L.A.'s $500,000 question

The L.A. Times reports:

HALF-a-million dollars doesn't buy what it used to.

Prospective buyers looking in that ballpark a decade ago were a semi-exclusive group with their pick of the best Los Angeles County neighborhoods and a huge inventory of lovely, single-family homes.

Nowadays, $500,000 is right around the median price of a home in the county — and buyers in that range know all too well that the middle of the road is not an easy place to be. In many neighborhoods, it buys only a starter home or condominium, and the competition for those properties is strong.

"There's more demand in the mid-market and entry market than there is in the prestige or move-up markets," said DataQuick analyst John Karevoll.

You'll notice Houston isn't having this problem.Zoning means artificially high prices.