First sale at Stonegate?

Since I ignited this wild fire thread, maybe it's time I weighed in. We moved into SG about the same time as the folks in the kingsbury house did...there is no way I'd buy a maricopa house for 985...but I also wouldn't buy anything in that price range in PP either.

Also, density is a highly overrated topic. Personally, I like seeing lots of people walking, families on bike rides, people taking their dogs out, etc. the apartment dwellers are people too...I'm sure some make more money than me, and far be it for me to look down on someone who lives in a $850k motor court home.
 
while it's a person's preference on how dense they want to see things.. I don't think the subject is overrated.. that makes a difference for a lot of people.
 
bones said:
Let's just recap.  Here are the amazing things about SG.  I'm so swayed I almost want to get out of my PP P&S and buy an Arcadia house:

1. It has apartment buildings that can't be seen when taking certain roads. 
2. It has ugly curb appeal homes that can't be seen when you spend all your time indoors. 
3. Oh but when you do want to go outside, it has a MILLION pocket pocks which comes along with a side of IP's special concoction "the-no-yard-Stockholm-Syndrome"
3. Its "central park" is even better than WB because it's only a 5 minute walk whereas in WB, the park can be "very far" for a lot of people.
4. The landscaping is not as pretty as places like WB but who wants to pay a bigger HOA fee when it can be spent towards a TV.
5. It is dense but who cares.  Dense = more people walking around.
6. It is filled with FCBs, but not to worry - they are THE friendliest of all FCBs.
7. It is considered "irvine" - unlike West Irvine, Northpark, Columbus Grove and most likely Pavilion Park.  What irvine in quotations mean? I'm still a bit fuzzy on but irvine in quotations MUST be better than irvine NOT in quotations.
7. Oh and of course - the kicker - IC lives there. 

SOLD!
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I'm just gonna buy a home next to Bones so I can be next to greatness!!

wonderful post!

*golf clap*
 
I haven't been tracking sales activity lately.  Just curious, which community (SG/PP/CV/PS) is pricing/selling at higher price/premium per sqft (excl. bigger lot premium).  I think builders probably know better then us which communities command a higher premium for new homes.  The sales activities and price/premium per sqft will show later which communities are more in demand.  Are they about the same right now?

It seems like some of those PS homes are selling at $450 to $500/sqft.
 
bones said:
Goriot said:
I haven't been tracking sales activity lately.  Just curious, which community (SG/PP/CV/PS) is pricing/selling at higher price/premium per sqft (excl. bigger lot premium).  I think builders probably know better then us which communities command a higher premium for new homes.  The sales activities and price/premium per sqft will show later which communities are more in demand.  Are they about the same right now?

It seems like some of those PS homes are selling at $450 to $500/sqft.
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I posted about this a few pages back.  Here's the text:

"I don't have any exact #s, but I know in certain price points and SF, PP is outselling SG:  Harmony @PP is outselling Sausalito @SG.  Rosemist/Sagewood/Hawthorne @PP is outselling Arcadia @SG (not collectively, but individually)."

So sales activity wise - PP is blowing SG out of the water at the price points I'm tracking.  Harder to say about your $/SF question.  A lot of these $1.2M+ homes are being sold with upgrades, etc.  Hard to track.  Plus there's the MR difference.
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Sales activity wise PP is a newly released community so there is a significant/more pent up demand which means higher sales early on.  However, what matter is the $$$ per square feet and how that trend continues. 
 
bones said:
Goriot said:
bones said:
Goriot said:
I haven't been tracking sales activity lately.  Just curious, which community (SG/PP/CV/PS) is pricing/selling at higher price/premium per sqft (excl. bigger lot premium).  I think builders probably know better then us which communities command a higher premium for new homes.  The sales activities and price/premium per sqft will show later which communities are more in demand.  Are they about the same right now?

It seems like some of those PS homes are selling at $450 to $500/sqft.
Click to expand...

I posted about this a few pages back.  Here's the text:

"I don't have any exact #s, but I know in certain price points and SF, PP is outselling SG:  Harmony @PP is outselling Sausalito @SG.  Rosemist/Sagewood/Hawthorne @PP is outselling Arcadia @SG (not collectively, but individually)."

So sales activity wise - PP is blowing SG out of the water at the price points I'm tracking.  Harder to say about your $/SF question.  A lot of these $1.2M+ homes are being sold with upgrades, etc.  Hard to track.  Plus there's the MR difference.
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Sales activity wise PP is newly released community so there is a significant/more pent up demand which means higher sales early on.  However, what matter is the $$$ per square feet and how that trend continues. 
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True, there's obviously some of that - but take Sausalito for example.  It was released AFTER PP (and not selling).  Also, La Cresta in WB was released way before Arcadia or Sausalito or anything in PP and is selling well.  And for some buyers - a "new community" can be irrelevant.  They just want the best home that suits their needs.  People have discussed here why "new" may not always be better? construction noise, long build time, etc.  For me personally, I would much rather move in earlier (which was my option with Arcadia) versus my wait time now (in PP), but I ended up choosing PP regardless of the wait.
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I agree with you on the Sausalito.  Those are some tiny as* lots.  When I went to their grand opening, I couldn't believe they were charging $1.5mm for those lots.  Home itself is ok.  They were trying to milk it and obviously made a wrong calc.  However, those will all sell out eventually. 

