House Estate World

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Irvine Housing Blog

Posted: 23 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT

Woodbridge Townhome with Mixed Options
4 Wetstone #61 $615,000

Last week I looked at another similar Woodbridge home at 6 Woodland Drive, just around the corner from this one. But it was in the outer loop and backing up to Culver Street traffic. This one is in the inner loop in a quiet, private spot. The two homes are in the same price range and have been on the market about the same amount of time.

It is interesting to compare overall house size and price along with the location and closeness to traffic noise. Below, you can compare the significant numbers and location details for the two properties:

Significant Numbers for 4 Wetstone #61, Price $615,000: Built in 1978. This single story three bedroom, 2 bath home has 1,404 sq. ft. at $445/sq. ft. The property has been on the market about 50 days. It was initially listed for $625,000 in May. HOA dues are $406 month. The location is in the inner loop, turning off of West Yale Loop onto Stonecreek, and then onto Wetstone.

Significant Numbers for 6 Woodland Dr., $609,900: Built in 1976, the home is a two level, three bedroom, 2.5 bath condo with 1,655 sq. feet. $/sq. ft. is $368. HOA dues are $332. The lot size is 2,309 sq. ft. The home has been on the market about 45 days. Initially, the listing for the home in May was $649,000. The location is in the outer loop, backing up to Culver St., near Barranca Parkway.

CloseUp: Stepping into the single story town home on Wetstone I had the immediate impression of mixed assets. It is nicely situated in a quiet, private location, and has an inviting presence from the curb. Inside, the vaulted ceilings, and open, airy glass effects of patio and atrium add to its appeal. But at the same time, the entryway and kitchen flooring are ripe for upgrading, along with counters and appliances in the kitchen. The open living and dining areas with patio and atrium access and the windowed area to the kitchen create a nice space for family events and weekend entertaining.

There is a secluded master suite with double vanity and access to the patio. One bedroom includes a pull down Murphy bed. There is a double garage and newer AC and heater.

Specifics:
Bedrooms, 3
Baths,
2 Attached 2+ Common Walls
Double Garage
2 Parking spaces
Central heat and air
Association pool and spa
Laundry in garage
Irvine Unified School System

What will be evaluated here? Woodbridge’s first class lake, recreation and school assets help set the pace here, along with a quiet, private location in the inner loop. The need for flooring upgrades in the kitchen and entry way, along with kitchen counters and appliances will be part of the evaluation. Also the home is a little tight for space at 1,404 square feet. As noted, the other property on Woodland Drive in the outer loop backing up to Culver’s traffic, is larger and slightly lower priced.

Who will choose this townhome? A young family looking for all of Woodbridge’s excellent assets, along with a desirable location might be drawn to this home. A couple seeking a prime Irvine location might also choose this home opting to invest in the area and invest in some upgrades.

Recent Listings: 8 Alderberry, $630,000; 19 Crivelli Aisle, $650,000;
Recent Sales: 6 Driftwood, $525,000; 16 Millstone #127, $ 580,000

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Irvine Housing Blog

Irvine Housing Overview: June 2013

Posted: 19 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT

According to Altos Research, the Market Action Index (MAI) for Irvine’s single-family housing market is 42.57. As defined by Altos, this put the Irvine single-family housing market in the seller’s market category. (Above 30 is defined as a seller’s market; below is defined as a buyer’s market.) However, after a steady upward climb since the beginning of the year, Irvine’s MAI has started trending down. We will see if this holds true for next month.

Altos also states that the average single-family home in Irvine has been on the market for about 79 days as of July 5, 2013.

Following is Irvine’s June 2013 housing market data provided by Redfin.

Type	List Price/# Homes Listed	Sold Price/# Homes Sold	List Per SF	Sold Per SF	% Chg Y-O-Y Sold Price/SF
Houses
13-Jun	$1,112K/186	$855K/99	$462	$414	16%
13-May	$1,030/167	$890/113	$457	$411	21.60%
13-Apr	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
13-Mar	$1,020K/101	$904K/62	$443	$381	13.40%
13-Feb	na/109	na/272	$415	$354	n/a
13-Jan	na/113	na/274	$409	$357	n/a

Condos
13-Jun	$585K/235	$540K/130	$418	$391	24.90%
13-May	$599K/177	$539K/144	$406	$386	30.40%
13-Apr	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
13-Mar	$570K/111	$476K/88	$375	$344	21.60%
13-Feb	na/100	na/301	$369	$325	n/a
13-Jan	na/106	na/324	$377	$327	n/a

