value - I'll look at it and tell you whether or not you'd potentially qualify for a place before you pay an application fee, but I'm still going to run my own report to verify yours is legit. People collecting deposits and/or rent on units they don't manage are the worst - instead of a few bucks I've seen people get taken for hundreds, or even thousands of dollars on obviously too-good-to-be-true rentals. In some cases unsuspecting tenants even move into vacant units before they're discovered by the true manager and then end up getting evicted, which is really a black mark when they go looking for another place.— July 13, 2018 11:09 p.m.
Should San Diego's trash collecting stay free?
I haven't done a detailed analysis of city tax bills as compared to when I lived in El Cajon or unincorporated county land, but I've got to assume $95, even if paid every couple years, for a new can is cheaper than the $40/month I was paying Edco, and later Waste Management, to rent a single trash bin - in the early 2000s before I moved to the city they were throwing in as many recycling and yard waste bins as you wanted for free with at least one paid trash bin. But the nice thing was my trash with the private companies was picked up almost every week - before I moved to a condo with a private dumpster city staff skipped my pickup at least once or twice a month, usually because someone coming home late at night would move my can out of the street to park.— June 27, 2018 12:13 a.m.
No wonder they went after the bike tracks
Dick was actually more receptive than most to the idea of cooperating with the Housing Commission, asking its representatives to arrange a tour of other affordable developments in upscale areas to gauge how they fit with the community. That said, he was among others also open to rescinding the board's recommendation letter, as many seem to have been caught off guard by the specific site recommendation.— June 16, 2018 2:56 p.m.
No wonder they went after the bike tracks
"Low-income" housing is that which would eat 30% of the annual pay of a family earning 80% of the area's median income - for a family of four, that's $77,850, or about $1950/mo for rent. "Affordable" housing includes anything under 120% of area median - for the same family of four that's $116,775, with a corresponding monthly rental budget of $2920.— June 16, 2018 2:47 p.m.
How I learned to stop worrying about the Chargers and love rugby
"As the largest U.S. city that has never won a professional team championship..." Never forget 1963! Or, maybe forget it after all.— May 24, 2018 11:52 p.m.