Mazy_IHB
New member
I know this thread is not exactly about a property in Irvine, but since I began in this section, I thought I concluded it here as well:
For years Irvine for us was nothing more than a few exit signs on 405 on our way south. Like many others, we heard about the schools and how great this place supposedly was later on and became somewhat interested once we decided to settle down in OC. We started our search for a home back in April 09, and to make a long story short, I think we got serious with one property in each major neighborhood: First it was 111 Nighthawk in Woodbridge, then 2 Castlebar in Oak Creek, then 25 Shepard in Woodbury, then 115 Ambiance in Quail Hill, then 17 Wandering Rill in TRock, and finally 2 Mohagony in Northwood Pointe, and somehow, none worked out. Well, it wasn't "somehow" to be exact; we put offers and the sellers or their agents didn't think our offers were worthy. Oh, BTW, there were a few short-sales here and there and I guess banks should still be working on our offers as I type this. Anyways, seeing the crazy market it was, we decided to wait till fall, and started looking for rental as we had to move to OC for job anyway.
While everything was arranged for our move, we accidentally saw this property in Newport Coast Tesoro community that we liked a lot and decided to give it a try. It all happened during a weekend, and thanks to USCtrojanman, we were in escrow on Monday. Fast forward a few weeks and as of last Wednesday, we officially own a piece of this holy land (ok, it's not Irvine, but it was planned and developed by TIC and all that parts us from Turtle Ridge is just a lovely small landfill!)
Interestingly, most people we talk with tells us that we should be happy buying our first home, but I can't deny that I am a bit nervous, knowing where this market is heading (I guess I should stop reading IHB from now on and just hide my head in sand, haha!) Anyways, at least I am glad that we made this decision with open eyes and we have tried to prepare ourselves emotionally for the future price drops. We bought our home for near $400/sq.ft which was a quite low comp for the neighborhood, but only time will tell where the bottom for 3000-3500 sq.ft SFRs in NC will be and I only can hope we won't end up losing most of our down-payment on the ride down. Boy do I miss renting already!
Ok, enough with the buyer's remorse. On the positive side, the house itself is very beautiful. We like the open, "lite & brite" floor plan, and the neighborhood is just gorgeous (I was mesmerized by the hills and ocean view first time driving out of the community). The main negative for us is one bedroom being a bit small. Also, the lot is pathetically tiny, but the backyard ends in greenbelt on rising hill and you don't see houses in back which is very nice and it seems as if the yard is much bigger. I'm no BKshopr, but based on my limited google fu skills, we seem to be ok feng shui-wise as well (cul-de-sac with no street coming towards the house, no 4 in street number, regular-shaped lot with rise in rear [so I guess we will be collecting all prosperity from the uphill neighbors, hehe!], no sh*t over head while entering the house, no stairway pointing toward the entry, no open flame on NW, no bathroom above kitchen, etc. Unfortunately we have a bedroom above garage, so I guess I have to put a few fountains here and there to negate that
- Man, I didn't even know such a thing existed 3 months ago. Damn IHB!)
So here is our story becoming knife-catchers. We are now busy preparing for the big move in, checking out preschool programs, buying furniture and stuff, etc. I should add that I am really thankful to IHB community for all the helpful information. This was our first home buying experience in the US and we were absolutely clueless a few month ago when we were about to begin, but this blog/forum provided a great learning opportunity for us - thanks IR, zovall, and all members here who provide a valuable (and at many times, entertaining) public service (although I totally understand the IHB gurus giving us a big F for choosing to buy at this time, but this decision was not merely a financial one for us.) Also, USCtrojanman did a superb job representing us as our agent and we couldn't be happier with him (and his family ? you know, working with him, you get the whole package
). Thanks again and wish us luck in the bumpy ride ahead!
For years Irvine for us was nothing more than a few exit signs on 405 on our way south. Like many others, we heard about the schools and how great this place supposedly was later on and became somewhat interested once we decided to settle down in OC. We started our search for a home back in April 09, and to make a long story short, I think we got serious with one property in each major neighborhood: First it was 111 Nighthawk in Woodbridge, then 2 Castlebar in Oak Creek, then 25 Shepard in Woodbury, then 115 Ambiance in Quail Hill, then 17 Wandering Rill in TRock, and finally 2 Mohagony in Northwood Pointe, and somehow, none worked out. Well, it wasn't "somehow" to be exact; we put offers and the sellers or their agents didn't think our offers were worthy. Oh, BTW, there were a few short-sales here and there and I guess banks should still be working on our offers as I type this. Anyways, seeing the crazy market it was, we decided to wait till fall, and started looking for rental as we had to move to OC for job anyway.
While everything was arranged for our move, we accidentally saw this property in Newport Coast Tesoro community that we liked a lot and decided to give it a try. It all happened during a weekend, and thanks to USCtrojanman, we were in escrow on Monday. Fast forward a few weeks and as of last Wednesday, we officially own a piece of this holy land (ok, it's not Irvine, but it was planned and developed by TIC and all that parts us from Turtle Ridge is just a lovely small landfill!)
Interestingly, most people we talk with tells us that we should be happy buying our first home, but I can't deny that I am a bit nervous, knowing where this market is heading (I guess I should stop reading IHB from now on and just hide my head in sand, haha!) Anyways, at least I am glad that we made this decision with open eyes and we have tried to prepare ourselves emotionally for the future price drops. We bought our home for near $400/sq.ft which was a quite low comp for the neighborhood, but only time will tell where the bottom for 3000-3500 sq.ft SFRs in NC will be and I only can hope we won't end up losing most of our down-payment on the ride down. Boy do I miss renting already!
Ok, enough with the buyer's remorse. On the positive side, the house itself is very beautiful. We like the open, "lite & brite" floor plan, and the neighborhood is just gorgeous (I was mesmerized by the hills and ocean view first time driving out of the community). The main negative for us is one bedroom being a bit small. Also, the lot is pathetically tiny, but the backyard ends in greenbelt on rising hill and you don't see houses in back which is very nice and it seems as if the yard is much bigger. I'm no BKshopr, but based on my limited google fu skills, we seem to be ok feng shui-wise as well (cul-de-sac with no street coming towards the house, no 4 in street number, regular-shaped lot with rise in rear [so I guess we will be collecting all prosperity from the uphill neighbors, hehe!], no sh*t over head while entering the house, no stairway pointing toward the entry, no open flame on NW, no bathroom above kitchen, etc. Unfortunately we have a bedroom above garage, so I guess I have to put a few fountains here and there to negate that
- Man, I didn't even know such a thing existed 3 months ago. Damn IHB!)So here is our story becoming knife-catchers. We are now busy preparing for the big move in, checking out preschool programs, buying furniture and stuff, etc. I should add that I am really thankful to IHB community for all the helpful information. This was our first home buying experience in the US and we were absolutely clueless a few month ago when we were about to begin, but this blog/forum provided a great learning opportunity for us - thanks IR, zovall, and all members here who provide a valuable (and at many times, entertaining) public service (although I totally understand the IHB gurus giving us a big F for choosing to buy at this time, but this decision was not merely a financial one for us.) Also, USCtrojanman did a superb job representing us as our agent and we couldn't be happier with him (and his family ? you know, working with him, you get the whole package
). Thanks again and wish us luck in the bumpy ride ahead!
Now, stop stealing business away from Deuce! Just Kidding.. Good job!
