San Diego may have expensive housing, but it still ranks as one of the 10 best U.S. cities for raising a family, according to the financial services website WalletHub.

The Miami-based company ranked 182 U.S. cities — including the 150 most populous, plus at least two cities from each state — on five measures:  affordability, education, health, socio-economics and family fun opportunities.

San Diego came in 8th, with measures of education and family fun outweighing affordability.

Five of the ten best cities were in California, including top-ranked Fremont, Irvine, San Diego, San Jose and Huntington Beach. Only one city in California’s arch-rival Texas — Plano — made the top ten. Pembroke Pines was the top city in Florida, coming in at 40.

“While not perfect — given personal preferences and the limitations of publicly available data — our findings will hopefully give movers a better sense of their options,” WalletHub said.

Other cities in San Diego County made the extended list, including Chula Vista at 43 and Oceanside at 70.

The youthful members of Generation Z — those born between the mid 1990s and 2012 — will spend $145,000 on rent before turning 30 — 14% more than what the Millennial generation paid, according to a new study by apartment rental website RentCafe.  

In San Diego, the so-called “Zoomers” will pay even more — a whopping $220,770.

According to the study, despite renting inflation, the cost is much less than home ownership for the generation, with the ownership costs climbing to $315,000 by the age of 30 — a figure that includes the mortgage, taxes, and fees, but not the down payment. 

“Renting is a no-brainer here in San Diego because the owning costs are much higher,” said a spokeswoman for RentCafe. “San Diego has the nation’s fifth highest cost difference between owning and renting for Gen Ze’rs younger than 30. Here, the cost difference reaches $94,093.”

The cities in the U.S. where Generation Z faces the highest costs for renting and owning are all in California, including San Jose, San Francisco and San Diego, she added. 

The most expensive place to rent is San Jose, where the cost for Gen Z’ers reaches $300,000 before turning 30 years old. 

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San Diego County’s investment fund which takes in retirement monies from more than 200 public agencies, has reached $18 billion — a new record, County Treasurer-Tax Collector Dan McAllister said in a news release recently.   

 This record follows another notable milestone — the office collected more than $1 billion in property taxes in a single day on April 8. 

 “The record $18 billion investment pool, along with our ‘AAA’ rating, underscores the county’s commitment and financial acumen in managing the public’s money,” said McAllister. 

Mandatory participants in the pool include the county government, plus 42 local school districts, five community college districts and all of the county’s water and fire districts. 

Voluntary participants include the San Diego Regional Airport Authority, SANDAG, MTS and several other special government districts.  

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Forbes magazine has named San Diego’s Axos Bank, a subsidiary of Axos Financial, to its 2024 list of America’s Best Banks. 

In compiling the list, Forbes considered the 200 largest publicly traded banks and thrifts by assets and ranked the top 100.

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Three-decade-old San Diego-based planning and engineering firm Latitude 33 recently opened an office in downtown Los Angeles.

According to a news release, the firm’s high-profile work includes San Diego International Airport’s $3.4 billion Terminal 1 expansion and UC San Diego’s $2.5-billion-plus Hillcrest Medical Campus Redevelopment.

For more information, click here. 

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San Diego home prices were up 9.5% year over year at the end of March, according to a report released by Orange County-based housing data provider First American Data & Analytics.

The company’s March 2024 Home Price Index tracks home price changes less than four weeks behind real-time at the national, state and metropolitan levels

San Diego’s increase trailed only Anaheim and Miami, both of which were 10.5%.

* * *

San Diego’s Chosen Foods has launched a line of three different sauces made with avocado oil. 

According to a news release, the sauces are made with natural flavors and have no seed oils or artificial ingredients.

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San Diego’s California American Water said it is making available $8.3 million in bill relief for customers who faced financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The relief funds come from the State Water Resources Control Board, using federal American Rescue Plan Act funds..

This brings the total benefit for disadvantaged California American Water customers to $15.1 million.

“We understand the financial burdens many families faced during the pandemic,” said Kevin Tilden, who is president of the company. “These funds provide much-needed relief to our customers who fell behind on their water bills.”

California American Water, a subsidiary of American Water, says it provides high-quality and reliable water and wastewater services to approximately 700,000 people.

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Six-year-old Del Mar-based emerging company TradeSun, which is pursuing the commercialization of artificial Intelligence involving global trade, has entered a “strategic alliance” with Wells Fargo Bank, according to a news release.

Wells Fargo will utilize TradeSun’s AI platform “to digitize, extract, validate, and classify unstructured data for use with compliance and document checking,” the release said.

