Mission Hills, San Diego Real Estate

Mission Hills is a historic streetcar neighborhood on the hills above Presidio Park, just northwest of downtown San Diego, known for its Craftsman and Spanish-style homes, canyon views and ocean breezes. It's also where John Bertsch built his first homes as a developer and ran Meshuggah Shack for a decade, so when he shows you Mission Hills, he's showing you streets he helped shape.

Living in Mission Hills

Mission Hills sits closest to the water of San Diego's inner neighborhoods, so it runs a couple of degrees cooler than North Park and catches the best ocean breezes in the urban core. It grew up as a streetcar suburb: the original developers laid a trolley line to connect with the downtown route on 5th Avenue, so buyers could ride out to the new home lots.

A Neighborhood That Protects Its Character

Parts of Mission Hills fall inside designated historic districts, which makes exterior changes harder to get approved. Know that before you buy with renovation plans. Two local groups shape the place: Mission Hills Heritage, which pushes preservation, and the Mission Hills Garden Club, which plants school and park gardens. John is a Garden Club member. Kate Sessions, who put many of Balboa Park's plantings in the ground, once lived where Mission Hills Nursery stands today, so the neighborhood has roots in how San Diego got its gardens.

John's Own Projects Here

"I've built here myself. Two contemporary homes above a canyon on W. Lewis Street, which Architect magazine featured, and a new entry and front garden for my own house on Albatross Drive. I also turned an old ATM hut into Meshuggah Shack, the coffee bar that helped make the neighborhood's little business district what it is today. When I show you Mission Hills real estate, I'm showing you streets I helped build." See John's projects.

Homes in Mission Hills

Expect Craftsman bungalows, Spanish Revival homes and some of the most protected architecture in San Diego, along with canyon-rim contemporaries like the ones John developed. Many of the older homes were designed for a different era of family life, which is where John's background in architecture and urban design helps: he can show you how a layout could be reworked for the way you live now, and what the historic rules will and won't allow.

What's Nearby

The Huddle, a breakfast-and-lunch spot open since the 1940s, is still a neighborhood fixture. Presidio Park and Old Town sit just below the hill, Hillcrest's restaurants and hospitals are minutes east, and downtown and the airport are a short drive away.

Buying or selling in Mission Hills? Talk with John, get a free home valuation, or see the homes he has built and renovated. More neighborhoods: Hillcrest · North Park · South Park · University Heights · La Mesa · La Jolla.

Mission Hills Questions, Answered

Is Mission Hills a historic district?

Parts of Mission Hills fall within designated historic districts, which makes exterior changes harder to get approved, while other blocks have fewer restrictions. If you plan to renovate or add on, John checks a home's status before you write an offer so you know what you can and can't change.

Why is Mission Hills cooler than other San Diego neighborhoods?

Mission Hills sits closest to the water of San Diego's inner neighborhoods, so it catches the best ocean breezes in the urban core and typically runs a couple of degrees cooler than North Park and areas farther east. That's one reason many older homes in the inner neighborhoods were built without air conditioning.

What did John Bertsch build in Mission Hills?

John developed two contemporary canyon homes on W. Lewis Street with Safdie Rabines Architects, which were featured in Architect magazine. He also reworked the entry and front garden of his own home on Albatross Drive and turned an old ATM hut into Meshuggah Shack, which earned an Orchid Award from the San Diego Architectural Foundation in 2011.

CA San Diego

Mission Hills

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$1,737,593

Average Sales Price

Total Listings

Walk Score

LISTINGS

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1/66 66

Active

$3,800,000

6 Beds5 Baths4,032 SqFt

1891 Titus ST, San Diego, CA 92110

Single Family Home

MLS# PTP2605262

Listed by Zepe Ybarra of Coldwell Banker West

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1/23 23

Open Mon 1PM-3PM

$670,000

2 Beds2 Baths958 SqFt

919 W Lewis St #1, San Diego, CA 92103

Condo

MLS# 260023788SD

Listed by John Selby of Compass

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1/56 56

Open 10/11 11AM-2PM

$1,398,000

3 Beds2 Baths1,157 SqFt

3911 California ST, San Diego, CA 92110

Single Family Home

MLS# PTP2606367

Listed by Ray Fraser of Real Broker

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