All Blog Entries by Sam Smith

The Sea Summit neighborhood is an excellent place to find ocean view homes in San Clemente.  Sea Summit is a new construction community that features residential townhouses and single family properties on the last parcel of ocean front land that is being developed in San Clemente.  In the last several weeks there has been several properties released to the open market in the Aqua community with real estate prices under the $1 million dollar price point.  These are nice townhouses that feature entertainment spaces on the first level that include living room, dining area and kitchen.  Upstairs features three bedrooms with the four bedroom floor plans offering a main floor bedroom.  These are beautiful homes with attached two car garages.  A total of 5

The San Clemente North area is an excellent place to find lower priced and cute beach bungalows in San Clemente, California.  The North section of town offers a diverse collection of residential housing with a high concentration of condos, duplex and triplex properties.  There are also several streets were there is a high concentration of small beach bungalows that offer two to three bedrooms and located on an average 5,000 square foot lot.  The neighborhood is very up and coming with real estate prices reflective of this.  Currently, there are several small beach bungalow homes that are on the market for sale under $750,000.

One of the biggest communities in this area is the Seascape Village neighborhood that offers single level homes that are often

This year was a busy year for real estate sales in San Clemente with over 932 homes sold in this small beach town.  As we look back as what has transpired over the year we always like to see what were the top 3 sales that occurred.  Here is a quick recap of these real estate sales.  First, the highest sale occurred in the most expensive neighborhood in San Clemente known as Cotton Point Estates.  4075 Calle Isabella, San Clemente sold for $7,588,000 and closed escrow on 10/12/2016.  The large estate home was in the same neighborhood as the Nixon White house and was first listed at $9,050,000.  It was then lowered to $7,988,000 after being on the market for less than two months.  A little after 45 days after that the home went under contract and closed

San Clemente is a small beach town with a wide range of real estate prices.  Single family homes now start just under $600,000 for a single family home located on the north side of town.  The luxury real estate market typically comprises of homes priced between $3 to $10 million dollars and can be found in some of the best neighborhoods like Sea Pointe Estates, Cyprus Cove and Cyprus Cove.  San Clemente also has a small niche ultra luxury market for homes priced over the $10 million dollar price point.  These homes are almost always located in the ultra-exclusive Cotton Point neighborhood where the former Nixon White House is located.  These are large scale homes that were originally vacant lots not too long ago and were part of the overall compound for

The real estate market is constantly changing, especially over the last 8 years.  We have seen a real spike in real estate prices but the San Clemente real estate market is seasonal so our high selling season starts in January and usually continues through mid September.  In the fall and winter months through Christmas the market can be relatively slow, and this even magnified more as the presidential elections have everyone in a holding pattern.  Some of the best deals can be found in these 4 months with sellers that need to sell their home.  These seller motivated homes have the potential to be good opportunities for buying a home at a good price.  There are certain things to look for when buying a home in San Clemente.

First, know your comps.  Your

As we head into the 2016 Presidential Elections one thing is for certain, real estate prices in San Clemente are at an all time high.  This is especially true to residential condos that currently starts at $405,000 for a non-view two bedroom condo.  These prices are very reminiscent of 2007 when prices were at the top of the market right before the housing market crashed.  The biggest thing moving the market right now are low interest rates and the consumer feeling positive about the economy.  With that being said there is a lot of anxiety of what will happen next year.  Many have predicated that we are in a real estate bubble and an adjustment is soon to happen to correct these high real estate prices.  This is further backed up by the Feds wanting to

Situated in the Coast District of San Clemente is a very small neighborhood called Seaview Estates.  The homes are ideally located at the top of the ridge line with many homes offering panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean.  Dating back to the 1980's when most of the homes were built here, Seaview Estates offers one and two story homes that situated on large over-sized lots.  The size of the lots can be over double of what you would find closer to the beach and often average over 10,000 square feet of land.  

