Mission Viejo - Pacific Hills neighborhod - a few questions (Laguna Niguel: for sale, foreclosures)

[WannaBeinBoston]

From what I have gathered researching this forum, the Pacific Hills neigborhood seems to be where we will target our home search for a relocation opportunity in So. CA. I drove through there briefly about a year ago and it seems like a nice, quiet suburban environment. Yes, I want a soccer mom neighborhood experience.

I want to get the perspective of those that know/live in the area and have a few questions. Are there any areas within that develoment to avoid? Homes on Pacific Terrace that back up to Oso....is that very noisy? Is there a community pool or facilty or will we need to find a home with a pool or join a fitness center, etc. I noticed quite a number of sales and foreclosures and am surprised given that the homes were built in the early 90s. Sure, people can tap home equity lines, etc even if they've been long term residents. Is there a history there that I should be aware of?

Thanks a million in advance.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by WannaBeinBoston

Homes on Pacific Terrace that back up to Oso....is that very noisy?

Oso is a 6 lane major street with heavy traffic. I wouldn't want to live right against it. I currently live about 20' from a 2 lane street that's only a 30mph zone and it generates a ridiculous amount of car noise for its size. The houses in Pacific Terrace in the middle, above the shopping center, are likely quieter.

[KaraG]

That is a beautiful neighborhood. No, there really aren't any community pools that people join (common in other states), but that neighborhood probably includes membership to Lake Mission Viejo. If you want a pool, you should look for a house with a pool. We took our kids to Crown Valley's pool in Laguna Niguel one summer, but hours are limited.

Even though people purchased these homes in the 90's, many, many people refinanced and took cash out several times. Now that the economy is down, layoffs common and businesses leaving the state, it's not surprising that many homes are in foreclosure.

[Charles]

I used redfin to look at a few homes north of the intersection of Oso and Marguerite. I didn't see any HOA pool (but you really need to double check). There are other neighborhoods in the region that resemble that neighborhood and that have HOA pools.

For example, Home - SAMLARC,

has four pools, two of which are open all year.

These two shots were taken last Sunday at two different SAMLARC pools.

[Havnfun]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

Oso is a 6 lane major street with heavy traffic. I wouldn't want to live right against it. I currently live about 20' from a 2 lane street that's only a 30mph zone and it generates a ridiculous amount of car noise for its size. The houses in Pacific Terrace in the middle, above the shopping center, are likely quieter.

We are right above the shopping center and there is noise from Oso but we hardly notice it, but I imagine the ones that are right against the road would be worse. We can actually hear the 5 freeway at night when it is really quite in the house.

We moved here 1 1/2 years ago from Canada. We love Pacific Hills and have met some really great people. We love that we can actually walk to some restaurants and shops on Marguerite.

Are you looking to rent or buy? I know there is a house for rent on Pacific Hills right now and there have been a few new listings for sale in the past couple of weeks.

[WannaBeinBoston]

Thanks to those of you that replied. We are looking to buy in the area as we really liked the location/proximity to the highway and shops/restaurants. We had looked at Ladera Ranch area as well but it appears that our money is better spend in the Pacific Hills development without the significant Mello Roos and HOAs.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by WannaBeinBoston

our money is better spend in the Pacific Hills development without the significant Mello Roos and HOAs.

Maybe. If the homes in Mission Viejo are pretty new (newer than the 1990s) they may (probably) have Mello Roos, though I think I have seen some newer homes without it. Also, when factoring in Mello Roos, be sure to know the maturation date; It might be better to pay a high Mello Roos if it expires in a year or two than to pay a lower Mello Roos that expires in 15 years. Too bad the maturation dates are not available on line (though the amounts are from the tax assessor website), you have to use 1940s era technology and telephone someone to look it up by property address. Bummer.

The other thing about Ladera Ranch is the high number of tandem three car garages. That is, a two door garage door with one stall two cars deep. Great design for having your kids store their bikes in the deep stall so they can scrape and scratch your car as they drag their bikes out of that third space.

[JT24hr]

Originally Posted by WannaBeinBoston

Thanks to those of you that replied. We are looking to buy in the area as we really liked the location/proximity to the highway and shops/restaurants. We had looked at Ladera Ranch area as well but it appears that our money is better spend in the Pacific Hills development without the significant Mello Roos and HOAs.

I looked in this area when home shopping in the last few months, it is very nice. I would also consider Las Flores a little bit up Oso (Oso/Antonio area). While there is a Mello Roos there, the home prices are a bit lower. You get a better neighborhood for your dollar there IMO (lot size, parking, etc)..

Here is one listing for example:
26 SUNNY SLOPE, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 | MLS# S604313

[Charles]

Originally Posted by JT24hr

I looked in this area when home shopping in the last few months, it is very nice. I would also consider Las Flores a little bit up Oso (Oso/Antonio area). While there is a Mello Roos there, the home prices are a bit lower. You get a better neighborhood for your dollar there IMO (lot size, parking, etc)..

Here is one listing for example:
26 SUNNY SLOPE, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 | MLS# S604313

That listing above is a short sale, just be aware. Lots of funny pricing on short sales. But it is $266/sqft which is not unrealistically low (in fact it is a little higher than what I've seen there). This, for example, just sold for $236/sqft and it is on a nice single loaded cul de sac:

7 MEADOWOOD, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 | MLS# S571107


One thing about Los Flores, it is not part of the SAMLARC and it is not in the City of Rancho Santa Margarita. However, some (all?) of Las Flores has a pool as part of the HOA.

If you really want (relatively) low HOA, look at Wagon Wheel. HOA there on the north side of Oso is about $60/month (however no pool). On the south side, it is gated and there is a community pool so I think the HOA is higher. Wagon Wheel kids go to top of the charts Wagon Wheel Elementary, Los Flores Middle, and Tesoro High Schools.

Wagon Wheel Elementary


Tesoro High School


Los Flores Elementary



Los Flores Middle School




Los Flores HOA Park and Pool

[WannaBeinBoston]

Charles and JT24hr, I appreciate your post and detailed info including pictures. We had talked about RSM and Coto De Caza as an option as well. I haven't ruled those areas out if the housing is right, etc. My concern was the distance away from the 5 and the hotter temps during the summer.

If the Mello Roos is reasonable, I am not worried about paying it. To me the worst case example of Mello Roos is Ladera Ranch. In some cases, it amounts to $500-$700/month. That's a chunky amount for paying on infrastructure/schools debt that likely won't mature for 15-20 years easily. Add HOA on top of that and you are looking at a grand out of pocket that does nothing to pay down your mortgage. While I like the Ladera area alot, I just can't convince myself it's worth the extra money. I'd rather buy an older home, preferably 90s built or newer.

Can you guys tell me, or anyone else, if the newer homes are better built for earthquakes? Thanks.