I absolutely love fall in Portola Hills.  Today is a lovely fall day with temps cooling a bit from the September warmth.    This is a great analogy for the real estate market in Portola Hills.  We expect things to cool down but comparing the numbers it continued to be pretty hot with continued price gains.. just like the September weather. Below is a snapshot of how the real estate market performed in the community of Portola Hills in Lake forest last month. For the overall market Portola Hills saw a 10% increase in home values from September 2015.   For the condo market the top selling home was 3 bedroom 1300 square foot Canyon Rim condo that sold for $490,000.  On the Single Family Detached side the highest priced home that sold was a 5 bedroom, 3400 Square Foot Crown Pointe Home that... 10/04/2016

We are going to start a new series of common real estate terms that come up during the course of any real estate transaction.  Whether you are currently renting, maybe even still living at home, buying your first home  or looking to invest in real estate, you will most likely come across many of these terms. Absentee Owner:  Is an individual who owns a piece of real estate but does not live in it.  Also known as a Landlord.  In addition, to an individual home owner, the owner of the property may also be a corporation or a real investment trust (REIT).Types of Real Estate an Absentee Owner Owns:   It may be a single property such as a house or condominium, but it can also be an apartment or a commercial business.Why become a Absentee Owner:  The primary goal of absentee owners is to gene... 07/01/2016

Residents of Portola Hills are blessed to have some amazing views of from many of the homes situated in the community.   Looking East you will have views of the Saddleback Mountains, West the Pacific Ocean. Depending of the tract residents also enjoy views of the Whiting Wilderness Park and Mission Viejo Lake.This above view is from the Corner of Malabar and Highridge Way part of of the Estates Neighborhood in Portola Hills with views out toward Mission Viejo Lake.Concourse Park (Above) in Portola Hills is a spacious park which overlooks Whiting Wilderness Park.The above views are from the Crown Pointe and Serenado Tract in Portola Hills.  Yes that is the Pacific Ocean out there setting over Newport Beach about 25 miles from Portola Hills. If you are looking for a view home, set away fr... 04/27/2016

My favorite thing to do is call my home buyers and say "It's official you are a homeowner".  Got to make that call this week for a our newest neighbor in Portola Hills, as we closed on his home at 19532 Dorado Dr, Trabuco Canyon.He picked this home because it had a great open floorplan, larger kitchen, 3 bedrooms with 3 full baths (rare) and a great entertainers backyard.    This home is part of the Serenado Paired home tract in Portola Hills.  In addition to the interior features the community details were also very important to the buyer.   This home falls under the Portola Hills II HOA; amenities include:  Olympic Pool, Toddler Pool, Spa, Sauna, Clubhouse, Gym, BBQ area, Tot Lot, Volleyball, Tennis and much more.  In addition, low hoa fee, low tax rate and no mello roos.  If you are ... 03/31/2016

Sigh.... the holidays are over and 2015 has closed it's chapter.   We often hear people say during December, it's slow in the real estate world but in reality it can tend to be a very busy.  No exception for the Portola Hills Real Estate Market.   Portola Hills is not a huge community in Lake Forest, but this past month there were 9 homes sold.   Just 1 shy of 2014. In addition 7 homes went into escrow in December, leaving only 5 available properties currently. The good news for home sellers,  price per square jumped up approximately 6% in the last month of the year compared to December last year.Portola Hills December 2015 Real Estate Sales Though the market in Portola Hils has been very strong this past year, surpassing both the # of sales and the pricing from last year, unfortunately... 01/04/2016

As I write this post the feeling of fall is in the air.  It's a cool 70 degrees out. A welcome relief for most I believe from the hot September we had.   It is also the perfect metaphor for the Portola Hills real estate market.  In September there were 12 homes sold in Portola Hills, that is up from 8 in 2014, which is a 34% increase in volume.   So you can say the market in September was pretty hot... just like the weather.   Below is a look at the homes that closed escrow in the community.   September 2015 Portola Hills Home Sales As we enter October, we most like will see the number of sales fall i.e. decrease.  This is typical for the fall. Homes begin to stay on the market longer, though buyer demand is still strong, people tend to want to be settled in their new home before school... 10/06/2015

Though this is the 1st week of Fall, here in SoCal it doesn't much feel like it with tempertures in the 90's.  So in order to make it feel like fall, think it is time for a little Portola Hills Community Contest.    If you plan to decorate your house for fall and that includes your front door, take a picture and send it on over, it's that simple.  We will share it on our Portola Hills Facebook page.  The 3 photos with the most likes will be placed in a random drawing for a $50.00 Grocery Gift Card, just in time for Thanksgiving. The contest runs from 10/1/2015 thru 11/20/15 and open only to Portola Hills Residents, term apply.Photo's can be submitted directly on our community page on Facebook or emailed.  Contact Kelly with any questions on how to  submit your photos....Contest terms:  ... 09/26/2015