All Blog Entries by Sam Smith

The Talega area is located over a mile away from the beach and not normally associated with great ocean view properties.  One community that offers views of the ocean as well as being one of the most expensive neighborhood in Talega is the Careyes community.  The properties located here are situated directly above the 16th hole of the Talega golf course and can have really great golf course and ocean views.  The community has only two cul-de-sac streets with a total of 41 homes.  34 of these homes are located on the front row street of "Calle Careyes" that sits directly above the Talega golf course and will have the most unobstructed views.

Home prices are normally priced above $1,500,000 for an ocean view property in Careyes and currently go as high as…

San Rafael was one of the very first communities built in the Talega area of San Clemente and is highly regarded as a great place to find a large two story single family home under the million dollar price point.  These are large properties that are normally around 3,600 square feet that offer main floor bedrooms and open floor plans.  Normally, the first level of the home is built for entertaining with a gourmet kitchen, dining room and large living room area.  Often times these floor plans provide for a butler's pantry and a great room with high vaulted ceilings and custom fireplaces.  Upstairs often offers a large Master suite with multiple walk-in closets, custom fireplace and dual Master bath sinks.

Many of the homes are located on large lots that

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One of the expensive communities in San Clemente is the Forster Ranch Estates neighborhood.  Compared to other homes in the Forster Ranch area the Forster Ranch Estates is a true analomity with homes that are nearly double to triple the size of surrounding homes.   The community has a lot going for it with huge over-sized lots, views of the ocean and estate homes that are often over 4,000 square feet of living space.  There have been many homes built in this area with a small selection of lots that are still available for sale.

One current ocean view lot of sale is 3015 Eminencia Del Norte located in the Forster Ranch Estates community.  The lot features well over an acre of land with an estimated 24,000 square foot ocean view flat pad that is ready for

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The Reserve South community is one of the best places to find ocean view homes in the San Clemente for under $1 million dollars.  This price tag may seem expensive to some but compared to other similar ocean view homes in the area the homes in the Reserve South have a lot to offer.  First, the location is really ideal.  Situated on a ridge in the Forster Ranch area, the homes have panoramic views of the ocean through the valley.  Second, the homes are large for the area and often have over 2,600 square feet of living space and are much larges that other similar ocean view homes in San Clemente.  Finally, the homes are still considered newer construction with homes built in 2003 and have modern amenities and well designed floor plans.

The Reserve South

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Talega is one of the newest areas in San Clemente with homes being built on a continues basis in the last 15 years.  For those looking for brand new construction homes in this area should consider the Cazadero neighborhood.  This community was first built in 2005 and is home to the only new construction home for sale in Talega built in 2014.  15 Calle Loyola is a brand new home that is currently on the market for $1,152,787.  The five bedroom, six bath home just finished construction this year and features 3,949 square feet of living space.  Built by William Lyon, the residence features an open floor-plan with a large master suite, backyard and an attached 3 car garage.  The listing just came on the market 7 days ago and still currently available for

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The Parkview Manor is located in the Southwest San Clemente area near the Calafia Beach Park area.  This is a prime location for a condo complex that looks directly down into the ocean.  The area is well known as the "Lobiero Loop" as the street does a circular one way loop starting on the street "Avenida Montalvo" which then turns into "Avenida Lobiero."  Just as you make your turn at the bottom of the loop, which is the very tip of the bluff front, the Parkview Manor condos will be on your right hand side.  The large majority of condos here are two bedroom, two bath units with a few three bedroom condos as well.  The building was built in the mid 1970's and has really maintained itself very well.

The large majority of condos are located in an "L"

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The Mills Act is a federal organization located in the Western part of the United States that specifically helps protect historic homes from being improperly renovated or destroyed.  Mainly found in California and Arizona, the Mills Act works with the individual states in lowering the yearly tax base paid on these historic homes.  The savings can be significant and I have personally seen the taxes as low as 50% lower than what the normal tax rate should be.

