San Mateo 3 or San Remo 1?

NEW -> Contingent Buyer Assistance Program
Good summary. I would like to add ( something important to us):
LA
  • close to hoag hospital - 2 miles
    much closer to beach - 7 miles
    much closer to the state park on 133 - we mountain bike there
    you can feel the ocean breeze

SG
  • I did field test- driving to 405 from SG during avg rush hours takes 15 mins or more.
    closer to the primary school



IrvineHomeBuyer said:
I always prefer to rent in the area I want to purchase before hand so I can get a better feel of which part I like to live, but since we don't have the luxury of doing that, we have to depend on internet research and opinions from friends.

One of my friends that lives in Irvine was telling me Quail Hill/Laguna Altura is too out there, inconvenient and hard to get to, He says Stonegate/Woodbury is a much better location. I would like other opinions regarding the day to day convenience factor of each development, putting aside all the arguments of landfill and freeway.

From what I can see, LA seems more convenient overall.
- Easy access to South Coast Plaza (9 miles) - only takes 12 min
- Spectrum (2 miles)
- Costco (3 miles)
- Ranch 99 (6.5 miles) - further than I'd like
- 85 degree Bakery plaza (7 miles) - only takes 10 min via freeway
- The Market Place (6.7 miles) - 8 min.
- Quail Hill shopping center (not as good as Woodbury town center)

Stonegate
- South Coast Plaza (13 miles) - takes 20 min.
- Spectrum (5 miles)
- Costco (5.3 miles)
- Ranch 99 (4.9 miles)
- 85 degree bakery plaza (7.4 miles) - takes about 15 min.
- The Market Place (4.5 miles) - 12 min. Takes longer to get to than from LA
- Woodbury town center (big plus, better than QH and semi walkable)
 
Also... isn't QH/LA closer to a Target?

That's another thing I don't like about that whole Stonegate/Lambert Ranch/Portola Springs area... not Target-proximate (or Costco-proximate)... at least until they build that retail center.
 
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.
 
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
 
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.

Did you end up buying in Augusta Qwerty?
 
homer_simpson said:
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.

Did you end up buying in Augusta Qwerty?

heading off to lunch. ill respond when i get back
 
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
Dang... I was expecting this from test.

And in other 'testy' news... a bird tells me that Augusta is sold out... qwerty must have bought the last two units for him and his dog.
 
What are you talking about? I live in Portola Springs and I always drive to Target/Costco within 10 minutes.

Spectrum Target
Technology Costco

irvinehomeowner said:
Also... isn't QH/LA closer to a Target?

That's another thing I don't like about that whole Stonegate/Lambert Ranch/Portola Springs area... not Target-proximate (or Costco-proximate)... at least until they build that retail center.
 
fcb2011 said:
What are you talking about? I live in Portola Springs and I always drive to Target/Costco within 10 minutes.

Spectrum Target
Technology Costco

irvinehomeowner said:
Also... isn't QH/LA closer to a Target?

That's another thing I don't like about that whole Stonegate/Lambert Ranch/Portola Springs area... not Target-proximate (or Costco-proximate)... at least until they build that retail center.

10 minutes?  What do you have a space ship? 

Takes you 10 minutes alone to leave your village lol.
 
this is what matters the most to me (for what I do every day, SG is more convenient than LA). Ranch 99 at Walnut/Jefferey is less than 3 miles.  You also forgot about Korean super markets - Zion is only 2 miles away....not sure what's the closest Korean supermarket for LA (Assi? or the one by 85 degree?).
You also left out Orchard Hills Village Center which is nice.

Ranch 99 and Zion for the win!

IrvineHomeBuyer said:
- Ranch 99 (6.5 miles) - further than I'd like

Stonegate

- Ranch 99 (2.8 miles) to the one at Jeffery and Walnut
 
The Motor Court Company said:
this is what matters the most to me (for what I do every day, SG is more convenient than LA). Ranch 99 at Walnut/Jefferey is less than 3 miles.  You also forgot about Korean super markets - Zion is only 2 miles away....not sure what's the closest Korean supermarket for LA (Assi? or the one by 85 degree?).
You also left out Orchard Hills Village Center which is nice.

Ranch 99 and Zion for the win!

IrvineHomeBuyer said:
- Ranch 99 (6.5 miles) - further than I'd like

Stonegate

- Ranch 99 (2.8 miles) to the one at Jeffery and Walnut

i can careless about 99 but Zion FTW! I agree there :)
 
irvinehomeowner said:
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
Dang... I was expecting this from test.