Real Estate prices can vary depending on the size and condition of the home as well as the parcel of land that it is located on.  On average, homes under 2,000 square feet with be priced at just under one million dollars with slight lightly large

San Clemente is well known for being a small beach town that had it's origins of being a vacation destination for those who lived in the greater Los Angeles area.  Back in the 1920's many rich owners would build small residences in San Clemente to use part time vacation properties.  Because of these factors it's not uncommon to find smaller beach cottages that are often under 1,000 square feet of living space and feature one to two bedrooms.  The Spanish style homes dating back to the 1920's and 30's are called "Ole Hanson" named after the founder of the city.  These cottages often feature two to three bedrooms and located on the ocean side of the 5 freeway in the Southwest San Clemente, North San Clemente and Downtown San Clemente areas.  There are a few

Located in the popular Southwest San Clemente area is a small condo complex called "Horizons" that is filled with two bedroom condos located just blocks to the State Beach area with the address 2490 South Ola Vista.  The location is at the beginning of the Montalvo loop which intersects with the thorough fare street of Ola Vista.  This is an older condo building that dates back to 1976 with many of the condos overlooking the natural canyon ravine that leads down to the Pacific Ocean.  The complex offers an outdoor jacuzzi, barbecue area and plenty of guest parking.

Real Estate prices in the last year have consistently been priced in the mid to high $450,000 range with one two bedroom condo listed for sale.  Unit #2 is on the market for $495,000 and

Nestled in the heart of the Forster Ranch area of San Clemente is several well known condo communities to choose from that include the Colony Tract, Casablanca, Del Cabo and Tocayo Canyon.  First, there is a wonderful community called "Colony at Forster."  The neighborhood get it's name from the Forster Family who owned much of the land that is not called Forster Ranch and was largely developed in the 1970's.  Colony at Forster is a collection of townhouses built in the mid 1980's that have the look and feel of a traditional single family home as pictured below.  This is a small cluster of properties that rarely come on the market for sale due to the low number of homes here.  On average, three to four townhouses will come on the market in any given year.

The downtown area of San Clemente is a vibrant place to live with lots of new restaurants and boutique stores opening up.  People love this area due to the close proximity to the beach and the shopping district on Avenida Del Mar.  Historically, this area has always commanded a premium in price with very low inventory of housing available for sale on the open market.  Real Estate prices for single family homes rarely dips below $750,000 for a single family home which makes this new listing at 150 Avenida Sierra such a great buy.  The property just came on the market and features a total of three bedrooms, two baths with 1,400 square feet of living space.  What's truly amazing about this home is the interior craftsmanship with wood beamed ceilings, brick

The most expensive San Clemente homes that sold in 2015 are featured here.  The three top sales all occurred within the Cyprus Shore neighborhood which is home to four different communities that share the same gated entrance and offers a wonderful private beach.  The most expensive home which is the former Nixon White House is still on the market for $75,000,000 it to be the highest sale for 2016.

4080 Calle Isabella, San Clemente sold for $7,750,000 on 04/05/2015.  This wonderful six bedroom home, 8,600 home was situated next to the former Nixon White House estate.  It was newly built in 1993 and located on nearly an acre of land in the exclusive Cotton Point Estates neighborhood.  The home featured two levels of ocean view living with a detached guest

San Clemente is well known as a small beach town with many of the homes built very close to each other, especially near the beach. Many visitors from other parts of the country are used to having homes with large sized lots and are always asking the best areas to looking for homes with over an acre of land attached to it. This is our best guide to for homes that may match that criteria.