All
13-Jun	$734K/456	$638K/249	$422	$395	20.80%
13-May	$750K/371	$659K/274	$416	$393	26.80%
13-Apr	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
13-Mar	$703K/219	$588K/151	$392	$359	18.90%
13-Feb	na/209	na/573	$389	$334	n/a
13-Jan	na/219	na/598	$389	$338	n/a

Friday, July 19, 2013

Irvine Housing Blog

Open House Review: 6 Woodland Drive

Posted: 18 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT

Woodbridge Park Home in Outer Loop
6 Woodland Drive $609,900

From the street this two level home has an inviting presence, and inside there is mixed potential that could be developed. Located in Woodbridge’s outer loop with Culver Street traffic nearby there is some noise here. There is a tree buffer area, and the home does have central air. Also, additional landscaping on the patio could be used to screen the area.

Significant Numbers: Built in 1976, the home is a two level, three bedroom, 2.5 bath condo with 1,655 sq. feet. $/sq. ft. is $368. HOA dues are $332. The lot size is 2,309 sq. ft. The home has been on the market about 45 days. Initially the listing for the home in May was $649,000.

CloseUp: Stepping into the entry of this Redwood model, there is a light filled, good sized open space that blends the living room with fireplace and wet bar, and a formal dining area near the patio with view of the covered patio and nice sized backyard beyond. The ample open space invites interpretation and could work quite well for day to day family living and entertaining.

The kitchen is nice sized, but could use some upgrading in appliances and counter and floor treatments. There is a half bath downstairs and separate laundry next to the kitchen.

All bedrooms are upstairs, plus two baths. The master suite has a walk in closet. There is a two car detached garage with access to the back and side yard.

Specifics:
Two level condominium
Bedrooms, 3
Baths, 2.5
Double garage
Two parking spaces
Two common walls attached
Central air and forced air heating
Irvine Unified School District
Association pool and spa
Inside laundry on ground level

What will be considered here? The price in the current market which has gone from a May listing of $649,000 to $609,900 now will be considered along with the top notch appeal of Woodbridge’s lake recreation facilities, first rate schools and parks, and the overall floor plan and size of the home. Sitting so close to Culver Street’s busy traffic stream will be part of the discussion too.

Who wlll move in? A young family looking for a first home in Irvine with top schools, parks and lakes might be attracted to this home. The home is close to Stonecreek Elementary, Lakeside Middle School and Woodbridge High School. It might also be considered a rental investment property. The realtor indicated there is a flow of new properties coming onto the market now. A couple that wants a convenient location in Irvine close to shops and freeways, might choose to move in and upgrade this property, building on the ample space and workable floor plan.

Recent listings: 41 Songsparrow, $789,000; 3 Wetstone #61, $615,000.

Recent sales: 12 Woodland Drive, $550,000; 3 Woodland Drive, $540,000

Discuss on Talk Irvine: http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,4114.0.html

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Irvine Housing Blog

A Review of the La Cresta Tract at Woodbury - Residence Three

Posted: 17 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT

Residence Three
4,098 Sq Ft
5 Bedrooms, 4.5 Bathrooms, Downstairs Bedroom Suite with options for a Private Entrance and Kitchenette, Optional Bedroom 6 at Family Retreat, Optional Home Management or Enclosed Kitchen at Garage Storage
Starting from $1,513,800

Residence Three is the biggest home La Cresta has to offer. At over 4,000 square feet, it has five or six bedrooms and, depending on your options, as many as five kitchens! Yes, five! More on that later.

This home has a more reasonably sized foyer than in Residence Two and looks nicer upon entry. Immediately off to one side is the downstairs bedroom suite. Larger than in the other two homes, this one truly has the option of being a completely separate residence. The bedroom itself is a nice size and an attractive archway leads to a second living space. The standard home has it as a sitting area, but buyers can opt to include a kitchenette, as seen in the model. It has a small fridge, microwave, sink, and storage, as well as space for a table and chairs. Opting for the kitchenette also gives this room its own private entrance from outside, including a small porch area. The en-suite bathroom has a single sink and a shower. There is a walk-in closet, but its curved walls limit its versatility.

Before opening fully to the dining and living rooms, the foyer extends a bit further and offers space for a small table and chairs, a piano, or a buffet. It’s a bit of an odd space, but definitely more usable than its Residence Two counterpart. There is also a powder room and a small closet off the foyer near the stairs.

