Portola Springs Neighborhood 4B: Brisa, Celeste and Talise

[inv0ke-epipen]

I am not sure if we were being overly paranoid, but we decided against Celeste because of it's proximity to the landfill.

Were you able to smell it or just a 6th sense?

I'll be honest, most of it had to do with a lot of the stuff I read on here about it not being a great idea to live so close to a landfill. When we visited Celeste we couldn't smell anything, but me being the worrier I am I knew that it would always be in the back of my head. In terms of location, that whole development is about as close as you can get to the landfill - it's pretty much literally right below it.

With that being said, I am sure things would've been fine. It was just a personal decision not to pull the trigger.

Thanks for your thoughts. Did you end up at Baker Ranch?

Nope!  We pulled out of Baker Ranch because the track we were going to purchase ended up being literally on the land of the old Ordnance Explosive Device site from the military base.  :
Again, more overly-paranoid decisions (or lack thereof). We had put our search for a home off for a months, but now that our apartment lease is almost over (early August), we've resumed our search in the Irvine/Tustin Ranch/Aliso Viejo areas.

So your problem is this:


You want a newer home in the center of the county. But the only land left either has issues (near landfill, cemetery, road noise), small close lots and/or is expensive and has high taxes.

It will only get worse, there is a finite amount of land left.


You needed to buy something 50 years ago.

I was in a similar situation as Eddie. Almost pulled the trigger on Brisa, and then later Baker Ranch. Ended up compromising by going for a two bedroom and tandem garage, but in Quail Hill which is newish and great location. I feel pretty good about that decision so far, location is tantamount in real estate for a reason.

The hard part is actually getting an offer accepted in the 500-800k price range. We put in an offer the same day the place was listed  for 5k over list without even seeing the place.  Went up against 9 other offers and got ours accepted a few days later. 9 offers same day as listing and not even an open house.  I imagine that is part of the reason Eddie and others are looking at new construction.

 

[Burn That Belly]

x

 

[Happiness]

I am not sure if we were being overly paranoid, but we decided against Celeste because of it's proximity to the landfill.

Were you able to smell it or just a 6th sense?

I'll be honest, most of it had to do with a lot of the stuff I read on here about it not being a great idea to live so close to a landfill. When we visited Celeste we couldn't smell anything, but me being the worrier I am I knew that it would always be in the back of my head. In terms of location, that whole development is about as close as you can get to the landfill - it's pretty much literally right below it.

With that being said, I am sure things would've been fine. It was just a personal decision not to pull the trigger.

Thanks for your thoughts. Did you end up at Baker Ranch?

Nope!  We pulled out of Baker Ranch because the track we were going to purchase ended up being literally on the land of the old Ordnance Explosive Device site from the military base.  :
Again, more overly-paranoid decisions (or lack thereof). We had put our search for a home off for a months, but now that our apartment lease is almost over (early August), we've resumed our search in the Irvine/Tustin Ranch/Aliso Viejo areas.

So your problem is this:


You want a newer home in the center of the county. But the only land left either has issues (near landfill, cemetery, road noise), small close lots and/or is expensive and has high taxes.

I believe Tustin Legacy ticks all of those boxes. I'll say it again: TL is the best location, best valule homes in "Irvine". Also, I agree with epipen that Quail Hill is one of the most beauful neighborhoods in Irvine. Quail Hill is a much nicer and safer place than neighboring HC and LA, YFs criticism about QH toxic pesticides notwithstanding but that doesn't matter because YF deleted all of those posts.

 

[inv0ke-epipen]

Why didn?t you buy Great Park?

The styles of homes they were building in my price range looked stupid and had weird floor plans.

 

[Burn That Belly]

x

 

[eddieuclabruin]

I am not sure if we were being overly paranoid, but we decided against Celeste because of it's proximity to the landfill.

Were you able to smell it or just a 6th sense?

I'll be honest, most of it had to do with a lot of the stuff I read on here about it not being a great idea to live so close to a landfill. When we visited Celeste we couldn't smell anything, but me being the worrier I am I knew that it would always be in the back of my head. In terms of location, that whole development is about as close as you can get to the landfill - it's pretty much literally right below it.

With that being said, I am sure things would've been fine. It was just a personal decision not to pull the trigger.

Thanks for your thoughts. Did you end up at Baker Ranch?