First, the Forster Ranch area is a great place to start. This is an area located east of the 5 freeway with many homes located on large over-sized lots. Many of the homes will occupy around 10,000 square feet but there is one community that is well known for having homes on one acre lots. This neighborhood is called Forster Ranch Estates and this is a custom home area

Some of the first homes are starting to show their form at the new Sea Summit At Marblehead community.  This is one of the most talked about news in the San Clemente area with a total of 309 brand new construction homes to be built.  This is a very small number of homes being built in comparison to the previous plans which offered to build over 2,000 properties.  This scaled down version incorporates integration with many of the outdoor landscaping which will give a sense of space and beauty.  It appears obvious that there are more home buyers wanting to buy these homes than the actual homes that will be available for sale.  There will be 4 unique neighborhoods which consist of Aqua, Sapphire, Azure and Indigo that are generally explained here.  All the

Seascape Village is a quiet residential neighborhood with one story homes located on the ocean side of the freeway and just blocks to the ocean front.  The community dates back to the mid 1970's and today is one of the few single level neighborhoods to be found in San Clemente.   Residents love living here due to it's resort like atmosphere with a community pool, spa, clubhouse and tennis courts that are pictured here.  The homes offer a wide range of views from ocean to greenbelt views.  The floor plans are very simple but well planned out with the kitchen, living and dining rooms located near the front door entry level with the bedrooms located down the hallway.  Homes in this area come with an attached garage, individual laundry room and outdoor patio

San Clemente has many visitors coming from various parts of the country looking to buy a small home by the beach.  Real Estate prices here in Southern California has much higher than other areas as the demand for housing is very high here.  Most newcomers to San Clemente prefer to have some kind of a view when purchasing a new home but sometimes forget that there is a huge premium put on for ocean view properties.  A price tag of $450,000 will get you a large house in other parts of the country but here in San Clemente you will most likely be able to afford a condo or townhouse style home.  It's not impossible to view an ocean view condo under this price point if you know where to look.  Here is our quick guide for the best places to find ocean view

The Villagio community is nestled in the Rancho San Clemente subdivision and is supringsly one of the few places to find single family homes in the $500,000 and $600,000 range in San Clemente, California.  The area has a lot of history to it as the Rancho San Clemente was first developed back in the early 1980's when the first community Vista Pacifica condos were built.  These condos offer amazing views of the ocean and enjoy the coastal breezes that come up through the valley.  Soon after that in 1985, the Villagio homes were built.  The neighborhoods were split into two sections with Villagio I homes located directly below Vista Pacifica and Villagio II built just above Vista Pacifica.  It still surprises me that these two communities were not built

There is a brand new community being built in the Trestles area of San Clemente that is being called Surfer's Row.  The homes are being built by Melia Homes and will occupy two streets off South El Camino Real and Calle Del Commercio.  These are slated to be duplex style homes that will feature two to three bedrooms and from 1,625 to 1,679 square feet of living space.  Real Estate prices are expected to be in the low $1 million dollar range.

This section of San Clemente is well known as being a popular spot for surfers due to the close proximity to the Trestles surf break.  The area is commonly known as the Trestles area since many park their cars in this area and walk to the beach.  The duplex located on South El Camino Real street may have very small

The Sunset Shores oceanfront complex is located at 410 Corto Lane in San Clemente.  The building is located in the area surrounding the San Clemente Pier with white water ocean, pier and coastline views as pictured below.  The building has a rich history and was first built in the late 1970's.  At that time the Villa Pacifica complex located to the south was not built and offered more of an open space and panoramic views.  All of the 18 units in Sunset Shores are situated on the ocean front and have direct water views.  This is a secure gated complex that offers underground parking for it's residents with a nice community pool, spa and clubhouse. 

There are a total of four floors in this building with elevator access to all levels including the garage

All the buzz in San Clemente now is about the Nixon White House in San Clemente being offered for sale according to the Wall Street Journal.  The home is being marketed for sale for $75 million dollars.  The San Clemente landmark estate is owned by retired Allergen founder Gavin Hebert who has owned the property for over three decades has now decided to sell the 5.5 acre estate in San Clemente.  The Nixon White House offers 15,000 square feet of living space which includes a guest house and guest quarters.

The estate is located in the Cotton Pointe Estates community in San Clemente, California.  The gated community is located behind another guard gated entrance for extra security.  The neighborhood originally was only home to the Nixon Estate and then