Things to look for when looking for a historic home.  First, not all historic homes will be covered by the Mills Act.  Just because the home was built in the 1920's or 30's doesn't automatically qualify the home to be covered under the Mills Act.  It's worth asking the real estate agent and/or owner

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The Shorecliffs area of San Clemente is well known for having wonderful ocean views by the beach.  Building a home in this area may be a great alternative than buying a re-sale home that are often priced in the $700,000 to $800,000 range.  Buying land in San Clemente can be difficult due to the shortage of inventory of quality lots for sale.  The highest concentrations of available ocean view lots can be found in the gated community of Sea Point Estates but real estate prices can easily be in the $300,000 to $400,000 range and up.  A great alternative in buying an ocean view lot is the Shorecliffs golf community.

The Shorecliffs area is one of the older areas of San Clemente and located just north of the new Marblehead development that is completed in

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The Vizcaya community is located in one of the most premier spots in the Talega area of San Clemente.  The homes on the south side of the street "Corte Vizcaya" overlook the 5th hole of the Talega golf course and have panoramic golf course and valley views.  This neighborhood is amongst some of the most expensive real estate in Talega due to it's large scale estate homes that exist in this small community of only 14 residences.  Originally built in 2001, the homes offer large square footage floor plans that range anywhere from 4,689 to 5,746 square feet.  Beautiful curb appeal and stunning Mediterranean architectural design is what sets these homes apart from other properties found in the Talega area.

Home prices have always remained strong in Vizcaya…

The Stella Mare Talega Community is one of my favorite communities.  This is a great neighborhood to find large Spanish style homes on over-sized lots.  The neighborhood has small pockets of individual cul-de-sac streets that offer a tight sense of community and a great place to raise a family.  These are large homes that are often over 3,400 square square feet with a few homes offering panoramic views of the hills and mountains.

For those looking for a home with a backyard pool this is a great place to look.  Many of the properties in Stella Mare have incorporated resort style pools with a select few offering a guest casita pool house as well!  The large majority of homes offer five bedrooms or more and are located in one of the most desirable

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The Colony Cove Senior Community is one of the nicest resort style communities for those older than 55 years old.  Situated on the bluff front near Shore Cliffs beach, the Colony Cove is the perfect spot for those looking to mingle with other residents their own age.  One of the biggest conceptions for buying in Colony Cove is that you have to be 55 years of age or older to purchase a home here.  The fact is that the rules allow anyone to purchase a home here but one of the actual residents of the property must be of correct age.  Many purchase these homes in anticipation of moving here when they become of age and rent them out until that time.

The community is split into two halves with homes located on the community pool side and across the street. …

The Bay Cliff Village is one of three senior housing communities in San Clemente, California.  Located right next to the Shore Cliffs at the top of the hill lies a very small and intimate community called Bay Cliff Village.  The community was first built back in 1962 with the idea of providing single level homes for those older than 55 years of age.  There are approximately 108 homes in this community that have a central community clubhouse as pictured below.

Since there is such a low inventory of homes to start with and many love living here we rarely see homes come on the market here.  It's not uncommon to have only one to two properties come up for sale here at any given time.  The floor plans have a combination of one to two bedroom homes and are

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For those who love the classic Spanish architectural design will love the Mirador community in Talega.  Talega is one of the newest communities in San Clemente and was built starting just 14 years ago and still continues to grow with new construction homes currently being built.  The neighborhood is non-gated and features larger two story homes that average in the 4,000 square feet range with 4 to 6 bedrooms. 

Located back in the hills and at one of the highest point in Talega is where you will find the Mirador community.  The homes offer many wonderful features that bring the indoor and outdoor spaces together.  Interior courtyards, vaulted ceilings, round entry towers and rounded windows really bring out the Spanish flare.  Home prices have always

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The homes and condos around the San Clemente Pier area is commonly referred to as the "Pier Bowl."  The reason for this name is the streets surrounding the Pier form a circular shape that very much resembles a bowl shape.  This areas has approximately 8-10 small streets that make up this bowl area.  For the most part the properties found in this area are residential condos with a few single family homes mixed in.  This is also a very popular spot for vacation renters looking to spend a short week or so on vacation.

