It could definitely be a long while for a you folks who bought to just break-even (as you have stated that you already know). Because your property has to really go up say at least 15% just to break even. Because of all the costs real estate has when you buy and sell:

1. Closing costs when you buy
2. All the money you put into fixing up the house
3. Paying 6% to a Realtor when you sell
4. Closing costs that you have when you sell

…So even if there was a 10-15% appreciation, all that would do would allow you to break even maybe when you did sell. If prices were flat you would actually lose a nice chuck of change if you had to sell a few yeas down the road. So it certainly is not out of the question that it could be a decade+ to just be able to sell and break even. Especially in higher priced North County Coastal where there are so many headwinds facing any future price appreciation (rising interest rates, fannie mae lowering the loan limit from $729k to $625k, etc…)

But I guess they say “your home” is not supposed to be an investment.