The Mission Viejo real estate market, a part of the larger Orange County and Southern California housing markets, showed strong signs of progress despite a substantial distressed sales market. According to a June 15, 2010 report from OC Metro, “Orange County’s median home price and sales numbers got a welcome boost in May, partly due to government tax credits, low mortgage rates and more activity in higher-priced areas, according to a new report from MDA DataQuick.” The article by Kristen Schott continued to say that “The median home price rose to $450,000 in the county, up about 10 percent from the same time last year. It’s the ninth consecutive year-over-year gain, according to the real estate information service. The price also increased from April when it hit $430,000…Sales rose 22 percent in Orange County, compared to the same time last year. Buyers snapped up 3,257 properties, compared to 2,667 in May 2009.”

The same pattern of growing home sales and increased median prices seen among Mission Viejo homes for sale was repeated across the larger Southern California region. According to a June 15, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, “Dwindling foreclosures and higher sales in pricier, coastal neighborhoods have pushed Southern California home prices to their highest levels in almost two years, according to MDA DataQuick. The median price of a SoCal home, or price at the midpoint of all sales, jumped 22.5 percent in May to $305,000.” The report by Jeff Collins went on to note that “It was the first time since October 2008 that the SoCal median price has been at $300,000 or higher. Meanwhile, home sales were up 7.2 percent, juiced in part by the expiring of a federal tax credit of up to $8,000.”

Despite a decrease in the number of foreclosures in the Mission Viejo housing market, there were still a number of distressed sales in the region. According to a June 15, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, “The distressed inventory continued its slow climb this year, adding an additional 89 homes in the prior two weeks and now totaling 3,080, a 3% increase.”

The Dana Point real estate market seems to be heading towards a recovery, according to the most recent market indicators. According to an April 14, 2010 article in the Los Angeles Times, “Southern California’s housing market showed fresh signs of momentum in March with the median price and sales pace improving from the same month a year earlier as buyers hurried to take advantage of a soon-to-expire federal tax incentive, cheap prices and low interest rates.” The piece, composed by Alejandro Lazo, continued to state that “The median price paid for new and previously occupied houses and condominiums in Southern California jumped 14% in March to $285,000 from the same month a year earlier, according to San Diego real estate research firm MDA DataQuick.”

The volume of Dana Point and Southern California home sales was especially noteworthy, according to an April 13, 2010 article in DQ News. This piece found that “Home sales and prices continued their steady but pokey climb up from the bottom in Southern California last month as buyers scrambled to take advantage of low prices and low mortgage rates. The market is still tilted toward low-cost distress sales, but not by as much as previously, a real estate information service reported.” The article, which was released on TheStreet.com, continued to report that “A total of 20,476 new and resale homes sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino, and Orange counties last month. That was up 33.3% from 15,359 in February, and up 5.0% from 19,506 in March 2009, according to MDA DataQuick. The San Diego firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.”

This same general good news for Dana Point real estate was reported by Kristen Schott in the OC Metro on April 13, 2010. Her article found that “Orange County’s median home price shot up 12.2 percent in March, compared to the same time last year, according to a new report released by DataQuick. The number hit $432,000 in the period, up from $385,000 at the same time last year. The price also increased over February, when the region’s median came in at $417,000.”

Real estate experts have seen promising signs for Southern California and Newport Beach real estate.  Over the past few months, the Southern California region has posted increases in both its home sales and median sales prices.  Despite real estate struggles that began in 2007, prior to the economic recession of 2008, which only worsened the situation, Southern California has provided real estate experts with optimistic views of the future.  Many experts believe that the greater affordability of housing in the region, as well as favorable interest rates, the decline of the inventory of foreclosed properties, and the federal tax credit will play major roles in the recovery of the Newport Beach real estate market during the 2010 year.

