‘Mockettes’ Help Sell Units Before Models Framed

When it comes to making homes smaller, McKellar Development of La Jolla has gone a step further by making what it calls “mockettes” or dollhouse replicas of its Casablanca condominiums in the Rancho Penasquitos area of San Diego.

So that home shoppers could see what the condos will look like before the models are completed, the developer built two mockette buildings, designed by Sylvia Winters, to a scale of three-eighths inches to the foot.

The cost was $10,000, but it was well worth it, according to Marc I. Simmons, vice president of marketing and sales for McKellar. Because shoppers have had a sense of assurance, knowing that there will be no surprises when the models are completed, they have bought more than 125 units since the community opened for sales last July, he said. Framing of the models has not even begun.