Westside developer slashes condo prices

They’re clean, compact, equipped with yards, made with sustainable materials and a few minutes’ walk from Triangle Square and other shopping centers.

They’re also, as far as the landlords are concerned, two of the best deals in town — and they’re still awaiting those two elusive takers after months on the market.

Bettershelter, a Costa Mesa developer dedicated to building affordable housing, opened the 1.7 Ocean condominium complex last summer on the Westside to help revitalize a sometimes blighted area. The first 10 units sold within a few months, but the last two, which are mostly identical to the others, have yet to change hands.

Earlier this year, bettershelter owners Steve Jones and Pete Zehnder advertised a “Live Free” package in which residents could purchase the condominiums for $519,000 each and pay nothing for the first six months.

That offer got a few interested callers but no buyers — so, this week, bettershelter slashed the price to $499,000 and offered an additional $10,000 incentive for people who purchase the condos before April 15.

In recent months, home prices have fallen substantially across Southern California, and Zehnder said he suspects many people are waiting for the costs to bottom out.

“I think they [home buyers] have a tendency to wait a little bit,” he said. “These people are not experts. None of us are experts. But it’s a shame, because there’s really great deals out there and people sit on the sidelines, and by the time they decide to make their decision, everyone else is making a decision already.”

Each of the remaining 1.7 Ocean units covers a lot of about 1,400 square feet and comprises two bedrooms and one bathroom. The units reside in the center of the complex at Harbor Boulevard and Bernard Street — part of the area that Jones and Zehnder are also seeking to boost economically through the Westside Business Culture merchants association.

Jones, the association’s president, said he’s keen on selling the last two units so he can focus on the new complex bettershelter is building on the city’s Eastside.

He noted that a number of people have capitalized recently on falling home prices, even in such wealthy neighborhoods as Mesa Verde, and that he intended the latest discount at 1.7 Ocean to lure those who still needed an extra incentive.

“That sort of deal would not have existed a year ago,” Jones said.

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at michael.miller@latimes.com.