Condo prices can vary a lot depending on the view and size of the condo.  A one bedroom condo near the pier with no view will typically start in the $500,000 range.  Condos with views of the San Clemente Pier will often start in the $800,000

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The Marblehead Crest community is a great place to find ocean view homes in a secure gated community in San Clemente.  The community is situated at the very top point of the Marblehead community which is easily accessed by taking the "Pico" exit off the 5 freeway.  Marblehead homes were built in the mid 1990's and at the time there was a huge demand for these homes.  So much so that homes were being offered on a lottery system where you would take a card and if you number got called you were lucky enough to purchase a home!  Those days are gone but these homes are still high in demand.  Case in point, a home in the Crest community located at 2538 Called just came on the market and within a week had two multiple offers on it.  The home featured a wonderful

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One of my favorite places to find ocean view condos is definitely the Ocean Hills complex.  When I first started selling real estate in San Clemente I was mesmerized but the incredible views that can be found in this community.  By far, the best view to be found in San Clemente is at the top of the hill on "Calle Pluma" street.  From this location you have panoramic views of the ocean as well as a clear view of the Dana Point Harbor and beyond.

The condos in this community are often well priced and can be purchased in the mid $500,000 range for a nice ocean view property.  The location is really ideal with super easy freeway access and located next to the San Clemente movie theater and a huge shopping area.  The San Clemente hospital is also located

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The San Clemente Real Estate market has seen in a dramatic increase in the beginning part of 2013. During the first 6 months of the year we saw a very low inventory of homes and a high demand for buyers looking to buy. Due to this supply and demand homes prices raised significantly until the end of the summer when things suddenly changed from a seller's market to a buyer's market. One of the reasons this happened was that many buyers felt like prices went up too fast and too high. A lot of the buyers that I worked with didn't want to get trapped into another real estate bubble and were holding off until things came back down. Between August and December of 2013 that is exactly what happened. The San Clemente market saw a small dip in real estate prices

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One of the hidden spots to find nice ocean view condos in San Clemente is the "Seaview Townhomes" community.  These town-homes were built in the mid 1970's and feature direct views of the ocean and often include pier and coastline views as well.  Situated directly above the 5 freeway on the southeast side are the town-homes.  For those sensitive to noise may find the freeway a little too loud but keep in mind that a lot of these condos have installed dual paned windows to keep things quiet inside the property.

The community offers a nice association pool, spa and tennis court with monthly dues of approximately $399 a month.  This is an ideal location as you can easily walk to the downtown San Clemente district as well as down to the beach.  Just

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Downtown San Clemente condos are for those who want to live near the center of town and ocean side of the 5 freeway.  The downtown area starts on the famous "Avenida Del Mar" street that is pictured below during a wonderful sunset.  The area is best known for condos that are located near the San Clemente Pier going several blocks both south and north of the Pier.  This is considered a walking area where you can easily walk to the beach and downtown area within minutes.

If you are looking for ocean front homes in this area you have a lot to choose from.  Located just several blocks to the north is the ocean front street known as "Buena Vista."  Condos with odd ending house numbers are those that are located on the bluff front and have incredible views of

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The Cyprus Cove community is situated in the South San Clemente area near the Orange and San Diego county line.  Located behind guard gates, the beach front community offers direct access to the world class surf break Trestles.  The community has a nice association pool, 2 tennis courts and a large Olympic size pool for it's residents.  The unique selling feature for this community is the location and the large custom homes that can be found here.  A large majority of the homes found here are two story homes built in the Traditional, Mediterranean and Spanish style.  Home prices have really varied in the last couple years with homes selling in the mid $1.5 million range.  Larger homes in the community often sell well above the $2 million dollar price

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