PORTOLA HILLS LIVING by Kelly Turbeville

Thinking about selling your Portola Hills home, but considering doing it yourself.   Are you ready to hit the market as a For Sale By Owner (FSBO)? Before you sign on the dotted line with yourself, ask these 5 questions! 1.   Do you know and understand all required laws and pertaining documentation required?    In California the laws when selling a home are extensive. Do you have access to all the necessary forms? They cover, safety, hazard, disclosure, discrimination, environmental, tax, title and much much more.   2.   Do you have access to and a good relationship with a Title Company and Escrow company?   A home buyer/lender is going to require a complete title review of your property as well to ensure Title is insured. An escrow company as well would be required to ensure funds are maintained in a separate account and managed accordingly to local property laws, plus lending requirements Home Owners Association (HOA) details. 3.   Are you prepared to have th

As a Realtor you would expect me to know what homes are great deals and today I came across three in Portola Hills that are just that! Actually they are steals.. If you are looking to make a move to a larger home in a great neighborhood then make sure to check out two of these homes.  View all available Portola Hills Homes Here Portola Hills Deals for this week: 4 Bedroom / 3 Bath 2900 square foot JM Peters home.  2900+ Square feet at a price per square foot of $295. 4 Bedroom / 4 Bath 3100+ Square feet at a price per square foot of $281. Now you are probably wondering why I noted the square footage? The lowest price per square foot in the area for homes of this is $311 and that is for a smaller model. The median price per square foot in the area is $324.   That is about a 12% price below the current market value...    Below is a quick look at the price per square foot of the most recent sales this year.    Portola Hills Price Per Square foot. Th

If you haven't heard... El Nino is on its way to SoCal.  Actually it is already here, just the rainy part is projected to start and consistently happen from January through March and as you know Portola Hills and the Canyon areas of the South Orange County can get hit hard with rain and wind.   Personally I knew in the back of my mind, I needed to do some maintenance around the house.... but with no rain in site... yes I procrastinated.   Well today as I was having new satellite service installed, I looked up to see a lovely site (ugh) one of my eaves is having an issue.. Water, Termite, Clogged Gutter, not sure what... but what I know for sure... It is time to prepare for El Nino...   Over the last few years with the drought, things we didn't really have to worry about are about to hit us all. As I was thinking about my house,  I pulled together the following list of items to consider as you prepare your home for El Nino 5 Quick Home Maintenance Tips to do before El N

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

Portola Hills Sunsets We have officially entered into Fall in Portola Hills... Halloween has just passed and Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner. But I have to say Fall is my favorite season in PH...  Why the weather begins to crisp up, the house is decorated cozy and I can put on a nice pot of soup or something else yummy.  It just feels "homey" time to me!!  For the real estate market, this is the time of year it starts to quiet down... Why? Well pretty much for the same reason I noted above, people tend to be connected to the home this time of year.   So how did the real estate market perform in the first month of fall 2015.   Seven homes closed escrow in the area. Take a look at the homes that sold below. Portola Hills Sold Homes October 2015 I am always asked how does this compare to 2014.   As noted, in 2014, the number of sales was one higher but the mix was much different.  Which is going to affect the average or median pricin

As I write this post the feeling of fall is in the air.  It's a cool 70 degrees out.  A welcome relief, I believe from the hot September we had.   It is also the perfect metaphor for the Portola Hills real estate market.   Don't forget to enter our Fall Door Decorating Contest!!  In September there were 12 homes sold in Portola Hills, that is up from 8 in 2014, which is a 34% increase in volume.   So you can say the market in September was pretty hot... just like the weather.   Below is a look at the homes that closed escrow in the community.  September 2015 Portola Hills Real Estate Sales As we enter October, we should certainly see the number of sales fall i.e. decrease.  This is typical for the fall.  Homes begin to stay on the market longer, though buyer demand is still strong, people tend to want to be settled in their new home before school starts and the fall/holiday festivities begin. That doesn't mean fall is a bad time to list your home. Homes

Who is ready for Fall!  With this week being the official start of Fall 2015, I thought it would be fun to put together a Portola Hills Community Contest to celebrate the season.  Well maybe secretly I am hoping it will bring some cooler fall weather along with it! It is simple.. Decorate your Front Door, send us a picture and we will randomly pick the winning entry just in time for Thanksgiving!! The grand prize is a $50.00 grocery card.   Contest runs from 10/1/15-11/30/15. Portola Hills Fall Door Decorating Contest - Sponsored by Kelly Turbeville Terms apply... Contact Kelly direct for directions on how to enter. Open to Portola Hills residents only.  Participants agree photo will be shared publicly.

