Sorry, but bubble-level prices were not “fair” by any stretch of the imagination. And people who bought during the 80s and 90s can still sell now and make a profit, provided that they didn’t over-leverage. If they over-leveraged, they already DID pull out their profit. (i.e. cry me a river). So the smart boomers can still profit.
“Comfortable area” doesn’t mean La Jolla. It means a reasonably safe area with amenities that’s not 2 hr crawl in traffic from all decent jobs.
As far as Gen-Y folk, I know quite a few people on the East Coast who are buying, fixing, and renting out. They’re smart, mechanically adept, and willing to work a bit to make a buck. I don’t think that SoCal is all that different.