open houses getting some good traffic…
I keep a close eye on the bank owned properties in my neighbourhood and this past weekend several of them had open houses. There have been open houses in past months but not a lot of traffic. This past weekend though I noticed a ton of people stopping in. The latest report from DataQuick shows home sales up big in the southland and prices still going down but at a slower pace. California real estate was the first to implode and I think we’re starting to see it become the first to slowly but surely slow its implosion and hopefully begin to show something that remotely resembles “recovery” albeit weak at first. No doubt there will be many more foreclosures, prices will go down further, unemployment will rise more giving way to more “traditional” foreclosures and less qualified buyers but as for right now I think a lot of people that have been on the sidelines for the past couple of years are fed up waiting and see value in the current market and are jumping in in large numbers. I dont think they are doing it because they think we are at some sort of “bottom” whether it be temporary or final. I think it is occuring because they are seeing value and just want to get on with their lives. I wouldn’t even try to call some sort of “bottom” but the fact that prices have gone down SO much and people are jumping in certainly signals a shift from “wait and see” to either “buy and hope” or “buy and ignore”. Buy now and ignore it if it goes down a little more because if you’re going to stay in the house a long time (5+ yrs) its not really going to matter because it will recover eventually and there certainly wont be anymore 300-400k losses to take unless the US economy goes into some kind of death spiral it cant get out of. Houses in my area now are quite simply cheaper than renting (on a monthly payment basis) and of course monthly payment shouldn’t be the only thing people look at but it certainly is a large factor.
Eastvale Housing and Personal Finance Blog 
How do you like living in Eastvale? I have a young 2 yrd old and am wondering if Eastvale will be a good place to live. I’ve driven through the area the other day and thought that some of the neighborhoods seem fine, though I couldn’t help but notice a lot of sporadic undeveloped land…namely towards pine and schleisman. I love the houses but not sure about the area as a whole. Would appreciate your thoughts.
I like it actually. I don’t like the fact that the price of my house has gone down so much but i have come to accept that reality. The area as a whole is full of very nice people. My wife is part of several mom’s groups and the people in them are very family oriented and average middle class people. People seem more genuine here than many of those in orange county. Yes that is a broad sweeping generalization and someone will likely flame me for saying that but its my opinion.
All the stores are still nice and new and everything you’d ever need is now in the area mainly in the Limonite/Hamner area and of course the albertson’s center at archibald and schleismann. The schools are also nice and new and there was a huge amount of applicants for teachers when they opened so that would suggest that the local schools got to cherry pick the best of the bunch. There is a push underway to be incorporated as a city but it seems to be slow going.
The sherriffs and CHP that patrol the area respond surprisingly quickly to calls considering we’re unincorporated and I have no complaints there.
There is the run of the mill car break-ins at night you will hear about periodically but that is pretty much anywhere. Neighbours on my street watch out for each other and have block parties periodically.
All in all its a friendly place to live with lots of upside potential if you buy when the prices are right (now or sometime over the next year or so).
About that land around archbald/pine that you saw that is undeveloped, that area is what i would consider the “outer fringe” of the development that has occurred around here. That will be where eastvale expands into when the market turns around. Eastvale is solidly built up from the 15 fwy to archibald with just a few exceptions.
One thing to note and to factor into any purchasing decision is that we have mello roos because of all the new roads/schools so the property tax bill total is pretty high (around 1.8% of the house value) but the house prices are lower than elsewhere so its kind of cancels that out in a way…
Let me know if you have any more questions about the area. I have lived here for 5 years and know the area pretty well…
Thanks for your feedback. Do you know if there are any plans for development out near the “outer fringe”. I’m curious as that would be the area that I would consider moving to as I have to commute to Orange County for work. Did you used to live out in Orange County before?
Oh definitely. You can see the development still taking place actually. As for you considering that area because you need to commute to orange county, its only a 2 or 3 minute drive to the other side of eastvale over by the 15. I live in the middle around 65th and Sumner and I commuted to orange county for years by car. Now i take the train from down in corona.
Where do you work in OC? How long is your train ride?
I work near south coast plaza now actually. Drive to train takes 15 mins, train ride is only 35 mins, bus at other end is 20 mins.
Oh, no kidding. I work in Costa Mesa as well..not far from where you are.