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

We are in about our 7th week of quarantine in Orange County and if you are anything like me, I am sure you are getting restless.  We just really hope no one in the community has been too affected by this virus either with their health or financially.  We get many questions asking how the real estate market is performing during this time? The good news is, it is hanging in there.  This is not like 2008!  The current inventory levels are extremely low compared to what we saw during the last recession.  The biggest impact to the real estate market is going to be unemployment, but pleasantly the numbers and activity in Portola Hills remained strong in April, as you can see below!  Looking at the above numbers you can see the strength of the market in two indicators.  First the list to sale price ratio. Seller's received over 100% of what they were requesting when they listed their home. Actually the received over! Most likely from multiple offers. The second indicator is the months o

We have hit the 6 month mark of 2016... yes today is June 1st, the unofficial beginning of summer after the Memorial Day holiday.  So what is happening in the Portola Hills real estate market so far.    Overall the market continues to shift from 2015.  We are still seeing increased pricing but sales volume is down from last year.   In May 9 homes closed escrow, which is down about 35% from May 2015.   The overall median sales price in May was flat compared to 2015.  Out of the 9 homes that closed escrow, 5 were Single Family Residence. The median sales price for a 3 bedroom 2197 square foot home was $810k The remaining 4 homes were condo's. The median sales price was $436k for a 3 bedroom 1151 square foot home. Are wondering why these numbers would be flat when we are hearing so much about the low inventory in south orange county? It is important to remember the median price is based on mix and with the number of sales down and the mix focused more on mid r

As we enter into the first month of January it's important to look at how the overall Portola Hills market ended.   As noted in my previous blog post, Portola Hills real estate closed transactions in December ended the month with a home value increase of 6%.  This is very consistent with the entire Orange County Real Estate market. Below is a quick look at the complete year.  The highest priced home sold for $1.1 Million and the lowest priced condo sold for $270k. Portola Hills 2015 Real Estate Sales Summary The number of closed sales (Volume) was up 7% from 2014.  Looking at the mix of properties the median price per home was up approximately 17%.   Of course, I always like to note this is a summary of all transactions. Each property type, have different levels of appreciation.   See our year end summary which includes each property type here Portola Hills 2014 Real Estate Sales Summary So what is on the horizon for 2016.   Looking at the current low inventory

Thought as we haven't seen too many larger single family homes on the market recently, it would be nice to see a couple that just closed escrow in Portola Hills.   Details:                                         Closed Escrow 2/19/2014 Average Days on the Market:       163 Days List price to Sale Price Ratio:        -2.08% Highridge Way Mountain View If you are considering a move a couple things you will want to consider.  Pricing your home at Fair Market Value is going to bring you the best results and often times bring you in multiple offers.  We are seeing in south orange county homes staying on the market a bit longer and a reduction in pricing. This generally means homes are priced higher then the market is willing to pay.  Of course sellers want to get the most for their home, but how it is positioned the moment you list will set the tone of your offers.    With the low inventory, the right positioning and high buyer demand, the one thing you shoul