California Home Market Ranks 3rd

Posted by FieldStone Homes on November 30, 2010

Although the percent gain year over year continues to be modest, California is beginning to see signs of housing stability and home buyer confidence. We know that the California housing market was the first to head during this downturn and fully expect California to lead the charge into recovery. The numbers represent all of California, but we know that the Southern California market, those including Orange and San Diego Counties are doing even better.

An excerpt of the article is below, but can be found at http://lansner.ocregister.com/2010/11/19/calif-3rd-best-u-s-home-market/88918/ in it’s entirety.

“California had the nation’s third-best housing market in September, CoreLogic reports. Of course, things are worrisome if third best means a gain of 0.86 percent in a year — yes, less that a full percentage point!

Tops on the list for year-over-year price gains for all transactions — distressed sales, included — was New York (up 2.67 percent) then North Dakota (a 1.73 percent gain.) After California came Nebraska (+.78 percent), and Virginia (+.77 percent). Note: California ranked No. 6 in August!

The bottom? Idaho (-14.04 percent), Alabama (-8.9 percent), Mississippi (-8.3 percent), Florida (-7.68 percent) and New Mexico (-7.47 percent).

Nationwide in September, CoreLogic clocked home prices declining 2.79 percent, year over year.”

To view other new homes in Southern California, visit the FieldStone Homes website for new home communities in Orange and San Diego Counties.

Small Business in Dana Point

Posted by FieldStone Homes on November 23, 2010

Did you know that most businesses in Dana Point are considered “small businesses?” According to the Small Business Administration, a small business is defined as business with less than 500 employees. This Saturday, November 27, marks the first ever Small Business Saturday – an opportunity for you to support the hundreds of local businesses right here in Dana Point.

Some may wonder how shopping in local, small businesses benefits the community. Here are just three ways Dana Point will benefit from Small Business Saturday:

Buying local maintains and creates jobs. Half of all employees in the United States work for small businesses, and are currently the engine creating 60% of new jobs. By participating in Small Business Saturday, you foster job creation in a tangible way, by supporting Dana Point businesses and their employees.
Small business fosters a sense of community. If you walk through Town Center or the Harbor, you will find a community of small business owners. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and hold our community together. By buying local and supporting your neighborhood small businesses, not only are you fostering a strong sense of community, but you are helping create a sense of place and destination.
Buying local boosts the local economy. According to Civic Economics, for every $100 spent at a local small business, $68 stays in the local economy through payroll, taxes and other purchases by the businesses. In Dana Point, most of our businesses are small businesses – which means when you shop local, more money stays local.

Help our business community this Saturday, November 27, during the first ever Small Business Saturday.

Time to Buy a New Home in Southern California

Posted by FieldStone Homes on October 16, 2010

Home ownership is an important part of the American way of life, and there may never be a better time to buy than today. Right now is the very best time to buy for many reasons. It is still a buyer’s market. California is offering its own tax credit up to $10,000. Even without the tax credits, there are many opportunities in today’s market including affordable prices, low mortgage rates and great new homes in Southern California.

However, market conditions can change, and these opportunities may not be around for long, so home buyers shouldn’t wait. An excellent selection of homes on the market makes today a very good time to buy. A plentiful inventory provides a great choice of homes that are “move-in-ready” or ready within a short amount of time which is normally not the case.

There is a silver lining for home buyers and that is that many housing areas such as San Diego have homes being built that are more affordable with upgraded features which make the value of the homes better than ever. Greener and better energy saving techniques make these homes more energy efficient than ever. Not only can they be more affordable to operate, new homes in San Marcos are more efficient and environmentally friendly. Today’s buyers are very savvy and desire a cleaner environment.

Designed to accommodate today’s busy lifestyles, new homes feature open floor plans, flexible spaces, improved safety features, low maintenance materials and other amenities that make them more appealing than ever before.

What Size New Home Do You Need?

Posted by FieldStone Homes on October 4, 2010

For the past decade most families shopping for a new home were always looking to “move-up” or buy a larger home. The past couple of years have caused families to evaluate their true needs. Beside the square footage of a new home there are other items that should be considered when buying a new home in Southern California.

Here are a couple of other considerations:

Kids
A growing family is one reason families need more space or at least more bedrooms. Even as you move forward with a new house purchase make sure you look a couple of years into the future to determine what your needs might be. Not only do your kids need a place to sleep, but also to play and complete homework. For those families where the kids are growing up and moving out, maybe a smaller new home is what makes sense.
Guests
If you find your extended family staying for weeks at a time or during the summer break, maybe planning for an extra bedroom and bathroom makes sense. If you are the entertaining type, maybe a larger kitchen or dining room will help you accommodate more dinner guest.
Special Needs / Hobbies
Make sure to plan for any special needs such as large areas for a piano, spacious den as a dance studio, or accessibility access for family members with disabilities. You may require a unique floor plan that suits your personal needs.
Price
We would all like to not worry about the price of the home, but price remains a considerable factor when finding a new home. The recommendation has always been to buy as much square footage as you can comfortably afford. It will remain to be cheaper to get the bells and whistle later instead of wishing you had bought a larger home.