Are you looking for a view home?  You will want to stop in and check out this lovely paired home in the community of Portola Hills in Lake Forest.  This is a 3 Bedroom, 2.5 bath home with over 1600 sq. ft and offers AMAZING views of the Saddleback Mountains... Open from 12:00 pm on September 5th.. Open House by Kelly Turbeville Want more information on this home or other homes located in Portola Hills... Contact Kelly  with Century 21 Award!

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

We have seen the grading and knew it was coming but we are getting closer to the new development, The Oaks in Portola Hills is becoming reality!!   The developer for The Oaks is Baldwin and Sons under the Portola Center project with the City of Lake Forest. Though homes are not expected to be released until early 2016, below is some basic information on the new development per my visit with their sales associates. This neighborhood includes 309 Luxury Estate Homes Home Square Footage ranges from 2692-5200 There will be 8 separate home designs with 1 single story design The community will be gated and will include a pool and basic HOA amenities. Initial HOA is $350 and at final build out is estimated at $250/month Tax rate is projected to be 1.2570% Property addresses will be Lake Forest Estimated 1st release early 2016 Overall this is a great addition to the Portola Hills neighborhood the current estate homes maximum size is 3700 sq.ft.  Upgraded homes with views are

This past July was a busy one for the Portola Hills real estate market.   Home sales were up 20% and hold on tight the median price for homes sold was up 35%. .  Plus in the last week of July, 6 homes opened escrow!! So why the craziness, you might Ask!  A couple of things!! Inventory is very low with all of Orange County only at 1.5 months! Buyer demand is extremely high and buyers want in before projected  interest rates increase later this year!  It's Portola Hills.. The community is sought after for not only its location, the schools are good, views are spectacular, etc. However,  the big difference here is the mix of homes that sold! This year more higher-end larger homes took advantage of their equity position and decided to sale!! Take a look at the mix of homes that closed escrow this year vs. last. July Portola Hills Real Estate Sales It will be interesting to see if this trend continues!! My crystal ball might be fuzzy.. But I would project with t

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

We took a little stroll through the Bella Palermo townhome complex in Portola Hills this morning.  This community is located on the corner of Malabar and Saddleback Ranch Road in Portola Hills. Bella Palermo in Portola Hills It is a serene community with 198 homes offered in 6 different floorplans. Residence 1: 2 bedroom, 2 bath, 940 sq. ft. with a 2 car garage Residence 2: 2 bedroom, 2 bath 984 sq.ft with a 1 car garage Residence 3: 2 bedroom, 2 bath 1085 sq.ft. with a 2 car garage Residence 4: 2 bedroom, 2.5 bath 1105 sq.ft with a 2 car garage Residence 5: 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath 1205 sq.ft with a 2 car garage Residence 6: 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath 1305 sq.ft with a 2 car garage Home amenities, depending on the floorplan include:  Central Air Conditioning, Volume Ceilings, Cozy Fireplaces, Private Fenced Courtyards and Built in Wine Racks. Association Amenities include:  Pool, Spa, Fitness Room, 2 Tot Lots, Clubhouse and is surrounded by miles of hiking and biking trails.

When I am working with home buyers they are often surprised that Portola Hills currently has over 15 different neighborhoods.  The mix of the these neighborhoods include both single family homes detached and attached homes.  Below is a breakdown of the individual tracts: Tract Name # of Units Details Antigua 192 SFR neighborhood with 4 floorplans, featuring 3-4 bedrooms, sized from 1930-2494 sq.ft.  2-3 attached garages Alderwood 185 SFR neighborhood with 5 floorplans featuring 2-4 bedrooms, sized from 1138-2050 sq.ft. 2 car attached garages Canyon Rim 108 Townhome complex features 4 floorplans with 2-3 bedrooms sized from 969-1378 sq.ft. 2 Car attached garages Canyon View 225 Townhome complex featuring 2 floorplans, 2 bedrooms, sized from 873-1038sq.ft. 1 car garage attached/detached Canyon View West 84 Townhome complex featuring 2 floorplans, 2 bedrooms, size