Good Things are Happening in Anaheim
As an Angels season-ticket owner, I spent the weekend attending the Boston Red Sox-Angels series. The defending world champions have owned the Angels for the last several years, particularly during the postseason, so it was particularly cool to see the Angels win ALL THREE GAMES. How sweep it was!
My husband and I talk about eventually getting a place near Angel Stadium when we’re older and walking, biking or taking the bus to the stadium, season-seat-holder seat cushions tucked under our arms. Anaheim’s home prices have always trailed the rest of the O.C., owing to the city’s older housing stock and Inland location, so others who think like we do may see some buying opportunities, now or in the future.
June’s DataQuick numbers show four Anaheim ZIP codes with medians under $400,000:
ZIP Median Change from June ’07
92801 $336,000 -39%
92802 $372,500 -30%
92804 $395,000 -24.8%
92805 $365,000 -21.9%
92806 $435,000 -27%
92807 $456,500 -30.8%
92808 $450,000 -31.6%
I previously blogged about “The Event” at Stadium Lofts, the condo development at State College and Katella, across from The Big A. It’s next weekend, and the sign spinners (“Save Up to $125,000!”) and balloon bouquets were out in force. Banners covered the balconies of individual condos, telling potential buyers how much they’d save. 
We paid a visit to Anaheim Garden Walk, the new three-level retail center at Katella and Clementine. That corner used to be home to cheap hotels, but no more. In addition to upscale chain restaurants (California Pizza Kitchen, P.F. Chang, Bubba Gump, McCormick and Schmick’s), there are clothing shops (Abercrombie and Fitch, Chico’s), a food court, and a 14-screen movie theater that includes an IMAX. Most of the stores haven’t even opened yet, but this is a very promising development.
Several other condo projects are planned or under construction near the stadium. The housing slump has put some on hold, but assuming they are built, the so-called “Platinum Triangle” could become an O.C. destination. So if you want an O.C. address for less, Anaheim may be an up-and-coming place to consider. And the baseball team isn’t bad either.