So the question about how much space you need is not just a decision about the square footage, but rather how that space fits your needs.

Home Buyers Guide for Southern Califorina Buyers

Posted by FieldStone Homes on September 27, 2010

We have designed the Fieldstone Home Buyer’s Guide to make your home buying experience an interesting and enjoyable time. This section will provide you with a detailed overview of the processes and procedures relating to the purchase of your new home in Southern California. Once you have completed your reading, if you have questions or if you find things that are not clear, please call your Sales staff.

We ask you to read the sections that have been outlined under “The FieldStone Home Buying Experience” to get ready for one of the most exciting and memorable times ever. At FieldStone, we are committed to working closely with you to make your new home dreams come true.

The Home Buyers Guide also covers the following sections:

Buying A New Home Is A Great Move!

Posted by FieldStone Homes on September 17, 2010

Have you seen the recent cover of Time Magazine on rethinking home ownership? This cover has generated a lot of chatter among current homeowners, families thinking about buying a new home and home builders themselves. An article was published on the Wall Street Journal by Brett Arends recently on “10 Reasons To Buy a Home” and covered a lot of great reasons why buying and owning a new home still makes good common sense.

Here is a break down of his reasons to buy a new home:

You can get a good deal…It’s a buyer’s market out after prices have fallen more than 30% on average, even after the expiration of tax credits.
Mortgages are cheap…Interest rates are at record lows and may never be seen again. Home buyers can save almost a fifth on payments.
You’ll save on taxes…Since you can deduct your mortgage interest and portions of your real estate taxes, that means owning a home cost less, maybe even less than renting.
It’ll be yours…There is something to be said about it being yours. You can move walls, paint whatever color you like on the walls, or landscape your yard.
You’ll get a better home…It might be difficult to find a “nice” rental for you family, but buying a new home will give the “nicest” home.
It offers some inflation protection…As inflation increases over the years for a young family, typically the value of a new home also increases.
It’s risk capital…When the real estate market does rebound, the price appreciation in your new home will provide some equity for your family.
It’s forced savings…For most renters, the little extra that is saved is usually spent somewhere else. With home ownership, that principal payment is actually building equity and providing a future savings.
There is a lot to choose from…There remains to be many choices when looking for a new home. You don’t have to settle on just anything.
The market will clear…History will continue to repeat itself and the current inventory levels will work themselves out.

To view the entire article, visit wsj.com.

In addition to reasons to buy a home would be the reasons to buy a new home vs. a previously lived-in one. If you would like more information about buying a new home, FieldStone Homes builds new homes to fit your lifestyle. We build new homes in Southern California, Utah, and San Antonio, Texas.

Computer Security in Your New Home

Posted by Computer Guy on September 1, 2010

The “Company’s Computer Guy” here with some computer security tips. There are a number of security tips you should take when setting up computers and networks at your new home. These steps will protect your data and make sure your Internet access at your new home doesn’t get compromised.

Important Steps

Always use antivirus on your computer. There are some free versions out there as well as stuff you can buy. Remember that buying it usually means a subscription. If it expires then it isn’t protecting you anymore.
Also scan your computer for viruses regularly. Even the best antivirus software won’t catch everything right away so scanning will keep you protected. This is extremely important if your kids use the computer at home while you are away.
Always use a firewall. This is different from antivirus. If you use Windows, make sure the Windows Firewall is turned on.
If you have wireless at home, make sure you have set a password on it. Otherwise strangers can connect to your network and potentially see information on your computer. Be cautious of visitors you give the password to when visiting your new home.
You haven’t won the Australian lottery and no one in Nigeria owes you money. Ignore these types of scams and never send personal information to strangers online.

Just because strangers can’t get through the doors of your new home, doesn’t mean they can’t see the data on your computers. Take the necessary steps to secure your information from strangers at your new home in Southern California.

New Homes Dana Point Cove

Posted by FieldStone Homes on August 27, 2010

New Homes Coming!

The Cove at Dana Point is located at the corner of Camino Del Avion and Del Opisbo and will be 6 new single family homes perfect for family and entertaining. Be sure to check out the Dana Point Cove information page to stay updated, join the VIP interest list, and see the ocean views. The Cove is in a beautiful location and offers many great features offering excellent access to nearby beaches which are less than 2 miles away, close proximity to the 5 Freeway, a major transportation corridor serving Orange, Los Angeles, and San Diego counties.

