desirability ranking between these cities? (Long Beach, Huntington Beach: real estate, for rent, affordable houses)

[sassy168]

how would you rank these cities in terms of desirability:

lirvine, Lake Forest, Mission VIejo, Laguna Hills, Rancho santa margarita, tustin, foothill ranch, aliso viejo.

[missionhome]

Are you looking for somewhere prestigious?? These aren't super exclusive communities, all are mainly middle class, although some of the cities have some expensive neighborhoods (like Shady Canyon or Turtle Rock in Irvine, Nellie Gail in Laguna Hills, Lake MV in Mission Viejo, Tustin Foothills in Tustin, etc..). Also, desire depends on what each person is looking for. For example, if you desire to be on the ocean, none of these cities are perfect for that. If you desire to be in a equestrian community, Laguna Hills and the Tustin Foothills are best. If you want near perfect schools, Irvine is best. If you like to be in the hills, go for Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills, or Foothill.

I think the median home price could be an indicator of demand, which I guess could correlate to deseriability. The rank by their median home price for last month from highest to lowest is:
1. Irvine
2. Foothill Ranch (this is a neighborhood of Lake Forest)
3. Tustin
4. Mission Viejo
5. Aliso Viejo
6. Laguna Hills
7. Rancho Santa Margarita
8. Lake Forest

All of these areas are very desireable. If you can afford a lifestyle in any of these communities, you are likely to enjoy it, that is if you are looking for suburban living. It would be great to know more information about what you are looking for out of these communities other than desireability. Are you looking for some place with lots of parks, or good schools, or large expensive houses, or more affordable houses, or Metrolink access, or ocean close, etc..???? What is your budget for rent or purchase and where will you be working? These types of things help us point you in the right direction.

Best of luck.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by missionhome

The rank by their median home price for last month from highest to lowest is:
1. Irvine
2. Foothill Ranch (this is a neighborhood of Lake Forest)
3. Tustin
4. Mission Viejo
5. Aliso Viejo
6. Laguna Hills
7. Rancho Santa Margarita
8. Lake Forest

It would be great to know more information about what you are looking for out of these communities other than desireability. Are you looking for some place with lots of parks, or good schools, or large expensive houses, or more affordable houses, or Metrolink access, or ocean close, etc..???? What is your budget for rent or purchase and where will you be working? These types of things help us point you in the right direction.

I'll throw parameters out: school quality is requirement #1, budget $800K, five bedrooms required (that makes it tougher), job location as far as El Segundo but more likely Huntington Beach, Long Beach (airport area), Seal Beach, less likely Irvine, less likely Torrance. Ocean close not important.

[missionhome]

If those were the parameters, then I wouldn't recommend any of the cities sasy was originally looking at. I would recommend Rossmoor/Los Alamitos area. It has good schools, homes that meet the budget, some (not the majority, but some) 5 bedrooms within the budget, and is close to all the jobs save El Segundo.

bhcompy is the expert on that area, so I would recommend he provide the details on the communities.
Here is a sample listing:
11512 Davenport Rd, Rossmoor, CA | California Real Estate | Listing Information (http://www.prudentialcal.com/Listing/ListingDetail.aspx?Search=bb1ac35a-5536-4fef-976f-722fce44de11&Listing=21927253&IRPAgentID=&Image=1& First=1&Last=10&pagesize=10&SearchType=map&Listing DistrictTypeID=&FirstLetter=&Sort=6&Cookies=&UseCo lorBar=false - broken link)

[Charles]

Originally Posted by missionhome

11512 Davenport Rd, Rossmoor, CA | California Real Estate | Listing Information (http://www.prudentialcal.com/Listing/ListingDetail.aspx?Search=bb1ac35a-5536-4fef-976f-722fce44de11&Listing=21927253&IRPAgentID=&Image=1& First=1&Last=10&pagesize=10&SearchType=map&Listing DistrictTypeID=&FirstLetter=&Sort=6&Cookies=&UseCo lorBar=false - broken link)

How'd they come up with $1259 for taxes? Too little to be annual, too much to be monthly.

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by Charles

How'd they come up with $1259 for taxes? Too little to be annual, too much to be monthly.

I don't know. I agree that is off. The real estate agents that input all the information make mistakes all the time so I assume this is a mistake. I notice this especially with schools. They will put a better school district or school as the one that serves the house, even though the house goes to another school. You still have to do your own research on school boundaries. Good catch Charles, though I still think it is a decent house for the area. A little old, but it looks to have very good bones.

How about 4 bedrooms? This one is move in ready.
3561 Dahlia, Seal Beach, CA | California Real Estate | Listing Information (http://www.prudentialcal.com/Listing/ListingDetail.aspx?Search=23dd5565-4e70-4503-997d-97229a490f1b&Listing=28870877&IRPAgentID=&Image=1& First=1&Last=10&pagesize=10&SearchType=city&Listin gDistrictTypeID=&FirstLetter=&Sort=6&Cookies=&UseC olorBar=false - broken link)

[OC Advisor]

The tax amount listed in the MLS is always the tax amount that the current owner is paying.

An agent can't list the tax amount that the new owner will be paying because it will be based on the selling price of the home.

I agree that it would be helpful if the listings had the tax rate which would allow a potential buyer to calculate what their annual tax bill would be. Any agent you work with to find a home should be able to provide you with this information.

~Amanda Wheeland
O.C. Real Estate Advisor
O.C. Real Estate Advisors – Orange County Real Estate

[OC Advisor]

Originally Posted by sassy168

how would you rank these cities in terms of desirability:

lirvine, Lake Forest, Mission VIejo, Laguna Hills, Rancho santa margarita, tustin, foothill ranch, aliso viejo.

If you are looking for newer homes, Irvine would be a great place to look.

Irvine also has great schools and was recently voted as the safest city in America.

~Amanda Wheeland
O.C. Real Estate Advisor
O.C. Real Estate Advisors – Orange County Real Estate

[Charles]

Originally Posted by OC Advisor

The tax amount listed in the MLS is always the tax amount that the current owner is paying.

Duh! I should have thought of that. Of course. In this case, that owner probably owned that house since the 1970s or 1980s.

[oc2nyc]

Just any FYI, I live in Rossmoor (Los Alamitos) where the property on Davenport is located. This house has been on the market for at least a year. It is on the corner of an outlet street (Orangewood), onto the main boulevard. It has no backyard and is backed up to Los Alamitos Blvd. a very busy, noisy location. The pool is actually in the front yard which is somewhat common around here (weird, I know).
There is little to no backyard due to the addition of a family room and bedrooms. The kitchen,not shown, is original so probably 45 years old. We went through this house and I would NEVER pay $700k for it, even to be in Rossmoor.
Things are not always as they look. If you are moving from another area it is best to rent until you find where you really want to be.