Entering 2017... - UPDATED AGAIN
UPDATE: All of the developers and the development names have been posted as of now.
With the new year comes (obviously) a new bucket of information so here goes...
NOTE: To search by old post, use the "Search by Month" capability. It will save you time. :)
If you still have question(s), feel free to contact me anytime and I will try responding ASAP.
1. Lennar has posted floorplans for their Rockefeller and Tribeca developments at Central Park
West on their website. I expect Rockefeller to have HOAs around $350/mo., while Tribeca's
should be higher. The Rockefellers should start over $1,000,000 with views of the new park
for all residences. The Residence 1, although well designed, has only 2 bedrooms while the
Residence 2, although with a precious 3-car garage south of the 405, will feel cramped with
two bedrooms on the third floor (if you have ever visited Luna or Jade Court's tri-level
homes, the Residence 2 should be similar). It would have been better to have front
entrances for aesthetics sakes. For over $1,000,000 and with Santa Ana school district, I
would pass this on.
2. Ebb Tide (with a precious Newport Beach) address is coming! The neighborhood is not the
most attractive, but hopefully this will keep prices reasonable. Taylor Morrison's Ebb Tide is
going for over $1,000/sf with no ocean views and no driveway (that explains the slow pace
of sales there). Meanwhile, down in South County, Pacifica San Juan is moving along with
plans for over 4,000 square foot single-story homes with 3-car garages in a gated enclave of
23 homes this Spring. Later this year, more affordable tri-level condos and Vista Scena-type
clones will arrive in a separate gated enclave. Down in Dana Point, South Cove is preparing
to open to the public. At around $650/sf though, it doesn't seem so attractive (although a
pedestrian bridge over PCH provides access to the harbor amenities).
3. There is a lot of buzz around Santiago Hills II slated to open in 2019. Floorplan schematics
can be found in the following link:
http://www.cityoforange.org/downloads/SH2/Design_Guidelines.pdf
It looks like a fancy Eastwood almost! I am disappointed they substituted the Belcara-type
homes for Mulberry-type homes though. I also might have appreciated larger homes and the
return of the originally-planned elementary school. Next door in Irvine, I plan to start
building address maps for Orchard Hills Neighborhood 3, Altair, and try hunting down the
final two names and all of the floorplans for Altair.
4. Playa Vista is moving along quite nicely. Jewel on Firefly Place is coming on February 11
from the mid $3,000,000 and will feature over 4,000 square foot homes with bars,
courtyards, elevators, large decks, and high ceilings. Don't forget though, it's still a detached
condo! Marlowe has sold all 4 homes they released (however, that makes only 4 for over 1
full year... ouch) and Everly has sold 9 of their 10 homes. Cleo has sold a surprising number
of homes given their price (making Cleo's attached homes ironically more expensive than
Everly's larger detached homes in some instances). Mason is doing funny recording and
seems to be making all residences except those in 2 buildings and the models up for sale... I
still would like to see prices go down their soon...
5. LA is just buzzing with new construction ranging from X67 in Marina Del Rey (if you could
wait, I would choose Seabluff Flats by Brookfield Residential in one or two years) to the Mr.
C Residences in Beverly Hills at a whopping $3,000/sf (WTF for many people since that's as
bad, if not worse, than Tribeca, NYC). There is the NuParc - Mar Vista floorplans (the only
one I would consider is the smallest one; the other ones are just meh), Avanti at Calabasas
(very luxurious with a lake steps away but a bit too pricey), the Residences at Carbon Beach
for people looking for sub-$5 million in Malibu, Marisol for the people who can splurge in
Malibu, and Cavalieri for the Malibu-pretend people (if it was on the other side of PCH, now
we are talking!). One Beverly and the Four Seasons are options for people wanting to
splurge (or even better, The Century where the cheapest unit right now is going for $26.5
million). There looks to be more affordable options near the Fairfax-La Brea zone with 8500
Sunset and Vue (the exteriors are pretty, the crime rate not so much). Etco, the luxury
builder of LA, is going all out with Villas and Terraces at Pasadena (hello 5-story escalator
and 4-car garage and views of the Rose Parade today) as well as in Pacific Palisades (4,500
square foot ocean-view condos). The New Home Company, meanwhile, is targeting their
upscale Canyon Oaks project in Calabasas. In the Silver Lake district, Planet Home Living is
closing their Manzanita project (over $1 million for a 1,600 square foot home is somewhat
justifiable considering its unique location on a ridge over the Sunset/Santa Monica
intersection and the Sunset eastern terminus) and starting their COVO project (definitely not
justifiable for flat land). In nearby Los Feliz, a hoard of small-lot homes have open and
closed in 2016 (e.g. Alexandria Four) and in Hollywood, new condos are springing up along
somewhat seedy Gower St.)
As you can see, there's a lot coming this year as the new construction market picks up rapidly!
P.S. In terms of resale, especially on the Westside from Playa del Rey to Santa Monica where the cheapest single-family home is over $1 million, looking at land purchases might not be bad. However, be careful! The many cheap lots for sale in Castellamare, Pacific Palisades are in a well-known slide zone dangling over PCH while the lots on Beverly Glen are pretty awful. The lot on Lindacrest is not really in Beverly Hills (the one next to it would be though) while the ones over La Cienega are nightmarish to get in and out of. If you have ever tried visiting the Woods house, have fun!