Looks like residential building in Woodbury and Woodbury East are now officially in full swing:

2010 Woodbury/WB East New Home Collection

The common thread among this new collection is the “California Room.”

The 2010 Collection:

Woodbury:
Monteceto - SFR
Sonoma - SFR
Carmel - SFR
La Casella - Condo

Woodbury East:
Santa Rosa - Condo
Monterey - Condo
Coronado - SFR
Santa Cruz - SFR

All of this in addition to the PS homes and Ivy.

The housing slump is officially over in Irvine.

good stuff.  wonder what they’ll be asking for a sonoma or carmel…

What is with the Moncentico plan three’s apartment style kitchen.

I gotta love those names.  Would you rather live in Sonoma or Santa Rosa, Carmel or Monterey?  I had to look up where La casella was.  I thought anything Tuscan is outdated.  I bet they accidentally switched it with Cornonado.  The tract names for the new low income housing will probably be Tijuana, Salinas, Compton and Richmond.

With all the multiple threads on new WB and WB East construction, I am happy to see TIC finally put up a website will all the new tract names, builders, floorplans, and price ranges. I haven’t reviewed all the plans yet in detail but I like a couple in WB:

Sonoma Plan 3
Plus:
Like the 2nd Fl loft
BD and bath downstairs
Open kitchen with nice island
Great Room
Opt Cal Rm fireplace
Opt Observ Rm instead of Cal Rm (more usable indoor space)
Neg:
No retreat opt for MB given the loft is next door
No Fireplace opt for MB

Montecito Plan 2
Plus:
BD and Bath downstairs
Like Great Room concept
Nice kitchen island
Neg:
Don’t like MB over garage
Could have had more open kitchen integrated into Great Rm

I would be curious to see the Carmel plans but none were available at this time.

..

No floorplans for Carmel yet… and no 3-car garages… not even a tandem or a 2.5… they must not be reading my threads… heh.

EDIT: Looks like Montecito Plan 3 has a small storage area on the side of the garage (it’s a start).

Bk and Graphix,

What is your opinion on Tripointe Homes? Do they build homes just as good as Brookfield?

They appear to be new kids on the block.

Pricing structure for the SFRs is interesting:

2 - Montecito
Brookfield Homes
2,156 - 2,336 Sq. Ft.
From the High $600,000’s

3 - Sonoma
TRI Pointe Homes
2,350 - 2,622 Sq. Ft.
From the High $700,000’s

4 - Carmel
The New Home Company
2,616 - 3,046 Sq. Ft.
From the High $800,000’s

5 - Villa Rosa
Lennar
2,615 - 3,161 Sq. Ft.
From the Low $1,000,000’s
       
So Carmel is the same size range as Villa Rosa but will sell for $100k less? Poor Lennar.

Also… by the map, it shows that Carmel will be in the same area as Montecito.

PANDA - 17 October 2009 10:53 AM

Bk and Graphix,

What is your opinion on Tripointe Homes? Do they build homes just as good as Brookfield?

They appear to be new kids on the block.

Holy crap… I had no idea so many top dogs at Lyon left to start their own company. Who knows how they will be. Lyon can be hit or miss, so hopefully they remedy that.

irvine_home_owner - 17 October 2009 11:03 AM

Pricing structure for the SFRs is interesting:

2 - Montecito
Brookfield Homes
2,156 - 2,336 Sq. Ft.
From the High $600,000’s

3 - Sonoma
TRI Pointe Homes
2,350 - 2,622 Sq. Ft.
From the High $700,000’s

4 - Carmel
The New Home Company
2,616 - 3,046 Sq. Ft.
From the High $800,000’s

5 - Villa Rosa
Lennar
2,615 - 3,161 Sq. Ft.
From the Low $1,000,000’s
       
So Carmel is the same size range as Villa Rosa but will sell for $100k less? Poor Lennar.

Also… by the map, it shows that Carmel will be in the same area as Montecito.

Yup.. Villa Rosa and Rosemoor will need to drop their prices $100k fast before January’s open.

I saw that Carmel was going to be built by “The New Home Company” and I thought that just meant that the builder is TBD. No… that is the name of the company started by former CEO of John Laing, Larry Webb. Now, I have heard good things about Larry, but he also ran a company in the 90s that went busto. So hopefully third time is a charm for him. Turns out from my google-fu they were looking for a sales and marketing director. They should have found someone for that position before they named the company, because that name is going to suck for search engine optimization when you get results for a sewing machine company and bunch of other garbage. Lets just hope that their focus is in building quality homes.

Has anyone found the timeframe when these SFR are going to be ready?  It says on the website that they are “coming soon” in early 2010 but could it realistically be ready by mid to end of 2010?

