Sweet Orange

GRAPHS , COURTESY REDFIN, ARE OF WOODBURY’S HOUSING INVENTORY, DETACHED HOME MEDIAN LIST PRICE PER S/F, CONDO MEDIAN LIST PRICE PER S/F

Woodbury is one of Irvine’s newer areas.  According to Redfin, in June, Woodbury had 65  homes on the market (16 detached homes and 49 condos).  The median list price was $590,000 or $342 per square foot.

In April, five homes sold with a median selling price of $550,000. The median number of days on market for a Woodbury home is 58.*

Twenty-one percent of the Woodbury homes that were sold or taken off the market between April 28th and July 27th had price reductions. These homes had a median of one price reduction. The median percentage off the price was 9.3%.

Found below are some additional Redfin stats for Irvine’s Woodbury neighborhood.

Note: Woodbury is near the even newer neighborhood of Woodbury East. Woodbury East’s Ivy neighborhood is the new, small condo area (approximately 1100 SF to 1500 SF) that sold out phase one in under an hour of the July 11 grand opening. For some commentary on the affect that pricing in Woodbury East will have on Woodbury prices, see IrvineRenter’s post “Revaluing Woodbury.”

April 4, 2009

• List price: $639K/$356 per SF
• Sold price: $580K/NA per SF*
• Median days on market: 46*
• Number of homes on the market: 48
  (14 detached/34 condos)

February 28, 2009

• List price: $712,000/$357 per SF
• Sold price: $530K/NA per SF*
• Median days on market: 84*
• Number of homes on the market: 36
  (14 detached/22 condos)

January 31, 2009

• List price: $699,000/$357 per SF
• Sold price: $530K/NA per SF*
• Median days on market: 83*
• Number of homes on the market: 35

December 30, 2008

• List price: $650,000/$357 per SF
• Sold price: $569K/NA per SF*
• Median days on market: 89*
• Number of homes on the market: 27

For more information on housing in Woodbury, see Redfin’s Woodbury map.

*Based on homes sold or taken off the market in the previous 90 days

Source: Redfin

As I wrote previously, construction of the Ivy neighborhood in Irvine’s Woodbury East development was originally planned to be completed a few years ago. The developers delayed the development date in the hope that market conditions would improve.

The developers of the nearby Great Park Neighborhoods also planned to begin construction a few years ago, but they too put their original plans for residential development on hold. However, they are proceeding with construction of educational and commercial buildings.

Back in March 2008 Lennar’s updated their plans for the Great Park Neighborhoods residential construction as follows:

Availability:

• Land sales that would allow developers to start building would begin in 2009
• First vertical development would be in place/sold by December 2010
• All development would be complete by 2015

Type of Units, Number of Units, Pricing:

• Single-family detached-1100 units @ $1,700,000 each
• Condos (LLD)-60 units @ $650,000 each
• Senior housing-600 units @ $400,000 each
• Residential golf course-635 units @ $750,000 each
• Multi-unit (transit-oriented development-TOD)-686 units @ $690,000
• Low to moderate senior housing-200 units, price not specified
• Low to moderate multi-family housing-344 units, price not specified

Of course, a lot of time has gone by since this March 2008 update was made, and I am sure this information will change when the Great Park Neighborhood developers provide a new update.  Currently, the developers are keeping this information close to their vest as they gauge the market trends.

But I have a suggestion: Using the successful sell out the first phase of the Ivy development as an example, start the residential development in the Great Park with small, affordable homes. This is a niche in the Orange County housing market that has been ignored, and, as the quick sell out of the available Ivy homes shows, a pent up demand for this small and, therefore, more affordable housing exists.

Perhaps this is already on the planning board. We will see.

For a quick definition of the Orange County Great Park, see “The Orange County Great Park Revisited.” Also see “Orange County Great Park: Free Summer Events and the Jewel of Orange County Fundraiser,” and “The Orange County Great Park: Cirque du Soleil, Free Concerts Series, and Free Balloon Rides.”

Reference: Housing Availability at the Orange County Great Park

PHOTO IS OF A FORMER EL TORO MARINE BASE HANGAR THAT LENNAR CONVERTED FOR USE IN THE GREAT PARK NEIGHBORHOODS

Note: For updated pricing information, click here. sw 9-29-09

Small Homes Sell: Case in Point, the Ivy neighborhood in Irvine’s Woodbury East Development

In the current housing market, developers have difficulty selling their new constructions. So the quick sell out of the 13 available homes in Ivy, a neighborhood in the Woodbury East development in Irvine, might provide insight on a way forward for the building industry. The Ivy homes sold out within approximately 15 minutes of the July 11th grand opening. The key is that these Irvine Company homes (built by William Lyons Homes) fill a need and desire for smaller and, therefore, more affordable homes.