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Here’s another item from Wells Fargo. The bank’s Community Lending and Investment group provided nearly $8 million in financing for the construction of La Sabila, an affordable housing development in Vista. 

According to a news announcement, the bank provided a $30.5 million construction loan and $27.4 million equity investment.

The project features 85 residential units reserved for low-income seniors and will feature on-site management, vehicular parking, a community room with computer area and kitchen, laundry facilities, on-site resident services, courtyard/picnic area, and a conference room.

Timothy McCann, Terence Cordero, and Jessica Gonzalez of the Community Lending and Investment group arranged the financing.

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Miami-based personal finance website WalletHub has released its 2024 list of the top 20 small cities in the U.S. which are the best places to start a business.

Alas, no cities in San Diego County were on the list.

Cedar City and St. George, Utah, were No. 1 and No. 2 on the list respectively, followed by Fort Meyers, FL.

To see the report, click here.

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More than 900 industry professionals have registered to attend the annual rental housing convention and expo on April 25 at the Town & Country Hotel in Mission Valley sponsored by the San Diego-based Southern California Rental Housing Association.

The theme of this year’s gathering will be “Another Day in Paradise.”

The gathering will focus on maintenance and management for those involved in the rental housing sector, according to a news release. 

Industry consultant Lisa Trosien, president of website the Apartmentexpert.com, will address working with “mean individuals” in your work life as the keynote speaker.

SCRHA public affairs director Molly Kirkland will hold a question-and-answer session on current legislative issues and how they affect the rental housing industry.

For more information about attending, click here.

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Finally, this bit of North County business and industry news. The San Diego North Economic Development Council has updated its quick fact sheets about key area industries, adding a new “Tourism and Hospitality” report for 2024. 

Biotech and biomedical manufacturing, defense and transportation technology and manufacturing top the list of key industries.

According to a news release, North County is considered a “hotspot” for talent in most of the top industries, which means the area employs more workers than the national average for an area this size. Click here for more information.

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.

California ranks as the “greenest” state in America thanks to rooftop solar, water conservation and electric vehicles, according to a report released Wednesday by the WalletHub personal finance website.

“Eco-friendliness and personal finance are related,” noted Miami-based WalletHub in its introduction to the ranking. “Our environmental and financial needs are the same in many areas.”

States were ranked on environmental quality, eco-friendly behavior and contribution to climate-change using 25 metrics ranging from water quality to LEED-certified buildings to greenhouse gas emissions.

California was followed by Vermont and New York, while West Virginia came in last, followed by Louisiana and Alabama.

“California is the greenest state in America, in part because it has the most energy-efficient public policies,” WalletHub said. “One contributor to the state’s energy efficiency is the fact that its residential solar power installations have a very high capacity per capita compared to most states.”

The Golden State also ranked first in water conservation and sixth lowest in gasoline use per capita, in part because of support to electric vehicles and and public transportation.

Thanks to great weather and restaurants, San Diego ranks as the second best city for a New Year’s Eve celebration in 2023, according to a new holiday report.

Analysts at WalletHub, a Miami-based personal finance website, compared the 100 largest cities using 26 criteria from whether fireworks are legal to music venues per capita, wine prices, safety and forecast precipitation.

San Diego fell just behind theme park mecca Orlando but ahead of New York City with its iconic party in Times Square.

WalletHub said San Diego is “the place to be if you want clear skies so you can appreciate an outdoor get-together and fireworks show.” But there’s more.

“If you want to go out to a restaurant on New Year’s Eve, San Diego has a lot of great choices, and it’s tied with Orlando when it comes to the availability of affordable restaurants rated at least 4.5 stars,” according to the report, adding “there’s certainly no shortage of places to spend the holiday, from the San Diego Zoo to the Old Globe.”

Las Vegas, known for its year-round celebrations, ranked just fourth, followed by Atlanta at fifth.

Despite its equally good weather and growing restaurant choices, nearby Chula Vista didn’t do as well, ranking only 97th on the list.

San Diego was ranked the “greenest” city in the United States, thanks largely to clean energy sources and environmentally friendly policies, in a new study by WalletHub.

The Miami-based personal finance website compared the 100 largest cities using 28 indicators ranging from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita, green job opportunities and public transit to organic farms, bike lanes and air quality.

However, the report was not able to include recycling, with the authors noting the lack of comparable city-level data .

Honolulu came in second, and Portland third. Three cities surrounding Phoenix — Gilbert, Glendale and Mesa — came in last.