And in other 'testy' news... a bird tells me that Augusta is sold out... qwerty must have bought the last two units for him and his dog.

there comes a time in a mans life where he has to defend his future neighborhood - even if it is a former contaminated marine base where fruits and veggies must be grown above ground.  Last time i was there there was one plan 3 left.  i thought about buying the last two, but i didnt trust the dogs to keep up after themselves.  Plan 1 would have suited us fine, but i really wanted a downstairs bedroom/full bathroom and it was only a two car garage. Plan 2 was also very interesting and it kept growing on us the more we saw it, but still no driveway so we did pull the trigger on a plan 3, i normally would not have bought a home without a garage but the third car garage made up for the lack of a driveway and the home at 3,000 sq feet will give us all of the room we would need for when we have kids.  a special thanks to RKP for sharing the info on the credits etc. that is what sent us back to look at the homes again (we hadnt been there since the opening) then we realized how much we had liked the floorplans from day one.  Another thanks to Martin AKA USCTrojanCPA for putting up with us over the last several years of indecision - but ultimately he is getting paid and we got a friendship out of it so it all worked out in the end.  Ill probably do a post in the near future of the buying experience (from looking outside of irvine and then settling in Tustin).

It really came down to Augusta 3 and Lambert Ranch 1 and Las Ventanas 2, but we didnt think we would get a shot at LR1 since we signed up so late and LV2 was too small for my taste (my wife thought it was fine).  I personally liked the Aug3 floor plan better, my wife liked LR1's layout better but was fine with either.  We love the location of Aug3, it is as central as you can get, bordered by the 55, 5, and 405.  So for commuting to work purposes, if we were to work in irvine we would have a short commute, if we work in other parts of OC, we would likely go against traffic.  I wanted the convenience of having a target/costco nearby as well as other food/takeout options and lastly the bang for the buck - good size home/lot for the price.  The schools are not an issue for us right now since we dont have kids so they wont be an issue for another 5-6 years - we will cross that bridge when we get there and we can always do private school if necessary. 
 
qwerty said:
irvinehomeowner said:
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
Dang... I was expecting this from test.

And in other 'testy' news... a bird tells me that Augusta is sold out... qwerty must have bought the last two units for him and his dog.

there comes a time in a mans life where he has to defend his future neighborhood - even if it is a former contaminated marine base where fruits and veggies must be grown above ground.  Last time i was there there was one plan 3 left.  i thought about buying the last two, but i didnt trust the dogs to keep up after themselves.  Plan 1 would have suited us fine, but i really wanted a downstairs bedroom/full bathroom and it was only a two car garage. Plan 2 was also very interesting and it kept growing on us the more we saw it, but still no driveway so we did pull the trigger on a plan 3, i normally would not have bought a home without a garage but the third car garage made up for the lack of a driveway and the home at 3,000 sq feet will give us all of the room we would need for when we have kids.  a special thanks to RKP for sharing the info on the credits etc. that is what sent us back to look at the homes again (we hadnt been there since the opening) then we realized how much we had liked the floorplans from day one.  Another thanks to Martin AKA USCTrojanCPA for putting up with us over the last several years of indecision - but ultimately he is getting paid and we got a friendship out of it so it all worked out in the end.  Ill probably do a post in the near future of the buying experience (from looking outside of irvine and then settling in Tustin).

It really came down to Augusta 3 and Lambert Ranch 1 and Las Ventanas 2, but we didnt think we would get a shot at LR1 since we signed up so late and LV2 was too small for my taste (my wife thought it was fine).  I personally liked the Aug3 floor plan better, my wife liked LR1's layout better but was fine with either.  We love the location of Aug3, it is as central as you can get, bordered by the 55, 5, and 405.  So for commuting to work purposes, if we were to work in irvine we would have a short commute, if we work in other parts of OC, we would likely go against traffic.  I wanted the convenience of having a target/costco nearby as well as other food/takeout options and lastly the bang for the buck - good size home/lot for the price.  The schools are not an issue for us right now since we dont have kids so they wont be an issue for another 5-6 years - we will cross that bridge when we get there and we can always do private school if necessary.

Hello neighbor  ;)
 
proximity of Costco and Target are really not an issue to me.....I drive around different parts of Irvine every day I can always take a little detour to stop by one of the Costco and Target stores.

Convenience is always a given for villages that are closest to freeways. Freeways are usually surrounded by apartments accordingly. With so many apartments being built around the spectrum area, the traffic is going to go from bad to nightmare.
 
Congratulations! Augsuta is pretty intriguing but Ms. Motor Court Company will only buy Irvine, live Irvine and die in Irvine. I agree from convenience point of view Augusta is pretty awesome.

qwerty said:
irvinehomeowner said:
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
Dang... I was expecting this from test.

