The San Diego residential land market continues to plod along.  Most offerings are receiving strong interest as the building and development community looks for future inventory.  The general consensus is that the key indicators show stronger markets in the near future and everyone is filling their near-term pipeline (2012-2015).  Land Advisors recently completed the marketing campaign for The Lakes, a 248-lot project in the Rancho Santa Fe area.  The offering received strong interest from around the Nation.

Other notes from around the region…

1. Meritage Homes made its first entry into the San Diego market with a purchase of 92 semi-finished lots in Oceanside, CA.  The property known as Hi Hope Ranch has a controversial past including lawsuits with the adjoining neighbor, Vista Unified School District, and a bankruptcy.  The property has been on the market for over a year and had been under contract with several builders.  The purchase price was reported to be just over $10 million.
2. Another high profile Oceanside property also closed escrow.  MG Properties purchased Ocean Village, a “broken” condominium project near the Oceanside City Hall.  According to reports, none of the 33 units in the project were sold and the new owners will be leasing them out as apartments until the market firms.  The purchase price was $11.75 million which should allow the new owners ample room for profits, according to sources familiar with the project.
3. Proving that you never know where the buyer will come from, a high profile 18-acre infill site in Mission Valley known as West End was purchased at a foreclosure auction last week.  The Buyer, Plaza del Sol Real Estate Trust is believed to be a church group looking for a new campus.  The site had been planned for 490 multi-family units but the project was never approved or developed due to the weak market in 2007-2010.  It is currently occupied by Mission Valley Inn and Frogs Gym.
4. HOUSING:  According to the experts, foreclosures and defaults were down in September.  Hopefully this signals the start of an orderly process of unwinding the remaining problem properties still in the system, and tempers the uncertainty of prospective buyers:  www.nctimes.com/blogsnew/business/realside/article_fd80ea2f-890c-56bb-8231-d5d4231b30fa.html
5. Look for new multi-family listings from the San Diego office of Land Advisors Organization in the next few weeks.
6. Redevelopment of an eyesore in Solana Beach is in the works after American Assets bought a former trailer park on Coast Highway.  The 1.76-acre site at 329 S. Coast Highway finally traded hands at 63% of the original listing price after being on the market for several months.  The Buyer plans to redevelop the site for commercial/residential use.

Source: David Landes, Senior Marketing Consultant, (858) 568-7428