New construction worthiness in San Diego

[Taha Tekreeti]

Hi all,

I’m planning on moving to San Diego soon. I was looking at the housing market there and tbh it’s kind off disappointing. House sizes average 1500-1800 sqft most of them sit on A quarter of an acre and mostly built in the 70s with a price tag of > 1million . I live in northern Virginia which is expensive too but it doesn’t really compare to SD.

I was thinking about building my own house and finding a builder who I can work with there. I have couple family members who are interested so I was thinking if we can find a large lot or an old house on a large lot to demolish and build into 2-3 houses. 
I’ve read on the forums here the vacant lots in SD are usually vacant for a good reason so they might not be a good investment. Is that true? Also is my idea realistic about buying an old house demolishing and building into multiple properties?
Is it easy to get permits for such work? 
anyone recommends any builder to contact? 
and what is the average price for new construction? 

Thanks!