Myself and the missus were scouting the Verandas the last few weeks. Yes, they do have a few units that they’re "stuck" with. The unit up for $699K has fallen out of escrow twice and it’s in the phase that’s not too far from the railway line and it also shares a boundary with a "light industrial" area. I had a closer look at the "light industrial" area and it seems that the building directly adjacent is not occupied at the moment but the back of the unit is directly opposite a building with truck loading bays. This means that the building could be rented to a company that has trucks entering and departing the premises at all hours thus potentially causing noise pollution at any hour. I must say that the salesperson did disclose this fact.

Due to the wealth of information posted on this site and the high retail prices of the new units, the missus and I have decided to wait until they release the last two phases located directly behind the models. If we aren’t successful in acquiring a unit (at the right price of course) - which would be about $100K less than they are selling for right now, then we will wait to see what else is developed in the neighborhood. There’s no sense in rushing a home purchase right now with all the trouble in the lending sector.

I enjoy this blog tremendously and look forward to more tips / pricing and other pearls of wisdom.

007

The sales lady said the trains didn’t blow their whistles when rolling through town, but last time we visited we definitely heard a train whistle when it went by… does anyone know if the train whistle blows, is it loud, and do the trains run day and night?

I’ve done a lot of research on the Verandas, since I’m thinking of buying.  If you actually go down to the homes, you can hear the trains blow their whistles, but only when they cross Red Hill Ave.  You can’t hear it if you’re at the model home.  But I’ve also talked to some of the neighbors that already live there, and they say that if you’re in your house you can’t really hear the train unless you’re listening for it.  I don’t believe the trains run all night long.  What most owners complain about though, are the planes that fly overhead, but their hours of operation are limited and don’t fly in the middle of the night

Regarding the "light industrial" property next to the Phase 1 houses, the City of Tustin is aware of the Verandas and will only give permits to businesses that will be "friendly" to the neighborhood (ie. no 24 hour operation).  Also, homes within a couple hundred feet that are affected by a business must be notified and a meeting must occur before a permit is released, or something to that effect. I don’t have anything in writing so take what I say with a grain of salt.

 I hope this helps in your decision.

>>What most owners complain about though, are the planes that fly overhead, but their hours of operation are limited and don’t fly in the middle of the night
For now.  I don’t know when the caps come off at JWA, but I think it’s something like 2009 or 2011. 

Clearly, I don’t read the news.  Per this, the curfew will extend to Dec. 31, 2020.

What are the chances of having freight run up and down those rails all day and night at some point in the future?

oc, the odds are pretty slim since the freight lines run through SB and Riverside counties. If anything, those OC lines get more commuter trains feeding into LA.
 

Amtrak runs through Tustin at around 11 p.m. . . . there is quite a lot freight going through the OC lines between SD and LA

I don’t know where those lines go or what they connect to, but my Magic 8-ball (peak oil edition) says "likely" to moving more freight by rail in an energy constrained situation.

Amtrak owns the tracks running through the middle of OC but BNSF has trackage rights, meaning they pay a fee to Amtrak to use them. They also have to schedule runs around the Amtrak trains. Things might have changed a bit between now and 93, but I doubt freight traffic has increased by much, especially as the BNSF does own the line running through North OC. Running freight on a train between the ports in LA/LB and SD takes 4 days from pick-up to delivery, according to the BNSF website. Since we are talking about two port cities, increasing freight runs through OC just doesn’t make financial sense on a long-term basis, thus reducing the chances of it occuring in my semi-informed opinion.

Hey guys, I have an update from a couple who is in escrow right now.  They want to back out and get their deposit back, but just last weekend they received a call from the sales office offering to reduce their purchase price from $675,000 to $625,000 on their Plan 1.  This is apparently what a new buyer would get.

Plan 1AXR - Lot 8 - $711,990 with $25K in credits

Included Features

  Stainless steel kitchen appliances
  Upgraded maple sable cabinets
  Granite countertops
  All baths upgraded
  Upgraded interior paint package
  Pre-wired for surround sound and security system
>

Back in Jan this was only $674,999

Does this mean that back in Jan it didn’t have all these included features or are William Lyon slowly increasing the prices ready for a price drop?

