Merced offers a special, diverse blend of rural environments and hot real esate market. Centrally located in the state, as the "Gateway to Yosemite", Merced offers an abundance of recreational facilities and entertainments.

The first new major research university of the 21st Century, University of California at Merced construction is underway with opening scheduled for Fall 2005. UC Merced will house approximately 2,000 students, faculty, and staff at opening. UC Merced will increase demand for housing in the community. Significant numbers of single family homes and apartments will be needed to house the growing University related community. Prospects are Good in Merced, its residential real estate market is hot. The median sales price for homes in the Merced area is $180,000, up from $106,000 just 2 years ago. In the past year, the number of single family housing starts were about double the City’s average rate during the 1990s. The city of Merced offers many incentives for first time home buyers.

The city offers incentives to businesses to relocate to Merced. The next major wave of commercial and office development is expected to occur in 2006 and 2007. Industrial development has generally been around 15,000 to 20,000 square feet per year except in years when major new facilities locate in Merced. The forecast anticipates two major new facilities in the five year period. Merced’s regional market is one of the fastest growing California retail markets according to American Demographics. In fact, Merced’s per capita taxable retail sales have exceeded the cities of Modesto and Fresno since 1995.