Open Thread 7-26-2008

Heartlight — Neil Diamond

Are the rich foreigners going to come buy our overpriced real estate? Not if they are from this planet. Perhaps ET and his buddies will come down to save us?

Beds: 4
Baths: 4
Sq. Ft.: 3,124
$/Sq. Ft.: $639
Lot Size: 9,600

Sq. Ft.

Property Type: Single Family Residence
Style: French Country, Tuscan
Year Built: 2006
Stories: 1 Level
View: City Lights, City, Hills, Mountain, Panoramic, Valley
Area: Quail Hill
County: Orange
MLS#: U8003269
Source: SoCalMLS
Status: Active
On Redfin: 7 days

This is One of the Best Locations in Quail Hill !! Beautiful Single
Level, almost new home, located at the end of a Cul-de-sac on Largest
greenbelt in Vicara. 180 degree panoramic views of Irvine Valley,
Mountains, City Lights & Breathtaking Sunsets. Single loaded
street, with Laguna Canyon surrounding you. Over $300,000 in upgrades
including Gourmet Kitchen with 20 Ceilings, Built-in Buffet with glass
Front Cabinets, Wine Fridge, Warming Drawer, all upgraded appliances,
Brazilian Granite, Stone backsplash w/ Decorative Iron Details, Faux
finished walls, Wok Room with sink & much more! Travertine Counters
in all Baths with Designer styled showers. Custom Lighting, Closet
Organizers in all bedrooms and garage. Sound System thru-out, custom
chandelier & sconces in Dining Room. Master Suite Bath is in
limestone w/upgraded cabinets, built-in High-boy, his/hers closets
& more!

Did you notice how they wet the pavement and sidewalk to get a better picture, but they did it in the mid afternoon when it dries to quickly and you don’t get the reflective effects?

I imagine this is a nice property, although I can’t tell because there are no pictures. $639/SF? WTF? If you look at the comps on Redfin, you can quickly see this property is $500,000 overpriced. Who knows, perhaps ET will phone home and see if mortgage brokers on his planet will finance the deal…

.


Come back again
I want you to stay next time
‘Cause sometimes the world ain’t kind
When people get lost like you and me

I just made a friend
A friend is someone you need
But now that he had to go away
I still feel the words that he might say

Turn on your heartlight
Let it shine wherever you go
Let it make a happy glow
For all the world to see
Turn on your heartlight
In the middle of a young boy’s dream
Don’t wake me up too soon
Gonna take a ride across the moon
You and me

He’s lookin’ for home
‘Cause everyone needs a place
And home’s the most excellent place of all
And I’ll be right here if you should call me

Turn on your heartlight
Let it shine wherever you go
Let it make a happy glow
For all the world to see
Turn on your heartlight
In the middle of a young boy’s dream
Don’t wake me up too soon
Gonna take a ride across the moon
You and me

And home’s the most excellent place of all
And I’ll be right here if you should call me
Turn on your heartlight
Let it shine wherever you go
Let it make a happy glow
For all the world to see
Turn on your heartlight
In the middle of a young boy’s dream
Don’t wake me up too soon
Gonna take a ride across the moon
You and me
Turn on your heartlight now
Turn on your heartlight now

Heartlight — Neil Diamond

47 thoughts on “Open Thread 7-26-2008

  1. ockurt

    Many sellers are still smokin’ that crack.

    BTW IR thanks for all your updated redfin listings on this website. Yours come faster than my realtor’s!

    Thanks again for this great resource.

  2. MalibuRenter

    Perhaps the “20 ceilings” are really “20 foot ceilings”?

    Wish they had more photos. The “Bulit-in Buffet” might be a bas-relief of Warren Buffet. That would be pretty awesome. It could have some of his quotes at the bottom. Like “You only learn who has been swimming naked when the tide goes out – and what we are witnessing at some of our largest financial institutions is an ugly sight.”

  3. Howard

    “Wok Room with sink “? A special room for cooking stir fry? So the sink is for washing the Wok when you are done cooking?

  4. awgee

    It seems there is a rather large contingent of sellers who only know what they thought their home was “worth” at some time in the past. And they think that if they just wait out a small correction, that their home will be “worth” that amount some time soon. So, who is going to tell them that their home will not be “worth” that much again for more than ten years?

    1. Matt

      Nobody.
      When Nobody knocks on the door to see the place, Nobody will tell them it’s not worth that much.
      When Nobody makes an offer at this price, Nobody will be telling them it’s overpriced.

      Something tells me that these owners won’t be smart enough to learn from the dog that doesn’t bark, though.

  5. idrnkurmlkshk

    SNL, should do a the “really” segment on places like QH. I tmight go somthing like this, feel free to add on everyone!

    Quail Hill..REALLY?

    $600 a sqr/ft. REALLY!?!

    You know your development is on a hill and not a tropical island? REALLY.

    Banks are crashing and mortgages are imploding. No one in QH bought a “creative” loan? REALLY?

    Your development was built during the peak of the Great Hosing Bubble. You seriously think your homes are immune to market forces? REALLY?

