Finding a starting place

With the median price for a single-family home in Southern California at $321,000 and rising, where can buyers find homes for less?

There are 100 ZIP Codes in Los Angeles County -- 37% of the 269 reporting areas -- with homes priced from the mid-$100,000s to $300,000, according to June statistics provided by DataQuick Information Systems. But they may not be areas that initially come to mind.

“If you are looking for a pocket in a beautiful neighborhood, that’s already been grabbed,” said Christopher Cagan, director of Research and Analytics with Anaheim-based First American Real Estate Solutions. “If you want entry level, you’ve got to go with a condo or farther out.”

The median price for a single-family home in Orange County in June was $450,000. Medians in San Bernardino and Riverside counties were $180,000 and $244,000, respectively. In Los Angeles County, the median price for a single-family home rose to $326,000; for a condo it was $250,000.

Here are some Southland communities for first-time buyers to consider.

Norwalk

Andrew Ramirez and his wife, Viviana, both 26, closed escrow in April on a one-story, three-bedroom, 1,500-square-foot home in Norwalk in the mid-$200,0000s after looking for a year and a half.

The couple was only successful after Andrew Ramirez spent hours sleuthing in the neighborhood. Through his tenacity in talking to residents about housing leads, he learned that an owner had died and her surviving sons were considering selling.

Ramirez, who works as a claims investigator for a trucking company, wrote a letter of interest to the owner’s sons and wooed them with cakes during the Christmas holiday. Even though two other buyers were interested in the house, Ramirez won the family over with his efforts.

“I think they enjoyed that I took the time to write the letter,” he said, “and they knew I would take care of the house.”

Ramirez said he and his wife chose Norwalk for its freeway access, central location and good ethnic restaurants. And homes in the area were within reach of what they could afford.

“Norwalk is phenomenally affordable,” said agent Kenny Hawkins of Re/Max College Park Realty.

According to Hawkins, 90% of homes in some areas of Norwalk sell for less than $300,000. For that price, a buyer can get a postwar home built from 1948 to 1955, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a two-car garage on a 5,000-square-foot lot.

“Homes are $75,000 to $100,000 cheaper here,” Hawkins said, compared with surrounding areas. He said he has listings on about two dozen such homes right now priced from $260,000 to $300,000.

“We can’t list them fast enough,” he said. “If I list a house on Friday and I still have it on Monday, it means I didn’t answer the phone. They are selling that fast.”

For entry-level buyers, Hawkins recommended the neighborhoods north of Cerritos College in a pretty, tree-lined section of town.

West Adams

Jasper Bear, 36, and his wife, Kim Horstman, 33, beat out 23 other offers this spring on a 1907 Craftsman bungalow after looking for five months in West Adams, west of downtown.

“We were sick of renting,” Bear said. “We were looking for something affordable and architecturally interesting.”

But finding the house was very frustrating, Bear said. “There are very few houses on the market.”

The couple paid $230,000 for their 1,400-square-foot home, rich with original details. They plan to spend about $60,000 in renovations.

“Fixers” are currently selling in the area from the low to mid-$200,000s, and homes ready for occupancy are $300,000 to $350,000, according to Dave Raposa, broker-owner of City Living Realty.

The homes, built from 1905 to 1915 with Arts and Crafts styling, have living rooms with large hearths and original details. Most are two-bedrooms ranging from 1,200 to 1,900 square feet on 5,000- to 7,000-square-foot lots.

Sunland

Located off the 210 Freeway west of Glendale and Tujunga, Sunland has two-bedroom, two-bath homes from 1,100 to 1,200 square feet for about $285,000, but prices are rising rapidly.

Houses are currently staying on the market about a month, compared with just one day two months ago, according to Jan Wantink, owner of Shadow Hills Realty. But inventory, she said, is almost nonexistent.

Leonard Ludovico, 41, has been looking in the area for five months and has seen about 10 homes for sale during that time. Still, he’s not willing to give up. “I like animals and wildlife,” he said. “That’s why I like this area.”

According to Wantink, Sunland offers good schools, a community atmosphere, complete with a 10 p.m.-to-2-a.m. Neighborhood Watch and a small Fourth of July parade each year. And there’s something new on the way too, she said. “Everyone is thrilled we are getting a Starbucks and a Trader Joe’s.”

Montebello

The median price for a single-family home in Montebello, between Monterey Park and Commerce near the 60 Freeway, is $300,000 -- up 20% from a few years ago.

That will buy a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home up to 1,400 square feet, according to Armando Arenas, of Century 21 George Michael.

A good place to look, according to Arenas, is south Montebello, south of Whittier Boulevard.

“I see a lot of young families, a lot of young immigrant families, that have been saving for long periods of time that have now realized that homeownership is within their grasp,” Arenas said. But demand is high.

“What I hear from buyers is that finding a home right now is testing their patience,” Arenas said. “It’s taking three to six months.”

Long Beach

Some areas only half a mile from the ocean in Long Beach still offer entry-level prices.

“It’s the most affordable beach community right now for the first-time home buyer,” said Century 21 Action agent Audrey Fleming.

Older homes on small lots between Cerritos, Lemon, California and Lime avenues, priced at $164,000 just two years ago, sell for $275,000 to $300,000 today, according to Fleming.

Azusa

Comparatively affordable single-family homes and new residential and commercial developments are bringing buyers priced out elsewhere to Azusa, according to Charlotte Glaze, of Squire Realty.

“I don’t know why people didn’t look here in the beginning,” Glaze said.

For less than $200,000, she said, buyers can find a two-bedroom 1,200- to 1,400-square-foot home on an 8,000- to 10,000-square-foot lot. Three-bedroom homes, with two baths and a den or converted garage, are going for up to $249,000.

But houses are being snatched up quickly, and bidding is competitive, with homes staying on the market only five to 20 days.

“Every time I make an offer on a house for a client, there are multiple offers, and sellers are being picky,” she said. “It’s a difficult time to be a buyer right now.”

Aguanga

For buyers looking for an escape and willing to make a lifestyle change, there’s Aguanga.

Never heard of it? The Riverside County town of 1,000 residents is 24 miles south of Hemet, 18 miles east of Temecula, 100 miles from downtown Los Angeles and about 70 miles from San Diego.

The median price for a factory-built 1,110- to 1,600-square-foot home in Aguanga is $190,000, with 2 acres of land, according to Chili Ainsworth, of Country Fever Properties.

The town was once a haven for retirees, but young families are moving there from Temecula and Lake Elsinore, Ainsworth said, which have grown tremendously in the last decade.

The community is reminiscent of TV’s Mayberry, with its one mom-and-pop store, a single gas station, two restaurants, two real estate offices and a post office.

“People still wave at each other driving down the street,” Ainsworth said.

Allison B. Cohen can be reached at .cohen@ix.netcom.com.