Irvine Housing Blog

Closed Sales from 3/21/2013 to 3/27/2013

Discuss on Talk Irvine: http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,3667.0.html

Open House Review: 14521 Ryewood

After scanning Redfin for some open houses, I decided to visit 14521 Ryewood Street in El Camino Glen, a neighborhood I haven’t toured before.  I thought the house was priced really high, so I wanted to see it for myself, especially since there aren’t any interior pictures online.

The basics:
Asking Price: $545,000
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 1
Square Footage: 1,000
Lot Size: 5,100
$/Sq Ft: $545
Days on Market: 7 
Property Type: Single Family Residence
Year Built: 1970
Community: El Camino Glen

There are no HOA dues or Mello Roos taxes.

The Irvine Housing Review: February 2013

According to Altos Research, it’s still up, up, and away for the Irvine’s single-family housing market. The Altos Market Action Index for Irvine’s single-family homes is 41.16l; last month at about this time, it was 33.10. So the Irvine single-family housing market climbs farther and farther into what Altos defines as a seller’s market. (Above 30 is defined as a seller’s market; below is defined as a buyer’s market.)  Altos also states that the average single-family home in Irvine has been on the market for about 127 days as of March 22, 2013.

Altos Market Action Index for Single-family Homes in Irvine
Altos Research

Open House Review: 55 Pinewood

Supersized  Woodbridge Condo  
55 Pinewood    $999,000

If you turn off of Yale and wind back through the North Lake area of Woodbridge, there is a supersized condo all the way at the end of the cul de sac, at 55 Pinewood. This condo may be the one that most condos want to be.

Totally remodeled and expanded, the home has grown to 3,157 sq. feet with 4 bedrooms, and 3.5 baths, including a master retreat, an office and a bonus room. The end result is a sleek condo with some nice options.

Be Priced Out Forever!

Inventory as of 24th March, 2013: 184.

I know, you all laugh when you hear the legendary  Realtor statement "Buy now or be priced out forever". But of late, the Irvine market has flipped, and is clearly on the seller's side, forcing people to buy before they are priced out, or the interest rates rise! Oh wait, this is Irvine. We don't care about interest rates. We buy all cash. At least most of the people I talk to are sharing stories of exorbitant down payments or all cash purchases.  It's a different world from what we saw four years ago, when we looking to buy. Inventory was maximum, and even though there were multiple offers of properties, people were under bidding each other as opposed to over bidding now to get a property, guaranteed.

I have profiled the West Irvine condominiums a couple of times to show how the market has changed for them in a year, some even appreciating as much as $200,000. Today, I will profile another condominium from the 92602 zip code, but not in West Irvine.

Closed Sales from 3/14/2013 to 3/20/2013

Discuss on Talk Irvine: http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,3648.0.html

Open House Review: 18 Miners Trail

This week, I visited 18 Miners Trail in Northwood.  While it has many upgrades, there is also still plenty of room for improvement.

The basics:
Asking Price: $779,000
Bedrooms: 4
Bathrooms: 3
Square Footage: 2,213
Lot Size: 4,560
$/Sq Ft: $352
Days on Market: 23
Property Type: single family residence
Year Built: 1979

There are no HOA dues or Mello Roos taxes.