Click Above to Learn All About Retiring To Highly Rated North San Diego County! Trying To Decide Where To Retire?
HERE IS AN OVERVIEW OF THE- $ Cost Of Retirement Living In $ NORTH SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return Summary The goal of this web page is to provide information to help you compare the cost of living in North San Diego County to that in other retirement places in the U.S. Your actual cost of living however will depend to a major degree on your retirement lifestyle.  ∙ Items that we believe may be approximately the same price or less costly than in most other areas of the U.S.: ∙ Groceries, dining out, clothing, car repair, chiropractic care, golf and many types of entertainment may cost the same or less in North San Diego County because of extreme competition between a large number of similar businesses.  ∙ Heating and cooling costs are fairly low in most areas of North San Diego County (even though natural gas and electricity costs are quite high), because of the mild year-round temperatures and low summertime relative humidity. ∙ Items may be more costly than in most other areas of the U.S.: ∙ The cost of gasoline, electricity, natural gas and water are usually higher than in many other areas of the U.S. Your lifestyle however can offset some of these costs. ∙ Housing costs are higher than in many other areas of the U.S. That's because North San Diego County's great climate, natural beauty and many things to do make it one of the nations most popular places to live. Please read on....
HOME PRICES Check Out Our Home Choices and Prices at NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return
∙ About The Current Housing Market: -An Increasing Number Of Homes For Sale In What is Becoming A Buyer's Market- Did the “Real Estate Bubble” burst in 2007? Probably not but it did drop significantly in altitude! Our data shows that during the period Jan. 2007 to Jan. 2008, the number of homes and condos offered for sale in North San Diego County rose 22% and their median prices dropped. One fairly reliable source of information, The North County Times newspaper, reported in Jan. 2008 "North County's median price hit an all-time peak of $667,000 in June 2007 and has fallen 14.7 percent since." If you  are interested, the January, 2008 Median Prices of homes for sale in each of our cities can be viewed at Home Price Overview, 2008. While compiling the Home Price Overview data, we were surprised to find that not all of our cities and communities experienced a price decrease during the past year. Some examples of this are that the median price of all homes in upscale Carlsbad (where  33% of the homes for sale, are only 0 to 5 years old), and for Senior Mobile Homes in San Marcos actually increased slightly over this time period. Other examples are both the bottom and top prices of the price range of homes for sale in Ocean Hills Country Club and Oaks North Senior Communities that  also increased.
∙ A North County Home Is A Lifestyle Investment- A North County Home Is Also An Investment In A Lifestyle That Can Maximize The Enjoyment Of Life During Your Active Retirement Years North San Diego County offers: *Near-perfect year-round Climates. (People who live in North San Diego County spend very few days sitting indoors, waiting for the weather to change- How much is that worth?) *Beautiful coastal and hilly inland terrain. *Hundreds of enjoyable Retirement Activities. *An abundance of (more than 700) fine Restaurants. *Some great Active Retirement Senior Communities. * Low Crime Rates that make it a relatively safe place to retire to. *Excellent Medical Facilities .
∙A North County Home As A Financial Investment- San Diego County real estate has been a good long-term financial investment and homes in  our Senior Communities usually offer even more value for your $ than those in all-age communities (please click on > Median House Prices to see a 1987 to 2007 graph of San Diego Metropolitan Median Home Prices). We don't offer financial advice but if you were to consult a qualified financial advisor, you would probably find that San Diego county real estate is a good place to invest some of the dollars you hope to pass on to your heirs. An additional benefit is that you will enjoy living in your investment every day. It is also reasonable to assume that the demand for Senior Community homes will increase dramatically when the Baby Boomers begin retiring "en mass" in 2011.  (See Figure #8 of > Baby Boomers	Did you know- ∙ If you are age 55 or over and presently own a home in any county in California, you may be able to transfer your existing home's tax base (base year value) to a home of equal or less value in San Diego County (See details about  Props. 60 and 90). ∙ Regardless of your age or of the state in which you own your home, If you qualify, you will not be required to pay any Capital Gains Tax on the first $500,000 (for married couples, $250,000 for singles) profit on your home sale and will be required to pay a low 15% (or possibly 5%) Capital Gains Tax on profit exceeding that amount.
