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The 90-residents of the Capistrano Shores Mobile Home park are the new owners of the estimated 7/10 (0.7)  mile of beachfront property in North San Clemente where their modular homes currently sit.  The property, owned by Amherst College, had been leased on a monthly basis to each home owner for thouands of dollars each month.  On January 25, Amherst College sold the property to the 90-home owners for a rumored $100 million (or almost $15,000,000 for each 1/10th mile of sand).

The lots run about 1,000 - 1,500 square feet where some 88 of the modular homes are second homes. While just speculation, some might guess each beach front site might be worth $2.4 million each once the North Beach Development and Marblehead on the Coast project is completed. Quite…

As of December 31, the newer community of Ladera Ranch in Orange County, California has a total of 316 residential properties listed for sale that show up through the SoCal MLS - IDX results at Ladera Ranch Real Estate . Upon further investigation, and what is almost shocking, is that  Bank Owned (REO) properties or homes listed for sale as Short Sale properties total 64 or just over 20% of the total homes for sale in Ladera Ranch. These Bank Owned or Short Sale properties can be viewed at  Ladera Ranch Bank Owned Properties .

This has a huge financial and emotional impact on families and children, as well as the local economy,  the local real estate market and lenders overall.  The Holiday Season for many of these home owners was probably not a…

Sales Statistics for Orange County, CA

According to Realist's most recent recording date of December 17, 2007, the number of Orange County Single Family Home sales fell 35% when comparing recorded sales of Nov 2006 to Nov 2007. Median Sales Price stayed about the same compared year-to -year as well as year-to-date compared to 2006.

Condominium sales fell about 33% during the same time period. The Condo Median Sales Price was 6% lower compared year-to -year and has remained the same year-to-date compared to 2006.

The chart below shows the specific numbers for comparison.

With the numerous bank owned, REO and short sale properties now on the market, it will be interesting to see how the first quarter of 2008 compares to 2007. Most of the short sale or…

As of December 29, San Clemente currently has 55 properties listed that are Bank Owned or are being offered as Short Sale properties out of some 500+ properties in total listed for sale. The properties can be viewed at San Clemente Bank Owned Properties .

Out of the 55 total described above, some 32 (almost 60%) are located in the newer area Talega of San Clemente.  These properties can be viewed at Talega Bank Owned Properties.

While just over 10% of all San Clemente listings are being offered as a short sale or bank owned, Talega is 6% of the total. Unfortunately, the new home community of Talega attracted many young buyers who got short-term interest only loans, sometimes for 100% of the original purchase price. With the upward index adjustment of…

The National Association of REALTORS® has published the results of its quarterly sales survey and found that the median home price continues to rise in most metropolitan areas. The median is a typical market price – meaning half of all homes sold for more, and half of all homes sold for less.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the data underscores the fact that all real estate is local. “Some metro areas are hot, while others are experiencing localized problems,” he said.  November sales statistics for Orange County will give us a better idea of what is happening locally.

November figures for Dana Point show the number of new listings decreased 28 percent compared to November 2006. Home sales decreased by 26 percent during the same time period.…

The 13th annual Toy Ride to CHOC (Orange County Children's  Hospital)  was a great way to start Christmas Eve. Over 1,600 bikers started lining up at 7:00 am for the ride that left the Orange County Harley-Davidson, Irvine, Ca Dealer at 9:45am.   The 30-mile ride went North from Irvine (with a local police escort through the city) , then up through Trabuco Canyon with adults and children lining the route waving and watching the group proceed to the hospital. This is an annual fund raiser for the Orange County Harley Owners Group that raises some $300,000 (about 35,000 toys) for the children when they are at the hospital. Riders from all walks to life look forward to this annual event. Anyone on any type of motorcycle is invited to ride with the group by…

Many consider Ladera Ranch, California to be part of Mission Viejo due to it's adjacent location and, the fact that if one did a search for homes on the MLS or internet, the homes were featured as part of Mission Viejo. This month (December 2007), the Southern California Multiple Listing Service (So Cal MLS)  decided to change their search criteria so that Ladera Ranch is now listed as a separate city for search purposes.  The 45,000 or so agents who use the So Cal MLS to search for homes will  find Ladera Ranch is no longer listed as part of Mission Viejo.

In reality, Ladera Ranch is a newer community located in an unincorporated area of South Orange County with it's own zip code 92694. Development began in 1999,  and it has grown to approximately 30,000…

The Holiday Toy Express arrived from the North Pole and rolled into the San Juan Capistrano Metrolink Train Station at 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 16 amid patient, but anxiously awaiting crowds of families and children of all ages. Adorned in some 50,000 sparkling and colorful lights that lit the evening sky, the oversized (some 450-ton)  "Toy Train"  brought holiday cheer as Santa and his friends from the North Pole put on a live musical stage show and we even had snow for the event!  They also led the audience  in a sing-a-long of Rudloph the Red Nosed Raindeer, Frosty the Snowman and, of course, Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

It was a fun event that benefits needy children through the Spark of Love Toy Drive sponsored by the Southern California Firefighters, who…