Braden Allenby, a professor of engineering and ethics at Arizona State University, told WalletHub that cities need to be strategic about their efforts to become more green.

“Miami might invest in increased resilience around flooding and climate change effects, while Phoenix might invest in water efficiency and lowering its urban heat island effects,” he said.

WalletHub noted at a majority of Americans now “think that protecting the environment should be prioritized above economic growth.”

San Diego was ranked the sixth best city in America to raise a family in a new study by the personal finance website WalletHub intended to guide relocation choices.

The Washington, DC-based company compared more than 180 cities based on 45 metrics considered essential to raising a family, including the cost of housing, the quality of local schools and healthcare systems, and the opportunities for fun and recreation.

San Diego ranked very low on affordability, but very high on education, child care and “family fun.”

Surprisingly amid the national narrative about California’s challenges, three other cities in the Golden State– Fremont, Irvine and San Francisco — also made the top 10.

Only one city in Texas, Plano north of Dallas, was in the top 10. The highest ranking city in Florida was Pembroke Pines near Fort Lauderdale at 40.

“While obviously not perfect — given personal preferences and the limitations of publicly available data — our findings will hopefully give movers a sense of their options,” WalletHub said.

The company said it expects that during the current period of high inflation, a location’s cost of living will be the major factor affecting a decision to move.

But a number of university experts who commented on the results stressed the importance of a city’s overall quality of life in raising a family.

“Healthcare infrastructure, access to nutritious food, air quality, employment opportunities, education systems, and other things contribute to your family’s health outcomes and overall quality of life,” said Dr. Adrienne M. Duke, a professor at Auburn University in Alabama.

Dr. Cristina Santamaria Graff at Indiana University said the best places to move to are “cities that provide families with resources that enrich their everyday experiences including affordable and accessible public transportation, housing, education, and other necessary amenities that contribute to a family’s sense of belonging.”

San Diego is the eighth least affordable large city for homebuyers when all costs of home ownership are considered, according to a new report by WalletHub.

The Washington, DC-based financial services company ranked cities on housing affordability, maintenance costs, real estate taxes and the chance for appreciation to arrive at the ranking.

Los Angeles was the most expensive among cities with over 300,000 population, followed by New York and San Francisco. Detroit and Pittsburgh were the two most affordable large cities.

Many of the most expensive cities of all sizes were in California, while the bargains in terms of housing affordability were to be found in the Midwest and South.

Among midsize cities, with 100,000 to 300,000 people, Glendale, Irvine and Huntington Beach were the most expensive. And for cities under 100,000, Santa Barbara and Berkeley will cost the most.

Kirk McClure, a professor of urban planning at the University of Kansas, said it’s not surprising that large and growing cities are less affordable.

“The easy prediction is that markets with strong job growth will continue to see strong housing price increases,” he said in response to the WalletHub ranking.

“The markets with strong job growth are larger — New York, Boston, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, etc. Smaller markets continue to have trouble as they compete with these larger, hotter markets for jobs and talent.”

The University of San Diego’s most recent angel investing conference has honored three very early stage startups with funding “for their potentially disruptive solutions” in the marketplace.

LIMBER Prosthetics & Orthotics, which was founded by two alumni from UCSD’s engineering school and is developing personalized prosthetics, walked away with the top cash prize of $200,000. The startup also took the conference’s People Choice Award, according to a news release.

Relavo, a New York City medical device startup developing a technology to make home dialysis more accessible by minimizing the risk of infection, received $150,000, and Athletiverse, which helps student athletes monetize their personal images, took $75,000.

A spokeswoman said 106 startups applied for consideration at the conference. The money was awarded out of a common fund which was raised among participating angel investors.

Other finalists included Minnesota-based Modari Medical, making a patch for treating erectile dysfunction; Maine-based PumpSpotting, a community breastfeeding and baby feeding support platform; and Tennessee-based Wave Therapeutics, a woman-owned startup developing treatments for pressure injuries.

More than 30 organizations partnered with USD to stage the program. Conference founder Mysty Rusk said the conference seeks to work with accredited investors to help innovative early-stage companies.

“Securing an angel investment doesn’t require affluence, education, or wealth,” she said. “It requires a smart solution to a real-world problem and an entrepreneur with tenacity and a tolerance for risk.”

LIMBER has deep roots at UC San Diego: it is currently part of the medical technology accelerator in the Institute for the Global Entrepreneur at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering.

The program has been a boost to companies that have participated in the past:

A number of previous program recipients have gone on to bigger and better things.

One company, CARI Health, recently raised $2.3 million. CARI took the top prize last year with over $300,000 in funding for its wearable remote monitor to keep patients on life saving medications.