These new homes will offer:

View Lots
Up to 5 Bedrooms
Gourmet Kitchens
Flex Spaces
Over-sized Secondary Bedrooms
2-3 Car Garages
Energy Efficient Features
Ample Storage Space
Average size of homes will be 3300 sq. ft

The Cove at Dana Point will be built by the award winning new home builder, Fieldstone Homes. Fieldstone has been building new homes in Southern California since 1981 and has built more than 27,000 new homes. Our experience and longevity in the home building industry is a testament of our strong commitment to the values of integrity, team work and excellence; which is evident in every quality home we build. That commitment to excellence continues with the attention to the littlest details and the quality we build into every FieldStone home. It also is evident in the service and follow-up our team delivers long after you move into your new quality home.

New Home Maintenance Tip on Irrigation

Posted by Blake on August 25, 2010

Hi Blake here with Fieldstone Homes….

Today we are going over maintenance tips for your irrigation system. With the heat of summer you want to make sure all your sprinklers and valves are working properly and that your control timer is set appropriately for the months of the summer.

Cleaning Irrigation Sprinklers

You want to go through and turn on all the irrigation and make sure that all the sprinkler heads are working properly. If you come across a sprinkler head that is not spraying water correctly you don’t necessarily have to change out the sprinkler when the water is on. All you need is a needle-nose pliers to grab the top of the sprinkler head, pull it up, and unscrew the top of the sprinkler head. You then can take out the filter which comes off the top. The filter is used to collect debris in the water system. When that filter collects with debris is decreases the amount of water that sprays out of the sprinkler. You simply need to wash out the filter and put it back together. Just make sure that it will spray in the direction of the grass or planter. Test out the sprinkler by turning on the valve to confirm it has been cleaned.

Testing Irrigation Valves

The first thing to do is locate the valves for your irrigation system. The irrigation valves are where the water actually flows through when the control timer is turned on and off. The valves will be located on one side of your home and can be turned on manually for testing purposes. With no valves turned on, make sure you see hear or see any water leaking from the top or bottom of the valves. If you hear water running, debris is caught up in the valve and needs to be repaired. The next step would be to turn on the valves and make sure there is no water bubbling in the ground. This would tell you if you have any broken pipes.

Fieldstone Homes builds new homes in Southern California.

A Pet Friendly New Home

Posted by FieldStone Homes on August 10, 2010

Pets are more than just animals, they are part of the family. Our furry, feathered and finned friends require time, attention and a safe and comfortable home. Over half of all households have pets living with them, but animals are still an afterthought when it comes to buying a new home in Southern California. Here are some tips for designing and finding a pet friendly home:

Pets need space of their own.
It’s important to have a designated spot just for them, for comfort, function and to feel safe. A great example of this is the mudroom included in the Vistas plan 3335 at Rancho Santalina in San Marcos, California. This provides space for a cozy bed, storage for food & treats and a place to wipe dirty paws before entering the main living area. You could also add a sink to the mudroom for quick clean-ups and to rinse out your pets’ food and water dishes separately from your own.

Choose hard surface floors in your new home.
Hardwood floors are simple to mop or vacuum and add warmth to a room, but keep in mind that large dogs can scratch wood. The best floor for pets is ceramic tile because it’s easy to clean and resistant to stains, plus it gives furry animals a cool place to nap during the summer months. If you are a carpet person, that’s OK , just make sure it is stain resistant and vacuum regularly.

Put washable fabrics on your bed.
If your dog or cat sleeps with you there will be hair and an occasional accident. Use cotton bed sheets, preferably in a matching color of your pet or a pattern that can hide the pet hair between washings. For bedspreads, duvet covers work well because you can take them off and wash them regularly.

Bathe and groom your pet often.
Keeping your dog or cat clean will help your new home stay cleaner, longer. Regularly trimming their nails will help keep upholstery from snags and cut down on scratches on your floors. Brushing and bathing removes loose hair before it ends up on your floor, beds and pillows. Furniture and rugs will last longer if they don’t need to be washed as often. It’s easier and more fun to wash your best friend than your upholstery.

Create a pet –friendly back yard.
Create a “potty” area for your pet and use gentle hardscapes (like pea gravel) for paths. If you’ll be planting beds, you might want to elevate them or add a border to dissuade dogs from running through your flowers. Also, be sure to check out www.aspca.com/toxicplants for a list of foliage to stay away from.

Exercise your pet regularly.
Your pets love to be home with you but they also need exercise and to socialize with others like them. Cats enjoy playing indoors with you and fun toys they can chase and hunt for exercise, dogs on the other hand enjoy being outdoors, running and socializing with other dogs. San Marcos is a family-friendly city, and may be the dog-friendliest in the county. There are three dog parks within San Marcos, all providing safe places for our best friends to run and play off-leash. A fourth is under construction.

Montiel Park – is on the east side of town

San Elijo Park – in San Elijo Hills

Hollandia Park – the newest

There is a fourth park, scheduled to open in winter of 2010, called Sunset Park, on the west side at La Mirada Drive and Poinsettia Avenue.