mid-century modern short sale in Corona del Mar, California

Yesterday, we found a flyer on our doorstep advertising an Open House for a 1955 mid-century modern in Irvine Terrace at 730 Santana Drive in Corona del Mar, California. Intrigued, we went and talked to the Realtor, Sue Ross-Chayes about the home. It is a three bedroom, two bathroom 1,707 square feet $1,250,000 short sale on a lot that is 7,245 square feet. Here is the listing.Open house is running July 14 and 15th, 2012 from 11am to 4pm. They are looking for offers by Tuesday, July 17, 2012 at 6pm.

Facing the front door 

Before you gasp too loudly at the price, a property on that same street recently sold a few months ago for $1.75M. Of course it was in pristine condition, had a pool and an extra bathroom and was about 2,100 square feet. But, honestly, one story homes are in demand (aging baby boomers) and this one is a deal. It could be purchased quickly, and with a cash infusion, could be potentially flipped for a nice profit.



According to the Realtor's listing: "Single Story 3 bedroom/2 bath on a corner lot. Back yard features an outdoor fireplace. Interior features include Stainless Steel kitchen with 6 burner Thermador stove, wine cooler, and marble counter tops. Living room is wired for surround sound to enhance your entertainment experience. Walk to restaurants, shops, markets, movie theaters, parks, and Balboa Island. Fabulous location with very low HOA ($500/annually). Great Fixer Opportunity to live or invest in this coveted Corona Del Mar Community."

The Realtor admits that the house has been beat up a bit. But underneath the grime, its former glory shows with marble bathrooms, kitchen counters and flooring (frankly, lots and lots of marble ). It had been remodeled a few years back in a very modern style (marble), fairly in harmony with its mid-century modern roots. It is obvious that this home hasn't been maintained, which makes the low price possible. I went over and took some pictures with the Realtor's permission. 

It is on a corner with this huge tree at the edge of the lot.

Tree is original and probably 50 years old.

Front of the home, off Bonnie Doone Drive

Circular driveway takes up a lot of space and could be shut down easily.
This is the Santana Drive side. All the streets in Irvine Terrace are named
after famous yachts. The Santana belonged to Humphrey Bogart.

House from the street corner

From Santana

Inside the circular driveway

Side yard next to the neighbors

Side of house from the next door neighbors.

Big backyard with planters, walkway, fountain and outdoor fireplace. Nice use
of rock pavers.

View of back of the house. Landscape needs a lot of work to bring it
back to basics.

Closer to main patio. The hardscape is nice, but needs to be
repainted and tidied up.

 Main patio with outdoor fireplace, tree well and fountain

Lovely new windows off the living room. Patio is beautiful.

Patio door for some very nice indoor outdoor living.
The temperature rarely varies from around 70 degrees in this area.

Side of house with relatively new windows

Side of house, can see a soft water device.

Stainless steel kitchen, Thermador oven at the end.
Really very nice. Marble backsplash :)

Another view of the kitchen. Marble countertops. I think this could be
cleaned up and saved.

Other end of the kitchen, laundry, fridge, pantry on right.
Door to outside.

Pantry area

Dining area with large skylight in kitchen.

Dining area and bar area, the floor is marble. Did I mention there is a lot of marble in this house?

Other end of dining area has beautiful built ins.

Master bedroom with built in desk on right.
The odd thing about this master is it was built off the front
of the house next to the garage. Not typical, but the corner lot
probably constrained the architect & builder.

Master bedroom, cool porthole windows.
And recessed lighting.

Master bath, in good shape and beautifully done.

Master bath counter top, is floating. Very mid-century.

View of shower (um...marble).

Another view of desk.

Walk in closet.

Fairly spacious living room, very attractive fireplace at end and vaulted ceiling.

Another view of living room.

Closer to fireplace (dark marble hearth).

Projector built into the top of the wall, there is a retractable screen
that comes down on the other side, before the days of flat screen TVs.

Guest bathroom with tub.

Guest bathroom with tub. And marble.

Guest Bedroom at back of the house.

Hall with marble tile.

Final bedroom which is off the interior courtyard and has French
doors and the porthole windows.

It is really not a bad little house. The price is steep but the neighborhood is great. Elbow grease would make this home livable right away. An additional bedroom and bathroom off the back would be a good use of space and appropriate for the neighborhood. Cutting down the massive circular driveway off the front would provide even more options. Or you could leave it as a charming, original layout, mid-century modern.

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