And in other 'testy' news... a bird tells me that Augusta is sold out... qwerty must have bought the last two units for him and his dog.

there comes a time in a mans life where he has to defend his future neighborhood - even if it is a former contaminated marine base where fruits and veggies must be grown above ground.  Last time i was there there was one plan 3 left.  i thought about buying the last two, but i didnt trust the dogs to keep up after themselves.  Plan 1 would have suited us fine, but i really wanted a downstairs bedroom/full bathroom and it was only a two car garage. Plan 2 was also very interesting and it kept growing on us the more we saw it, but still no driveway so we did pull the trigger on a plan 3, i normally would not have bought a home without a garage but the third car garage made up for the lack of a driveway and the home at 3,000 sq feet will give us all of the room we would need for when we have kids.  a special thanks to RKP for sharing the info on the credits etc. that is what sent us back to look at the homes again (we hadnt been there since the opening) then we realized how much we had liked the floorplans from day one.  Another thanks to Martin AKA USCTrojanCPA for putting up with us over the last several years of indecision - but ultimately he is getting paid and we got a friendship out of it so it all worked out in the end.  Ill probably do a post in the near future of the buying experience (from looking outside of irvine and then settling in Tustin).

It really came down to Augusta 3 and Lambert Ranch 1 and Las Ventanas 2, but we didnt think we would get a shot at LR1 since we signed up so late and LV2 was too small for my taste (my wife thought it was fine).  I personally liked the Aug3 floor plan better, my wife liked LR1's layout better but was fine with either.  We love the location of Aug3, it is as central as you can get, bordered by the 55, 5, and 405.  So for commuting to work purposes, if we were to work in irvine we would have a short commute, if we work in other parts of OC, we would likely go against traffic.  I wanted the convenience of having a target/costco nearby as well as other food/takeout options and lastly the bang for the buck - good size home/lot for the price.  The schools are not an issue for us right now since we dont have kids so they wont be an issue for another 5-6 years - we will cross that bridge when we get there and we can always do private school if necessary.
 
homer_simpson said:
Hello neighbor  ;)

ill have to look out for a skinny asian guy on a diet and that brand new X5  - when you see the only mexican guy in the neighborhood walking some dogs around just give me the wink and the gun so i know its you.
 
The Motor Court Company said:
Congratulations! Augsuta is pretty intriguing but Ms. Motor Court Company will only buy Irvine, live Irvine and die in Irvine. I agree from convenience point of view Augusta is pretty awesome.

qwerty said:
irvinehomeowner said:
qwerty said:
gaogi said:
You guys are talking like Target and Costco are an hour drive away.  It's really not that bad from Stonegate taking Irvine Blvd down to Jamboree.  15 mins max if you hit all the red lights.

From Augusta at Columbus Square its only 5 minutes to target and costco.
Dang... I was expecting this from test.

And in other 'testy' news... a bird tells me that Augusta is sold out... qwerty must have bought the last two units for him and his dog.

there comes a time in a mans life where he has to defend his future neighborhood - even if it is a former contaminated marine base where fruits and veggies must be grown above ground.  Last time i was there there was one plan 3 left.  i thought about buying the last two, but i didnt trust the dogs to keep up after themselves.  Plan 1 would have suited us fine, but i really wanted a downstairs bedroom/full bathroom and it was only a two car garage. Plan 2 was also very interesting and it kept growing on us the more we saw it, but still no driveway so we did pull the trigger on a plan 3, i normally would not have bought a home without a garage but the third car garage made up for the lack of a driveway and the home at 3,000 sq feet will give us all of the room we would need for when we have kids.  a special thanks to RKP for sharing the info on the credits etc. that is what sent us back to look at the homes again (we hadnt been there since the opening) then we realized how much we had liked the floorplans from day one.  Another thanks to Martin AKA USCTrojanCPA for putting up with us over the last several years of indecision - but ultimately he is getting paid and we got a friendship out of it so it all worked out in the end.  Ill probably do a post in the near future of the buying experience (from looking outside of irvine and then settling in Tustin).

It really came down to Augusta 3 and Lambert Ranch 1 and Las Ventanas 2, but we didnt think we would get a shot at LR1 since we signed up so late and LV2 was too small for my taste (my wife thought it was fine).  I personally liked the Aug3 floor plan better, my wife liked LR1's layout better but was fine with either.  We love the location of Aug3, it is as central as you can get, bordered by the 55, 5, and 405.  So for commuting to work purposes, if we were to work in irvine we would have a short commute, if we work in other parts of OC, we would likely go against traffic.  I wanted the convenience of having a target/costco nearby as well as other food/takeout options and lastly the bang for the buck - good size home/lot for the price.  The schools are not an issue for us right now since we dont have kids so they wont be an issue for another 5-6 years - we will cross that bridge when we get there and we can always do private school if necessary.

definitely understandable - irvine is a great place and if there was a little more value for what you get in new construction, we would have probably stayed in irvine as well.
 
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