Archive for June, 2008
June 30, 2008
For those that are not aware, aside from being a professional writer, I am also a camera operator for various televison shows. One of the main shows that I shoot is Larry King Live. It is a great show and I have a lot of fun doing it. As I sit down to write today’s blog, I am several hours removed from filming this evening’s show. The guest today was the CEO of Chevron, David O’Reilly. He spent the hour talking about the high gas prices that is hitting all Americans in the pocket, rather hard I might add. As I drove home, I thought to myself, I wonder how these high gas prices have affected the housing market? I decided to do some research and actually blog about it. To no surprise, the gas prices have had a sizable effect on the real estate industry.
According to www.builderonline.com gas prices have in fact played a large role in tanking the housing market. The article cites a new study called, “Driven to the Brink.” The study focused on five major metropolitan cities: Los Angeles, Chicago, Tampa, Pittsburgh and Oregon. It found that neighborhoods within three miles of the central business district held their home values better than neighborhoods that were ten miles further out. With these findings, it is no wonder that for many people it is becoming less and attractive to live in suburbs that are a considerable distance from their workplace. Economist Joe Cotright, of Impressa Inc. states, “The gas price spike popped the housing bubble.”It seems like the variables that affect the housing market are endless and know you can add yet another one to the list.
June 30, 2008
(Cartoon courtesy Slate Magazine)
Property taxes have been all the talk recently (my post last week”Are you paying too much property tax?”). OC Regsiter’s Jeff Collins’ post (“Aliso Viejo is top city for property tax cuts”), also last week, provided the results of the Orange County Tax Assessor’s 2008-09 Local Assessment Roll of Values. The total net taxable value is over $424.0 billion, an increase of $15.2 billion, and up 3.74% over last year. While Collins was more interested in Aliso Viejo leading Orange County in the percentage of its homes that had their property tax assessments reduced, I was more curious about how Tustin faired.
While Aliso Viejo did have the largest percent of parcels with reductions (about 26% of AV properties) with Rancho Santa Margarita and Irvine trailing behind (with 22% and 20%, respectively), Tustin was fourth on the list with 19% of its properties having reductions. This is a pretty big chunk of properties going down. Of course, we can’t all be like Newport Beach, which only had 6.2% reductions.
On a brighter side, Tustin’s overal total assessed value actually went up by 9.71%. According to the Assessor’s press release, “Irvine is firmly the county’s number one city with the highest total assessed value of $47 billion, an increase of 6.22% over last year. Newport Beach is second with a value of almost $38 billion or a 5.83% increase over last year. Anaheim is the third highest at $34.9 billion.” Two cities saw the largest percentage increase in their values this year. The first was a little suprising… the City of Seal Beach with the largest percentage increase, up about 9.89%. Next, came Tustin with a 9.71% increase.
So, while we have a good number of properties with reductions, we can take refuge in the fact that the overall assessment value is up.
June 29, 2008
I remember back in the day when everyone was critiquing (and by everyone I mean myself included) the sudden onslaught of online property evaluators. Everyone had their own opinion as to which ones were the most accurate and offered the best tools.
As the market has changed we are seeing a new wave of tools. This time these websites are listing property information on foreclosures. In keeping with the market I have searched through many of them and have found pros and cons to many.
The sites abound (Foreclosureradar.com, Hotpads.com, etc.) but perhaps the cheapest (as in free) one around is Foreclosurepoint.com. It offers fairly up to date, information. You can find all you’d need in your quest to take a gamble on the market, try and snag a good deal or just plain snoop on the neighbors. The only drawback with the free membership is that you won’t get a map with all the listings on it, just a list where you can click on the map of an individual property.
And while you’re at it you can check out these recent filings of foreclosures in Laguna Hills. As you can see the foreclosure is nondiscriminating, affecting all home types, styles and price ranges these days.
24306 Val Verde Ct
2 beds / 2 baths / 1,026 Sq Ft
Listed at: $274,900
Last Sold: $410,000 (4.11.05)
24662 Linda Flora St
5 beds / 3 baths / 2,680 Sq Ft
Listed For: $699,000
Last Sold: $390,000 (9.24.01)
This one has me scratching my head…
25232 Rockridge Rd
5 beds / 7 baths / 6,000 Feet
Listed For: $3,395,000
Last Sold: $1,950,000 (3.25.03)
June 29, 2008
Summer is here and that means time for enjoying outdoor activities. Maybe a trip the beach, some softball, a little volleyball, or a visit to a local park. Then again there is another option that various Orange County cities are offering in the summer months: a free outdoor viewing of a Shakespearean play.
