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Posted on 05/05/2026 11:39:41 AM PDT by millenial4freedom
California used to be a place where you could get ahead. Work hard, save up, buy your first home, and build a life.
That path is disappearing.
A generation ago, buying your first home was something many Californians could imagine doing in their 20s. Today, the median first-time homebuyer is 40.
Today, first-time buyers are being shut out of the market entirely. The homes that do get built are too big, too expensive, and completely out of reach for young, middle-class families. Starter homes, the foundation of a healthy housing market, have almost vanished.
That’s not just a housing issue. It’s an opportunity issue.
When there’s no entry point into the market, families can’t get started. Workers can’t afford to stay. And the entire system locks up, with fewer homes available and higher prices across the board.
More than half of Californians under 35 say housing costs make them consider leaving the state.
California isn’t building the kinds of homes people actually need. And until that changes, affordability will keep getting worse.
California Democrats have made it harder and more expensive to build at every step of the process. Costs have been layered on without regard for what they do to the final price of a home. Fees, mandates, and requirements are often the same regardless of size, which makes smaller, entry-level homes far less viable to build.
When the cost structure looks like that, builders don’t stop building—they shift toward larger, more expensive homes where the numbers still work.
At the same time, the approval process has become slower, more complex, and more uncertain. Projects face overlapping requirements and drawn-out timelines that add months or even years before construction begins. Every delay adds cost, and those costs are passed directly on to buyers.
(Excerpt) Read more at stevehiltonforgovernor.com ...
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RINO. Illegals need to go home—and then we’ll have plenty of affordable housing.
My first house price was 10X my income at the time. That little cracker box was 10X! It was obscene at the time and my dad said “Son, buying that house was the stupidest thing you’ve ever done”! (true story). I decided to buy in one of the most expensive towns in the USA at the time — odd way for a new buyer to start. But it was as modest a home as you could imagine. But I got my feet in the door that way.
How did I do it? I sacrificed for five years by living out of suitcase in a field service engineering job where I could save 80% of my income because I was on a 100% expense account. Company paid for my car, travel, food, and housing. It was fun and I got to see a lot of the world, but obviously not for everyone. There were big sacrifices in not having a true home, girlfriend, etc for that long.
The problem with blue governments is that they don’t want the Hoi Polloi is single family homes. They want you warehoused where they can control every facet of ypur life.
The boxes that refrigerators or desks come in are ideal.
Sounds like the house my folks rented when I was born in 1961. There were four of us, and one small bathroom. One car garage. The house is still there, just as it was and is now worth a small fortune.
It’s combination of factors, but in much of CA, the time and risk involved are significant. The effort and risk are the same for any kind of project, so to be successful, they go for only the most profitable types of projects. As land and overhead costs go up, increasing the size of the homes becomes a smaller and smaller part of the pro forma. So that’s what happens. Results in fewer and fewer homebuilders building fewer and fewer homes at higher and higher prices.
Ban all ownership of property by non citizens.
You would be surprised how quick that can change things here.
We let chinese buy houses here as investments because their own shithole they live in doesnt let them.
That’s the way I did it too.
Work your butt off, live minimal, and save.
I think that most of the younger generation don’t think like that.
“Results in fewer and fewer homebuilders building fewer and fewer homes at higher and higher prices.”
But there must be buyers for the high-priced houses, so it works for the builders, I guess.
I think transportation is another factor. You can get cheaper houses if you’re willing to have a longer commute.
| Living in a mid-sized city in Japan the last 4 years, I've noticed a great deal of construction of new homes here. So asked Google AI this question: The content of the link above is outstanding. Makes me think FR would be well-served if FReepers began to regularly post such AI-driven reports. It's main points are these:
Read the link for all the details. Google AI Conclusion: This "raze, rebuild, repeat" cycle ensures a high, consistent turnover in the housing market, making Japan a global leader in high-speed, modern home construction. |
“I think that most of the younger generation don’t think like that.”
Fortunately two of our three do. Late 30s. Both own homes. Older daughter bought an older home with her fiancé and they completely renovated it (it’s now gorgeous). The middle daughter and her new hubby bought a modest but brand new tract home and just had our first grandchild last November. Both girls inherited dad’s can-do ability and they both have constructed amazing things in their homes. So proud of them!
SoCal home prices weren’t out of line with the rest of the country until the early 2000s.
Some of the excessive price appreciation that began then was due to the housing bubble. Orange County was the home of the biggest subprime lender in the country.
But a bigger and longer lasting factor driving our SoCal housing prices was the arrival of the full price all cash buyer. This is not how Americans buy houses. But then these buyers were not Americans.
They were, and are, very rich foreign nationals. They come over on a visa, buy a house for cash, and simply stay. Maybe buy a few more houses. Bring over the relatives.
These of course are illegal aliens but not the ones that everyone thinks of. Some of the wealthiest suburbs of SoCal are filled with them. Go to upscale shopping venues like South Coast Plaza or Irvine Spectrum and you’ll see the result.
This crowd can vote just as easily as every other illegal alien in California, and better yet they can buy the attention of our elected officials.
The transformation of California from Reagan Country to a Kamala/ Newsom Bastion didn’t happen by accident. It wasn’t organic. It was imported. And ridiculously high California housing prices that have spread their effect all across the country come with it.
No one talks about it. I’m not sure that anyone other than realtors have been paying attention.
Starter homes, like 100 year old 2bd 1ba literal Spanish Colonials in West LA, still go for 1 mil.
Correct. Moreso than in the past,homes are being built for those households of higher income. This is the product of restraints on productivity, very generally. Meanwhile, what had in the past been referred to as the Middle Class is priced out of the market. And yes, if people are willing to commute, there are lower priced options out there.
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