San Diego Real Estate

Real Estate for Sale in San Diego California

San Diego is rich with diverse communities and varied types of real estate. Because of the unique location of San Diego, landscape and terrain vary greatly. From coastal communities and beach towns to ranches and mountain getaway cabins San Diego County has a lot to offer. There are many older communities and newer master-planned communities some with Mello Roos and some without. Navigating through the sea of diversity is what we do best to help you find that home or condo that meets and hopefully exceeds your expectations.

Making sense of San Diego County Areas

There are six areas that the county is broken into; Coastal, Central, East County, North County Coastal, North County Inland and South Bay. Within each area there are smaller communities and neighborhoods. Usually a home buyer has an idea on which one of these areas they are interested in. They start gathering facts and learn more about real estate and about the community before they settle in on exactly where they want to live. Sometimes they will settle for not just one community but rather a handful that will suit their needs. We love to help with this process.

Coastal San Diego Real Estate includes areas that are close to Downtown San Diego and Central San Diego Coastal Communities. These are the older areas of San Diego County closer to the beaches and bay. San Diego County started in these areas in the 1800’s and expanded out from here. If you’re looking for a high-rise condo or townhome in the city this is it. This area also has most of the older beach neighborhoods. Most of these areas are very walkable. These communities include; Clairemont, Coronado, Downtown, La Jolla, Mission Beach, Mission Valley, Ocean Beach, Old Town, Pacific Beach, Point Loma and University City. 

Central San Diego Real Estate includes older areas of San Diego County just east of Coastal San Diego. These communities are; East San Diego, Encanto, Golden Hill, Hillcrest, Kensington, Lemon Grove, Linda Vista, Logan Heights, Mission Hills, Normal Heights, North Park, Paradise Hills and Talmadge. Some of these areas have seen a rebirth as of late and some are the hottest real estate markets in the county. They’re close to downtown and the beaches and are very walkable. Older neighborhoods and older homes like craftsman homes and California bungalows give it an old San Diego charm.

East County San Diego is located just east of Central San Diego and includes most areas off of Interstate 8 as you head east on I8. This area includes neighborhoods like; Alpine, Del Cerro, Descanso, Dulzura, El Cajon, Jacumba, Jamul, Julian, La Mesa, Lakeside, Palomar Mountain, Pine Valley, San Carlos, Santee and Spring Valley. Some of these communities are very neighborhood like while others as you head further east are more rural with large ranch style or wooded lots. In most situations the further east you head the more land you can get for your money. 

North County Coastal San Diego is located north of Coastal San Diego and goes all the way north up to Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base. This area includes communities like; Cardiff by the Sea, Carlsbad, Carmel Valley, Del Mar, Encinitas, La Costa, Leucadia, Oceanside, Rancho Santa Fe and Solana Beach. As you can tell from the name this area is the northern coastal part of San Diego County. There are lots of neighborhoods that are an easy drive to the beaches and being closer to the coast keeps the temperatures a little more moderate in the summer months. There are some great beach communities here as well as excellent master planned communities.

North County Inland San Diego is just east of North County Coastal. Communities include; 4S Ranch, Escondido, Fallbrook, Mira Mesa, Poway, Ramona, Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Penasquitos, San Marcos, Scripps Ranch, Tierrasanta, Valley Center and Vista. This is a very large area of the county and has a wide variety of real estate from cookie cutter homes in master planned communities to large ranches to small country homes. 

South Bay San Diego is south of Coastal, Central and East County San Diego and goes all the way to the border with Mexico. Communities in South Bay are; Bonita, Chula Vista, EastLake, Imperial Beach, National City, Otay Mesa, Otay Ranch and San Ysidro. A large portion of South Bay is made up of the master planned communities of Eastlake and Otay Ranch and several smaller master planned communities in the East Chula Vista vicinity. This area had a boom in the 1990’s and early 2000’s and is still under development now with many new homes and new home construction.

As you can see with the many choices in the San Diego area for places to buy a home it can be overwhelming. We’re here to help you in sorting things out and making the home buying and neighborhood picking process a fun and educational adventure. 

