Irvine vs. Yorba Linda

J

Jupitor

New member
My husband and I are looking to purchase our first home, we are in our early 30s with no kids yet.  He will be working in Gardena, and I am working in Burbank, we both know that commute from the OC is nuts, but we have no desire to own a  place in LA county.  Both our parents live in Irvine, and I also grew up in Irvine, so I always thought our first home will be in Irvine, especially there are so many nice and new developments out there in the past years.

After looking around in Irvine, it's a bit discouraging.  For $600K, you get a nice decent size home, but with no lot size, often time, not even your own driveway.  So we started to look elsewhere in Northern OC.  We came across these beautiful Toll brothers homes in Yorba Linda, we both fell in love with it.  We know nothing about Yorba Linda prior to this, but the property that we liked has no HOA and no Mello Roos.  Eventhough the house is a little higher than our original price range, but we'll get a much bigger lot with our own driveway, and possibly a great view.  We figured the savings on HOA and Mello Roos will compensate for some of the price diff.  However, we are concern about the drive to work, and not sure which one would be a better deal in terms of value and future appreciation potential.  Any thoughts??  I know both Irvine and Yorba Linda has good school, but parents live in Irvine, so child care might be easier for us in the future...
 
I like the Petaluma floor plan.  The houses are nice overall. At one point they were asking for a 50K premium for the nice view lots, not sure if they were able to get that or how much they still want for the view lots.  Never make the mistake that you are saving money because there is no HOA/Melloroos, that just means they were able to jack up the price of the home to the maximum the area can support. 

I like Yorba Linda, my wife does not. I still hope for a single story shapell home over at Corte Bella. 

If you are going to count on your parents for child care then i would say buy in irvine. that would make it much easier to drop off/pick up kids on the way to work vs living in YL driving down to irvine with the traffic and then heading off to work. that would be a nightmare.

in terms of current value, YL is the better deal. i believe YL has dropped further than irvine, not sure if they topped at the same pricing though.  regarding future appreciation, id say in 10 years irvine homes will be worth more than YL but its all relative to what price you  get in.
 
Where in Yorba Linda is the house?  That will affect the drive time considerably.
East Yorba Linda has access to 91 and 241 toll road.  The traffic is ridiculous on 91 during commute times.
If the house is in the Black Gold golf course development, then you have access to 91 and 57.  However, it will take a while to get to either freeway.



 
We also checked out the Toll Brother developments in YL, and were pretty impressed.  For about the same money as Las Ventanas, you get 400 more sq ft, a view of the city instead of a view of the toll road, and no HOA and no Mello Roos.  There's no association pool as far as I can tell, but the yard is big enough for a small pool and jacuzzi.  The commute is definitely a concern, it seems a long way from the 91, and I'll need to check traffic.com around 6PM to see how traffic will be. 

We also checked out Greebrier.  For the 860K-ish, you get a lot of house.  34xx sq ft., large bedrooms, large yard, plus they were throwing in upgraded flooring, countertops and a Viking rangetop.  Looking outside of Irvine this past week definitely opened up my eyes to how over-priced Irvine is.
 
Are you really going to drive from YL then to Irvine and then to Burbank for possible future child care?  That seems like a lot of driving.  If you were really serious about doing this, I'd do a dry run everyday in the morning and at night to see how stressful that might be- and I'd do it for several weeks as you can see how "old" it gets doing all that extra driving.  (I am a mom of 2, and pick up my kids at the inlaws- I am grateful they are close).
 
It's all dependent on your own lifestyles.

You get a more house for less money in many (probably most) places outside Irvine, but you don't get many of the benefits Irvine offers (for those with that preference).

I think YL is too inland... it's almost IE to me. The 91 as the main artery alone is a big minus for me. It's hotter and much farther from the beach. If I had to move out of Irvine, I would probably go south more than north... I need to be near water and cooler climates. And that's just my opinion... YL and other cities are great places to live for other people... only you can really make that decision for yourself.
 
No, I am not driving to Irvine, from YL, then to work.  My concern is more about going from YL to work (i.e. Burbank for me, and Gardena/Torrance for husband).  Some people at my work in  actually takes the train to work (from OC to Burbank), so I am considering taking the train from the Fullerton station to Burbank. 

