Deadzone, I agree that, today, the premium to rent is lower than the premium to buy: the median sales price for a resale home in La Jolla was $1.7MM in June '06 and $565K for San Diego as a whole. But, there are, believe it or not, 17 neighborhoods in La Jolla:
And, there is great differences in attractiveness, size of house, size of lot, etc. The La Jolla aggregate numbers get skewed by the big homes/big lots in Muirlands, the oceanside homes in Lower Hermosa, the homes walking distance to the beaches at La Jolla Shores and Windansea. I'm happy with the modest neighborhood where we now rent, Upper Hermosa.