Selecting the Type of Real Estate

House, condo, townhome, duplex – 4-plex, land, investment? There are lots of choices when buying real estate. What type of real estate are you looking for? Most home buyers are looking to purchase a single family detached home. The second most common type of property purchased is a condo or townhome. Choosing a home or condo/townhome can depend on a buyers max purchase price amount, monthly payment they’re comfortable with or other factors like personal choice.

Search for All Types of Real Estate for Sale in San Diego County

Number of Bedrooms and Bathrooms and Square Footage

Knowing how many bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage, and other types of requirements are essential in searching for real estate in San Diego. It’s a good idea at this point to be working with an agent on The Lewis Team so that they can help you identify your needs vs. wants of the desired property. As experienced agents we can guide you through this process making you aware if things that you may have never considered. We have over 50 years combined experience. We would love to put that experience to work helping you.

Search for Homes in San Diego by Number of Bedrooms

2 Bedroom Homes For Sale in San Diego

3 Bedroom Homes For Sale in San Diego

4 Bedroom Homes For Sale in San Diego

5 Plus Bedroom Homes For Sale in San Diego

Search for Condos in San Diego by Number of Bedrooms

1 Bedroom Condos For Sale in San Diego

2 Bedroom Condos For Sale in San Diego

3 Bedroom Condos For Sale in San Diego

4 Plus Bedroom Condos For Sale in San Diego

Schools may be Important

If you have children than you’re probably interested in knowing the schools that will be available to you and your children in the neighborhood you’re buying in. There are some homebuyers that specifically are looking for real estate in a certain school district. We can help narrow the search for homes based on what school district you want to buy a home in. 

We will also, at your request, get you in touch with the school district so that you can verify that the home you’re potentially buying is in the school district of your choice. Getting this information directly from the school district and not second hand is essential when buying a home.

Getting the Specifics Right

When working with us we will help you narrow down the area you want to buy in, what type of property you want to buy, the bedroom and bathroom count, square footage, yard size, pool vs. no pool, HOA vs. No HOA, Mello-Roos vs. No Mello-Roos and so on. Getting the specifics right allows us to more accurately find your new home. We also have access to many homes before they even come on the market for sale. That’s right! Many times home buyers will look on popular sites like Zillow and Realtor.com and wait for new properties to come on the market. Many times the homes are sold before they even show up on these web sites. Using a real estate agent that works hard to find you your home makes all the difference in the world. You may miss out on the one that you really wanted.

The Type of Loan can make a Difference

VA, FHA or Conventional – which one is for you? You can only get a VA Loan if you qualify as an active duty, retired military or veteran. After speaking with a lender, which we would love to connect you with, you will know which loan works best for you.

Usually when getting financing for a single family detached home the only requirement is that the home be livable, meaning it can’t be in such disrepair or missing essential items that a home buyer couldn’t move into it. Unless you’re getting an investor loan, construction loan or hard money loan. Which most home buyers buying a home to live in won’t be.

When buying a condo or townhome and using a VA or FHA Loan there are some other things to be aware of. With a VA Loan the complex that you’re buying in has to be approved by the Veterans Administration in order to get financing. With an FHA Loan the complex that you’re buying in ha to be approved by the Federal Housing Administration in order to get financing. Real Estate Agents on The Lewis Team will make sure that we verify and work with your lender to make sure the condo or townhome you want to buy is an approved complex.

Familiar with San Diego or New to Town

If you’re familiar with San Diego County then you probably have some areas in mind where you may want to start looking for a property. If you’re from out of town and relocating to San Diego then our agents can really give you an understanding of the areas in the county and answer your questions on communities and real estate. Either way contact us so we can get started making this real estate dream a reality.

Why choose us to help you with your real estate needs?

We have a passion for real estate and a passion to help our clients succeed. Whether buying or selling or both we have the experience to do it right. We have over 50 years combined experience and have sold well over 2,000 homes. That kind of experience is essential in today’s real estate market! 

Contact us for a free consultation or just to ask questions.

Dawn Lewis

619-981-3917

Licensed Real Estate Agent Since 1989

The Lewis Team – San Diego Real Estate Experts!