All Blog Entries by Sam Smith

Dana Woods is a great residential neighborhood in Dana Point that is made up of very cute detached single family homes that are located in the heart of Dana Point near the cross streets of Golden Lantern and Camino Del Avion. The topography of the neighborhood is typically flat so homes often don't afford much of a view at all.  There are a few exceptions to this where homes will catch an ocean view which typically commands a premium in price.  Real Estate prices in the last 10 years have really increased from prices in the mid $550,000 range in 2012 to now homes selling up to the $1.5 million range.  Some of the ocean view properties have been located at 25112 Danalaurel, 25091 Danabirch, 25084 Danabirch, 32946, Danaspruce, 25102 Danabirch, 32931

The Harbor Cove condo complex offers a unique location that is literally right in the middle of the Downtown Dana Point area.  I love these condos since they tend to offer high quality living spaces that is a short walking distance to the beach as well as having some great restaurants and shopping located right outside the building.  One thing that rarely comes up here are ocean view condos which is what a new condo listing has to offer. 24582 Del Prado #220 has just come on the market less than 10 days ago and is currently listed at $1,199,000.  The two bedroom, two bath condo features an approximate 1,280 square feet with two different levels of living space.

What makes this property unique is that it offers high vaulted ceilings, gourmet kitchen

This was a great year for the luxury real estate market in Dana Point as two of the top three highest sales this year took place in the ocean front community of Monarch Bay.  It seems like every year the highest sales tend to be in the newer Strand at Headlands community which offers some amazing homes including the third highest sale this year.  However, the Monarch Bay community has really gone through a wonderful transformation that first started when the homes switch from being located on leased land to where you own your own land.  Since then we have seen a higher interest in this community and even the front gated entrance is seeing a major face lift as well.  

63 Monarch Bay Drive, Dana Point comes in as the highest sale at $33 million dollars

For those looking for a property that is located blocks to the beach in Southern California one of the best places to look is the city of Dana Point.  One of the main reasons for this is that there are many luxury neighborhoods that are located on the ocean side of the 5 freeway as this was the master plan of the city, especially for those homes located in the Monarch Beach area of Dana Point.  Within this area are some of the most expensive neighborhoods like Monarch Bay, Ritz Cove, Niguel Shores and The Strand at Headlands.  These offer some spectacular ocean front homes as well as properties that are located within a short walking distance to beach.  These can be very expensive homes so for those looking for some more affordable options we always

The Grand Monarch community featured new construction condos back in 2015 and the demand for these properties hasn't seen to wavier since then.  We still get a lot of calls from clients who are looking for a community located next to the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort which is exactly what you will find at Grand Monarch.  Beyond being a secure gated community right next to the resort, the quality of construction and well thought out floor plans is what attracts many buyers to this location in addition to the nice golf and ocean views that can be seen from select condos located here.  The most popular properties located here tend to be those situated on the front row which offers views of the Monarch Beach golf links golf course with distant ocean

One of the latest trends in real estate here by the beach are buyers looking for one story homes with little to no steps.  This makes sense as many of the baby boomers are realizing that they don't need a large home with a lot of levels and have often chosen for a simple one story floor plan.  There are several neighborhoods in the Dana Point area that do offer some nice single level homes even though there are no senior communities like what you would find in the neighboring town of San Clemente like the Talega Gallery, Colony Cove and Bay Cliff Village which all are dedicated tracts for those older than 55 years of age.  

One of the best places to start your search is the Niguel Shores community in Dana Point.  A lot of our clients LOVE this

Dana Point has a wide variety of architectural style homes with the large majority of homes built in the Mediterranean, Spanish, Traditional with some Contemporary style homes.  One of the unique architectural styles that we are starting to see is the Hamptons style homes. These homes tend to be really grand with an east coast vibe to it with gray siding, white trim around the windows and doors with accent round windows above the French doors.  If you can picture this than this is the essence of a Hamptons style which is also pictured below.

One of the best places to find these homes is in the newer gated community in Dana Point known as "The Strand at Headlands" which located on the beach front.  A perfect example of this is a home located in this

One of the most exclusive resorts in Dana Point is the Waldorf Astoria.  It was formerly known as the Monarch Beach Resort and is a very popular place to stay and a great place for weddings, etc.  The location is very unique that has a dedicated walking trail that cuts through the Monarch Beach golf links golf course that surrounds the resort and leads directly down to the beach.  Since this one of the most expensive resorts in Dana Point the surrounding area as you can imagine is considered very expensive real estate.  Real Estate prices will vary depending on which community you choose.  Here is our quick guide to condos near the Waldorf Astoria.

First, the most affordable option would be the condos located in the Ritz Pointe gated community.  this

The city of Dana Point offers a wide variety of properties from stunning ocean front homes to amazing ocean view condos.  For those wanting to find a condo that is within walking distance to the beach there are several great places we like to recommend.  Of course, many people have different ideas on how far of a walk to the beach is considered within walking distance so we picked the properties we feel like are the closest to the beach with a short walking distance radius.  There are still others that are located just outside our map coverage area so there will always be more that will be available at any given time.  Here are our best places to look.

1). Lantern Bay Villas has arguably one of the best locations in Dana Point for a condo community.

The city of Dana Point has a large number of gated communities with a large majority of them found in the upscale Monarch Beach area.  These include exclusive communities like The Strand at Headlands, Ritz Cove and Monarch Bay where it's not uncommon to find homes listed for over the $10 million dollars.  While many love the security that comes with living in a gated community some don't like the appeal of them being so large and prefer a smaller and more intimate neighborhood.  There are some small gated areas of homes that we love to recommend.

The first community is a little tract called Point Vista neighborhood which is only located on one street that has a manual gate at the top of the hill.  Once is inside there are an approximate total of only