Moving from Houston to OC (Mission Viejo) (Irvine, Newport Beach: mortgage, homes)

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by Farink

I don't how to be fancy like you guys and take the portion of the response I'm replying to; forgive me for being novice at this!
Water bill seems high, which is expected. For a 4,500 sq. foot home with a pool, my water bill was $96 last month (tons of rain this year so our sprinklers are off). How are the electric bills? I assume most homes don't have AC, which is the culprit for our high electricity bills ($346 last month and I kept all 3 AC units at 78). Many thanks for all the very helpful responses!!

This site shows Mission Viejo's electric rates and average residential bills:

Mission Viejo, CA Electricity Rates | Electricity Local
· Residential Electricity in Mission Viejo
·
· The average residential electricity rate in Mission Viejo is 16.35¢/kWh.[1]
· This average (residential) electricity rate in Mission Viejo is 6.58% greater than the California average rate of 15.34¢/kWh.[2]
· The average (residential) electricity rate in Mission Viejo is 37.63% greater than the national average rate of 11.88¢/kWh. Residential rates in the U.S. range from 8.37¢/kWh to 37.34¢/kWh
Electric bills: The average residential electricity bill in California is about $88/month, ranking 42nd in the U.S. and 17.76% less than the national average of $107.[5]

Actually, most homes do have A/C, but it's usually not used much, except during heat waves:

Mission Viejo's Monthly Average Temps:
https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/USCA0712:1:US

[saibot]

One thing which I'm sure you already know is that your house size is likely to take a bit hit when you move to SoCal. People just don't have 4500 square foot houses here unless they are multimillionaires. Single-family houses in MV are about 1500 sq ft on the low end and 3000 on the higher end--and you're looking at close to a million dollars for those larger homes.

Most houses DO have a/c, but you will find you don't need it all that much. Our electric bill for August was $50. Our house is small (1300 sq ft) and we don't run central a/c, but we did use fans and a portable room a/c quite a bit.

About pools, if you want a house with a private pool, there are plenty in MV. If you'd be okay with a community pool, RSM has four which are open year-round. One is right across the street from my house, and it's been terrific to be able to just walk over there any time, and not have to deal with pool maintenance.

[saibot]

Originally Posted by loveorangecounty

Most homes do have air conditioning and will definitely be more than $346 per month for a much smaller house. I barely use mine so I'm not the best example. I've heard people claiming their electric bills are $500-700 during the hot months. Many people seem to be installing solar power.

Whoa, that's a ridiculous bill! We've never had a bill higher than $75 in the twenty years we've been here. But I have heard that people in other electric districts have recently been hit with higher bills than we've had.

[pacific2]

The OP can find a 4,000 sq ft home in MV for an asking price of $1,049,900:
https://www.redfin.com/CA/Mission-Vi...2/home/5049690

[saibot]

Originally Posted by pacific2

The OP can find a 4,000 sq ft home in MV for an asking price of $1,049,900:
https://www.redfin.com/CA/Mission-Vi...2/home/5049690

Good find! I'm actually surprised at the "low" price. The lot is barely bigger than the house, though!

[Farink]

Yup. Been planning a move for a few years now and understand housing prices being completely different from Texas. Definitely understand that I've been spoiled with the large houses here and that's just not going to happen in Cali (frankly, who needs all that space when you'll be outside most of the time--in Texas, all that space is necessary because we're trapped inside 6-7 months out of the year and can't be outdoors comfortably). I'm not a fan of putting the bulk of our savings in a home, so yes, 2,000-2,500 sq. ft is my target size (hubby's of a different opinion--i'm the fiscally conservative one in the family). I've always had a pool (it's a necessity here), but am looking at homes without one. When we're in SoCal during the summers, it doesn't feel hot enough to jump in the pool. We spent Labor Day weekend at my cousin's in LaJolla and not even my little boy set foot in the pool. I figure with all the community pools around, lake and the ocean, a pool is not as appreciated as it is down here an we'll save on electricity, montly pool service, and water. Is it much hotter there than Laguna or LaJolla? And I was under the wrong impression about AC. Cousin's house in Irvine doesn't have AC, and neither does the one in LaJolla. Is it just cooler in those areas and they build the homes without AC? I need to educate myself about that more...

