The true costs of San Francisco cheap homes in the suburbs can turn out higher if the costs of transportation are added to total housing costs, according to a study presented by the Center for Neighborhood Technology.
The center explained that although families can buy lower-priced homes in the suburban areas, total housing costs increase when daily transportation costs to workplaces, shopping centers and cultural facilities are added.
The study said that across the country, transportation represents the second largest type of expense for households. Average transportation costs range from 12 to 32 percent of family income, depending on whether a community has easy access to transit systems, has walkable streets and has various stores, services and community centers.
The study explained that a housing unit is considered affordable to a family if total housing costs do not exceed 30 percent of total family income. With this definition, homes in 7 out of every 10 communities in the country are affordable.
But if transportation costs are added, total housing costs comprise 45 percent of total family income, putting the percentage of affordable communities down to only 40 percent.
So people choosing between buying San Francisco cheap homes in the suburbs and buying higher-priced homes in the central areas need to factor in transportation costs in their planning.
Despite the entry of residential properties into foreclosure auctions in San Francisco, home prices in the metro area have been holding up. The sales price median for single-family houses in San Francisco in February was $750,000, a three-percent increase from the January median and up by 0.1 percent from the median in February 2009.
According to Bay Area realtors, real estate values in San Francisco and in other parts of the northern peninsula have stayed strong in the midst of single-family and mobile home foreclosures in the region.
While the percentage of California homeowners drowning in low home values has increased to 35 percent, the percentage of underwater homeowners in San Francisco is significantly lower at 10.4 percent. The percentage of borrowers whose home values are lower by 25 percent or more than their mortgage loan amounts is just 2.6 percent.
Nevertheless, buyers looking for San Francisco cheap homes in the central areas can still buy homes for $550,000 or lower. Sellers of houses that have been on the MLS for over three months usually entertain and consider lower offers.