Need an answer: WHY no air conditioning in Marin?? (San Jose: transplants, apartments)

[basehead617]

Hello there - I've lived in Marin County for a few years now. I've rented in San Rafael and in Novato.

I've been looking at a cheaper rental or even maybe buying since prices and interest rates are so low right now. I currently pay $4500/mo for a 4300 sq foot house that I split with someone else (I actually pay a bit less than half of that).

My question is - can someone in the know tell me WHY so few places in Marin have air conditioning? This house does, but it seems like you have to get into the REALLY expensive recently built or recently renovated houses before a place will have central air.

Do not tell me it's because you don't need it - it gets BRUTALLY hot in the summers often, as I unfortunately found out living in Deer Valley rentals in San Rafael without any A/C. I wanted to kill myself - by the way, a lot of places don't allow window units either!

Anyway, I heard rumors from a realtor that it wasn't until about 10 years ago that the county even allowed you to build a house with air conditioning. This seemed outrageous to me, but given that 95% of listings of homes do not list central air conditioning, it seems plausible to me.

Does anybody have the definite back-story on this?

Thanks!

[sonarrat]

I admit my eyes bugged out when I saw the amount you're paying in rent, but it's only about $1 per sf per month.. I would be delighted with that..

It's not just Marin. Air conditioning is very rare in San Jose which is a lot hotter. The only people I know with a/c live in townhouses or brand new apartments. Marin has a lot of older housing stock and is very anti-development. I don't know of any prior laws against a/c but somehow I doubt it was ever illegal.

[Snort]

The average high in summer for San Rafael is 81 degrees. That isn't exactly scorching. Maybe there are a lot of Arizona and Texas transplants in the area who wear sweaters there in the summer.
Another theory would be a concern with power use and not wanting to encourage the use power-hungry a/c units.

[tstieber]

I think it's mostly related to the age of the housing stock. I'm super surprised though, that San Jose doesn't have much A/C. I grew up in Walnut Creek, and it seemed every home had A/C. San Jose is not quite as hot, but pretty hot very often, and very hot at least sometimes. Marin depends on your area. There do seem to be a lot of 90+ days between Corte Madera and San Rafael, so they really should have more of it. I mean, stores and restaurants have it, so obviously people appreciate it.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by basehead617

Hello there - I've lived in Marin County for a few years now. I've rented in San Rafael and in Novato.

I've been looking at a cheaper rental or even maybe buying since prices and interest rates are so low right now. I currently pay $4500/mo for a 4300 sq foot house that I split with someone else (I actually pay a bit less than half of that).

My question is - can someone in the know tell me WHY so few places in Marin have air conditioning? This house does, but it seems like you have to get into the REALLY expensive recently built or recently renovated houses before a place will have central air.

Do not tell me it's because you don't need it - it gets BRUTALLY hot in the summers often, as I unfortunately found out living in Deer Valley rentals in San Rafael without any A/C. I wanted to kill myself - by the way, a lot of places don't allow window units either!

Anyway, I heard rumors from a realtor that it wasn't until about 10 years ago that the county even allowed you to build a house with air conditioning. This seemed outrageous to me, but given that 95% of listings of homes do not list central air conditioning, it seems plausible to me.

Does anybody have the definite back-story on this?

Thanks!

Most likely because there are only a few days a year where A/C is even needed. When we lived in Novato (LOma Verde) actually many years ago we did have one wall unit, and only used it about 2 or 3 times a year. No one else had any type of air.

Nita

[nei]

Where are you from that Marin feels hot to you?

[californio sur]

It depends where in Marin county a person lives but most of the major towns such as San Rafael, San Anselmo, Novato, Corte Madera, etc. average in the 80's during summer so that means plenty of days above 90. Some people turn on AC even when the temp is barely 80. I am surprised to read that AC or at least central air is not common since Marin County is very wealthy; probably most people have window or wall units in their bedrooms.

[nei]

San Rafael averages 1 degree cooler than Portland, Oregon and A/C is rare there.

San Rafael doesn't get very humid, low 80s aren't hard to adjust so probably A/C isn't worth the hassle or cost.

[ecvMatt]

I grew up in Fairfax and have lived in San Anselmo, San Rafael and Novato. I have never lived in Marin for a summer where I though I really need AC, it just doesn't get that hot here. Now, when I lived in Sacramento, that was another story...

[KC6ZLV]

Marin may be cooler than some other locations with cool summer, but those are just averages. On occasion it can get fairly warm. Hills and valleys create warmer micro-climates. Additionally, although it may be 80 outside it can still be warm inside. Also, the intensity of the sun is still that of what you would expect in California, so it warms up buildings fairly efficiently. Add in all the heat generated from electronic products to the daytime heat. A single computer can warm up a room easily.

An aside from all that, San Rafael still reaches the 90s numerous times throughout the summer.

So, the end result is many people are uncomfortably warm and wonder why few places have air conditioning, and there is actually some level of resistance toward people who want air conditioning.