CARLSBAD PROPERTIES

Carlsbad, California
Real Estate

Carlsbad, the "Village by the Sea" is a beautiful coastal town in North County San Diego. Offering the perfect year-round climate of a beach town and the old-fashioned charm of a European village, Carlsbad is full of delicious international restaurants and quaint boutiques ideal for shopping. Carlsbad is 35 miles north of San Diego and just 90 miles south of Los Angeles. If you like visiting Legoland, camping at the beach, shopping great outlet stores, or world-class golf, you're going to love Carlsbad!

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Carlsbad's Neighborhoods

In the northwestern quadrant, Carlsbad's oldest region, North of Palomar Airport Road and West of El Camino Real (ZIP code 92008), there are few newer developments. This area features a lot of established single family homes, and some apartments and condominiums. Because many areas in this quadrant were built years, some streets lack sidewalks and/or street lighting. Some streets, however, like Highland Drive, will not be updated as the city has made the decision to omit improvements to preserve the street's country-like feel.

Hosp Grove, a grove of trees relatively untouched by development and now designated by the city for recreational use, is located in the northwest quadrant, along with both the Buena Vista and Agua Hedionda Lagoons.

Carlsbad Village, or downtown Carlsbad, is located along Carlsbad Village Drive, east of Carlsbad Boulevard (aka Pacific Coast Highway or U.S. Route 101), and west of Interstate 5. It features antique shops, clothing stores, and restaurants. Regular events in the village include a farmers market on Saturday mornings and Wednesday afternoons, an annual marathon, and a bi-annual street fair, called the Carlsbad Village Street Faire, on the first Sundays in May and November. The Street Faire is the largest single day street faire in North America with nearly 1,000 vendors and attracting more than 120,000 people.

The Barrio was the first Carlsbad neighborhood, built in the 1920s. It is densely populated by Latinos and is the site of the city's Centro de Información, a Spanish division of the Carlsbad City Library.

Olde Carlsbad is the area south of the Buena Vista Lagoon, west of El Camino Real, and north of Cannon Road. These were the original boundaries of the city of Carlsbad. This area includes many historic buildings and is the most socio-economically diverse section of the city, with homes ranging from enormous mansions to modest, single story units. Architectural styles in the area also vary widely. A number of elementary schools, Carlsbad High School, Carlsbad Seaside Academy, and Magnolia Elementary School are all located in this area. Carlsbad's only historic museum, the Magee House, is here, too, and is the home of the Carlsbad Historical Society.

Terramar is the area in Carlsbad's Northeast quadrant, located North of Palomar Airport Road and East of El Camino Real. With the exception of one shopping center, the area is almost exclusively residential. Because of the city's increasing population, the area was recently assigned the ZIP code 92010. This area includes many condominiums and single family homes. Some of the neighborhoods are quite established while others, for example, Calavera Hills, are still under construction.

Calavera Hills is one of many of Carlsbad's planned communities located around the intersection of College Boulevard and Carlsbad Village Drive (bordered on the north by the Oceanside-Carlsbad city boundary). The western portion (phase I) was constructed mostly in the 1980s, and the eastern portion (phase II) is currently under construction. Calavera Hills features two elementary schools, one middle school, a very large community park, numerous pocket parks, trails, an artificial lake, and single family, attached, and apartment units. Calavera Hills is subdivided into neighborhoods, each of which are maintained by a homeowners association. Some, especially condominium developments, feature community pools. Much of the community, especially around Calavera Lake, is designated open space and includes public-use trails.

Summerhouse is a residential area built in 2005 and bordered by College Boulevard to the west and the to Calavera Natural Preserve to the east. Many homes feature views of the preserve, and cool ocean breezes in the summer.

The Colony is an established residential neighborhood just south of Calavera Hills community park. Homes in The Colony were constructed in a unique cottage style with shingle facades, large front and backyards, and streets named after Scottish towns.

Tanglewood is a condominium complex located between Carlsbad Village Drive, El Camino Real, and Avenida de Lousia. Homes, landscaping, and a community pool are maintained by a homeowners association. Although all units in the neighborhood are townhomes, all residents benefit from separate garage units.

Robertson Ranch is bordered by Tamarack Avenue, College Boulevard, and El Camino Real. Development is anticipated through 2010. It will most likely be the site of three schools. Many Carlsbad residents are opposed to this development which will most likely bring severe congestion to the area.

Sunny Creek is a smaller single family development centered along College Boulevard, East of El Camino Real. A shopping center is proposed for the area, construction of which has been delayed numerous times. When completed, it will be the only shopping district in northeast Carlsbad outside of the Tri-City area. Among the residents the oppose construction are the original residents of Sunny Creek, who live in a somewhat rural area near Rancho Carlsbad.

The Summit (North) is a townhouse development, located east of Marron Road and west of the unimproved Haymar Drive. The Summit (South) is a residential area built on a series of small hills, bordered by El Camino Real, Tamarack Avenue, and Carlsbad Village Drive. It is made up of several developments, including Tamarack Point, Falcon Hills, and Carlsbad Meadows, all completed in the late 1990s.

