The city of Long Beach, California is a very ethnically diverse area with many cultural attractions including the Long Beach Museum of Art and Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. It is the southern end of the Los Angeles Blue Line light rail, which runs to downtown Los Angeles about 20 miles away. It has a good public transportation system and access to the southern California freeways.
The Blues Festival and The Jazz Festival are just two of the many festivals held every year. California State University of Long Beach is the biggest school in the city. El Dorado Regional Park is the largest of many public parks.
Average home sale prices were about $300 thousand in June 2010, a $20,000 increase over a year earlier. Home sale volume was 391 homes sold in April and 431 sold in May 2010. Vacancies are likely to remain low in the rental market as unemployment and high house prices erode purchasing power, although these factors will also place downward pressure on rents.
Popular areas include Downtown, Belmont Heights, Eastside, Plaza, and Belmont Shore, where the average sale price is a million and a half. The population is about half a million within an area of 57 square miles. Large employers are health care, manufacturing and construction, which have been shedding jobs.
Mortgage rates are at an all time low, 3.88 for 15 year fixed and 4.38 for 30 year fixed. Foreclosure rates are high, with one in every 254 homes receiving a foreclosure notice in June 2010. Though the local real estate market shows some signs of recovery, it is still clearly a buyer’s market, for those who have the resources.