But someone mention that YL is considered Inland?  Is it really that bad?  My husband and I really like "The perserves" by the Toll Brother at the Vista Del Verde neighborhood.  We just feel like for that same price, you can only get a detached condo in Irvine + HOA + Mello Roos.  So our argument is that since our parents already lives in Irvine, we technically can get access to the community with pools and other amenities, so why pay double?  But then again, all our connections are in Irvine, so we are a little hesitant about moving to YL which we are not familiar with.

Really appreciate all the advice from everybody, it's been very helpful. 
 
Jupitor said:
No, I am not driving to Irvine, from YL, then to work.  My concern is more about going from YL to work (i.e. Burbank for me, and Gardena/Torrance for husband).  Some people at my work in  actually takes the train to work (from OC to Burbank), so I am considering taking the train from the Fullerton station to Burbank. 

But someone mention that YL is considered Inland?  Is it really that bad?  My husband and I really like "The perserves" by the Toll Brother at the Vista Del Verde neighborhood.  We just feel like for that same price, you can only get a detached condo in Irvine + HOA + Mello Roos.  So our argument is that since our parents already lives in Irvine, we technically can get access to the community with pools and other amenities, so why pay double?  But then again, all our connections are in Irvine, so we are a little hesitant about moving to YL which we are not familiar with.

Really appreciate all the advice from everybody, it's been very helpful. 
Click to expand...

When we sold in Irvine we looked in a lot of places.  We looked a little in Yorba Linda but quickly ruled it out due to a few reasons.

1) Main freeway feeding YL is the 91 = nightmare.
2) it is on the other side of the mountain so you don't get the nice coastal climate.
3) It is built right on top of a good sized fault line that can produce a large quake (I know all of socal is seismic but why live on top of a known fault line if you have a choice).

I would put my money into south county (which I did). 
 
Don't underestimate the value of the grandparents being close.  The last thing you want is for them to drive to you to take care of the kids.  Kids schedules these days practically require a chauffeur to haul them around.  School, daycare, doctor's appt, soccer practice, swim lessons, music lessons, play dates, etc etc.  Having someone you can rely on and nearby is worth the $$$.  Then if you have a second child, their schedules never seem to line up and you have to clone yourself to be in two places at once. 

If your employment is far from home, getting the call from school that your kid has pinkeye and for you to pick her up NOW.. is going to be a pain if you're in Burbank.  Far easier to have a grandparents around.


 
shokunin said:
Don't underestimate the value of the grandparents being close.  The last thing you want is for them to drive to you to take care of the kids.  Kids schedules these days practically require a chauffeur to haul them around.  School, daycare, doctor's appt, soccer practice, swim lessons, music lessons, play dates, etc etc.  Having someone you can rely on and nearby is worth the $$$.  Then if you have a second child, their schedules never seem to line up and you have to clone yourself to be in two places at once. 

If your employment is far from home, getting the call from school that your kid has pinkeye and for you to pick her up NOW.. is going to be a pain if you're in Burbank.  Far easier to have a grandparents around.
Click to expand...

I agree 100%
 
Jupitor said:
No, I am not driving to Irvine, from YL, then to work.  My concern is more about going from YL to work (i.e. Burbank for me, and Gardena/Torrance for husband).  Some people at my work in  actually takes the train to work (from OC to Burbank), so I am considering taking the train from the Fullerton station to Burbank. 

But someone mention that YL is considered Inland?  Is it really that bad?  My husband and I really like "The perserves" by the Toll Brother at the Vista Del Verde neighborhood.  We just feel like for that same price, you can only get a detached condo in Irvine + HOA + Mello Roos.  So our argument is that since our parents already lives in Irvine, we technically can get access to the community with pools and other amenities, so why pay double?  But then again, all our connections are in Irvine, so we are a little hesitant about moving to YL which we are not familiar with.

Really appreciate all the advice from everybody, it's been very helpful.
Click to expand...

I know the Vista Del Verde neighborhood very well.  I used to work close by and I almost bought a house back in 2002 in Vista Del Verde.  I put a deposit down on a new house but backed out when my wife decided she did not want to move out of Irvine.

