jjcc88 said:
Hi everyone - really appreciating this forum and the help it provides as my family moves into the area.
I am also very curious about the situation at Elderberry. I've been looking into new construction homes in Eastwood, Orchard Hills and PS and am finding that the price per sq ft is much lower in PS.
I'm all for getting more sq footage for my $$, but I want to make sure I understand what I'm giving up. Why is Elderberry (and PS) cheaper than the other villages? I have read some posts about the landfill near PS, that PS is near the toll roads, or that it's just farther from things, but is that enough to explain the difference? I see some people say that they can't smell the landfill anyway, and the toll roads don't seem like they would be an issue imo.
Portola Springs is a pretty large area, so it's probably best to think of the various areas as their own enclaves. PS5 is definitely "closer" to things than homes on the other side of Portola Parkway (say, for example, PS4), but it's still more remote and discounted accordingly.
For what it's worth, other neighborhoods with 1.2+ million property aren't moving as fast right now either, perhaps due to the price point. OH3, which is touted to be the premiere new land in Irvine, is really struggling to move their homes (Lago, Verdi, etc), too.
It likely won't appreciate as well as other villages, but in the end, it just depends on what you want the most. If you envision living in the home for a long time, then it shouldn't really matter as much. The strategy is a bit different, IMO, if you are buying a starter home, with an eye on later buying a move-up home, as appreciation matters more in that instance.
Also keep in mind the area is still being built out. There's a new K-6 school (that I hear is actually being converted to a K-8 school?) on Modjeska, there's another elementary school opening up on Portola Parkway in 2019, and there's a very large park opening in Fall of 2018 there, too. So a lot more "unknown" is involved, too.