    It never occurred to you that your housing prices may completely crash if you don’t lower them appropriately? Really!

    You realize Quail Hill is NOT in Laguna beach? REALLY!!

    So if you convince everyone in your Dev to hod out, and keep prices in the WTF rage, you can avoid this minor housing problem?

    REALLY?!?

  6. nfox

    VirtualEarth’s overhead view on redfin looks to be off (and google maps’ as well). From that MLS pic, it seems to be the house on the end of the culdesac, not 3 in from the street. Nice location. Still not worth 2M.

  7. alan

    Lets see, if they are looking for a buyer putting 10% downm $200k, then the monthly mortgage nut is $12,500 (current jumbo at 7.5%), add to that property taxes of $3,200, not to mention insurance means that someone needs to make $30k/month or north of $400k/year documented to afford this mansion.

    That’s a pretty small buyer pool compared to the avaliable mansions for sale.

    1. Beachy

      Don’t forget one YEAR of cash reserves, too. 15K per month x 12 months = 180K cash reserve.
      Many jumbos are at 8% now.

      For. A. Tract. Home.

  8. NoWowway

    http://www.coleenbrennan.com/

    Anyone know what “face-paced” means?

    From the listing agent’s site:

    The Coleen Brennan Team

    “My team brings the experience and wisdom we’ve gained along the way to one of life’s biggest decisions,” she adds. “This is the bulk of our work, it’s how we earn our keep, and it’s gratifying to know that, to the greatest extent, we’ve been able to spare the client from the brunt of the stress.”

    She feels her team’s energy and synergy are one of keys to their market strength. “In today’s face-paced market, especially in the Newport area, you have to have a team of professionals that support the transaction from start to finish. I’m very fortunate to have Roger Laule, Linda Wheeler, and Tony Siok working with me. We share the same work ethic, goals and enthusiasm. Without our team support, we could not even begin to approach the stringent needs of our clients.”

    As with her approach to everything, Coleen strives to set and achieve the highest standards possible for her real estate team and for herself. “I demand a lot of myself and I demand a lot of my team. I don’t ask them to do anything I wouldn’t do. They see my perseverance and dedication.”

    1. Forbear

      Guess that Boston U. Masters in Education paid off, she’s able to create her own words. 🙂

    2. dick

      “Anyone know what “face-paced” means?”

      No, but I know what “face paste” means.

      I wonder if anyone has “tea bagged” her lately?
      😉

      1. dick

        “I think she means face-planted, as in the market fell on its face. ”

        hahhahah you got that right.

  9. former_irvine_resident

    I snapped a great picture while on vacation that I’d like to share with everyone. How do I go about that? I normally use Imageshack but apparently that won’t work here…

  10. GavriloPrincip

    Unfortunately, 15 Balcony is in foreclosure, with the Trustee’s Sale scheduled for Aug 13. Once this 4700 SF property becomes a foreclosure at $2.1m, it will be tough for 3100 SF Dreamlight to get their $2m wishing price.

    Wednesday
    8/13/2008 2:00:00 PM
    Address: 15 BALCONY
    Get Yahoo! Map
    City: IRVINE
    State: CA
    Zip: 92603
    County: Orange
    APN: 481-094-02

    Sale Status: Sale Date 08/13/2008
    TS Number: GM138858C
    Notice of Sale Amt: $2,060,703.00
    Opening Bid Amt: 0
    Sold Amt: 0
    Sale Location: At the North front entrance to the County Courthouse, 700 Civic Center Drive West, Santa Ana, CA.
    Get Yahoo! Map
    Trustee: Executive Trustee Services, Inc.
    Trustee Phone#: (818)260-1600

  11. Laura Louzader

    Soooo, THIS is where all the mega-bucks foreign investors are going, huh? Must be, because they sure haven’t been buying anything in Chicago lately, except for maybe in the 160-story Spire that is being built. And I hear that steep discounts are being given there. We’ll see when the building closes its sales and the prices are published.

    I mean, I thought all those uber-rich Europeans were gonna go to Miami and downtown Chicago and scarf up all those $5MM condos with their own lap pools.

    I think we have enough “market overhang” of unsold and foreclosed luxury houses and condos in all our major metro areas for every investor to pick up two apiece at 20 cents on the dollar.

    And I believe it just might come to that, especially for condos in Chicago’s South Loop and in Miami Beach.

    It might even come close to that in coastal CA. Looks like every luxury home market is so saturated with product that only 1% of the population can afford on any terms, that it’s going to take the next decade for this stuff to be absorbed.

      1. Laura Louzader

        Your comparison of the Empire State in the 30s with the Spire now is very apt, but there is just this one little difference:

        The Empire State had a future. Eventually all the office spaces filled up, and this structure is still well-used and well-loved; a building that not only was a landmark in the evolution of architecture but is extremely graceful and elegant, as well as really well-built.

        The Spire, unfortunately, doesn’t really have a future, as much as I love this sprightly building. I’m afraid that it’s destiny will be to serve as the gravestone for the age of Things That Are Just Too Damn Big.