According to DQNews.com, Southern California has posted significant improvements in the region’s real estate markets with an increase in both the number of houses and condos sold and the median sales price.  In December of 2009, a total of 22,328 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Southern California, a 16.4 percent increase from that of the previous year, and a 12.1 percent from that of the previous year.  December marked the 18^th consecutive month in which Southern maintained a year-over-year gain in terms of home sales.  December also marked the first month with year-over-year gains in the median sales price.  In December, the median sales price for houses and condos in Southern California was $289,00, a 1.4 percent increase from $285,000 in November and a 4 percent increase from $278,000 a year earlier.

The Los Angeles Times has also reported on the recent improvements made to the Southern California real estate market.  The LA Times reported that very favorable interest rates and more affordable housing played a major role in the recent increases in real estate activity and median sales prices.  The rebounding home prices is expected to lead the recovery of the housing market as construction and development projects are also increased to satisfy the increasing demand for housing in the Southern California region.  Real estate experts also believe that the federal tax credit will spur real estate activity as the deadline approaches in the spring.

According to DQNews.com, many cities, including Santa Barbara, are beginning to post increases in home sales and slower declines in the median price of home sales.  In fact, October experienced the smallest decline in median home prices since 2007, primarily due to a smaller inventory of foreclosed and distressed properties on the market.  The median price for a home in Southern California was $280,000, up 1.8 percent from the previous month but down 6.7 percent from the previous year.  Some regions near Santa Barbara are even beginning to experience year over year gains in the overall median home price.  In October of 2009, about 22,000 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Southern California, which was a 2.8 percent increase from the previous month and also a 2.8 percent increase form the previous year.  October also marked the 16^th consecutive month ending in a year over year gain in home sales.  Experts also believe that the federal tax credit for first time home buyers has also been a major factor in the increase in home sales, as well as affordable mortgage rates and home prices.

The Pacific Coast Business Times also reports that real estate experts forecast that the Santa Barbara real estate market will rebound in the coming months as signs show that the market has already hit bottom.  Declining foreclosure rates will play a major role in the improvement of median home prices.  However, experts still believe that the commercial real estate market has a longer way to come, given that the market is still struggling with a 13.3 percent vacancy rate and virtually nonexistent construction activity.

Although California is home to major global cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and San Jose, it is often the smaller, less known communities and suburbs that offer the best living experiences.  One of the most popular places to live in California is Riverside, which is located between Moreno Valley and San Bernardino in the heart of California’s Inland Empire.  The community is known for the Festival of Lights, which is held during the winter holidays in downtown and features the nation’s second largest lighting display and an outdoor ice skating rink.  Riverside is a technology-friendly community with convenient access to ports, rail transportation, and freeways, making Riverside a leader in Southern California’s international trade economy.

Temecula is another one of the most popular places to live in California.  This suburban city is conveniently located within an hour drive of San Diego and LA counties and offers a historic Old Town, excellent dining and shopping complexes, affordable housing, beautiful parks, and an excellent school system.  Temecula is especially popular for its annual Balloon and Wine Festival, thanks to the community’s wine country home to 22 award winning wineries.

Home to nearly 97,000 residents Vacaville is another popular Californian community founded as an agricultural and rail shipping center.  Currently, the community has also experienced much growth and development that has established substantial retail and commercial activity in the region.  Vacaville also boasts an extremely low unemployment rate, excellent schools, a stable housing market, beautiful parks, exciting community events and activities, and a eco-friendly atmosphere.

Because of California’s vast size, the state is home to a very diverse economy with different regions each containing its own economic base.  Hollywood has an entertainment economy, Southern California is aerospace, Central Valley is agriculture, Silicon Valley is computers and high tech manufacturing, and then there are places such as Napa Valley and Sonoma Valley with a wine based economy.  In terms of jobs, however, the largest employers are those in trade, transportation, government, professional services, education and health services, and leisure and hospitality industries.

For 2007, the gross state product was about $1.812 trillion, which contributes to 13 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product, making California the state with the highest gross state product.  Nevertheless, California still faces a budget deficit, causing many legislations being passed in an attempt to alleviate the financial problems.  In 2008, the state had the 6^th highest tax burden of any state.  Although many of California’s coastal cities are among the wealthiest cities in the nation, agricultural regions such as Central Valley tend to suffer from poverty due to many migrant farm workers earning less than minimum wage.