Nope!  We pulled out of Baker Ranch because the track we were going to purchase ended up being literally on the land of the old Ordnance Explosive Device site from the military base.  :
Again, more overly-paranoid decisions (or lack thereof). We had put our search for a home off for a months, but now that our apartment lease is almost over (early August), we've resumed our search in the Irvine/Tustin Ranch/Aliso Viejo areas.

You still have a few choices (mostly resale but some new construction):

-Eastwood (no major cons, prices have gone thru the roof though)
-Stonegate (priced a few dollars short per sf compared to EW)
-Woodbury (slightly older compartmentalized designs, great location to the towne center)

Then you have remaining new premium choices:
-Orchard Hills Reserve
-Barcelona - grand opening this Saturday


Curious, why are you not looking at Great Park? Give us your thoughts as an honest home shopper.

1)environmental concerns and 2)can't afford the nicer homes there. :-\ We're first time home buyers in our early 30's with no help from family/inheritance etc. Our max budget is around $750k (and even that is pushing it).

 

[eddieuclabruin]

I am not sure if we were being overly paranoid, but we decided against Celeste because of it's proximity to the landfill.

Were you able to smell it or just a 6th sense?

I'll be honest, most of it had to do with a lot of the stuff I read on here about it not being a great idea to live so close to a landfill. When we visited Celeste we couldn't smell anything, but me being the worrier I am I knew that it would always be in the back of my head. In terms of location, that whole development is about as close as you can get to the landfill - it's pretty much literally right below it.

With that being said, I am sure things would've been fine. It was just a personal decision not to pull the trigger.

Thanks for your thoughts. Did you end up at Baker Ranch?

Nope!  We pulled out of Baker Ranch because the track we were going to purchase ended up being literally on the land of the old Ordnance Explosive Device site from the military base.  :
Again, more overly-paranoid decisions (or lack thereof). We had put our search for a home off for a months, but now that our apartment lease is almost over (early August), we've resumed our search in the Irvine/Tustin Ranch/Aliso Viejo areas.

So your problem is this:


You want a newer home in the center of the county. But the only land left either has issues (near landfill, cemetery, road noise), small close lots and/or is expensive and has high taxes.

It will only get worse, there is a finite amount of land left.


You needed to buy something 50 years ago.

This is pretty much the exact current state of our home search. It's incredibly frustrating but we're trying to make the best of it and find a viable solution.

 

[eddieuclabruin]

If they didn't like Baker Ranch because of ordinance testing, they wouldn't like the Great Park.

Is there a general consensus on these boards about the environmental concerns with GP (and Irvine in general)? I've gone back and read so much of this stuff in older threads and I am honestly not sure if I am being overly neurotic about it. It's really had a dramatic effect on our homebuying search.

 

[irvinehomeowner]

@invoke:

Why didn't you buy in Eastwood?

QH is one of my favorite newer hoods in Irvine... good choice.

 

[Burn That Belly]

x

 

[inv0ke-epipen]

@invoke:

Why didn't you buy in Eastwood?

Delano looked great, but was way too expensive. Couldn't afford it. 

 

[Mety]

@invoke:

Why didn't you buy in Eastwood?

Delano looked great, but was way too expensive. Couldn't afford it.

Did you buy attached?
If so, have you experienced any noise issues with the neighbor like toilet flushing sound, door slamming, or even their conversations, etc?

 

[inv0ke-epipen]

@invoke:

Why didn't you buy in Eastwood?

Delano looked great, but was way too expensive. Couldn't afford it.

Did you buy attached?
If so, have you experienced any noise issues with the neighbor like toilet flushing sound, door slamming, or even their conversations, etc?

Attached, no noise issues so far. I'm coming from a frat house type living situation though, so used to plenty of noise ;D. I'm more worried about being the one making the noise to be honest.

 

[kbinteriordesign]

Hi Everyone!

I'm a new member, but have been following Talk Irvine and this thread for some time now. I thought that I would contribute as we purchased from Celeste and couldn't be happier. The two neighborhoods we considered were Orchard Hills and Portola Springs because of the hill side locations. We looked at Varenna in Orchard Hills and was set to purchase a home, but we decided that it was more than we should probably spend. Also, the location of the neighborhood was quite flat and we wanted a property with some visual interest. Ultimately, we purchased at Celeste because we were able to get the floor plan we wanted and were surprised that we could get a 180 degree hill side and city view for under a million. This is our first home purchase together since we got married and we are so grateful that we found this place.