The dining room has a fireplace and, like the others, is quite large. It differs from the other two homes in that it lacks a window. It flows directly into the living room which, like Residence Two, has a good layout and many windows. This is the only model in which neither the living nor dining room has access to the backyard. There is also more separation from the kitchen.

The kitchen, like the other homes, has a huge island with seating for at least four. It’s more similar to Residence Two, in that it has the majority of its storage in the main kitchen. Oddly, the oven and microwave are located in the prep kitchen, about as far from the main kitchen as they could be. The pantry is located past the prep kitchen and is nowhere near the main kitchen at all.

The home comes standard with a drop zone that includes space for a built-in desk. This is through a doorway between the prep kitchen and the pantry. If you keep the standard model, it would be directly off the garage storage. However, if you opt to include an Enclosed Kitchen in your home, it is past the drop zone and adjacent to the garage. To paint a picture, if you cooked your food in the Enclosed Kitchen, you would have to walk through the drop zone, back through the prep kitchen, around to the main kitchen, then through the living room before reaching your dining room table. It’s a good thing the Enclosed Kitchen has its own fridge, because you’d have to walk almost as far to get to the fridge in the main kitchen.

The main kitchen opens up to the Outdoor Living Room. In the model, they show it with a complete outdoor kitchen, including a sink, stove, grill, hood and wine fridge. Even with the kitchen, you can easily fit a table for eight. This model didn’t really have any grass in the back but does have a second patio area. The lot size seems comparable to the other homes, but because the house is bigger, the yard definitely feels smaller. It’s also not landscaped as nicely as the other two models.

Upstairs, the Family Retreat is a lot smaller and more enclosed than in the other two homes. It doesn’t fully open up to the stairs or hallway, and it has fewer and smaller windows. The space isn’t nearly as nice as in Residences One and Two.

This is the only model that comes standard with four bedrooms upstairs. While none of the secondary bedrooms actually share walls (a bathroom or closet helps divide each), they are grouped more closely together than in the other models. The one at the front of the house has an en-suite bathroom (single sink, shower/tub combo), a walk-in closet, and is bigger than the other two. It’s kind of divided into two sections and also has French doors leading to a small balcony.

The other two bedrooms also have walk-in closets, but share a bathroom with access only from the hall. The bathroom only has one sink and has a shower/tub combo. Of the two rooms, one is definitely larger than the other, though neither is small. They both face the side of the house and have windows on only one wall. Every other bedroom in every model has windows on at least two walls.

The laundry room in this home is different than in the others. Instead of a linen closet, this one has a craft area with a long counter and seating, plus options for cabinets. It still has a lot of storage, but all enclosed in cupboards. Also, the sink is farther away from the washing machine, which is not ideal.

The master suite occupies the entire back of the house. From the doorway, the bedroom is to the left and the bathroom and closet are to the right. The bedroom is spacious and bright. The bathroom is bigger than in the other two homes. There are two sinks, but no vanity, and a large soaking tub. The shower is very large and the space also includes a small dressing area. A hallway leading to the oversized closet has an option for a big, built-in dresser.

Sometimes bigger isn’t better. Residence Three has some flaws, most noticeably the layout of the three primary kitchens (main, prep and enclosed) and their locations in relation to the pantry and dining room. The layout of the second floor is the worst of the three, with closer rooms offering less privacy, a smaller family room, and bedrooms with fewer windows. On the plus side, the separate residence downstairs is a nice feature and I liked the upstairs bedroom at the front of the house.

While overall these houses are all very nice, I would have a hard time choosing between the three models, as each one has key things wrong with it. Residence One has issues with the main kitchen, in the lack of cabinets or storage of any kind. Otherwise though, this is my favorite of the plans. I like the music room up front and the layout of the upstairs the best. Residence Two has the best kitchen but the most wasted space, in the downstairs foyer and the foyer in the master bedroom. Residence Three also has a poorly laid out kitchen, plus the smallest upstairs family retreat.

I have seen a lot of comparisons with Lambert Ranch, as these homes are similar in size and price point. Both communities have their pros and cons and there is some debate over which will hold better resale value. I definitely felt more of a “wow” factor in Lambert Ranch. While there are many nice features in each of La Cresta’s three homes, if I was spending $1.5 million on a house, I don’t think La Cresta is the community for me.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Friday, July 19, 2013

Thursday, July 18, 2013

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