Here is what Costa Mesa and Irvine are offering in the way of some free Shakespeare under the sun or stars:
A Midsummer’s Night Dream
When: July 5-6; Friday at 7pm, Saturday at 7pm, Sunday at 7 pm & 2:30 pm
Where: Orange Coast College Fine Arts Amphitheatre, Costa Mesa
Directions: Car; Bus 55, 47, 47a, 178 or 173
What you should know: the audience is encouraged to bring lawn chairs
Information: www.orangecoastcollege.edu
Antony and Cleopatra
When: July 13, 7 pm (pre-show activities at 6:30 pm)
Where: Turtle Rock Community Park Amphitheatre, Irvine
Directions: Car, Bus service is not available for this area unless you are willing to walk for about 45 minutes.
What you should know: the audience is encouraged to bring lawn chairs & picnic dinner
Information: 949/724-6717
A Midsummer’s Night Dream
When: July 20, 7 pm (pre-show activities at 6:30 pm)
Where: Turtle Rock Community Park Amphitheatre, Irvine
Directions: Car, Bus service is not available for this area unless you are willing to walk for about 45 minutes.
What you should know: the audience is encouraged to bring lawn chairs & picnic dinner
Information: 949/724-6717
If you live close to one of this area, you could use this as an opportunity for some free entertainment that is easy on the gas mileage (In addition to driving, walking, biking or taking the bus might be options.). And if you don’t live close to these areas, you could use this as an opportunity for some free entertainment as well as an opportunity to get to know the Central neighborhood in Costa Mesa or the Turtle Rock neighborhood in Irvine.
June 29, 2008
The women that made Nooo Nooo No famouse, Amy Winehouse. No one may need rehab more than this lady, but fear not Newport Beach, she will not be coming your way any time soon.
A bang for your buck in Newport Beach can certainly be an oxymoron of sorts. Being that many of the houses easily reach the three million dollar mark and above, a deal can be quite hard to come by.
As I stated in my previous blog, the variables that go into gettting a great home deal can very greatly. Now we can add a new reason - rehab. That’s right folks, I said rehab. The city of Newport Beach, as reported by the Daily Pilot, recently reached a tentative agreement with Sober Living by the Sea. Sober Living by the Sea operates a number of drug and alcohol rehabilitation homes throughout the city. Over the past few years, NB residents have become concerned about the potential crime and most importantly the almighty property value that the rehab locations may have on their neighborhoods. As a result of the agreement, several of the facilities will have to change locations to maintain a 1,000 foot distance from schools and day care centers. Good news for those looking to get into the NB market.
8 Seaside Dr #31: $499,000, 2 Beds, 3 Baths, price per square foot $392. Built in 1972, this two level home has been on the market for 65 days.
18 Shellprint Ct: #639,00, 3 Beds, 3 Baths, price per square foot $355. FT. This condo has upgraded counter tops, is three levels and has been on the market for 58 days.
16 Ima Loa Ct: $758,000, 2 Beds, 3 Baths, price per square foot $482. Built in 1973 this home has a view of Catalina on a nice clear day. It has been on the market for 61 days.
854 Halyard: $339,900, 1 Beds, Baths, price per square foot $468. Built in 1980, this single level home has been on the market for 54 days.
1256 Rutland Rd: $399,900, 2 Beds, 2 Baths, price per square foot $368. On the market for 128, days this condo style home comes with a pool.
3233 Clay St: 795,000, 3 Beds, 2.5 Baths, price per square foot $474. One of the newer homes, built in 1989, with two levels and spacious 1,676 SQ. FT
June 28, 2008
In yesterday’s post, I wrote about Lennar’s plans for developing its Great Park Neighborhoods. Today, I’ll write about the near-term activities at the Orange County Great Park that will be open to the public and that are planned by Lennar and the City of Irvine. These activities will give the visitors a taste of what is to come.
Lennar will be participating in the Orange County Great Park third anniversary party hosted by the City of Irvine: The Festival of Flight, July 13, 11 am-3 pm.
As a demonstration of what one of Lennar’s Great Park neighborhoods, the Life Long Learning District, will look like in the future, Lennar will create a Main Street USA for the day. Lennar’s Main Street will include a transformed El Toro hangar (hangar 10) and shops—such as a bistro, bike shop, flower shop and lemonade stand—manned by retailers from the community. Also, Lennar has planned an elaborate tree house that will be available to the kids (and adults).
