Village: Portola Springs

Tract: Los Arboles (59 single family detached homes) in the City of Irvine

Builder: Taylor Woodrow

Schools: Irvine School District (IUSD): Westwood Basics, Sierra Vista Middle, Northwood High

Tax Rate: The total effective tax rate which is inclusive of all Community Facilities District (CFD) rates as well as any other anticipated assessments is estimated at 1.8%.

HOA Dues: Approximately $255 at Build Out

Plans:

Residence 1 - 3bd/2.5ba - 2003 sq. ft.

Residence 2 - 3-4bd/3ba - 2020 sq. ft.

Residence 3 - 3-4bd/3ba - 2042-2260 sq. ft.

<u>PRICING</u>

Phase ?  (Picked up 1/20/2007)

Residence 1 - From $826,800

Residence 2 - From $839,830

Residence 3 - From $961,262

Phases 1 and 2 (Picked up 10/7/2007)

Residence 1 - $796,890

Residence 2 - $816,785

Residence 3 - Sold Out

Prices as of May 25th, 2008
Plan 1BR—Lot #40—3922 sqft—$729K (31 Habitat)
Plan 1B—Lot #38—3191 sqft—$732K (27 Habitat)
Plan 2AR—Lot #39—3757 sqft—$751K (29 Habitat)**
Plan 3A—Lot #41—4338 sqft—$803K (34 Homeland)
**PENDING Sale

I was there today and they were giving $30,000 incentives on top of the recent price cuts.  Although HOA will drop to $255 at build out, the salesperson stated that current price is roughly $450 (yikes since build out may not be for another year)

Just saw these homes. Very beautiful.

While we were there, we actually observed a fair amount of foot traffic. We were shocked. Even more shocked, the agent there told us that he has sold about FOUR of these in the last two weeks…  Recently sold claimed to be:

Lot 47 plan 1BR ($796,890), though it is still listed on Redfin (26 Tree Clover)...not sure what to make of this….

Lot 53 (25 Tree Clover) plan 1BR ($805,070)- this one was apparently sold between the time we walked in and the time we left our tour of the models…

Lot 52 (23 Tree Colver) plan 2A ($816,785)

Lot 43 (30 Tree Colver) plan 2AR ($839,000)

COULD THIS BE TRUE?!?! Seems like a lot of action in a short period of time, especially after 26 Tree Clover has been listed on Redfin for 220 days…

They have entirely built Phase 1 (Lots 42-45, 56-59) and 2 (Lots 46-55) and have not even started any additional construction for other phases.

Were told here are only two currently-built homes left, and they are both Plan 1’s (one from Phase 1 and one from Phase 2):

lot 48, 24 Tree Colver, (Phase 2), plan 1A for $822,880

lot 57, 33 Tree Colver, (Phase 1) plan 1BR for $881,317, lots of upgrades and huge back yard

both include a $20K incentive

Price sheet reads as follows, but I don’t know how relevant it is since all that is left of the currently built/released homes are the two ones listed above.

Residence One: $796,890

Residence Two: $816,785

Residence Three: Sold Out

Are we experiencing the bull trap?

Visited today.  Price sheet shows all three models temporarily sold out, but sales agent said they are expecting to announce next release pricing in the next couple of weeks, with occupancy available right away.  Further, she went on to say that they are "working with the Irvine Company on pricing and land".  When I asked if TIC was not letting them lower their prices, she gave a big smile and "the builder is working on it". She expects pricing for the next release to start at "$750ish" for the Plan 1.  While still too high, that’s a heck of a drop from what was posted earlier.
On another note, my wife and I have toured a lot of new homes in the last year, and of all the homes in our target range (3 -4 beds; 1,800 - 2,300 sq ft)—- these are far and away our favorite, particularly Plan 1. We would not buy in PS, but if Taylor Woodrow repeats this product at Orchard Hills, Laguna Crossing, or Woodbury East and we have not already caught a knife by then—- this would be on my short list. 

any updates to these homes would be appreciated…

Got this email from Los Arboles today…Looks like they have dropped the prices to low $700’s:

Fabulous New Home for a Spectacular Price Awaits you at Los Arboles.

Dear Chris,

We are excited to announce the highly anticipated sales release of phase 3 at Los Arboles by Taylor Morrison. Los Arboles is located within Portola Springs® in Irvine, one of our most sought after communities in Orange County. These 4 home sites, starting in the low $700,000’s are anticipated to sell quickly.

Natural Beauty, Open Spaces
The unique village of Portola Springs® in Irvine is one of the safest communities in the country and offers the best schools in Orange County. It features beautiful views of Lomas Ridge and wide expanses of preserved open space. In addition to its natural beauty, you’ll enjoy a 25-acre community park with recreation, sports and picnic facilities, and quick access to shopping, dining, and employment centers.

This is your opportunity to call Los Arboles home. Please join us at the Los Arboles Sales Gallery on:

Saturday, May 3rd, at 10:00 a.m. sharp!