I am quite ignorant to new home purchasing so I guess it will be great if someone could briefly tell me what the process is like..  For example, do pre-sales usually come 3 months or so before the home is ready..? is pre-sale final such that no one can outbide you later when the real sale is going on?  Do RE agents play a role in buying a new home?

Thanks in advance, I truly appreciate how much IHB has taught me about RE in general.

graphrix - 17 October 2009 12:02 PM

I saw that Carmel was going to be built by “The New Home Company” and I thought that just meant that the builder is TBD. No… that is the name of the company started by former CEO of John Laing, Larry Webb. Now, I have heard good things about Larry, but he also ran a company in the 90s that went busto. So hopefully third time is a charm for him. Turns out from my google-fu they were looking for a sales and marketing director. They should have found someone for that position before they named the company, because that name is going to suck for search engine optimization when you get results for a sewing machine company and bunch of other garbage. Lets just hope that their focus is in building quality homes.

In addition to Larry Webb.  Joe Davis the former President of the Irvine Community Development Company replaced by Young and Tom Redwitz President of Laing Luxury and the Original Taylor Woodrow Homes are part of this new company. From what I have seen over the years this team will accomplish good results.

Montecito and Carmel are part of an afterthought to Woodbury planning. This site was originally planned as a middle school. This is the only neighborhood that digresses from the original Woodbury theme; it does not have its own private park to identify with.

Montecito seems like an essentially a glorified courtyard house like one of the typical CalPac courtyard houses (Example: Cortile and Bowen Court in Woodbury).  6 homes will share one driveway/ entry off the street. Montecito straddles the outer perimeter of the old middle school site and the more traditional single family Carmel homes (each one individually loaded off the street) will be placed in the middle.

I’d venture to guess the reason that Carmel is less expensive than the Villa Rosa, even though they have similar living area, is because Carmel is placed in a more exposed site vulnerable to traffic noise off of Jeffery, and more likely to have non-residents wandering in from the public Jeffery Open Space trail. This is also the narrowest part of the trail, with little vegetation and no walls to diffuse the sound of 60mph traffic.

Villa Rosa is deep inside the confines of the community and within closer proximity to its amenities like pools and parks, therefore I think justifies a price difference.

Matchbox I get what you’re saying about Montecito being courtyard style homes and I see what you mean after looking at the rendering here:
http://www.villagesofirvine.com/Villages-And-Residences/Woodbury-Overview.aspx?type=home&Id=176

In the rendering, it doesn’t really look like a street in front of the house, but more of a driveway that makes sense now that you say there will be 6 homes (3 on each side) sharing a driveway like entry, though each having their own driveway at the same time.  But I thought typically with these style of homes they have the entry on the other side.  To build a courtyard home with the garage in the back and the main entry also in the back (which I guess is really the front), seems quite odd especially if there is no parking on the street/driveway alongside the home. 

I mean if you have guests to your home and you are the 3rd most in, they would have to park a block away and walk up to what feels like the back of your home, at which time they would find the front door.  Does anyone else think this off kilter?  I can’t think of another development like this…

In looking at all these new homes in Woodbury, I didn’t see any with a media niche.  Sure we can all hang our TV’s on the wall but sheesh where do they expect you to put your cable box, dvd player, wiring, game systems, etc.  All in a cabinet the protrudes from the wall?  What has happened to the media niche, is it a thing of the past :(

Hi Aqua Bliss. I see your observation. Street parking looks like it’s going to be a big problem. 6 home configuration vying for any small strip of street parking not taken over by driveways. 
The driveways and the entry door are on the same path in Montecito’s case, and not in 2 separate paths like the typical courtyard home. Sonoma homes will have to fight off their lesser Montecito neighbors to keep their frontyard clear of the secondary cars.

Aqua Bliss - 17 October 2009 11:36 PM

In looking at all these new homes in Woodbury, I didn’t see any with a media niche.  Sure we can all hang our TV’s on the wall but sheesh where do they expect you to put your cable box, dvd player, wiring, game systems, etc.  All in a cabinet the protrudes from the wall?  What has happened to the media niche, is it a thing of the past :(

I agree, and its also kinda hokey to hang a TV above the fireplace.

