Why isn't San Francisco/Bay Area as desirable as Southern California? (Los Angeles: homes, buying)

[GalacticDragonfly]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

You seem delusional.


Not sure why this thread has people all hot and bothered. From gleaning at the stats (which city has the biggest number of foreign buyers) Southern California cruses San Francisco. It seems like SF doesn't have the desirability/lifestyle image of LA/NYC/Miami Beach/Paris/London. Seems no one really cares about it. Again, why do most of those big techies up there buy mansions here but no one down here buys mansions up there?

End of.

Oh well that's simple. Los Angeles is more well-known than San Francisco is, and it's a fact. People abroad either hesitate or don't know much about San Francisco, unless they're rich and doing something in 21st century finance. Mostly in Europe or Africa I've noticed. Thus when tourists and foreigners come here, where are they going to go besides New York? Los Angeles of course.

But this isn't because LA is better, it's simply because LA is in every other movie. Since LA controls the media, it often projects itself in it--giving the idea across the world that it's a world class city. Of course these perceptions tend to change once people move here, or people with considerable wealth start thinking where the 'real' industry is.

But yes, hands down. LA is more desirable. LA beats SF in world-class fame, it's a fact. But it should be noted that SF is rising quite a bit, and LA isn't. This is pretty evident by the population growth in both cities and regions (Bay Area and the Valley).

[mrsantamonica]

Originally Posted by calicoastal

The median house price in SoCal is $383k, the median price in the Bay Area is $540k, or over 40% higher, according to February DataQuick stats. Expect this spread to increase, as the LA market is cooling but the Bay Area market is still hot.

OP, if you are basing desirability on house prices then there is no comparison, the Bay Area wins hands down. The Bay Area has 3 of the top 5 most expensive ZIP codes in the US, including #1 and #2. None of the top 10 are in SoCal (the highest is 90210 which comes in at #13).

America's Most Expensive Zip Codes In 2013: The Complete List - Forbes

OP, you also posted incorrect facts. In the past 3 months there were 12 houses that sold for over $10m in the Bay Area and 22 in the LA region. As LA covers a much larger area, there are actually more $10m houses per square mile and per capita in the Bay Area than SoCal.

91% of foreign buyers chose Southern California over the Bay Area. Period.

The premise of this thread. Can you please answer why super rich foreigners chose Los Angeles over SF? Want to take a stab at it? I see some people understand it but you're having trouble grasping and explaining that fact.

Guess it's a lifestyle thing. People view tony neighborhoods in LA as a better more glamorous lifestyle. Like some of your own people i.e. Elon Musk!

[calicoastal]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Listings, sweetie. That says listings.

You missed the part about median sale prices being 40% higher in the Bay Area.

[18Montclair]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Right because we have no billionaires in SoCal. LOL.

Haha Darling the Bay Area is home to the majority of California's billionaires, even with 10 million less people than the LA area

Like 20 more billionaires than Southern California according to Forbes.

So enjoy the trashy paris hilton types from russia or where ever else you think means something, but nothing youve said in this thread is impressive. Your actually just, well, boring.

Oh, and this, written by a Southern Californian, is reality:
Joel Kotkin: The 'Great State' of San Francisco - The Orange County Register

[mrsantamonica]

Originally Posted by calicoastal

You missed the part about median sale prices being 40% higher in the Bay Area.

Why do people prefer LA to SF?

Answer..

[Stephen1110]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

I was wondering why it doesn't have global appeal amongst rich people who roam the globe who aren't tied down to one location. This is something completely different. People who don't work in the US who are looking for second homes. And 91% of them in California chose SoCal. Thats a staggering amount.

In California:

* Only 27% of international buyers are looking for vacation/second homes.

http://www.car.org/3550/pdf/econpdfs...t_-__Final.pdf


* Only 5% of luxury homes are purchased by international buyers, representing a small sector of those purchasing $1million homes.

http://www.car.org/3550/pdf/econpdfs...inar_Final.pdf


So, 91% of these foreign buyers are not "super rich" and are not buying luxury homes.

[pch1013]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Why do people prefer LA to SF?

Answer..

Why do you care so much?

Answer.

[The Illusive Man]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Why do people prefer LA to SF?

Answer..

Wow, you've got these folks all riled up and single-handedly at that! Pretty impressive. Either that, or they are very very insecure about something.

[18Montclair]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Why do people prefer LA to SF?

Not these people apparently...

Ivy League Schools, Top 3 Alumni Concentrations

Harvard
1 Boston
2 New York
3 San Francisco

Yale
1 New York
2 San Francisco
3 Boston

Princeton
1 New York
2 San Francisco
3 Washington DC

Brown
1 New York
2 Boston
3 Providence

Columbia
1 New York
2 San Francisco
3 Washington DC

Penn
1 Philadelphia
2 New York
3 Washington DC

Dartmouth
1 Boston
2 New York
3 Washington DC

Cornell
1 New York
2 Ithaca
3 San Francisco

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by mrsantamonica

Why do people prefer LA to SF?

Answer..

What a dumb question--how exactly do you know how all the millions of "people" think? Opinion and weak reasoning doesn't make it so. Even my best friend would rather divorce her husband than have to live in that region again...and this was in Manhattan Beach, which is obviously a nicer city than most, I'm assuming. Too many fake people that meet you and try to gain something from your connections--an agenda, always.

As a native Californian, I have never felt the desire to head down that way-the air is so polluted and for me, just feels too plastic and "beachy" and shopping culture--I'm not a fan of tanning and plastic surgery. I'm more down to earth/hippie. But you seem to be hell bent on trying to prove yourself right when the topic is sooooo inane and pointless. If you like where you live, good.

I happen to LOVE Norcal---it's FAR more desirable--but that's just my OPINION. My husband who was born in Europe has no desire to live there. I have a friend that's film director and even he would have preferred to stay up here---his career dictated otherwise of course.

As for housing prices as some sort of proof----um...pretty silly as a reason for "desirability". If you are in the motion picture industry and have done well for yourself, then it's the best place to find a job and make a living. Likewise if you're in the tech/biotech industry, well---this is the place to be for the most part. People often have to move where the jobs in their field are---house prices don't necessarily tell the story.