New visitors may find the following background articles useful:

Shambling towards affordability — A recent-ish update of the long term charts comparing San Diego home prices and monthly payments to local rents and incomes.

Piggington Jumps the Shark — Jan 2012 — Some thoughts on why I decided to buy a home.

Measuring Home Prices — May 2007 –– An in-depth look at the pros and cons of various home price measurements (written for voiceofsandiego.org).

The San Diego Housing Bubble — Feb 2007 –– A comparatively brief article arguing the existence of a huge speculative bubble in San Diego housing.

Evidence of a Southern California Housing Bubble — Nov 2005 — A more in-depth case for a bubble in San Diego as well as other regions Southern California (updated and expanded from a piece originally written in mid-2004).

Risks of a Serious Home Price Decline — Nov 2005 — A case against the prevailing (at least at the time the article was written) belief that home prices would not fall.