The activities provided by the City of Irvine will include the resumption of the free balloon rides as well as other activities, entertainment and food. In addition, Irvine is upgrading the 27 acres surrounding the balloon. This is the first of three upgrading phases for this area, which is being called the “preview park.” The third phase is planned to be completed by next summer. On the day of this event, the preview park will include updated landscaping, improved parking, a visitors’ tent, and its own hangar (hangar 244). Admission to all events is free.
Note: The balloon rides were suspended during the construction of the preview park and before that for investigations by the FAA and the City of Irvine. These investigations were prompted by a compliant made by a former employee. The investigations by both the FAA and the City found the ride to be safe.
The Festival of Flight is the beginning of summer activities that Irvine has planned at the Park. These activities will include dinning, music and dancing (including a few free dance lessons if you feel the need to either prefect or just learn a few dance moves). Also, the free daytime rides on the tethered Great Park balloon will be expanded to include free night rides. Depending on weather conditions, the balloon can go up to 400 feet and can provide views of up to 12 miles of the surrounding area.
For more information about on the summer 2008 events at the Orange County Great Park, call 949-724-7420, or visit www.ocgp.org.
This concludes my Orange County Great Park tour for this week. However, there is much going on at the Great Park that is worth knowing about. So I just might continue on this tour next week.
GRAPHICS COURTESY LENNAR’S HERITAGE FIELDS (GREAT PARK NEIGHBORHOODS)
June 28, 2008
The variables for getting a great deal on a house varies greatly. Interest rates and a slow economy will certainly contribute to lower prices, but when one of the largest builders in the country, KB Home, reports a loss of $255.9 million in its fiscal second quarter, you can be assured that prices will continue to drop. As reported by cnnmoney.com, KB Home had a 55% loss in revenue this past quarter. This has resulted in the company making price cuts in their unsold homes and to abandon some of their land option contracts.
Eli Broad: Co-founder of KB Home.
So what does this mean for you? Well it’s simple, if you look really hard…or maybe not too hard at all, you can find some really great steals out there. To make your search a little bit easier, here are several great listings in Huntington Beach that your wallet will appreciate.
9764 Argyle Dr: $300,000, 3 Beds, 2 Baths, price per square foot $273. Built in 1965, this two story home is a short distance from a two brand new shopping centers.
8275 Cherrywood Cr: $335,000, 3 Beds, 3.5 Baths, price per square foot $264. This townhouse was built in 1975 and is listed as a short sale, the owner is open to entertain any reasonable offer.
19912 Sheffield Ln: $318,753, 3 Beds, 2 Baths, price per square foot $290. This residential style home, built in 1963 is also a quick sale.
9541 Adams Ave: $359,000, 4 Beds, 2 Baths, price per square foot $284. This condo style home is only two and a half miles from the beach and has a tennis court, kids play ground and club house located on its facilities.
9072 Madeline Dr: $644,900, 4 beds, 2 Baths, price per square foot $317. This single family residence has spent 54 days on the market and was built in 1966.
9171 Veronica Dr: $660,000, 3 Beds, 3 Baths, price per square foot $314. This single family residence may be the best value on the list with 2,100 SQ. FT of space. Built in 1967 it ahs been on the market for 60 days.
June 27, 2008
I’m going to make this the Orange County Great Park Week at Redfin. First up, Lennar and the Great Park.
The Orange County Great Park, which was once the El Toro Marine Air Base and is approximately twice the size of New York’s Central Park, is being developed by the City of Irvine as one of the first great metropolitan parks of the 21st century. The City’s vision is to provide a recreational, cultural and social gathering spot for Orange County residents as well as for others who are near to or far from Orange County. As Central Park, Balboa Park and Golden Gate Park are great metropolitan parks built in previous eras, the City’s vision for the Orange County Great Park is that it will be a great metropolitan park built in this era.
Homebuilder Lennar owns and is developing the land that, roughly speaking, surrounds the publicly-held city land. Lennar’s vision has been to create housing adjacent to the public development as well as build commercial, educational and recreational features. Lennar and Irvine have worked cooperatively, but each controls its own development. I’ll write about the status of the Irvine side of the Great Park development in another post. Today I’ll concentrate on the status of Lennar’s development in the Great Park area (which Lennar is calling the Great Park Neighborhoods).