But, that kind of proves my point.  Was Shea Homes expecting that SG should be trading at higher premium compared to PP?  If you compare two homes Shea Homes built at both PP and SG, it seems like they were thinking that SG commanded higher premium and should have been priced at higher price point for a smaller lot offering. 
 
Goriot said:
Was Shea Homes expecting that SG should be trading at higher premium compared to PP?  If you compare two homes Shea Homes built at both PP and SG, it seems like they were thinking that SG commanded higher premium and should have been priced at higher price point for a smaller lot offering. 
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Or... the cost of land was higher at SG than at PP?
 
bones said:
paperboyNC said:
qwerty said:
like i said, no reasonable argument can be made.
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I didn't buy in Stonegate and don't plan to, but obviously enough buyers like it better than the other available options to buy there.  Whether or not you consider their reasons reasonable is irrelevant.
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Keep in mind though that a lot of the SG defenders on this board bought in SG before PP even opened (so they didn't choose BETWEEN SG and PP).  Of course, I'm sure they would all say "if I had to do it all over again, I would still choose SG".  I know sales have slowed considerably in SG since PP opened at the end of September.  I don't have any exact #s, but I know in certain price points and SF, PP is outselling SG:  Harmony @PP is outselling Sausalito @SG.  Rosemist/Sagewood/Hawthorne @PP is outselling Arcadia @SG (not collectively, but individually).
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I am not one of those. If I had to do it all over again I would not buy the home I did. In hindsight I'm glad I bought it because I bought before the price run-up and would have "been priced out forever" whereas now I at least have the option to sell and move to a home at a similar price point. Here are some homes I like better than the detached motorcourt homes at Portola Springs: (My biggest complaint about PS is that it does take a while to get to most parts of Irvine).
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/25-Chenile-92614/home/4696229http://www.redfin.com/CA/Lake-Forest/22786-Bayfront-Ln-92630/home/4835419
 
bones said:
Let's just recap.  Here are the amazing things about SG.  I'm so swayed I almost want to get out of my PP P&S and buy an Arcadia house:

1. It has apartment buildings that can't be seen when taking certain roads. 
2. It has ugly curb appeal homes that can't be seen when you spend all your time indoors. 
3. Oh but when you do want to go outside, it has a MILLION pocket pocks which comes along with a side of IP's special concoction "the-no-yard-Stockholm-Syndrome"
3. Its "central park" is even better than WB because it's only a 5 minute walk whereas in WB, the park can be "very far" for a l.ot of people.
4. The landscaping is not as pretty as places like WB but who wants to pay a bigger HOA fee when it can be spent towards a TV
5. It is dense but who cares.  Dense = more people walking around.
6. It is filled with FCBs, but not to worry - they are THE friendliest of all FCBs.
7. It is considered "irvine" - unlike West Irvine, Northpark, Columbus Grove and most likely Pavilion Park.  What irvine in quotations mean? I'm still a bit fuzzy on but irvine in quotations MUST be better than irvine NOT in quotations.
7. Oh and of course - the kicker - IC lives there. 

SOLD!
Click to expand...

Bones...you understand that I'm not trying to convince you (or anyone) that SG is better than PP.  I already said that I like PP layout better because it has more of a neighborhood feel and bigger lots.    I don't like PP for the lack of parks and its location.  I have also stated that it is impossible for me to compare until the communities are built out and the vegetation grows.  Woodbury looks very different now than compared to what it was like when it opened.

All I am saying is that the perceived issues with Stonegate does not really matter to me.  I don't care about the apartment complexes or that the front of the houses doesn't look as "nice" as PP.  I like the pocket parks in Stonegate as oppose to one central park like in Woodbury because I can get there pretty easily and fast with my daughter. 

I don't want a yard because it's more work and costs to landscape it.  I don't like how dense the houses are to each other.

As for FCBs, there are going to be a lot of FCBs in PP, OH, PS, SG, and WB.  As for the "Irvine" comment, all I am saying is that it remains to see what portions become more "desirable" than others.  PP could be more desirable than SG...I have no idea.

The reason I like Saratoga is the interior layout of the house.  I didn't really like most of the  layouts in PP.  I also like the price point that I got my house at.  A comparably priced house in PP had a larger yard and more curb appeal but has less square footage and not as good of a layout.   

During the weekdays, I spend most of my day outside of the house (7-7), I come home eat dinner play with my daughter a little bit, put my daughter to sleep, watch some TV/Netflix and go to sleep.  All done inside my house.

During the weekend, we usually go somewhere to have breakfast and spend most of the day running errands or doing things.  Some Sunday afternoons I take my daughter to the park for about an hour and then go home and get ready for the weekend. 

So, for me interior layout is the most important followed by a park close by.  I spend maybe a total of 5 minutes looking at the exterior of my house or the accompanying neighbor, most of it in my car. 

Again, your mileage may vary but SG works much better for me than PP.  Once PP builds out, it may be more desirable but right now, I felt that I made a good choice.
 
irvinehomeowner said:
Goriot said:
Was Shea Homes expecting that SG should be trading at higher premium compared to PP?  If you compare two homes Shea Homes built at both PP and SG, it seems like they were thinking that SG commanded higher premium and should have been priced at higher price point for a smaller lot offering. 
Click to expand...
Or... the cost of land was higher at SG than at PP?
Click to expand...

Does that prove another point?  The MARKET dictates what the costs/value of the land should be.  Does that mean SG land is more valuable due to certain factors?
 
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