Aqua Bliss - 17 October 2009 11:36 PM

In looking at all these new homes in Woodbury, I didn’t see any with a media niche.  Sure we can all hang our TV’s on the wall but sheesh where do they expect you to put your cable box, dvd player, wiring, game systems, etc.  All in a cabinet the protrudes from the wall?  What has happened to the media niche, is it a thing of the past :(

Good riddance. I despise having my furniture placement dictated to me by a drywall covered box. The attached pic shows my TV on the wall and if you look below the lamp, you can see both the wireless router and modem. I converted a small night table to hold the cable box, the blu-ray, and the Wii. All the HDMI, game and power cables run through the wall behind the TV to a wall plate behind the nightstand and the games, controllers, and extra remotes all go into the drawer. I’ve since placed the router and modem behind the chair itself, giving us a room free of visible wires, cables, and power strips. Next, I am going to build a Home Theater PC using a wooden case that will sit on top of the night stand and fill the role of DVR and media center.

I recognize that it takes effort to find a way to work without drywall built-ins, but the end result is so much nicer to look at on a daily basis.

Matchbox - 17 October 2009 11:57 PM

I agree, and its also kinda hokey to hang a TV above the fireplace.

ouch

Hey Nudey your setup is nice but I’ll still take my media niche with built-in (attached - bad quality just took it with the phone).... I get tons of storage, can put home theatre speakers in it, holds all 3 game systems, and looks very clean at the same time…. But I commend you on the clean setup indeed…

Matchbox - 17 October 2009 10:39 PM

Montecito and Carmel are part of an afterthought to Woodbury planning. This site was originally planned as a middle school. This is the only neighborhood that digresses from the original Woodbury theme; it does not have its own private park to identify with.

Montecito seems like an essentially a glorified courtyard house like one of the typical CalPac courtyard houses (Example: Cortile and Bowen Court in Woodbury).  6 homes will share one driveway/ entry off the street. Montecito straddles the outer perimeter of the old middle school site and the more traditional single family Carmel homes (each one individually loaded off the street) will be placed in the middle.

I’d venture to guess the reason that Carmel is less expensive than the Villa Rosa, even though they have similar living area, is because Carmel is placed in a more exposed site vulnerable to traffic noise off of Jeffery, and more likely to have non-residents wandering in from the public Jeffery Open Space trail. This is also the narrowest part of the trail, with little vegetation and no walls to diffuse the sound of 60mph traffic.

Villa Rosa is deep inside the confines of the community and within closer proximity to its amenities like pools and parks, therefore I think justifies a price difference.

Carmel yields higher density than VRosa therefore the land value per home is calculated lower even though both projects have similar footages.

It is very obvious the designers of these homes adhered to the rules of feng shui judging from the majority of home buyers at Ivy. Although Asian population is 40% in Irvine the percentage of Asian buyers is much higher.

With that being said I would like IHBers to participate in the step by step plan review process. I found the best way to learn is actually doing it yourself.

First Rule: Identify the plans with a toilet or bathroom placed closer to front property before the front door. This is a plan where all future asset is flushed down the toilet before reaching the front door.

Second rule: Toilet and bathroom above the front door are very bad also. Occupants regardless of age in such a house will face serious health issues.

Third Rule: Toilet over cooktop. Cuisine is the second to education for Chinese lifestyle priorities. Having shit over food meant that the family will not be able to eat in peace. (money hardship, emotional distress, and family quarrels)

Please post your findings.

Aqua Bliss - 17 October 2009 11:28 PM

Matchbox I get what you’re saying about Montecito being courtyard style homes and I see what you mean after looking at the rendering here:
http://www.villagesofirvine.com/Villages-And-Residences/Woodbury-Overview.aspx?type=home&Id=176

In the rendering, it doesn’t really look like a street in front of the house, but more of a driveway that makes sense now that you say there will be 6 homes (3 on each side) sharing a driveway like entry, though each having their own driveway at the same time.  But I thought typically with these style of homes they have the entry on the other side.  To build a courtyard home with the garage in the back and the main entry also in the back (which I guess is really the front), seems quite odd especially if there is no parking on the street/driveway alongside the home. 

I mean if you have guests to your home and you are the 3rd most in, they would have to park a block away and walk up to what feels like the back of your home, at which time they would find the front door.  Does anyone else think this off kilter?  I can’t think of another development like this…

Thank you for pointing this out. I did not realize the Brookfield’s plan is off a motorcourt. I thought the plans are conventional lots.

A visitor would have to walk down the motorcourt to get to the front door of the home. The owners should avoid beige carpets and make sure the color matches leaked motor oil color. I have a friend living in Cobblestone Oakcreek. He said walking across the motorcourt to his front door not only made his house very dirty but his little toddlers almost got hit by his neighbors’ car when she walked out the front door in a blind spot. Double whammy for the little one when she is not tall enough to be seen on the rear view mirror and the front door is smack across the vehicular path of travel.

Two Articles on front page of the OC Register’s business section about the new homes:

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/irvine-homes-new-2610240-one-recovery

I can’t find the second one but it is titled “Irvine Co. Ready to Build”