Status of Lennar’s Great Park development (the Great Park Neighborhoods):
When the housing market was booming, Lennar had planned to start its Great Park development with the building of high-end single family residential. In the recent housing market heyday, that would have been a good business move. But times change, and so has Lennar’s plans. Fortunately for Lennar, since this project includes more than residential, the company has room to make adjustments that are more in line with current market conditions.
These adjustments mean that Lennar will begin their Great Park development with the building of office, retail and educational instead of residential. Lennar will start this building in one of its three planned Great Park Neighborhoods, the Life Long Learning District. Lennar’s long-term plans call for the Life Long Learning District to have homes as well as commercial and educational. However, this fall Lennar will start building the retail and educational portion of the district. The housing will wait for another time. In fact, Lennar’s current plans do not call for any homes to be available until 2010.
For information on Lennar’s tentative housing prices for its Great Park homes, see “The Orange County Great Park Update: Housing Availability.”
Tomorrow’s post: Lennar will participate in the Orange County Great Park third anniversary celebration, “The Festival of Flight,” July 12th.
GRAPHIC COURTESY LENNAR’S HERITAGE FIELDS (GREAT PARK NEIGHBORHOODS)
June 27, 2008
According to altosresearch.com approximately 556 houses are for sale in Huntington Beach for the month of June. With each home staying on the market for an average of 84 days, Huntington Beach is without a doubt a buyer’s market. Not surprising news of course, this trend will continue for some time to come. Also, according to altosresearch.com, the median home price for an abode in Huntington Beach is $823,872. Although the pickings are slim this week for open houses in Huntington Beach, there may be quite a bit of room for price negotiation. Happy House Hunting my friends.
8181 Cape Hope Cr: $389,900, 1 Bed, 1 Bath, SQ. FT. not listed. This penthouse is available for viewing on both Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 - 4:00. Amemities include pool, tennis courts, streams and a dog park.
20892 Sparkmen Ln: $749,000, 3 Beds, 2 Baths, 1,150 SQ. FT. This house was built in 1971 and is available to view next Sunday June 6th, from the hours of 1:00 - 4:00.
6472 Doral Dr: $1,895,000, 5 Beds, 5 Baths, 3,400 SQ. FT. This dream home was built in 1990 and is available for viewing on Saturday from 1:00 - 4:00. Located on the beautiful Seacliff Country Club, in a gated community, this abode comes with an outdoor BBQ area.
19476 Woodlands Ln: $2,695,000, 5 Beds, 6 Baths, 4,396 SQ. FT. Built in 1989, this ultra-luxury house can be viewed this Saturday between the hours of 1:00 - 4:00. With amenities such as a three-car garage and a jacuzzi tub in the master suite, this is the house you see in your sleep.
June 26, 2008
As we take a look at past sales and home prices for the Newport Beach area, we can see that the prices fall well above that of the national average. With a median home price of $1,850,000 in the 92662 part of Newport Beach, one would think that this exclusive section of the O.C. is not feeling the crunch of the real estate make. Well such is not that case, these prices are actually down 12.40% according to www.dqnews.com. Since January of 2007, 14 homes… yes that is 14 my friends, have sold in this area code, a significant drop of 51.70% from this same time last year. These staggering numbers certainly let you know that Newport Beach is not immune to what the rest of the country is going through. These past sales and what they sold for also provide an accurate barometer for the Newport Beach Market.
505 Avenida Campana: Sold for $814,500, 3 Beds, 2.5 Baths, 1,122 SQ. FT. This residential style home was built in 1964 and was previously sold in 2002 for $632,500.
2004 Barranca: Sold for 585,000, 2 Beds, 2 Baths, 1,342 SQ. FT. Built in 1966, this house had a 2007 property tax of $861.
37 Sea Island Dr. #37: Sold for 595,000, 2 Beds, 2 Baths, 1,197 SQ. FT. This condo style home was built in 1977 and was previously sold in 2007 for $626,000.
1949 Vista Caudal: $920,000, 3 Beds, 2.5 Baths, 1,701 SQ. FT. Built in 1964, this house was last sold for $925,000 and had 2007 property tax of $9,278.
444 E. 16th St: Sold for $710,000, 4 Beds, 2 Baths, 1,903 SQ. FT. This residential style home was built in 1968 and had a 2007 property tax of $1,287.
270 Cagney Ln #302: Sold for $573,000, 2 Beds, 2 Baths, 1,201 SQ. FT. This condo style home was built in 1985, it was previously sold in 2003 for $425,000.
