Real Estate
Perhaps one of the best barometers of
San Diego's economic recovery is the
boom currently enjoyed by both the
construction and real estate industries.
Though over built in the early 90s,
today San Diego faces a shortage of
existing structures and available land
to accommodate new housing and
commercial office space, manufacturing,
and research and development facilities.
This has resulted in higher rents,
historic lows in vacancies and a
tremendous amount of speculative
construction, generally leased before
completion.
Residential
property, both single Family and
multifamily dwellings, has become
desirable from a commercial investment
standpoint because of the constraint of
supply and strong job growth. Rental
units became almost nonexistent, falling
to only one-half of a percent by
September 1998, yet authorized
residential building permits for that
same period were 27 percent higher than
the previous year. Apartment vacancies
also declined as builders concentrated
on putting up luxury complexes. House
sales were brisk in 1999 with quick
sellouts of newly released tract homes.
Large numbers of buyers traveled through
model homes and some
developments even had
lines of people waiting to place offers
on the houses of their choice. Many
existing homes sold after receiving
multiple offers despite 10 to 14 percent
price increases.
To learn more about
San Diego's other main business, click
the buttons on the left.