Prior to purchasing, we had similar concerns as others did about the landfill and the soil quality. The representatives at Celeste/Cal Pacific were very helpful with getting us the information we needed in order to make an informed decision. I also pulled up reports from the City of Irvine site regarding the soil testing done in the area. We found that the soil at Celeste was fine and that the homesites are located further away from the contaminated areas in question. As for the landfill, we've been back and forth to the property several times and have not noticed any weird or foul odors. If you don't realize it's there, you really don't think about it.

I have to mention that Martin Mania (USCTrojanCPA) is a long time friend of mine and has essentially taught me everything I know about real estate. While he did not represent us in this purchase, he was key in helping us with the mortgage for our house. I hope that this information has been helpful for anyone who is considering Celeste!

 

[usctrojancpa]

Congrats on the purchase of Celeste and I'm happy that I have been able to help.  Feel free to reach out anytime if there is anything else that you may need help with.

 

[the.irvine]

Hi Everyone!

I'm a new member, but have been following Talk Irvine and this thread for some time now. I thought that I would contribute as we purchased from Celeste and couldn't be happier. The two neighborhoods we considered were Orchard Hills and Portola Springs because of the hill side locations. We looked at Varenna in Orchard Hills and was set to purchase a home, but we decided that it was more than we should probably spend. Also, the location of the neighborhood was quite flat and we wanted a property with some visual interest. Ultimately, we purchased at Celeste because we were able to get the floor plan we wanted and were surprised that we could get a 180 degree hill side and city view for under a million. This is our first home purchase together since we got married and we are so grateful that we found this place.

Prior to purchasing, we had similar concerns as others did about the landfill and the soil quality. The representatives at Celeste/Cal Pacific were very helpful with getting us the information we needed in order to make an informed decision. I also pulled up reports from the City of Irvine site regarding the soil testing done in the area. We found that the soil at Celeste was fine and that the homesites are located further away from the contaminated areas in question. As for the landfill, we've been back and forth to the property several times and have not noticed any weird or foul odors. If you don't realize it's there, you really don't think about it.

I have to mention that Martin Mania (USCTrojanCPA) is a long time friend of mine and has essentially taught me everything I know about real estate. While he did not represent us in this purchase, he was key in helping us with the mortgage for our house. I hope that this information has been helpful for anyone who is considering Celeste!

Congrats on your home purchase. Which plan did you buy?

 

[the.irvine]

Congrats on the purchase of Celeste and I'm happy that I have been able to help.  Feel free to reach out anytime if there is anything else that you may need help with.

What are these homes priced at?

 

[eyephone]

Sounds like an advertisement. 

 

[ThirtySomethingWEquity]

Wow are the three story homes almost the same price as Talise???

 

[Mety]

Hi Everyone!

I'm a new member, but have been following Talk Irvine and this thread for some time now. I thought that I would contribute as we purchased from Celeste and couldn't be happier. The two neighborhoods we considered were Orchard Hills and Portola Springs because of the hill side locations. We looked at Varenna in Orchard Hills and was set to purchase a home, but we decided that it was more than we should probably spend. Also, the location of the neighborhood was quite flat and we wanted a property with some visual interest. Ultimately, we purchased at Celeste because we were able to get the floor plan we wanted and were surprised that we could get a 180 degree hill side and city view for under a million. This is our first home purchase together since we got married and we are so grateful that we found this place.

Prior to purchasing, we had similar concerns as others did about the landfill and the soil quality. The representatives at Celeste/Cal Pacific were very helpful with getting us the information we needed in order to make an informed decision. I also pulled up reports from the City of Irvine site regarding the soil testing done in the area. We found that the soil at Celeste was fine and that the homesites are located further away from the contaminated areas in question. As for the landfill, we've been back and forth to the property several times and have not noticed any weird or foul odors. If you don't realize it's there, you really don't think about it.

I have to mention that Martin Mania (USCTrojanCPA) is a long time friend of mine and has essentially taught me everything I know about real estate. While he did not represent us in this purchase, he was key in helping us with the mortgage for our house. I hope that this information has been helpful for anyone who is considering Celeste!

Thanks for the helpful information and congrats on your new home.
I personally like the plan 4 of Celeste myself. It has high ceilings with bright and wide feel.
So where are the contaminated areas in questions? Did the sales people or anyone provide this information or did you research yourself?
Telling us the contaminated areas would be really helpful for us to know.