US Housing Boom Gone, but Prices Still out of Reach in California ; the Housing Slump Has Done Little to Make California Cities Affordable

Trumbull, Mark, The Christian Science Monitor

The beige stucco townhouses and palm-lined cul-de-sacs of San Diego County exude a quiet tranquility, but that demeanor hides a difficult reality: Even after a sharp housing slowdown, cities in California are still America's least affordable places to live.

This means that California, which helped lead a nationwide real estate boom, could face more downward pressure on home prices.

Statewide, just 25 percent of households can afford an entry- level home, according to an index released this month by the California Association of Realtors. That's far below the national average of 61 percent who can afford to purchase a home.

Forecasters don't expect an …

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Publication information: Article title: US Housing Boom Gone, but Prices Still out of Reach in California ; the Housing Slump Has Done Little to Make California Cities Affordable. Contributors: Trumbull, Mark - Author. Newspaper title: The Christian Science Monitor. Publication date: March 12, 2007. Page number: 1. © 2009 The Christian Science Publishing Society. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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