Builders Find Right Product at Right Price Sells

Despite the severe recession now crippling much of the real estate industry, some Southland home builders are experiencing strong consumer demand for their houses.

It’s just a matter of offering the right product in the right place at the right price, according to Peter R. Reeb of the Meyers Group, a market research firm that studies the home-building industry.

Reeb, who recently sifted Meyers Group data for the first quarter of 1992 to find the 50 best-selling developments in Southern California, said that the top 50 sold an average rate of almost three homes a week, compared to 0.40 sales a week for all Southland projects.

The average price of the floor plans sold in the top 50 was $154,326 for 1,519 square feet, with an average price per square foot of $105.

Five builders had more than one best-selling project. They are Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. (seven projects including those of the subsidiary Vintage Communities), the Fieldstone Co. (four), Irvine Pacific (four), Forecast Corp. (three), and Pardee Construction (three).

No one market has a lock on best sellers, Reeb said. In fact, all six Southern California counties are represented on the top 50 list.

Los Angeles County had the highest number of best-selling projects, with 14. No. 2 was San Bernardino County with 11; Orange County had 10, Riverside County, 8; San Diego County, 6, and Ventura County, 1.

The best-selling project in Southern California was Hometown by Inco Homes, a single-family detached project in Adelanto in the high desert area of San Bernardino County.

The project opened in October, 1991, and has recorded an average of nine sales a week. Homes are priced from $69,990 to $80,990, with units ranging in size from 955 to 1,385 square feet, according to the Meyers Group.

In second place was New Beginnings, a single family detached project by the Forecast Corp. The project is located in the Menifee Valley area of Riverside County. Prices range from $99,900 to $129,990 for units varying from 1,000 to 1,673 square feet. Sales agents at the project indicate that a high percentage of buyers is from Orange County.

The No. 3 best-selling project was California Lighthouse, a townhome project by Kaufman & Broad, located in Oxnard in Ventura County. The most expensive of the best-selling projects, with prices ranging from $143,990 to $184,500, California Lighthouse has successfully sold to local first-time buyers in a market where the typical single family home sells for almost $300,000.

The two remaining projects, Palmilla Del Oro and Downey Lakes, made the list because of auctions. The projects sold 47 and 46 units respectively in the first quarter of 1992.

50 Best-Selling Developments in Southern California

Project Name County Project Community Developer Type 1 Hometown San Inco Bernardino Det Homes 2 New Menifee Forecast Beginning Riverside Det Valley Corp. 3 Calif. Kaufman Lighthouse Ventura Att Oxnard & Broad 4 Palmilla San Robinhood Del Oro Diego Att Oceanside Homes Inc. 5 Downey Los Marchant Lake Angeles Att Paramount Development 6 Shadow Irvine Canyon Orange Att Tustin Pacific 7 Calif. Los Kaufman Horizon Angeles Det Lancaster & Broad 8 Emerald Los Long Emerald Villas Angeles Att Beach Inv. Co. 9 Det R. Sta Fieldstone La Tierra Orange Det Margarita Co. 10 La Quinta Century Del Rey Riverside Det La Quinta Homes 11 Calif. Los Kaufman Ridge Angeles Det Rosamond Broad 12 Rancho Irvine Vera Cruz Orange Att Tustin Pacific 13 Calif. Los Kaufman Marquis Los Det Palmdale & Broad 14 Liberty San Chino William Series Bernardino Det Hills Lyon Co. 15 Meadowwood San Forecast II Bernardino Det Hesperia Corp. 16 Heritage Riverside Det Moreno Ryder Valley Homes 17 Hartland San Rockfield Hartland Bernardino Det Adelanto Dev. 18 Country San Lewis Fair Bernardino Det Adelanto Homes 19 Irvine Mandevilla Orange Att Tustin Pacific 20 Fieldstone San Chino Fieldstone Crest Bernardino Det Hills Co. 21 Capri II Los Angeles Att Agoura Pardee 22 Canyon Irvine Hills Orange Att Orange Pacific 23 Summerlake Riverside Det Lake Centex Elsinore Homes 24 Pine Los Seltzer- Creek Vill. Angeles Att Lancaster Doren Co 25 Sapphire San Rancho Hillside/ Terrace Bernardino Det Cucamonga Sapphire 26 Pointe Spring Pointe San Diego San Diego Det Valley Builders 27 Vintage Anaheim Vintage Place Orange Det Hills Communities 28 Pacifica Los P&V; Villas Angeles Det Palmdale Enterprises 29 Mission Bramalea Bel Air Orange Det Viejo California 30 Vista Woodcrest Del Este Riverside Det Corona Dev. 31 High San Apple High Cty. Estates Bernardino Det Valley Country Dev. 32 Los West Avalon Angeles Det Rosamond Venture 33 The Los Quartz Renaissance Angeles Det Hill Gershon Dev 34 Brisa Ran. Sta. Akins Ladera Orange Det Sta. Margarita Dev. 35 Country Los M.J. Faire Angeles Det Palmdale Brock 36 New San Forecast Beginnings Riverside Det Jacinto Corp. 37 California Moreno Kaufman View Riverside Det Valley & Broad 38 San Carmel Martinique Diego Att Valley Pardee 39 Villa San Chula Progress Rosa Diego Det Vista Const. 40 San La Cresta Diego Att Poway Pardee 41 California San Kaufman Mirage Bernardino Det Adelanto & Broad 42 Cabo Ran. Fieldstone Vista Orange Att Sta Margarita Co. 43 Van Daele Van Collection Riverside Det Murrieta Daele Dev 44 Ventana Orange Att Tustin LDM Dev. Inc. 45 The Los Del Masters Angeles Det Lancaster Amo S&L; 46 Country San Western Meadows Bernardino Det Chino Nat’L Homes 47 San Chula Fieldstone Tamarisk Diego Det Vista Co. 48 Village Los Canyon First Homes Angeles Att Canyon Financial Gp 49 Los E.S. Palmia Angeles Att Carson Development 50 High San High Country Bernardino Det Victorville Country Dev.

Qtrly Sold 1 89 2 85 3 58 4 47 5 46 6 42 7 42 8 40 9 40 10 39 11 39 12 38 13 38 14 37 15 37 16 37 17 36 18 36 19 36 20 35 21 35 22 33 23 32 24 32 25 32 26 30 27 30 28 30 29 30 30 29 31 29 32 28 33 28 34 27 35 27 36 27 37 26 38 26 39 26 40 26 41 25 42 25 43 25 44 25 45 25 46 24 47 24 48 24 49 24 50 24

In the event of a tie, projects ranked by overall weekly sales rate/total sales.