Concho,
You miss the point and maybe I didnt do such a great job making it. perhaps this will be clearer.

It’s not that the typical home in 2002 was $500K but rather the typical $500K home in 2002 went up to $800K and now sits at $700K. No house worth $200K in 2002 went up to $800K by 2006. I also doubt your friends $420 to 480K homes ever reached a value of $800K.

As for the $300K townhomes in 2002, for about $325K you could get a 3BR/2BA 1400 sq ft 20 year old townhome with a 2 car garage in Encinitas east of El Camino Real. That was my benchmark.