This is not a strictly business item but underscores the importance of the Navy and Marines to the regional economy.
Chula Vista, in light of Veterans Day this week, emerges as a standout city in a recent CoworkingCafe study, which has been fashioned to help the ex-military in selecting their ideal hometown for retirement.
The study delves into various factors, including the percentage of veterans in the population, availability of veteran healthcare providers, air quality, and green spaces.
Chula Vista took No. 10 among the top 15 cities for veterans and their families.
Chula Vista also scored fifth in the nation for median veteran income exceeding $70,000 annually and an unemployment rate of just 1.4%.
According to a news release, the study scrutinized the professional aspects of veterans’ lives, considering metrics like veteran-owned businesses, employment status and income.
Notably, California houses the largest veteran population in the U.S., exceeding 1.8 million veterans.
Four of the top five cities for veterans are located in Virginia.
In fact, the East Coast has the highest concentration of cities in the top 15 for veterans and their families.
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Here’s another indication that housing prices in San Diego’s metro region are reaching stratospheric levels.
Real estate data provider PropertyShark did its annual survey of the Top 100 Priciest Zip Codes in the county and found that Rancho Santa Fe (92067) retained its position as the 10th most expensive Zip code in 2023, with a median home sale price of $4.5 million, a 1% decrease year-over-year.
Atherton located in Silicon Valley retained the top position as the most expensive zip code with a jaw-dropping $8.3 million median sale price, a 5% increase over last year’s survey.
The complete ranking of 2023’s 100 most expensive zip codes is available for comparison with the previous year.
Overall, a brief scan of the priciest U.S. Zip codes for homes found that California maintains its status as the most expensive state for homebuying, with 79 of the priciest Zip codes, including seven in the top 10.
New York comes in second with 22 entries, representing 18% of the wealthiest postal zones.
However, California dropped 11 Zip codes compared to the previous year, while New York gained five, contributing to the overall shifting landscape of luxury real estate.
Rancho Santa Fe’s 92067 first entered the top 10 last year, when its median grew 26% to reach $4.28 million, according to the PropertyShark news release.
The Del Mar Zip code 92014 ranked No. 53 with a $2.4 million average price, while Coronado Zip code 292118 ranked No. 61 with a $2.2 million average home price
Up the coast, Cardiff by the Sea’s Zip code ranked 86 with a $2 million average housing price.
What I find interesting about this research is that La Jolla, often touted as one of the priciest places in California was way down the list.
La Jolla’s 92037 Zip code came in at a lowly No. 99 on the PropertyShark survey. The average price of a home was placed at $1.8 million.
“After the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 10 times in 2022 and 2023 to combat inflation and slow the economy, the U.S. housing market has begun to cool, as evidenced by declining home sales and moderated price growth,” according to the news release on the survey.
“In contrast to the previous year — when most of the 100 most expensive U.S. zip codes saw price increases — 2023 witnessed a general decline in median sale prices.”
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Just a quick note in passing. The former 126-room Blue Sea Beach Hotel in Pacific Beach reopens as the Wayfarer San Diego after a complete remodeling.
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San Diego hemp-based alternative meat maker Planet Based Foods has signed a partnership with Nugget Markets, a Northern California grocery chain with 16 locations.
According to a news release, the deal will introduce Planet Based Foods’ Southwest and Original Taquitos to Nugget Markets.
This agreement also establishes a new distribution hub at the UNFI Rocklin warehouse, strengthening Planet Based Foods’ distribution network in Northern California.
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San Diego was among U.S. cities where tech employment grew in October, offsetting an overall cooling jobs market. This according to an analysis by the nonprofit industry association CompTIA.
Tech occupations across the economy increased by an estimated 483,000 jobs. The jobless rate for tech positions stands at 2.1%, compared to the overall national unemployment rate of 3.9%.
Employer hiring activity as measured by job postings nationwide totaled more than 167,000 for the month and more than 2.2 million year-to-date, according to the analysis.
Employer hiring for artificial intelligence positions and skills continues to trend upward, although it remains a small share of overall tech hiring activity.
California, Texas, Virginia, Florida and New York had the highest volumes of tech job postings among the states. Washington, New York, Dallas, Los Angeles and Chicago have the largest city totals of job postings.
The analysis also found that Charlotte, Boston, San Diego, Cleveland and Phoenix markets were active in October, with month-over-month increases in employer postings for tech openings.
About 20% of the job postings offered work from home or remote work as an option.
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National law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips has announced that former US attorney Randy S. Grossman has joined the firm’s trial, white collar and investigations practice and he will manage the San Diego office.
Grossman most recently served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California.
The new San Diego office is the firm’s 11th national office and sixth in California.
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Finally, this item of note…San Diego mobile banking deposit software maker Mitek says its latest Mobile Deposit Benchmark finds that a third of small businesses experienced check fraud in the past year, with 65% reporting losses exceeding $50,000.
Consumer anxiety about personal information security is on the rise, with 80% expressing concern about the illegal use of their data, according to a news release.
The report found more than 98% of 33.2 million of U.S. small businesses have adopted mobile deposit, though only 10% use the technology for all received checks.
Many small businesses receive over 50 checks per month.
Mail-related check fraud, such as stolen checks being washed and used illicitly, has seen a substantial increase, with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network recording a doubling of related Suspicious Activity Reports in 2022.
The Mitek report was based on a survey of 3,001 U.S. consumers and 545 U.S. small businesses.
Tom York is a Carlsbad-based independent journalist who specializes in writing about business and the economy. If you have news tips you’d like to share, send them to tom.york@gmail.com.