Price sheet effective 9/6/07

Phase 1

Lot 8 - Plan 1AXR - $711,990

Lot 10 - Plan 3EX - $733,990

Lot 13 - Plan 3C - $721,990

Lot 16 - Plan 3D - $730,990

Lot 17 - Plan 2A - $696,990

Phase 2

Lot 23 - Plan 3CXR - $724,990

Lot 24 - Plan 1AX - $659,990

Lot 26 - Plan 3E - $713,990

Lot 29 - Plan 3D - $713,990

Lot 32 - Plan 2AXR - $713,990

Lot 33 - Plan 3EX - $726,990

It was our first time to Columbus Square.  We went to see the Stable, Astoria, and Verandas.  Verandas seems the best priced house out of these.  Furthermore, the price are very competitive compared to any new SFR we have seen in Tustin or Irvine.  Another agent at Astoria told us that Verandas for $40K incentives, but when we went to Verandas and asked the agent there, she said it was only $25K.  I think if you’re serious about buying here, I don’t doubt they would be happy to give you a $40K incentive.  If these homes went to Irvine School district, we would buy them in a heartbeat.  They are priced to be less than $300/sq ft.  This is unheard of for SFR.  And they are new.

Verandas is unpopular for 1 reason, the homes are the closest to the metro side on edinger. I used to think the bloggers here were exaggerating on the noise but they are not. It’s quite loud. You will also feel the house shake when the train goes by. You wont here it from the MODEL homes though. I’ll wait till late 2009 to purchase a fixer in Fountain Valley. The 8,000 to 10,000 square foot lots are ideal for me. When you have friends in the construction business, you get your homes rebuilt close to cost
It’s not that cheap but it’s a lot cheaper than hiring contractors!

For those of you who are worried about the train noise, here is what I found:  "Down the line in Tustin, city officials are taking steps to silence trains that cross Red Hill Avenue, just north of Edinger Avenue, to help out residents in several hundred nearby homes. More than $1 million is budgeted."   The full article is here:  http://www.quietzonesd.info/Reports/OC_Register-2006-07-16.html.  And http://www.tustinca.org/citydept/PubWorks/ViewProjects.asp lists Red Hill Quiet Zone Improvements @ Railway as one of the improvement projects.  I read somewhere else (I couldn’t find the article now) that $400k has been approved and already allocated to that railroad crossing alone.

New e-mail

 
     
        15219 Severyns
        Plan 1A - Lot 12 - $657,990
         
     
 

Home Specifications

1,905 Square Feet, 3 Bedrooms, 2.5 Baths, 2-Car Garage

Upgraded Dark Maple Cabinetry, Front Porch, Front Yard Landscaping, Low HOA’s, November 2007 move-in.

ok, so what’s this deal with Village of Hope?? the homeless shelter? how close is it to Verandas?

What was the incentives for Plan 1A-Lot 12?  Did they sell that lot?  Thanks,

[url=“http://orangecounty.lyonhomes.com/homes/community.php/Verandas_at_Columbus_Square.html?c=241”]

[/url]
1417 Madison Street

$699,990
Home Specifications

1,887 Square Feet

3 Bedrooms

2.5 Baths

2-Car Garage

If you look up the house JP lists, it includes the following:
Included Upgrades

Granite Slab Kitchen Countertops

Formal Dining Room

Front Yard Landscaping Included

4,500 Square Foot Backyard

Generous Builder Incentive

December Move-in
I wonder how generous they are being?  I have heard people say $50K, $75K, etc.  This might not be a bad house if they knocked off a full $100K.
Also, a 4500 sq ft backyard would mean this house is on a lot bigger than 6000 sq ft.  I was under the impression that the Verandas were all on tiny lots.

I would be inclined to visit the builder and view the lot.  A lot that large makes me think it acts as a buffer to something.

i bet you this is a typo. The retard at the office probably is proud of the 4500 sq ft lot.

Must be a typo, they got plan 1 and plan 2 mixed up.

Before stocking up for the Rose Bowl at the District Costco, checked out the Verandas as they seem comparable to Stonetree Manor in Woodbury—- which I am interested in.  Pricing sheet is dated 9/6/07, but the old prices are crossed out and new prices written in with red ink….They must have just dropped them:
Residence 1 - From $655,990
Residence 2 - From $690,990
Residence 3 - From $714,990
Didn’t get in a very deep conversation with sales office as I am not interested in these (due to school district) and didn’t want to waste our time—- but she did offer up that $50k of incentive money was available on top of the listed price.  As a note, I drove around the entire Columbus Square to check it out, as I had never been in there before.  It was like a ghost town.  I swear I did not pass another moving vehicle in the whole community.  Strange place. Given the sketchy location, IMHO prices here have a LONG way to go before they get any movement on these homes. 

Updated handwritten pricing on 2/1/08
Residence 1 - From $639,990
Residence 2 - From $671,990
Residence 3 - From $697,990

I was checking out Verandas last weekend and they had one one sale “Weekend Special” for 587,00K for Feb closing.