Another recipient, Escondido-based Aquacycl, which is developing technologies to treat wastewater, won $295,000 in funding in the first competition five years ago. Founder Oriana Bretschger says the program has been invaluable. Aquacycl has raised  $14.1 million in funding over seven rounds after participating in the conference. 

Previous recipient Fluid Power AI, which can be installed on any hydraulic system to monitor its operating status and predict failure, recently closed a $4.8 million round with institutional investors.

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Regional financial institution Mission Fed Credit Union has opened a new branch in Del Mar Highlands Town Center. The credit union claims to be the largest member-owned, not-for-profit financial institution exclusively serving the county.

The new branch offers a full line of financial services and is open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Mission Fed, founded in 1961, has 34 branches across the San Diego region, with the newest location being the first Mission Fed branch to open in the Del Mar Highlands area.

* * *

Personal finance website WalletHub recently issued a list of the top 20 cities in the United States to start a business, but San Diego wasn’t on it.

The listing of the top cities was part of a report, 2023’s Best Large Cities to Start a Business, in which WalletHub compared 100 U.S. cities across 19 key indicators of startup viability.

We came in at No. 66 on the list.

Orlando was the top city on the list, while Dallas was No. 20. Overall, Miami and Hialeah, Florida, had the most startups per 100,000 residents, at 254.62 compared to 67.92 in Toledo, Ohio, the city with the fewest.

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The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce recently honored a number of local businesses, educators, and a police officer at its recent 2023 Carlsbad Business Achievement & Distinction Awards. The event recognized the exceptional contributions and achievements of various individuals and organizations in the Carlsbad community.

The winners included Calsense, named business of the year in the small business category, and John Stevenson Plumbing, Heating & Air, awarded business of the year in the large business category. BrightStar Care of Carlsbad was recognized as the best place to work, while Senior Care Options received the community impact award.

Investing By Design was honored as the innovator of the year, and Community Resource Center was named nonprofit of the year. Solutions for Change received the people’s choice award, and Bitchin’ Sauce was awarded the kindness inspiration award.

In addition to the business awards, several educators were recognized for their outstanding contributions to education in Carlsbad.

The chamber recognized a dozen long-term members, including EMD Electronics and Tri-City Hospital Foundation, both of which have been members for 35 years.

A spokesperson said the awards highlight the outstanding contributions of businesses, educators, and community members, highlighting the vibrant and diverse business community in that North County city.

The Carlsbad Chamber says it is the largest chamber in the North County area with more than 1,000 members.

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Finally… Van Dermyden Makus Law Corp., which claims to be one of the nation’s top workplace investigations law firms, says it expanded its reach with the opening of a Tempe, Arizona, office and hiring of five new attorney investigators nationally.

VM Law says it has grown rapidly each year, expanding its West Coast operation with offices in Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego, Marin County and Arizona.

According to a news release, the firm is at the vanguard of the investigations sector, identifying early opportunities in employment law such as the demand for neutral workplace investigations and specialized Title IX services.

According to one definition on the internet, Title IX is a federal law that attempts to remove barriers that prevent people from participating in educational opportunities and careers of their choice.

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.

Residents looking to rent here continue to find it increasingly difficult, if a new report just out is to be believed.

The median U.S. asking rent climbed 7.4% year-over-year to $2,007 in November, the smallest increase in 15 months and the sixth-consecutive month in which annual rent growth slowed. This according to residential real estate website Redfin.

The website reported that rents fell in 14 large U.S. metro areas. But alas, San Diego was not among them.

In fact, the region ranked No. 9 on Redfin’s top-10 list of U.S. metros where rents continued to rise in the face of a slowing national economy. San Diego was tied with Miami and Cincinnati with 9% increases year-over-year.

“Rent growth is likely to continue cooling,” said Redfin Economist Chen Zhao. “Asking rents are already down annually in 14 of the metros Redfin tracks, and we expect declines to become more common in the new year.”

But not here.

Indeed, the median asking rent in San Diego was an eye-popping $3,334 as of November. 

* * *

Despite rising asking rents here in San Diego, there is better news on the overall inflation front.

Year-over-year inflation averaged 7.1% nationwide in November, but was only 6.7% in San Diego, according to personal finance website WalletHub.

That’s the third lowest among 23 metros studied by the site. Leading the list was Phoenix at 12,1%,

WalletHub’s report, titled “Cities Where Inflation is Rising the Most,” shows inflation moderately rising in most places, including our region.

