There's a stretch of Meade Avenue between 30th and 32nd in North Park where a handful of older 1940s fourplexes have traded over the past 18 months. The price points have ranged from roughly $1.3M to $1.6M depending on condition. Nothing flashy. But the rent-to-price ratios on a few of these have surprised me.
I ran the numbers on one that closed earlier this year. Four units, each pulling around $2,100 per month in rent. That's about $100,800 annually gross. Purchase price was $1.38M. That puts you at roughly a 7.3% gross yield before expenses, which in San Diego proper is hard to find right now. Most of what I see across Hillcrest and Mission Hills sits closer to 5%, sometimes lower.
So what's happening on this block?
A few things. The buildings aren't renovated. They're functional, clean, well-maintained, but nobody's putting quartz countertops in these units. The tenants are long-term. Turnover is low. And because the curb appeal doesn't scream "investment opportunity," a lot of buyers scroll right past them on the MLS. They're looking for the newer build, the ADU conversion, the shiny thing. I get it. But the shiny thing costs you 15 to 20 percent more per door, and the rents don't scale the same way.
Here's where I'll push back on something I hear constantly. People tell me cash flow is dead in San Diego. I've been doing this for 25 years and I've heard that line in every market cycle. It's never entirely true. Cash flow is dead if you're only looking at the properties everyone else is looking at. The deals that pencil out aren't always the ones with the best photos.
One thing I tell my investor clients: pull the rental comps before you pull the sales comps. Know what the street is producing before you decide whether the price makes sense. A $1.5M building that rents for $8,400 a month is a different conversation than a $1.5M building renting for $6,200. Same price, very different math.
Meade Avenue won't stay this quiet. The 30th Street corridor keeps pushing north, and every new restaurant or brewery that opens accelerates what's already happening.
If you've been watching North Park from the sidelines, the spreadsheet might be worth opening.