Developers in Orange County have largely neglected building the homes that fit this smaller model. For example, a few years back John Laing Homes (now bankrupt) built the first Woodbury East homes in the Celadon neighborhood. Only 8 of the larger Celadon homes (1594-1782 square feet) were built, and they remain unsold. When the Caledon homes went on sale in 2007, the asking price was in the mid-$500,000.

Perhaps the building industry is taking note of the Ivy-Caledon example and is including this information in their upcoming business models.

More Ivy development details: Current plans call for the Ivy development to eventually consist of 58 homes that range in size from 1180 square feet to 1503 square feet. Prices will range from $349,990 to $423,990. The next round of sales will be in four to six weeks. In addition to the principal, interest and property taxes, home ownership costs will consists of approximately $3,971 in Mello Roos fees, $134 for the monthly master association fee, and $175 for the monthly sub-association fee. Homes will be ready for move-in some time in 2010.

Additional posts on the Ivy development:

• Ivy. an Irvine Woodbury East Development, Opens with Smaller, More Affordable Housing Options
• Pros and Cons of New Irvine Development: Ivy, a Woodbury East Neighborhood
• Deja Vu in Woodbury East! Phase Two Iof vy Development Sells Out in 15 Minutes–Prices Increased

As I wrote yesterday, Ivy is a new neighborhood in Irvine’s Woodbury East development. Some of the pros associated with this development are the following: Amenities include the Palm Court, which consists of a junior Olympic pool, spa, fitness center, tennis court, basketball court, recreation center, tot lot, BBQ; walking distance to the Woodbury Town Center; close to the Jeffery Open Space Trail, two neighborhood parks, and inclusion in the Irvine school district.

Also, Ivy is near the portion of the Orange County Great Park that is scheduled to see the most development in the next 36 months, and the Ivy development is part of Irvine’s Green Building Program (I don’t have details now on how this show up in the Ivy development. Perhaps this is a post for another time).

In addition, Ivy helps to provide Orange County with a smaller housing option–an option that was neglected in the building-boom years.

On the con side, Ivy is close to the 133 freeway. Various studies report that proximity to a freeway is not the healthiest of living locations, especially for children. Also, there is the pricing question. Smaller usually means more affordable, but, as I mentioned yesterday, the pricing for these homes is unclear. Will the  price be right for the current market? Will these homes be affordable to those making a median Orange County income? And, for that matter, is it the right time for buying? Also, what the homeowners association fee will be is unclear.

The grand opening for the Ivy development is Saturday, July 11. For more details on Ivy development, see one of Erica Chavez’s post on the Irvine Homes blog and one of Jon Lansner’s post on his Lansner on Real Estate site.

PHOTOS OF THE WOODBURY TOWN CENTER AND THE JEFFERY OPEN SPACE TRAIL COURTESY POSTCARD US AND THE IRVINE COMPANY

Update: Apparently, the price was right. For more information, see this post. And for an update on phase two sales, see this post. For phase three information and updated pricing information, click here. sw 10-5-09

I wrote a post recently stating that small homes sell, and the reason they sell is because they are usually more affordable than larger homes. I also wrote that the housing development dynamics in Orange County has lead to a housing market with few of these smaller and, therefore, more affordable options. Well, homebuilder William Lyon Homes is following the “Small is Beautiful” theory with the opening (July 11) of the Ivy tract homes in Irvine. Ivy, which will be the first neighborhood in Irvine’s Woodbury East development, will consist of townhomes with 1180 to 1500 square feet, two  to three bedrooms and two-car garages.

However, a small home (at least small in  comparison to what homebuilders were building in our recent past) is advantageous only if the price tag is likewise small. The exact price of these attached homes in the Ivy development is somewhat of a mystery. Originally, I saw the price listed as starting at $399,000. However, most ads now list the price as starting in the high $300,000s (I guess $399,00 would qualify for that. Barely. But qualifies). However, an ad that I saw today stated the price is in the mid $300,000s. Time will tell what the market says the price for these homes should be.

Tomorrow: some pros and cons of the Ivy development in Irvine’s Woodbury East

Update: The Ivy homes that were available during the July 11 grand opening sold out within an hour. So apparently the market is saying that these homes are priced right. For more details, see this post. SW 7-12-09

For phase three information and updated pricing information, click here. sw 10-5-09

PHOTO OF THE IVY DEVELOPMENT COURTESY PRLog