Awesome weather, very expensive home prices rent
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5/14/2009
That said a friend just purchased a foreclosed home that was fairly new for $150,000 on a small lot. That was in a working class neighborhood that I would live in. That might not last too long. The last figures out seem to have stabilized for home prices at about $400,000. This whole system is geared too having very high real estate. The towns do not want to grow and they veto anything that is affordable, a real bad nimby attitude. Yet they still have job growth, that is, for now. I think this place is poised on the edge of disaster because of the high costs, high utilities, high taxes. I mean people keep leaving for affordable areas, and this place might get so expensive that people leave in droves.
Also the traffic in Santa Rosa and near cities is awful. The city has a small system of four lane roads. The 101 freeway has just went to six lanes.
That said I am a very frugal person and have discovered cheap places to live here, although one trailer court raised its rates from $235 to $600 in 2004. There is a trailer court on santa rosa avenue that has a space rent of $250 or so. It would cost about $13,000 to $25,000 to buy a well maintained older trailer that only has space for two small cars.
I would only suggest the area if you are rich and want very good weather. The depressed home prices will not last and are likely to shoot up, so it might be a good investment. Or you get a decent job or your first good job to build up a resume. And california has a 16 to 32 billion yearly deficit, that might mean much higher taxes.
If you are gay or lesbian than this area would be good for you. To the west of Santa Rosa is a gay area called the russian river area.
Bert | Santa Rosa, CA