The modest house has yet to be shingled and a stack of drywall sits on the bare concrete floor, but Karame Adesko and her fiance, Pablo Garcia, can envision their future in this developing Corona cul-de-sac.
Adesko and Garcia originally planned to buy one of the many foreclosed properties in Southern California. But after touring several and seeing the pricey repairs they needed, the couple opted to spend $309,000 on a new 1,300-square-foot home.
"You don't want to spend all this money and then have to fix everything up," said Adesko, a 27-year-old dance instructor. "I wanted to buy a move-in-ready house."
Helped by people like Garcia and Adesko, sales of new homes are on the upswing. Buyers purchased 3,447 new homes in Southern California during the first three months of the year, a 17% increase from the same period last year, according to the San Diego research firm MDA DataQuick.
That's a fraction of what sales were during the peak of the region's housing boom; in the first quarter of 2006, builders sold 17,324 new homes in Southern California. Gone too are the days when developers built on spec, confident that buyers armed with easy credit would line up to purchase the finished product.
Still, there are signs of a rebound. Nationwide, sales of new homes jumped 27% in March from the month before and 24% compared with March 2009. A key index of homebuilder stocks is up 16% this year, compared with a rise of 3.4% in the Dow index. One major builder, Lennar Corp., has seen its shares rocket 47%.
Experts say new-home sales have been helped by state and federal tax credits, as well as by new tactics by builders adjusting to the no-frills post-bubble environment.
Simple floor plans, stucco facades and energy-saving appliances are in. Mini-mansions with marble countertops, Jacuzzi tubs, big curving staircases and high vaulted ceilings are out.
"In 2005, you didn't need a down payment and you figured the home would continue its appreciation in value, so people wanted big homes that were completely decked out," Irvine economist John Burns said. "Now you are getting a home with four corners and a roof."
Location is also key, analysts said, with buyers less willing to commute extreme distances for affordable housing.