The bad:
Yorba Linda does get much hotter than Irvine since it's a lot more inland.  Also, the Vista Del Verde is near oil field.  I got a lot of disclaimers about health hazard when I put a deposit down and they gave me the purchase agreement.  Air quality is worse than Irvine or just about any other part of Orange County.  Traffic on 91 is bad even on weekends.  When the wind is blowing from the Inland Empire, you can actually smell cow/chicken dung from Norco.  Vista Del Verde is in high fire hazard zone.  Actually, most of Yorba Linda is in high fire hazard zone.  A big fire went through Yorba Linda a couple of years ago.  The city has special tax for keeping fire proned area clear of the brush.  It was two hundred a year back in 2002.  Horse trails that you have to smell when the horses leave something behind. 

The good:
Houses are much cheaper, especially when you consider that homes in Yorba Linda do not have Mello Roos.  Bigger lot sizes, however not much larger than Irvine for newer homes.  But older homes have HUGE lots zoned for horses.  Horse trails if you like horse and don't mind the smell.
 
The Toll brothers homes are actually on old oil wells.  They are filled with concrete and scattered throughout the neighborhood.  No HOA which can be good or bad.  Yorba Linda has some city ordinances in place to prevent any homeowner knuckleheadedness.  Believe the area is patrolled by Brea police?
 
we too are thinking yorba.  i've done test runs to orange county where I work.. its not that bad.  wife works in the lbc so its about the same...

vista del verde is cheap now... so its attractive.  we were actually looking at going even further inland to get access to yorba linda high (even though its way off)...  personally, i didnt really like the detached toll bros condos or the smaller toll brother houses next to greenbrier.  i actually really like greenbrier.   
 
akim997 said:
we too are thinking yorba.  i've done test runs to orange county where I work.. its not that bad.  wife works in the lbc so its about the same...

vista del verde is cheap now... so its attractive.  we were actually looking at going even further inland to get access to yorba linda high (even though its way off)...  personally, i didnt really like the detached toll bros condos or the smaller toll brother houses next to greenbrier.  i actually really like greenbrier. 
Click to expand...

What's lbc?  Long beach?  I haven't checked out the greenbrier yet, but the toll brothers home really impress me.  Do you have to take the 91?  So it's not that bad in the morning?
 
I used to commute from the hills in Orange to San Diego and we moved to Mission Viejo for me to save 20 minutes on my 90 minute drive and it was worth the move.  Point is that on long commutes, every single minute will make a difference.  Not sure what route you have in mind to Burbank and what time you are planning on leaving but check out the traffic tools on google maps to look at what various times of the days look like. 

We have a friend in Vista Del Verde and their house is nice but its very hot.  They have had their AC turned on every day since April and we live in central Irvine and have only turned on ours a few days this year.  There are other costs to look at like energy.

What part of Irvine do your parents live in?  If its north, then look at Serrano Heights or something around there.  Its about a 15 minute drive to the market place so all of the Irvine above market place is easy to get to from there and the pricing is similar to YL.
 
Thanks rkp, it's helpful to hear from ppl who knows ppl that actually lives in Vista Del Verde.  I'd be interested to hear more about ppl who bought the houese in The Perserves has to say.  I love the Pentaluma view lot, and the drive going up Vista Del Verde is so nice.  The oversize townhome by toll brothers are amazing too.  But probably not practical to do the drive from YL to Burbank or Torrance.  I like that YL has no Mello Roos vs. Irvine though. 
 
Jupitor said:
Thanks rkp, it's helpful to hear from ppl who knows ppl that actually lives in Vista Del Verde.  I'd be interested to hear more about ppl who bought the houese in The Perserves has to say.  I love the Pentaluma view lot, and the drive going up Vista Del Verde is so nice.  The oversize townhome by toll brothers are amazing too.  But probably not practical to do the drive from YL to Burbank or Torrance.  I like that YL has no Mello Roos vs. Irvine though.
Click to expand...

Hi Jupitor,

Last I heard the View lots were asking $75-$90k EACH  ::). They are really trying to get rid of their crappy plan, the Riveria. You can pretty much steal those...I haven't been up there in a while. Anyone else know how that development is doing?

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top