The Facade is Ending

Took my camera on a leisurely stroll around the "prestigious" gated community of Serrano where we currently rent. Countrywide is offering a free appraisal and credit report on the second one. Talk about incentives. Saving $400 on a $429,000 house (that's a whopping .1% savings). Across the street is another for sale (but I wanted to make sure I got the side-by-side bank owned clearly in focus).

Looks the perfectly manicured facade is starting to crack in beautiful El Dorado Hills.

November Good Buys & Offers to Sellers/Builders

Okay courtesy of Mike's suggestion, please also post any offers you know of that were accepted, especially to builders. It will help give others negotiating leverage when they are ready to buy. Even just letting people know what type of builder incentives they can expect would be helpful since its hard to tell if they give everyone the same incentives.

Pieces of data to include: Zip, MLS or Development Name, List Price, Incentives, Offer (if any), house details (sq ft, garage size, lots size etc).

Blackstone - Environmentally Friendly McMansions

Hubby and I have anxiously been awaiting the opening of Blackstone, a master planned community in El Dorado Hills (off Latrobe). They were scheduled to open early Spring, but Centex and Lennar didn't open till recently. Lennar is apparently running the show at this development. They have three communities, and Centex has one. The other developers haven't opened yet.

Our assessment as follows:

Pros:
Location: Great location. Convenient to the freeway and all that El Dorado Hills has to offer.
Community Center: There will be a large complex with swimming pools, gym facilities, and other ammenities that is the focal point for the community. Not slated to open till December 2007, but at the rate they are going, it will probably be spring of 2008.
Solar: All houses will have solar roof panels. Lennar claims their solar is better than Centex's. Also good, is this isn't their first experience with a solar community, they have one in Roseville.

Cons:
Fees & Taxes: We have been getting mixed stories on all the fees and taxes. The HOA fees do not cover yard maintenance but do cover the clubhouse. I think those run around $136 a month (per Centex). Lennar said they have a different HOA depending if the community is gated or not. The district taxes seemed really high, and slightly confusing (Centex said $147 a month, but Lennar made is sound like it would be twice that much). I need to get clarification on all the taxes still. The sales guys are still learning all the ins and outs of their community (so they are fuzzy on the CCRs and other details).
Very Limited Customization: While the base models all come very nicely "appointed," you cannot "have it your way." There is a very limited amount of choices, aside from the actual house model, that are offered. This is contrary to my understanding of the "new house purchase." I thought one of the most appealing parts of buying a new house was the fact that you get to pick everything out. In the case of Blackstone, especially Lennar, it has already been decided. All three Lennar developments will have the exact same cupboards, floors, etc. Hello.....we not drones....or are we? Neither developer has models that are finished. I find some of this hard to swallow, so I may go back and get clarification once the sales people have been on the job a little longer.
Price: While the prices are reasonable compared to resales right now, when you include the HOA and taxes it is still above what I consider a good value. We visited the Centex development in Roseville this weekend (we had never been to Roseville before) to look at the models since they are the same. The Roseville Avonlea development is less expensive, by 10-20k per model and doesn't have HOA. Unfortunately the two Lennar developments that were even close to our price range are both gated. The third high end development is not gated...go figure.

Personal Perspective: If I am going to buy a new tract house, this is probably where I would do it. I like the idea of a community center where I can take the kids swimming, and where they can hang out when they are teenagers. Our daycare center is also very close by. However hubbby is really turned off by the fees. In the current market, I'm sure it will take a long time to sell all they have to offer (especially at current prices), so I have plenty of time to decide.

For previous post see here.

Yard Sales & Gated Developments

Some of yesterdays comments reminded me of bargain hunting.......which then reminded me of another reason I don't like gated developments.

Side note: I am really struggling to figure out why people like gated developments, because they are very popular. When we visited Lennar last week over at Blackstone the sales guy looked at me like I was crazy not to like them. BTW - I am now refusing to call them gated communities, for the reason why....see this post.

Back to bargain hunting. It is that time of year when all the yard/garage sales start occurring. Round here in Serrano, I never see them. I am sure they are against the rules, and even if they weren't, the gated thing really makes it logistically difficult.

We used to hit yard sales all the time back East looking for stuff for our two young kids. They were a great way to get toys and baby gear on the cheap. Some really good bargains could be found, especially in the the nicer neighborhoods (almost none of which were gated). It was also a great way to meet neighbors.

Serrano in El Dorado Hills

I have to admit, after living in D.C. for 8 years, when I first drove into the area, I was really impressed. Before I left California, I had vowed that if I ever saw another Spanish style house, it would be too soon. But Serrano changed all that.

However, first impressions fade quickly. Other than the nice looking architecture of the houses, I am really not too fond of the community. I don't like gated communities that prize conformity above all else. And to top it all off, the park doesn't have a bathroom, which has been a problem for my 3 year old on more than one occasion.

As for the housing situation...it is really ridiculous.......every street is filled with for sale signs. So for all those commenting that the inventory is largely made up of run-down homes .....they are wrong.....there are also tons of overpriced Serrano homes.