Why is GP cheaper from Price/Sqft compare to rest of Irvine

agp2572

New member
Noticing Price per SqFt in Great Park is a lot cheaper even for new construction than rest of Irvine or nearby areas of Irvine. Can someone explain the reason why as noticing Portola Springs is location wise in same boat as GP with even bad location with toll highways nearby and no shopping center near by.
 
Mello Roos in GP
Based on the median price per sqft I see a difference of $84/sqft between Great Park and Portola Springs. If majority are buying a median size of 2000 sqft house that would mean same size house would be $168,000 cheaper in Great Park than in Portola Springs.

Even with a higher Mello Roos would this be a better deal? As you need less money for downpayment and taking less loan amount plus having to pay Mello Roos in installment over 40 years which lets you leave Great Park area early and pass the remaining Mello Roos to new owner who buys the house in future.
 
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1. It's not A LOT cheaper, as you put it. For example, a 2488 sq ft Lennar Skylark home is priced at $1.792M. This is comparable to the price of Bluffs 1 at PS, which is 2446 sq ft at $1.78M or so. Skylark is 3 bd/2.5 ba while Bluffs 1 is 4 bd/4 ba.
2. Most of the homes in GP are condos, either attached or detached, so the HOA fees are a lot higher. I believe it's in the $300-$500 range.
3. As mentioned, MR in GP is EXTREMELY high compared to OH/EW/PS. MR in GP starts at around $7k and can get as high as $20k, depending on the size of the home, while it's about $3800 in those 3 communities.
4. As for location, it's preference. I very much prefer PS over GP. By a mile.
 
1. It's not A LOT cheaper, as you put it. For example, a 2488 sq ft Lennar Skylark home is priced at $1.792M. This is comparable to the price of Bluffs 1 at PS, which is 2446 sq ft at $1.78M or so. Skylark is 3 bd/2.5 ba while Bluffs 1 is 4 bd/4 ba.
2. Most of the homes in GP are condos, either attached or detached, so the HOA fees are a lot higher. I believe it's in the $300-$500 range.
3. As mentioned, MR in GP is EXTREMELY high compared to OH/EW/PS. MR in GP starts at around $7k and can get as high as $20k, depending on the size of the home, while it's about $3800 in those 3 communities.
4. As for location, it's preference. I very much prefer PS over GP. By a mile.
Thanks but just for comparison here is one house in Portola Springs which is smaller in size https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/171-Fairgreen-92618/unit-4/home/182983652
For same price you can get 4 bedroom with more square footage https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/316-Chorus-92618/home/184430183

I agree GP has more condos but detached condos and Single Family have only one HOA and that is $235/month. So for comparison I am only referring to detached condo or single family homes that are two stories. Mello Roos is based on square footage in GP so if you have a house less than 2500 sq ft it will be about $7000/year compared to $3800/year in Portola Springs which is just $266 more per month ($3200/12)
 
Thanks but just for comparison here is one house in Portola Springs which is smaller in size https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/171-Fairgreen-92618/unit-4/home/182983652
For same price you can get 4 bedroom with more square footage https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/316-Chorus-92618/home/184430183

I agree GP has more condos but detached condos and Single Family have only one HOA and that is $235/month. So for comparison I am only referring to detached condo or single family homes that are two stories. Mello Roos is based on square footage in GP so if you have a house less than 2500 sq ft it will be about $7000/year compared to $3800/year in Portola Springs which is just $266 more per month ($3200/12)
This particular PS home is a new construction, with upgrade package. May not be worth much, but could be up to $50k. Also, this seems to be an Irvine Pacific Fiore home, so it tends to be overpriced. Even during down turn, they refuse to lower their prices.

Also, comparing the difference in prices with MR could lead to a bad financial decision.

The fact that GP is priced lower than OH/EW/PS means that its location is inferior to those 3 communities in the eyes of buyers. This means that, unless something drastically changes, GP will always be priced lower than OH/EW/PS. And that means that when you sell the homes, the difference will still be the same.

On the other hand, whatever difference you paid in MR is just dead money. You don't get it back.
 
Brand new home vs resale home.
Good point but it is 2020 built but here is another example that is new construction in Great Park which is same price but larger area and more 4 bedrooms and 2 floors only https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/341-Abacus-92618/home/185540859 Lot size is 4000 sqft also

For same price in Portola can get you 3 bedroom and about 2000 sqft with smaller 3000 sqft lot size https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/171-Fairgreen-92618/unit-4/home/182983652
 
This particular PS home is a new construction, with upgrade package. May not be worth much, but could be up to $50k. Also, this seems to be an Irvine Pacific Fiore home, so it tends to be overpriced. Even during down turn, they refuse to lower their prices.

Also, comparing the difference in prices with MR could lead to a bad financial decision.

The fact that GP is priced lower than OH/EW/PS means that its location is inferior to those 3 communities in the eyes of buyers. This means that, unless something drastically changes, GP will always be priced lower than OH/EW/PS. And that means that when you sell the homes, the difference will still be the same.

On the other hand, whatever difference you paid in MR is just dead money. You don't get it back.
Agree but they just did ground breaking for the final phase of Great Park where they will have Botanical Garden, Library, Lakes and Meadows and other museums, etc. This is the website recently I came across greatparkframework.org
Do you think the area could appreciate in future as agree right now the area is inferior as it has nothing and empty land but once that is built I feel it has good amenities and its close proximity to the park itself which is in the center.
Attaching a PDF version of the framework which summarizes what will be built in the Great Park in this next phase.
 

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  • Irvine Great Park Framework Plan with labels (updated).pdf
    3.9 MB · Views: 7
Read this before you decide to buy in GP

The difference in Mello Roos is $5-7K more a year compared to house prices which are $125-$175K more. Even if you live at this place for 30 years which is a long time and then leave you would pay max $210,000 more ($7K X 30 year).
 
In general GP has a higher square footage per footprint, like the 3 story homes.
Yes agree they try to do a 3 story home more than a 2 story. I prefer 2 story homes as well where the Living Room, Kitchen and one bedroom is on ground floor and rest of the bedroom upstairs.
 
Agree but they just did ground breaking for the final phase of Great Park where they will have Botanical Garden, Library, Lakes and Meadows and other museums, etc. This is the website recently I came across greatparkframework.org
Do you think the area could appreciate in future as agree right now the area is inferior as it has nothing and empty land but once that is built I feel it has good amenities and its close proximity to the park itself which is in the center.
Attaching a PDF version of the framework which summarizes what will be built in the Great Park in this next phase.
It's great and all, but like Sleepy said, those amenities aren't exclusive to GP residents. Sure, GP residents closer to them, but PS residents are close to them too.
 
The only amenity I know of that’s in the great park exclusive to GP residents is the use of court 1 tennis (the fancy one), yay!

It’s because there are no other tennis courts within the GP community, boo!
 
It's great and all, but like Sleepy said, those amenities aren't exclusive to GP residents. Sure, GP residents closer to them, but PS residents are close to them too.
Agree that its public park but close proximity to it where you can walk or bike to the park would add value to the homes just like homes near Mountains or Central park are more valuable than homes near nothing exciting.
 
The only amenity I know of that’s in the great park exclusive to GP residents is the use of court 1 tennis (the fancy one), yay!

It’s because there are no other tennis courts within the GP community, boo!
Looking at GP community they do have a lot of amenities which feel modern and different from typical Irvine Company resort style pool/community area. https://www.gpngreatlife.com/amenities
They have 7 Parks and you get access to all amenities in those parks.
 
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