PORTOLA HILLS LIVING by Kelly Turbeville

Who says people don't buy homes during a pandemic?  Looking at the real estate market this past July for the Portola Hills community, sales volume increased 38% from the same time period in 2019, buyer demand is extremely strong! Though there are concerns with unemployment, the rest of the market is pretty strong in the OC.  My interruption from working with clients is, all this time at home is highlighting what doesn't work in their current home. That, along with the low interest rates,  strong equity position, sellers are looking to sell and move up to their dream home.  Also, those who rent see that with the low interest rates it is literally cheaper to buy right now! Finally home represents security and I think we all are looking for a bit more of that in our lives these days.... would you agree? Below is a quick snapshot of how the real estate market preformed in July: What's my Portola Hills Home Value With interest rates hovering below 3% this has become the real est

Are you crazy... we have too much going on with the holidays and such to put our house on the market, plus who would be out shopping for homes anyways..? Yes.. we often hear this sentiment when we are speaking to clients who know they want to sell soon but can't imagine it would be beneficial at this time of year.    But in reality, late fall/winter is a perfect time to sell your Portola Hills home. Check out our report on 5 reasons why listing your right now may actually be the best option for you. 1.  Demand Is Serious and Strong: The buyer pool is South Orange County continues to remain high and out pace supply. These buyers are ready, willing and able to buy.. and are in the market right now! 2.  There Is Less Competition:  Housing supply is still under the historical number of 6 months supply, currently less then 3 in Orange County, which means there are not enough homes for sale to satisfy the number of buyers in the market. This is good news for home pri

Historically August is a quiet month in the real estate market, people are finishing up vacations and getting kids ready for school, etc.  In Portola Hills however this wasn't the case when it comes to the  number of homes that sold as we saw a 37% increase  in the number of closed escrows over August of 2014. In 2014 5 homes closed escrow in 2015 8 homes closed escrow...   Below is a breakdown of what homes sold in both years. Portola Hills August 205 Home Sales As you will note this last month, 8 homes successfully closed escrow with average price point of approximately $503,000. Portola Hills August 2014 Home Sales In 2014, 5 homes closed escrow, with an average price point of $490,000.    Comparing the two years in regards to pricing we saw a 9% increase in the sales prices .   Still outpacing Orange County as a whole, but down from the double digit price increase we saw in June and July. With the last quarter, anticipated homes sales, can slow down

I wrote an article earlier in the week about the Highest Priced Homes sold Year-to-Date in Lake Forest and wanted to share with my Portola Hills peeps a bit of the details.. I pulled a pretty basic search out of the MLS, homes sold over $900k in Lake Forest.  I was actually pretty surprised by the results.. Where was Foothill Ranch?   What about the homes sold around the Lake??  All good questions if you are familiar with the area...  The biggest surprise was highest share of homes sold for over $1 million were in Baker Ranch with Portola Hills coming in 2nd. Below is a look at homes sold. Lake Forest YTD Most expensive homes sold Baker Ranch is a lovely new community.  NEW is the key!  We all love to look at new homes; when you walk in you feel refreshed, inspired, wowed, etc.  Does that feeling account for a 17% increase in the price per square foot?  Obviously as this report suggest 6 of the homes sold were in Baker Ranch.  As well, overall in Orange County we find 2

May 2015 has come and gone.. It's the unofficial start of summer and the end of the spring selling season.   So what how did the real estate market perform for Portola Hills? During May 15 homes closed escrow in Portola Hills that is up from 9 in 2014. The average sell price for 2015 was $618,679 up from $528,833.  This makes the average sales price up 15% from 2014.   An interesting note as well is the days on the market.  The average days on the market for this last month was 46 days down from 67 days, a 30% decrease in the days on the market.  What is interesting the overall inventory 2014 was slightly less then it is today, which should have indicated less days on the market.   However what it shows is the market today is Hot, Hot, Hot!  Homebuyers are ready to buy, but inventory is extremely low, thus pushing up prices. Portola Hills May 2015 Sold Homes If you want to take advantage of the strong market as these home sellers NOW is the time to list your home

Have you heard about the "HERO Program" and wondering what it is all about? Are you thinking of some new improvements to spruce up the home but worried about cost, then this program is something you might want to consider.   HERO is an acronym that stands for: Home Energy Renovation Opportunity.  It is the #1 energy efficiency financing program in United States.  HERO partners with local governments to make energy efficient, water efficient and renewable energy products more affordable to homeowners.   HERO financing is paid through the homeowners property taxes.  The repayment is included in your property tax bill.  You will see a line item titled HERO Financing on your property tax bill and if property taxes are impounded your lender will adjust your monthly payment to include the amount due for HERO financing. Eligibility criteria includes (terms apply): Mortgage related debt must not exceed 90% of the value of the property. Mortgage payments must be curre

This has been a common question I have been receiving lately from Home Buyers.... Where are all the Portola Hills homes for sale?  That's right inventory is VERY low.  However, as I was searching for a home for a buyer, I did find a little interesting tidbit, 5 Portola Hills homes currently active are listed in the wrong city. Now you might be thinking that is not a big deal, but put yourself in a home buyers seat, who is searching online at 9pm at night.... Buyers search by two main things.... Price and Location. They then drill down to neighborhoods and details such as school.   Buyers searching for homes in Portola Hills and are not going to find these properties.  So as a Home Seller you are missing out. Portola Hills Ariel View Interesting these 5 listings are all listed by out of the area real estate agents and have been on the market longer than any listing that is correctly listed on the market.  In addition there were 3 sold listings listed in the wrong city.  Wha

Portola Hills eNews New On the Market Property Details Price Comments 19525 Arezzo 2 bed/2bath/1100 sq.ft. $324,900 19271 Echo Pass 2 bed/2 bath/100 sq.ft. $435,000 28651 Pendleton 3 bed/3bath/1500 sq.ft. $469,900 Bank Owned and a Steal 28571 Shady Ridge 4 bed/3 bath/2400 sq.ft. $734,900 19222 Red Bluff 4 bed/4 bath/3100 sq.ft. $894,000 Sold Properties 28372 Harvest View 5 bed/4 bath/3100 sq.ft. $775,000 Someone got a Deal 19651 Dorado Dr . 5 bed/4 bath/3500 sq.ft. $840,000 Market Upda

There are some wonderful buying opportunities currently available in Portola Hills and if you are considering making a move, you might just want to check out these four listings. Perfect Size Condo with 2 bedroom, 2 bath with a 2 car garage – Priced at $289,000 – nice starter investment property! JUST WENT INTO ESCROW! Beautiful Condo with 3 bedroom, 3 bath with a 2 car garage - Priced at $399,000 It’s a house that includes, 3 bedroom, 3 bath with a 2 car garage – Priced at $469,900 Large 3200 sq.ft, 5 bedroom, 4 bath, with Pool, Spa and a lovely view – Priced at $899,000 To schedule a showing, call Kelly! Kelly Turbeville is one of South Orange County premier Realtors® focusing in the Saddleback Valley and the communities of Lake Forest, Portola Hills, Foothill Ranch , Whether she’s helping a first time buyer accomplish the goal of homeownership, or coaching a homeowner on how to use their equity to step up into a nice home or use it to buy an investment property or fin