        Don’t take me wrong. I love skyscrapers, and Chicago’s lovely skyline, which I consider to be the most beautiful in the world, is one of the things that make this city exciting and one of the reasons I live here. But I really don’t believe we’ll be able to sustain buildings like the Spire for many people for much longer. Even now, buildings like this are very expensive to run, are massive energy guzzlers because of all the systems required to supply water pressure and power multiple banks of elevators; and are a nightmare for first responders, which is why so many backup systems are required in places like this. Just try evacuating an 82-year-old off the 123rd floor should the power fail. They have huge payrolls that include personnel trained in firefighting, because the fire dept’s equipment doesn’t reach that high. One good thing about these places is that they usually have their own generators and are off the grid- a source of deep chagrin for ComEd.

        1. lawyerliz

          My architect daughter sez the Empire State Bldg could stand another 1000 years at least, it’s so
          well built.

          1. Laura Louzader

            I believe your daughter. There is nothing quite like the large buildings that went up in the 20s and 30s, and nothing so beautiful, at least to my eyes.At least the speculative excess of the 20s left us with a treasure trove of absolutely wonderful buildings that we’re awfully late in appreciating.

            I mean, almost everything built in that brief period is incredible. The houses, the office skyscapers, the courtyards and corridor buildings. There are a couple of old corridor buildings in my neighborhood that are covered with, I kid you not, terra cotta friezes of domestic cats. I live in a 1928 vintage courtyard in Chicago,one of hundreds of such in this city, and you can’t beat the solidity of the building, or the beauty of it. The decorative details both exterior and interior are incredible, and while this place isn’t the same strong construction as a 100 story skyscraper, it could, i’m told, last 500 years with care. I never tire of looking at this stuff, which is why I’ve spent my whole adult life in these old city neigbhorhoods.

            The contrast with the high rise garbage in the South Loop and the crapboxes in the outer suburbs is just sick. This stuff is falling apart in less than 5 years. Like, it was built to last the term of the construction loan- let the hapless overextended buyers figure out how to cope with the water infiltration and falling chunks of concrete slab and cracking curtainwall on their $700,000 concrete-ceiling shoeboxes.

        2. Alan

          Is it just me, or does the first impression from their opening video scream out: a big screw ?!? LOL

    1. lawyerliz

      Agreed. Not buying in Miami/Miami Beach.

      There really are enclaves of ferriners in Miami/M Beach/Ft Lauderdale, and a few more may buy. But not nearly enought to keep prices up.

  12. dick

    Here’s an awsome video of Peter Schiff giving
    a presentation to the Mortgage Bankers back in Nov. 2006. It’s broke up into 8 parts, but it’s well worth the watch.

    Part I
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6G3Qefbt0n4

    Part II
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hFmoTjljpw&feature=related

    Part III
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBk4PhdhCFQ&feature=related

    Part IV
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNKs8lBnd2U&feature=related

    Part V
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoSwkCog-Ro&feature=related

    Part VI
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrpPsOvHUU8&feature=related

    Part VII
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVtT6spfffI&feature=related

    Part VIII
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgRgGKxXbCw&feature=related

    He NAILED it.

    Got gold?

  13. dick

    BTW, in Part VII and VIII Peter gets laughed at by those dopes in the Mortgage industry during the Q & A session afterwards.

    Gee, look WHO IS LAUGHING NOW, all the way to the BANK !!!!

    Knowledge IS power !

  14. Major Schadenfreude

    “Are the rich foreigners going to come buy our overpriced real estate?”

    I was at the Aquerium in San Francisco Monday. Lots of European tourists! None of them had houses in their shopping bags that I could see.

  15. Kim

    What’s the deal with the wet pavement in MLS photos? What is the purported advantage of this? Is this unique to the Southern California real estate market? It’s on my list of Weird California Stuff that I’ve been compiling since I moved here last summer, to send to my family and friends in Wisconsin…the list is so long at this point it will take me half a day to type it in e-mail.

    1. Carl

      Hey I’d love a list of weird California stuff to show my friends out here in North Carolina. When you get it done, share it with the blog!

  16. Failedagent

    Water used to be rationed in California. Wetting the pavement for house photos is just another way of showing conspicuous consumption ” oh look dear, the Joneses are so rich they can wet their driveway”. This indicates you are in a rich neighborhood.

  17. orangeman

    yes, in Irvine there was a lot of kool aid.
    Only, in Irvine could you pay 2mil for a tract home. And do you even own the land or or these 99 year leases too?
    I would not pay $250/sq ft. let alone over $600.

  18. SacBoomer

    You guys are not giving this property its’ due respect. The unique architecture is evocative of the Tuscany Region of the French countryside, from which the style is derived. This reminds me of the brilliant marketing ploy of adding an “e” to “point” to convince buyers to shell out an extra $100 per sf at places named Quail Pointe, or Deer Pointe. Only in this case, the unique architecture will run you an added $400 per sf!

    1. Mikee

      “The Tuscany region of the French countryside” Nice catch!!

      Do you think they speak Fratalian there??

      I hear there Burgandy/Chianti mix is sublime.

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