In Carlsbad's Southeast quadrant, East of El Camino Real and South of Palomar Airport Road, you'll find many of Carlsbad's newest master-planned communities (MPC), including Bressi Ranch and the Villages of La Costa, which includes La Costa Valley, La Costa Oaks, the La Costa Greens, and La Costa Ridge (which is still in the grading phase of construction). The ZIP code for the southeast quadrant is 92009, and it is one of San Diego's most expensive ZIP codes. The area was recently named one of the 500 wealthiest ZIP codes in the United States by Forbes Magazine.

Bressi Ranch includes La Costa Greens, a residential development built on the hillsides east of the La Costa Resort North Golf Course, between Alga Norte Park and Alga Road. Many homes in the La Costa Greens have spectacular views of the ocean and the famous La Costa golf course. This upper-middle class neighborhood is anchored by The Presidio Club, which touts a spa-like experience with a concierge on staff. Community amenities include a pool, spa, workout gym, tot-lot, and two tennis courts. The houses here are between 3,000 and 5,000 square feet (500 m²) large and, with the exception of 24 houses in La Costa Greens, the community is served by the La Costa Meadows Elementary School, the newer San Elijo Hills Middle School and the refurbished San Marcos High School.

La Costa Oaks is the second in the Villages of La Costa, located mostly East of Rancho Santa Fe Road, at the end of La Costa Avenue. It's an upscale MPC with homes built from 2003 to 2006 and ranging from 3,000 to 5,000 square feet (500 m²).

La Costa Ridge is the final of the Villages of La Costa and is currently being graded. The top of a local mountain was shaved flat to enable construction of large ocean-view homes in this private gated community to be served by the La Costa Meadows Elementary School, the newer San Elijo Hills Middle School and the refurbished San Marcos High School.

La Costa Valley is an MPC that was built between 1998 and 2001 near Carlsbad's southern border with Encinitas. The Valley Club is the centerpiece to La Costa Valley with social activities, a large swimming pool and two tennis courts. The El Camino Creek Elementary School is located in La Costa Valley. The middle school is the older Oakcrest located in central Encinitas and older students are served by the newer La Costa Canyon High School.

Rancho Carrillo is a community centered on a picturesque canyon surrounding the historic Leo Carrillo Ranch Park. Over half of the canyon and hillsides are dedicated as preserved open space and a small stream flows through the canyon. Rancho Carrillo offers a balanced mix of about 1,500 residences from condominiums and townhouses to large estates. Rancho Carrillo was designed in the 'Old California' stlyle to match the park and is densely landscaped and laced with walking trails. There is an active social activities calendar with clubs and events offered in all seasons. This development has the Carrillo Elementary School in the neighborhood and is part of the San Marcos Unified School District.

Carlsbad's La Costa area refers to both a residential community of Carlsbad and the world-class golf and tennis resort and spa that thrives at its center. The community is located primarily south of Alga Road, east of El Camino Real, north of Olivenhain Boulevard, and west of the north-south portion of Rancho Santa Fe Boulevard. La Costa's development began in 1965 when a golf course and some homes were built on 3,500 acres. The 90-room Rancho La Costa Inn was built to accommodate the visitors. Then, the Spa was added and ultimately, another 2,000 acres (8 km²) were purchased as the Inn grew in size. Now, the La Costa Resort and Spa, purchased in 2001 by KSL Resorts, has been totally revamped at a staggering cost of $140 million. The La Costa Resort and Spa consists of two 18-hole golf courses, resort hotel and condominium units, 19 tennis courts, the Chopra center, operated by Dr. Deepak Chopra, and related retail businesses.

The community of La Costa is mostly residential, with shopping centers, upscale boutiques and fine dining restaurants. Because of overlapping district lines, schools within the community may be located in one of four school districts. La Costa Canyon High School serves residents of Encinitas, Rancho Santa Fe and other surrounding communities, along with the southernmost portion of Carlsbad. The popular San Elijo Middle School and San Marcos High School serve students on the north side of the golf course. Real estate in La Costa is priced well above the average for both California and San Diego County.

Carlsbad's Southwest quadrant includes Ponto, a single family and mobile home residential community. While the mobile homes are quite established, the homes located in the neighborhood are very new and are some of the only new homes close to the ocean in the entire state. A plan to develop a portion of the area is currently awaiting approval, although it's drawing opposition. Among the new community types proposed for the area are live-work units, where a business owner is able to live one story above an establishment, eliminating the need for a commute. However, the proposed development directly abuts a protected wetland bird breeding ground. It's located near the city's southern border with Encinitas, west of Carlsbad Boulevard.

Aviara is a resort community in the hills of southern Carlsbad, overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Batiquitos Lagoon. The community has a total area of 1.6 miles² and is just north of Encinitas and west of La Costa. Just East of Aviara's borders, on El Camino Real, you'll find a movie theater, restaurants, jewelry boutiques, a branch of the Carlsbad City library, U.S. Post Office, and several salons. At the heart of the 1,000 acre (4 km²) Aviara community is the Four Seasons Aviara Resort, a 331-room, five-star hotel. Guests enjoy spectacular views, famous lush tropical grounds, a popular Lobby Bar, personal services, shops, a Spa, and a world-class golf course.