another newbie question

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gizlby_IHB

New member
if you've read my other post - "newbie question / advice needed" you know my situation



since we're in the market looking for a house again - we're thinking of buying in the tustin/north tustin area



we'd like a house with a big lot and aren't afraid of a fixer - we really just want it to be in a good neighborhood with good schools for our kids



we aren't afraid of a bank owned or foreclosure but aren't sure about the process



do we need to get a realtor to find a bank owned property?



how does the whole process work?



we can afford a house around 550K - which isn't much for the area we are looking but we'd be ok with something that needs work



we don't know the area that well and are thinking we should get a realtor to help - but it seems like with the internet these days - we can find a house on our own just by looking up the listings



any suggestions on areas in north tustin to look at?



we noticed all there are some pockets of santa ana surrounded by north tustin - what happens if these unincorporated areas are no longer unincorporated (since it looks like the county is wanting to get rid of all it's little unincorporated areas) - will they be absorbed by tustin? or still be santa ana?
 
Have you checked out this <a href="http://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/62-Knollwood-92602/home/5884502">place</a>? It's a beautiful place, it's turn key, and it's priced below comps.
 
thanks



that place looks nice but we really are looking for something on a large lot



we've been driving around tustin for the past 2 -3 weekends and really like the area and would like to find something over there on a large lot



we'd like to get something that's a bit of a fixer so we can save some money and get into a neighborhood that we may not have been able to afford if it was all fixed up already
 
[quote author="CalGal" date=1215393207]Have you checked out this <a href="http://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/62-Knollwood-92602/home/5884502">place</a>? It's a beautiful place, it's turn key, and it's priced below comps.</blockquote>


500 and its sold! ;-)
 
[quote author="gizlby" date=1215392927]if you've read my other post - "newbie question / advice needed" you know my situation



since we're in the market looking for a house again - we're thinking of buying in the tustin/north tustin area



we'd like a house with a big lot and aren't afraid of a fixer - we really just want it to be in a good neighborhood with good schools for our kids</blockquote>


Good luck with that. The area has been slow to drop, partly because there are a lot of long time owners. You could find something you want, but it would require a lot, and I mean a lot of work for that price. Keep searching, it could happen, but there are not that many foreclosures there... yet.



<blockquote>we aren't afraid of a bank owned or foreclosure but aren't sure about the process



do we need to get a realtor to find a bank owned property?



how does the whole process work?</blockquote>


No, you don't need a Realtor, because there are many, many homes that are bank owned that are not on the MLS. But, having a Realtor who reads IHB might be another story. <a href="http://www.irvinehousingblog.com/forums/viewthread/346/">Your homework assignment is to read the foreclosure thread, the entire thread</a>. If you still have questions about the foreclosure process, ask your question there. Either myself or someone else will hopefully be able to answer any questions you still might have.



<blockquote>we can afford a house around 550K - which isn't much for the area we are looking but we'd be ok with something that needs work



we don't know the area that well and are thinking we should get a realtor to help - but it seems like with the internet these days - we can find a house on our own just by looking up the listings



any suggestions on areas in north tustin to look at?</blockquote>


Honestly, you might want to PM IR2 aka IrvineRealtor. He knows the area well, and with more specific details he can get a better idea of what it is you are looking for. A fixer on a big lot is not enough to go by.



<blockquote>we noticed all there are some pockets of santa ana surrounded by north tustin - what happens if these unincorporated areas are no longer unincorporated (since it looks like the county is wanting to get rid of all it's little unincorporated areas) - will they be absorbed by tustin? or still be santa ana?</blockquote>


They have been discussing this all my life of living here. You might as well play the lottery, as the chances of the two cities coming to a compromise are about as good. IMO, it would be absorbed by Tustin. If it did get absorbed by Santa Ana it would make no difference, as it is currently Santa Ana anyway.



It is a great area, with all kinds of homes. I would wait and see what happens to that new home project off of Red Hill and La Colina. They are having trouble selling the last two homes, and they need to drop the price significantly to make them sell. This will put pressure on many of the older homes in the area that want or need to sell.
 
I think you should wait a bit. I live in a very nice area in North Santa Ana, our lot is almost 16,000 square feet. We are noticing price drops but nothing like I think will be coming. The neighbors still have the "not in my neighborhood" attitude. There aren't very many foreclosures or distress sales, once again, they are coming. People are still refusing to drop their price and they'd rather give up than drop the price. Just wait until they don't have a choice. It's all going to change within one year.
 
I use ziprealty to search by lot size, the 10,000 sqft or greater option, and all kinds of North Tustin properties come up. Find out the zip codes you are interested in and just keep watching and waiting. This doesn't necessarily help with foreclosures that aren't on the MLS, but it's a good learning tool.
 
yes - we've been using ziprealty and redfin



ziprealty is a little behind sometimes on when things come on the listings but it's still really useful.
 
we aren't afraid of a fixer - in fact we would prefer a fixer.



which is why a bank owned or foreclosure would work for us -- as long as the house is structurally sound and has the basic bones that we can work with -- our most important goals are the schools and the lot size.



i have noticed that the north tustin area does not seem to have as many foreclosure listed



i signed up for the free membership to foreclosurepoint. i was wondering if they limit the houses listed on the free membership versus the premium paid membership?
 
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