∙ If you become financially strapped in the future- ∙ You may be able to tap into your home equity via a Reverse Mortgage or Home Equity Line of Credit (Note that Reverse Mortgages may not be available on homes in a Mobile Home Parks and condominiums and Home Equity loans may not be available at all on older mobile or manufactured homes). ∙ You can learn more about the pros and cons of tapping into your home equity at a Yahoo Business' Pros and Cons of Reverse Mortgages web page and also at Wells Fargo's Reverse Mortgage web page. ∙ You may also be able to postpone payment of your real estate taxes while you live in the home, or obtain assistance in paying your real estate taxes (See more details under the  TAXES section below). ∙ A few words about Real Estate Taxes- ∙ Even though home prices may seem high, California's Real Estate Tax Rate (as % of home value) is low Compared To Other States . ~ We invite you to also read The 3 Phases of Retirement ~
TAXES State Income Tax Rate: 1% to 9.3% Sales Tax Rate: 7.75% About California's State Real Estate Tax Laws: For more information contact   Gregory J. Smith, County Assessor  (619) 531-5481. ∙ Under Proposition 13- ∙ The California property tax rate is 1% of the purchase price plus any bonds or special fees. If there is no new construction or change of ownership, the property cannot be reassessed and the property tax cannot be increased by more than 2% annually. ∙ A good discussion of the details and history of Prop 13 is presented by Wikipedia . ∙ About Propositions 60 and 90- ∙ These propositions apply to those aged 55 or older who are selling their home and buying another of equal or lesser value. ∙ If both the home you are selling and the home you are buying are your principal places of residence, this program allows the taxable value of the home you are selling to be transferred to the home you are buying, thereby preventing an increase in property taxes. ∙ If you are 55 or older, you can move to San Diego County from any other county in California and keep your base-year value. ∙ You may refer to the California State Board of Equalization web pages for more details. ∙ Capital Gains Tax Exclusions and Tax Rate- ∙ The Prop. 60-90 property tax exclusions, when combined with the current Capital Gains Exclusions ($500,000 for married couples, $250,000 for singles) and low (5% or 15%) Capital Gains Tax Rates, provides a powerful reason to sell a property and purchase another when you retire. For exact details go to IRS Publication #523 "Selling Your Home." ∙ Property Tax Postponement Program- ∙ Please refer to the San Diego County Tax Assessor's State Property Tax Postponement Program webpage for more details. ∙ A qualified homeowner can with certain restrictions, defer payment of all or part of his or her property taxes on your house, condo, or mobile home. This deferred payment is a lien on the property and becomes due upon sale, change of residence, or death. ∙ Property Tax Assistance Program ∙ Please refer to the San Diego County Tax Assessor's State Property Tax Assistance Program webpage for more details. ∙ A qualified homeowner with certain restrictions, can obtain a once a year cash reimbursement for a portion of the property taxes paid. This amount will not have to be repaid and will not result in a lien being placed on your home.
UTILITIES ∙Winter Heating- Our winters are mild and therefore your heating utility bills may be lower than those in colder climates. ∙ Summer cooling- Our summers are mild (especially in the Coastal and Near-Coast regions) and the relative humidity is usually low and therefore your summer cooling bills may be lower than those in warmer climates ∙ Utilities Prices-  Below are prices some of us North San Diego County residents paid in May, 2007. We do not know whether or not they are typical. Electricity (630 KW-hr Baseline)- $0.124/KW-hr Natural Gas (winter heating)- $1.2/Therm Water- $1.98/CuFtX100. This is the price in one water district. Other water districts may have different prices. Sewer and Trash- Highly dependent upon where you live in No. S.D. County. Satellite and Cable TV- Prices start at around $40/month. A $55/month bill is probably more typical. if your want more information, please contact the suppliers directly: Direct TV    Dish Network    Cox Digital Cable   Timer-Warner NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return
GASOLINE The price of gasoline is typically higher in Southern California than in other states. You may check out the current  Gasoline Prices in San Marcos, CA. NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return
FOOD Groceries We have many competitive Super Markets and many low cost neighborhood specialty grocery stores like Trader Joes and Henry's Markets. Nearly every city also has a Farmers' Market (typically, where streets are closed off and used for open air markets for one day of each week) and some cities also have Farm/Fruit Stands. To get an better idea of local Super Market grocery prices, you may check the home delivery prices at Von's Supermarkets (a division of Safeway Stores): Click-on > VONS Pick- New Customers Browse Store- (ZIP 92078 is for San Marcos, CA) Shop by Aisle and keep selecting until you find the price of the item you are interested in. NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return. Restaurants With more than 700 restaurants to choose from you, will find that the cost of dining out is very competitive and comparable to, or less than, prices in most other US cities. if you want to compare prices yourself however, you can use the links below  to compare prices in our local Applebees and Olive Garden restaurants to those for similar items in other locations. Note: While most folks like these two restaurants, they are not necessarily the least expensive and may not offer the best food or the best value for your $. Applebees in San Marcos, CA Olive Garden in Carlsbad, CA NOTE: If you leave this page, Click-on Back  to Return
MEDICAL One way to estimate the cost of medical care in North San Diego County is to get a no-obligation Medical Insurance quote and compare its cost to that in other retirement places. To do so use 92078 ZIP code and provide your name, phone #, gender and email address.
SPORTS Golf: Prices for 18 holes range from $17 at the Oceanside's emerald Island course to approximately $255 at the elegant Aviara Golf Club course. Check out the prices of playing at our other Local Golf Courses
Please By Email, Or Phone (760) 473-4647 Ralph Anderson will do his best answer questions regarding Retirement Living in North San Diego County and Patty Anderson will answer questions regarding North San Diego County Real Estate. Patty is a licensed real estate agent with SRES (Seniors Real Estate Specialist) credentials who works with the Prudential California Realty Company in Encinitas, CA.
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