Irvine Homes & Real Estate

Consistently ranked as one of the best cities in America, Irvine consists of 66 square miles of planned utopia in the heart of Orange County, California. Formally incorporated in 1971, the city now boasts a population of over 200,000 residents and has achieved impressive ranks in becoming a desirable place to live.

While many of its neighboring cities have limited green space, Irvine is home to several expansive parks, trails and wildlife reserves that populate its 40 villages. The planned city's neighborhoods have distinct styles, each possessing impressive housing complexes, shopping centers and parks.

While each village has its strong points, Woodbridge stands above all others with its incredible amenities. The Atlantic style neighborhood is located around North and South Lake with some of the area's best shopping and restaurants just an evening stroll from lakeside.

Turtle Ridge competes with Woodbridge as one of the most picturesque villages, neighboring Newport Beach with impressive views overlooking Irvine to the east and the beach cities to the west.

Irvine's culturally diverse population makes itself evident in one of the city's biggest annual events, the Irvine Global Village Festival. More than 50 cultures are represented in this celebration that brings all of the villages in the community together in October.

There are a total of 19 key areas (or villages) in Irvine which are listed below. A great number of subdivisions made up of single family homes and condominium communities are within these villages.

Irvine CA Condominiums for Sale

Irvine features an impressive selection and price points of condominium living in order to satisfy the needs of most homeowners. Residential condos range in variety from older 1 bedroom, 1 bath condos in price range of the mid $100,000 range, on up to 1 Million plus high rise condominiums recently developed in the Airport area. Condos for sale tend to have just one floor in two story buildings, either on the top floor or ground floor. Although, a newly constructed building having over 15 floors of condo units is growing in popularity. Furthermore, each owner is given an assigned parking space inside a a large parking garage or carports.

Unlike condos, townhomes are likely to feature two floors in one unit, and a floor plan with the bedrooms located upstairs and the dining and living areas downstairs. The majority of townhomes come with a 1 or 2 car garage for added privacy.

The dues for Home Owners Association (HOA) on condominiums built during the 1970's start around $190 monthly, and for the more recent high-rise condo towers constructed in the airport area they can be as much as $1,000 each month or higher. In most cases, HOA fees provide are paid for exterior upkeep and repair of the buildings, landscaping and irrigation, common area amenities like the pools, and spas, meeting and fitness rooms, and fire insurance. As a general rule, all exterior repairs and upkeep are the responsibility of the HOA. Interior repairs and maintenance are usually the obligation of the particular condo unit owner.

Irvine City Information

Homes were first developed in Irvine in 1960 by the Irvine Company, and the city was incorporated in 1971. Irvine encompasses 45 square miles and has a population of approximately 152,000 per the 2003' survey.

While the beautiful landscape and cultural events make Irvine special, most residents come to the city because of its high safety marks. In 2010, the FBI issued a report showing Irvine had the lowest violent crime rate among U.S. cities with a population of 100,000+. Combining that statistic with the seventh ranked median income of similarly sized cities adds affluence to comfortability.

The diverse population in Irvine is even more evident around its many college campuses. While the city hosts several satellite campuses for major universities, it is home to UC Irvine, Concordia University as well as junior colleges and trade schools.

Feeding into the prominent institutions are several highly-esteemed high schools. The Irvine Unified School District is considered among the best in the nation, which leads to 96 percent of its residents holding a high school degree or higher. Irvine California has a very respected public school district called the Irvine Unified School District.  This has been on the major attractions to younger families with children who are seeking excellent public schools. Residents living in the western and northern regions of Irvine are served by the Tustin Unified School District, which is similarly noted for its outstanding schools winning national recognition. Irvine is also home to the University of California, Irvine (UCI),ranked the 10th best public university in the nation according to the U.S. News and World Report's 2006 annual rankings. 

Irvine CA Real Estate is divided into the following major neighborhoods:

Irvine Communities

 

The real estate market in Irvine, much like that in its neighboring cities, is balancing off from the steep decline of the past several years. The median value of homes recorded in early 2012 was $515,000 while the median rental cost $1,705. The highest home values in the city are generally in the Westpark, Turtle Rock and Turtle Ride neighborhoods.

  

Irvine offers a wide variety of residential real estate to suite most anyone's needs and desires... from affordable rental apartments close to the University (UCI), to the glamorous estates at Turtle Rock... Irvine real estate is in high demand. High rise condominium developments are becoming popular in Irvine, and three of the newer high rise developments are located just west of the Business district and adjacent to the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary, Avenue One condominiums located close to Watermark, and Marquee Park Place.

 

Irvine, California Population Statistics and Demographics
(US Census 2010)

Perhaps one of the most important statistics for those considering a move to the city of Irvine is the employment rate. Labeled as the business center of Orange County, the city's many corporations employ nearly 200,000 people with high paying jobs. Irvine is a growing hub for the commercial and technology industries. Companies in the technology sector, include the American division of Toshiba, Archos, Blizzard Entertainment, and Broadcom. Other major corporations have settled into the city as well, such as automotive giants Ford and Mazda, as well as fast food chains In-N-Out Burger and Taco Bell, both of which are headquartered in Irvine.

 

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