* * *

San Diego drug testing company Millennium Health said that illicit fentanyl use in Arizona increased 261%, which is based on patient samples tests conducted during the first half of 2022 compared to 2019.

The company said it hopes its analysis in Arizona will help raise community awareness about the dangers of the drug.

According to the CDC, Arizona overdose deaths increased over 43% between 2019 and 2021 compared to a 51% increase nationwide.

* * *

San Diego’s RICK Engineering said it has added two vice presidents to its senior management: HR executive Alicia Wadsworth has joined the firm as vice president of human resources, while veteran finance executive Eric Samuelson has been appointed vice president of finance.

Previously, Wadsworth was the vice president of human resources for Plaza Home Mortgage. Samuelson was corporate controller at TrendSource. 

* * *

Sycuan Casino Resort recently donated more than $187,000 — a record — to 28 different nonprofits in the region. The money was awarded after each member of the tribal council and leadership team selected a nonprofit to support on behalf of the organization.

For a list of nonprofits receiving awards from the resort, head on over to the resort’s website. The donations were announced during an annual holiday dinner for the groups.

Since the program was launched 16 years ago, Sycuan has supported hundreds of diverse nonprofit organizations ranging from social and health services to the arts and the environment, according to a news release.

In case you missed it… Escondido-based commercial builder Erickson-Hall Construction has broken ground on Palomar College’s new football stadium and softball fields.

The $22.8 million project at the school’s San Marco campus was designed by HMC Architects and funded by the $694 million Proposition M, which was passed by the voters in 2006.

Construction on the football and softball fields is expected to be complete in October 2023.

Palomar has not hosted a football game on campus since the program began in 1947. Once the facility is complete, the first home football game in 76 years will be played on campus. 

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North Island Credit Union has partnered with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego, donating more than 100 toys and gifts as part of its Holiday Life Changers program. The credit union’s employee volunteers helped wrap and organize gifts for Club members and their families.

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San Diego hemp-based alternative meat maker Planet Based Foods said Oregon grocer Market of Choice, will feature its products at its 11 store locations.

Currently, the chain will sell the company’s Southwest Burger, a hemp seed, brown rice and pea protein burger “with a kick.”  The company’s Original Burger will be available next month along with taquitos, which are made from hemp in a vegan and gluten-free corn tortilla.

* * *

San Diego energy company Sempra has been recognized by Newsweek  as one of “America’s Most Responsible Companies.” Sempra has now won the honor for the fourth year in a row. 

The final list recognizes the top 500 most responsible companies in the United States, spanning 14 industries. Find out more on the magazine’s website

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Easy Ice, which provides commercial ice-making machines on a monthly subscription basis, has acquired 85-year-old Cube Aire Refrigeration here in San Diego.

Easy Ice, with headquarters in Phoenix and Minneapolis, says that the acquisition has increased the number of machines under management to more than 30,000 in 47 states.

And the local acquisition closes out a successful 2022, during which the company expanded significantly.

“We are extremely excited to grow our presence in Southern California, a place 24 million people call home,” said Easy Ice executive Darren Boruff.

According to the company’s website, Cube Aire was a provider of ice maker service, repairs, and sales to restaurants, hotels, and other businesses interested in having a commercial ice machine.

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.

A study released this month ranked San Diego as the greenest city in America, thanks to copious amounts of renewable energy and an overall healthful environment.

San Diego was followed by Portland and Honolulu in the ranking by Washington, DC-based WalletHub, a financial information website. The least green of the 100 largest cities in America were three in the Phoenix suburbs: Gilbert, Glendale and Mesa.

“Clean energy and other green practices, such as recycling programs and urban agriculture, help create jobs and benefit both the environment and public health, all of which contribute to America’s bottom line,” said WalletHub.

The study used 28 metrics from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita, to number of smart-energy policies and initiatives, to green job opportunities to rank the cities.

San Diego came in 4th in overall environment, 26th in transportation, 2nd in energy sources and 11th in lifestyle and policy to achieve the no. 1 ranking.

San Diego Gas & Electric, which serves the entire county, has one of the country’s highest shares of renewable energy supply at around 40% of power generated.

Several experts told WalletHub that public commitment is key to building a green city and economy.

“Overall, a question is whether or not greening is front of mind,” said Michael V. Russo, a professor of sustainability at the University of Oregon, who recalled spending a term in the Phoenix area.

“I could not believe what I saw. People commuted in Hummers,” he said. “What this tells me is that there are places where sustainability simply is invisible to people. And unfortunately, I think for some folks we will have to get their attention with strong price signals.”