Orchard Hills Update Website

NEW -> Contingent Buyer Assistance Program
I took my son to the new playground right behind the OH shopping center today. I think it's called Settler's Park. It's very nice. It has some unique aspects that I've not seen in any other playgrounds, such as being surrounded by a kiddie "scooter race track" thing (just a little sidewalk with fake traffic signs and lane dividers), and a cool exercycle thing (kind of hard to describe).





Too bad there are no houses planned for OH any time soon! I still love this area and would love to own a home (as long as it fed into Northwood instead of Beckman, since I want my son to be able to walk/bike to school).





ism
 
irvine single mom, to get a Northwood-feeder home you'll have to buy a home east of the school. The western plots are Tustin school district homes.
 
actually i don't mind no houses planned anytime soon for OH, a place I would love to live, because that means I can save more while the prices go down meaning more bang for my buck when the homes actually go up for sale in the initial phases. No hurry here for me. I can still enjoy the amenities that are up like the parks and walking through the jogging paths and roads in the meantime.
 
garfangle - yes, thanks, I know. But the first planned development (and the farthest along, based on the fully-built guard houses, roads, and park), are in the Tustin district.





fumbling - I agree, but not if it means that the house I want won't get built for 5+ more years. I would really like to buy by 2010.





ism
 
I checked out Settlers Park this weekend, and this big kid approves. The exercycle thing doesn't work so well if you are 6ft or above, but the spinning thingy works better the taller you are. The scooter track was really cool, and there were some kids that were taking advantage of it. But, just like their parents, they didn't abide by the traffic signs. So watch out. Across the field there is a BBQ and a picnic bench, where there is a nice view for a sunset, and a great view of the cranes above the stalled condo towers in Costa Mesa.





Judging by where the grading has been done, there will be some homes with great views. By the time they get around to building, I might be interested in a new home there.





Note to TIC: I want a decent sized lot. No lot, no sale for you... NEXT!
 
Just checked the Orchard Hills Update website......sorry to report that they now have changed the expected date for Fall 2011. It was quite shocking to see I have to admit.
 
<p>Interesting, the projected specificity of "<em>Fall</em> 2011."</p>

<p>If TIC's prognostication machine were as accurate as that implies, it seems the current market wouldn't have been caught them off guard to begin with...</p>

<p>SCHB</p>
 
As a Irvine home owner, I am just very glad Irvine company is pushing back most if all their developments in Irvine. With the lack of non-Irvine company land in Irvine, and financial issues with Lennar at the Great Park, we probably won't see any new developments until at least the market reach or close to the bottom (whenever that is). We all saw what happend at VOCs when builders have no vested interests in the community.



Also, with the school cuts across OC, I think area with good schools and less cuts will be even more attractive to the very few buyers outthere. Areas like newport will experience no cuts. Irvine ISD though has to cut, but no teacher layoffs are anticipated. A different story for Cap ISD. So the good schools will probably be minimally affected, while not so good areas will be hard hit.



All this probably won't be enough to save the market in Irvine, but my hope is that we will facc better than most of the other cities - well, I like to look at things glass half full.
 
<em>Irvine ISD though has to cut, but no teacher layoffs are anticipated.





</em>I won't hijack this thread, so check out my recent jobs thread.
 
I just checked out the <a href="http://www.villagesofirvine.com/Villages-and-Residences/Future-Villages.aspx">revised OH update site </a>and it's true, it's now coming in Fall of 2011.





Good grief!





I guess I can wait three more years, but that really sucks. I guess I SHOULD wait three more years, since this train wreck won't be ending any time soon. However, I was really hoping to buy in 2009 or 2010.





Oh well.
 
<p>Both sides of Orchard Hills have excellent school. My daughter goes to Pioneer and it is an excellent school. Tustin School District has done well with Myford, Hicks Canyon, Pioneer and Beckman. Irvine Schools have many smart kids but the young ones growing up in the newer generations of communities like West Irvine and Northpark will be setting very high standards for Beckman in a few years. I would not be concerned about the rivalry of East and West Orchard. </p>

<p>My standard is extremely high and I do like Orchard Hills because it so far delivered high marks in Bkshopr's check list including Feng Shui of course.</p>
 
So far so good. No one knows the price. I am only concerned with design, function, and aesthetic. Refer to IR for pricing commentary. I am going to pitch my tent on the best view lot and enjoy my prefab until 2011.
 
<p>IR,</p>

<p>Base on your numbers, what's your wildest guess on the home prices at Orchard Hills? I think they're 2500 to 3500 sq. ft.</p>
 
I would guess they would be able to get $275-$300 per square foot on new construction in 2011. That would put pricing of 3000 SF homes from $825,000 - $900,000.
 
IIRC, Orchard Hills is going to be a typical mixed-use development, with housing ranging from the apartments that are already there, to condos, townhomes, SFHs, and McMansions.





I am holding out for the Northwood HS housing, on the "right-hand side" of OH. It's not the quality of the schools that makes this so important to me (I agree bkshopr's schools are excellent); rather, it's my desire to have my son be able to walk or bike to high school. I feel that riding his bike within the development is safer than battling the traffic on Culver and Bryan.





Currently, he is registered for kindergarten at Plaza Vista and I have no worries about the quality of his education. I don't want him to develop lasting friendships, however, and then have us move into a different school zone when he's old enough for it to be a significant issue. So that's why ideally, we'd buy in 2009, before 1st grade.





I can always rent something in the Canyon View/Northwood HS area, of course, and wait for OH, and that's likely what I'll end up doing. It's just not ideal.
 
<p>ISM,</p>

<p>I think that was their first intention: To build a variety of products ranging from condos to McMansions. I hope that is the case. But didn't someone once mentioned that only McMansions was going to be built there?</p>
 
We are all guessing at this point. The land at OH is too valuable and some do have excellent view that may command a view premium. Judging from the quality of IAC's OH apartments (IMO is the best looking one so far) I think the for-sale residential to follow should rival Turtle Ridge quality. The avocado orchard is beautiful and mature and it is an excellent asset for this community as most residential neighborhoods all exit on to the orchard. I respect the sensitivity to save the existing orchard rather than scraping it for a few more houses and generating more revenues. The natural curb appeal to me is priceless and I am willing to pay extra for this type of open space in the community and the key is how much more compared to the flat land? In order to commensurate the rural agrarian feel offered by the community the typical housing approach has to be amended to allow for single story to face the street to alleviate the massing of a 2 story structure. As economy get better this might be the first to be available.
 
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