Central Coast Team Sells 28-Unit Apartment Project within San Luis Obispo Mixed-Use Development

Land Advisors Organization – California Division is pleased to announce the closing of Village at Broad Street (Parcel II), where Presidio Capital Partners, Inc. with Fuller Apartment Homes, Inc. purchased 28 for-rent apartment units from H&D Maymont, LLC for an undisclosed amount.

The ±1.41-acre Parcel II was the last remaining parcel available for sale within The Village at Broad Street.  The project is located in close proximity to downtown San Luis Obispo, east of Emily Street between Roadhouse Avenue and South Street.  The Village at Broad Street is a mixed-use development that includes a newly opened Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market and 42 multi-family affordable apartments. ROEM Corporation developed the affordable living component and finished construction in January 2012.

“The downtown area of San Luis Obispo has always been a very desirable location, and The Village at Broad Street project further enhances the quality and vitality of the area,” stated Land Advisors’ Senior Marketing Consultant Matt Power, who has been tracking residential land activity in the Central Coast region of California for about ten years.  “San Luis Obispo is a unique submarket and continues to draw interest from the building community.”

Read the Complete Press Release Here

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Santa Maria… Where are the builders?

A few weeks ago, the City of Santa Maria, Community Development Department (CDD) released its list of residential projects in the development process with the number of building permits issued by the City from July 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011.

As you can see from the chart below, the Santa Maria CDD shows there are 669 future single family dwelling units and 633 multifamily condominium units that are either approved or pending approval, for future development.

One new home community by the Towbes Group is actively selling new single family homes with floor plans ranging in size from 1,208 to 2,043 square feet. “Lavigna” is a well-amenitized gated community with a pool and recreational area.  

To date, Lavigna is the only new home product currently available within the City of Santa Maria.  But even with Lavigna, the ample lot inventory indicates that Santa Maria still has room for another builder. 

This leaves us scratching our heads…. When are all these units going to be built? And who is going to build them? 

Other News from the Central Coast

Via TheBusinessJournal.com: Visalia-based Mangano Homes, Inc. is developing the mixed-use Marsh Street Commons project in the heart of San Luis Obispo. Though the recession took a toll on the San Luis Obispo market as it did in the Valley, the Central Coast town has shown a certain tenacity in the past. Read complete article.

Via RENTV.com: The Village at Broad Street Family Apartments, a new 42-unit affordable housing project in San Luis Obispo, just celebrated its grand opening to the public. Developed by ROEM Corporation, the project is located at 2240 Emily St. Read complete article

The Village at Broad Street also recently held its grand opening for the new Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market which turned out to be a huge success.

Source: Matt Power, Senior Marketing Consultant, (805) 845-2660

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back on the Central Coast…

As the New Year begins, the California Central Coast is preparing for homebuilding activity in some areas, and inactivity in others.  The good news is that this sub-market will see two new home communities open this year. 

The first to open is Lagunitas, in the quaint beach side town of Carpinteria, one of south Santa Barbara County’s most desirable areas.  Lagunitas is located adjacent to the north side of Highway 101 and is within close proximity to the beach and shopping opportunities.  The master plan will offer three different product types, ranging from 1,360 to 2,421 sq. ft., aimed at appealing to a wide range of home buyers.  Private homebuilder MD2 Communities has already broken ground and is currently forming an interest list.

The second new home community opening in 2012 along the Central Coast is the first component of the Margarita Specific Plan in the City of San Luis Obispo.  MD2 Communities will bring 177 single family homes, an affordable housing site and 16 small-scale commercial opportunities to fruition.  The new homes are planned to range from approximately 1,500 to 2,000 sq. ft., with the majority of the product types consisting of single story plans.  Model homes should be completed in the first quarter of 2012.

Other parts of the Central Coast are not seeing as much forward progress.  In September, Goleta’s City Council rejected a zoning change for the controversial Bishop Ranch housing project.  Bishop Ranch was initially proposed for 1,200 homes, 90,000 feet of commercial space and 67 acres of park land, but the developer withdrew the application at the last minute.  The second attempt with the City, which was unanimously rejected, was a request for the zoning designation to be changed from Agricultural to Mixed Use Urban.  Either way, it looks like the plans for Bishop Ranch are one step back for the moment.

Overall, the Central Coast in 2012 will provide superb opportunities for homebuilders, developers and investors to pick up strategic land positions in a traditionally supply-constrained market in anticipation of what is broadly expected to be a rising new home market in the next few years.

Source: Matt Power, Senior Marketing Consultant, (805) 845-2660

Big Waves in the Central Coast

Just south of San Luis Obispo, along Central California’s picturesque coastline, lies the area known as the “Five Cities,” which includes the Cities of Arroyo Grande, Pismo Beach, Grover Beach, Oceano and Shell Beach. Wedged between the beach and Highway 101, this area is one of the most desirable and highly sought after among Central Coast homeowners. However, it is also extremely supply constrained in terms of residential land and new home inventory. Even though the Five Cities area does currently have a good amount of commercially zoned land, residential land opportunities have been harder to come by.

Five Cities Residential Lot Inventory (as of 2nd Quarter, 2011)*:

  • Vacant Developed Lots (Detached Product) = 200
  • Vacant Developed Lots (Attached Product) = 15
  • Future Lot Supply (Detached Product) = 406
  • Future Lot Supply (Attached Product) = 246

*Source: Metrostudy (Q2 ’11) and Land Advisors Organization Research

Source: Matt Power, Senior Marketing Consultant, (805) 845-2660

Central Coast: SLO at the Top of Land Wish Lists

California’s Central Coast is seeing an uptick in investment and development activity as developers and builders find pockets of opportunity with residential land projects emerging from distressed situations. Notorious for its high barriers to entry, the Central Coast sub-markets in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties remain supply-constrained.

Several newly acquired land projects have either broken or are breaking ground in the coastal towns of Carpinteria and Santa Barbara, while a robust student-housing and rental market keeps San Luis Obispo (SLO) at the top of land wish lists.  These projects will bring the first new home product to this sub-market in several years. 

Other markets from Paso Robles to Salinas continue to attract investment attention as well.  

Source: Matt Power, Senior Marketing Consultant for California’s Central Coast sub-market.  For more information on land activity in this area, you can reach Matt at Land Advisors’ Santa Barbara Office at (805) 845-2660.