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by saibot

Good find! I'm actually surprised at the "low" price. The lot is barely bigger than the house, though!

I was also surprised. True about the lot size. I'll bet it costs a lot to cool the house off during hot spells, but the trees may help to cool things off. Speaking of trees, I'll also bet that the gardening bill is high.

[saibot]

La Jolla and Laguna are on the coast and it is definitely more common not to have a/c there. I'm a little surprised about a house in Irvine not having it, though. Is it an older house? I would expect that all the newer construction has central a/c.

Mission Viejo runs a little hotter than Irvine in general (though the parts of Irvine that are farther inland and near the hills would be comparable), but the real difference is being right on the coast vs. not being on the coast.

This last week has been unusually cool for September. Typically, early September is blazing hot! But I've been enjoying the cooler air to no end.

[Podo944]

Mission Viejo is lovely. Hubby and I live in a small apartment, but we're so lucky to live in the area. There are several parks you can take the kids and some very nice bike paths all over So. Orange county. And yes, you can pretty much be outside for much of the day for much of the year. That's why it's so expensive basically because so many want to live here. Like being in the mosh pit to get close to the stage... the star of course being the Pacific Ocean
Funny about weather... we've had a little more humidity along with the warmth these past few summers. A relative was visiting from Florida last year during a heat wave with humidity. People were complaining, it was on the news, a real big deal. I was like "sorry about the weather" and she laughed and said she didnt even feel it! Ha ha! Well, you'll acclimate soon enough and turn into a weather wimp like us!
Good luck and welcome!

[RMESMH]

Originally Posted by Farink

Greetings!! My love affair with SoCal is going strong for about 7 years and we're finally ready to take the plunge and make plans for making OC our new home. I've got a few questions and appreciate your insight. Many, many thanks in advance for helpful responses!!!!

1. I'm in love with Mission Viejo. Any reason I should avoid the area and focus on other neighboring ones?

2. What is the state of school in terms of the infrastructure? Are kids in trailers or temporary buildings on campus? We've got an elementary school child, but haven't had a chance to actually vist the schools in the area. What are some of schools most buyers are avoiding? (making long term plans for resale value)

3. How is the drought impacting OC and Mission Viejo? Any concern with future prohibitiions on refilling MV lake? Are water prices outrageous now due to supply/demand? What should we consider or be concerned about regarding the ongoing drought? (not talking about water restrictions re washing vehicles, watering lawn, etc. We have those here in Texas, too, even though it seems to rain everyday!)

4. If we're bringing our SUV from Texas, any special taxes or costs we need to be concerned about? I visit SoCal about 3x/year and have been doing so for the past 9 years and notice that, unlike Texas, people don't drive trucks or big SUVs. Other than price of gas, are there any financial disincentives to bringing the SUV with us? (I understrand the environmental arguments; just asking about financial hits)

5. What are some of your favorite neighborhoods in Mission Viejo? We used to live across from White Rock Lake in Dallas and live in a wooded suburb of Houston now, and loved/love the walking/biking trails and the ability to jog around our neighborhood and around the lake or ride our bikes. The move to SoCal is inspired by the beautiful weather and we want to be able to walk in our neighborhood and ride bikes around after work/school. Trying to look for the same up there.

6. MV Lake is only available to MV residents and their guests, right? Or do folks from neighboring cities able to enjoy it? Is there a private gate for those with membership to get in? Can anyone ride bikes/walk around the lake or it's private and it doesn't work that way?

7. Any reason why I should scratch MV and consider Irvine instead? I realize homes are appreciating much faster and are more expenive in Irvine. I'm just not in love with the impossibly tiny backyards and the flat landscape (no trees, etc.; just lots of concrete it seems to me). The outstanding schools isn't compelling me either. We're currently zoned to a very competitive high school and having friends with kids who are depressed and stressed (in an unhealthy way) to graduate on the top is making me pause about subjecting my son to that type of academic pressure (I'm a tiger mom--he doesn't need any more pressure and stress). Any compelling reasons to consider Irvine?

Given your description of where you live now, I'm guessing you live in The Woodlands, Kingwood, or possibly Cypress. I live in The Woodlands, but I also lived in Newport Beach for 7 years. I agree with Saibot, MV over Irvine. I'd also consider Saibot's town, Rancho Santa Margarita.