Elaine Abercrombie: Reasons to Be Thankful for the Area in Which We Live
By | Published on 12.29.2010
This time of year makes me recount what the past year has brought.
I am reminded daily about how grateful I am to live here. Consider that nearly everyone in the nation knows of Santa Barbara’s great weather, and at some point during the year, depending on their current weather, they want to live here. We have the best cosmopolitan community I know of in America for a town of our population. Granted, I haven’t been everywhere yet, but I know I am not alone in my opinion.
We can boast of many cultural, artistic and creative events held here every year. There are lots of things to do and see as well as be part of whenever we choose to do so. Did you know we are home to more nonprofits than many larger cities? Not only is there a lot to do, Santa Barbara area has a big heart, too.
After a brief trip to Burbank over the holidays, I appreciate our housing stock that was built in the 1960s and 1970s, where Burbank has many homes built in the 1940s. We may be one of the most expensive places to live in the nation, and we have the highest median sales price for homes in the state, according to the California Association of Realtors for 2010.
But there are good reasons to pay a bit more for the quality of life we enjoy. Our easy lifestyle affords us many interesting things to do that are close in proximity and culturally enriching for our citizens. Maybe our homes should be more expensive for the services in our area, but I won’t tell anyone.
I called the agent on a house listed in Burbank. It was a three-bedroom, two-bath home of 1,520 square feet, built in 1940 and was on a 7,500-square-foot lot that was listed for $650,000. We have houses that are newer in age for less money. Even though we are listed as the most expensive area to live, it doesn’t mean we don’t have lower-priced housing.
I am helping a first-time homebuyer with his first house. I scoured the listings around our area and saw a fixer property at almost half that cost right here on the South Coast. I am grateful the buyers today will only pay, on average, five times their annual salary for a home for their family in our area. A few years back, at the height of the market, the same house sold for 13 times their gross annual salary.
When you look back there, is a lot to be thankful for, and living here is just one of them.
— Elaine Abercrombie, a broker with Abercrombie Fine Homes, is past president of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors. She can be contacted at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or at 805.450.0086.
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» on 12.30.10 @ 02:30 PM
The quality of construction before 1955 was much better than in the 60’s and. 70’s here in the SB and Goleta area Inspections on tract housing often find shoddy workmanship, materials and foundation problems. I vote for a vintage 30 or 40’s home. Ps. I was born in Burbank but have lived in Santa Batbara since the early 1970’s.
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