Follow these Steps to Your Dream Home:
Visit the Los Arboles Sales Gallery, complete your financial information worksheet & get pre-qualified by our in-house lender prior to May 3, 2008.
Homes will be offered for sale to non-contingent, pre-qualified buyers in the order that financial information worksheets & loan pre-qualifications have been received. Doors will open at 10:00 am, Saturday, May 3, 2008.
Reservation and deposit check of $22,000 will be taken on that morning. Please contact your community sales representative for details.
This phase is priced to give you an opportunity to purchase a fabulous home at a spectacular value! Ranging from approximately 2,003 to 2,382 square feet, these beautiful homes feature Santa Barbara and Monterey inspired architecture. The 3 distinctive floorplans include features such as granite kitchen countertops, stainless steel appliances, beautifully structured interior arches, French doors and much more! Los Arboles homes are backed by the outstanding design, quality construction and award-winning customer service of Taylor Morrison.

Call Now
Take advantage of this great time to buy a Los Arboles home at Portola Springs®. This phase will sell quickly, so don’t miss out on your chance. Contact Rebecca Dressler, your community sales representative today!

Plan 1 on Redfin for $729,000:

27 Habitat

Guess they didn’t sell out at their release last Saturday….

I had a long lunch and stopped by this week for the new price list as of May 25, 2008:

Plan 1BR—Lot #40—3922 sqft—$729K (31 Habitat)

Plan 1B—Lot #38—3191 sqft—$732K (27 Habitat)

Plan 2AR—Lot #39—3757 sqft—$751K (29 Habitat)**

Plan 3A—Lot #41—4338 sqft—$803K (34 Homeland)

**PENDING Sale

Nice.

Renter,  those are lot square feet…not house square feet. 

PadreBrian - 30 May 2008 10:17 PM

Renter,  those are lot square feet…not house square feet. 

True. Plan I and II are around 2000 square feet.

so that is the lot size?

so that is the lot size?

Yes, those are the lot sizes and NOT the home sizes. Sorry for the confusion. I hope no one is camping outside their office in a line to get a 3000+sqft home in the $700K range

Los Arboles is one of those homes I am looking at. The layout is nice however I don’t like the fact the HOA is almost $300 and taxes are 1.9%. Anyone want to guess where prices will be for Plan 1, Plan 2, and Plan 3 for this Tract in first half of 2010?

Los Arboles can’t sell plan 1’s in low 700’s (2 still on market since MAY!),HOA -Comm. Assoc, tax rate, lot size all a raw deal. Credit Crunch just begun, it’s inevitable that prices decline lower than late 1980’s on a $ adjusted basis, most buying at these levels will be future short sales, fannie and freddie bail will double the national debt, loan practices that brought us here are still being practiced and have so since mid 80’s, this is the proverbial house of cards, next round foreclosures will be Alternative -A and will eclipse subprime foreclosure rate. Footnote:Villa Rosa reduced Plan 1 and probably a plan 2 by nearly $100,000 this week with special financing and other incentives, the future is here now, I wonder how people in phases 1-8 feel about this.

I think the builders are trying to sell the remainders of homes that are standing inventory or plotted on land with fixed street pattern that could not easily adapt to other improved product types. Alley loaded products due to the fixed alley and front door street are mostly likely to stay while Prado a more conventional lot is easily switched to another new product. This is why the models are being sold before the product is even opened. I would not be surprised to see the Sienna models in Woodbury East will be for sale soon also.

Sienna is by far the best detached condos I have seen so far. It is too bad the product is being mothballed. It is a very good project.

who and what are you responding to?

PerfectStorm - 21 August 2008 08:00 PM

who and what are you responding to?

Sorry! I got Manzanita (alley loaded product ) and Los Arboles product mixed up. Most of the models are being sold in PS.

Received this email from Los Arboles yesterday:

BE THE FIRST!

We will release these homes at 10:00am on Saturday, September 27.

Stop by to be one of the first to buy in this new phase!

Exceptional pricing from the low $700,000s
Floorplans ranging in size from 2,000 to 2,383 sq. ft.
Up to 4 bedrooms
Park Views
TAYLOR MORRISON IS ABOUT TO RELEASE THE NEWEST PHASE OF LOS ARBOLES.

This luxury community in Irvine features several floorplans to accommodate your lifestyle. Los Arboles at Portola Springs is the newest master-planned development in the area and is close to shopping, parks and the rec center. Phase three sold quickly, so don?t miss your chance at Phase four!

64 Homeland ? Irvine, CA 92618
Call us at (949) 857-0733

Updated Pricing as of September 27, 2008:

Residence One
Lot 27 BR, 52 Homeland, (Lot size 3483) $716K
Lot 30 AR, 28 Habitat, (Lot size 3545) $721K

Residence Two
Lot 26 B, 54 Homeland, (Lot size 3797) $751K
Lot 29 B, 30 Habitat, (Lot size 4207) $744K

Residence Three
Lot 25 A, 56 Homeland, (Lot size 4542) $808K
Lot 28 BR, 50 Homeland, (Lot size 4477) $800K

*Estimated delivery: Spring 2009