Hopeful Buyers Stake Out Irvine Home Site : Spending Christmas in Camper Worth First Dibs on New House, Families Say
Outside her rented camper on a street in Irvine, Ruth Field watched her two sons play on Sunday and waited . . . and waited.
She and a tiny settlement of others expect to wait right there through Christmas, through New Year’s and until Jan. 3, when they can sign up to choose homes being built across the street.
“We’ll probably spend a nice quiet Christmas here in this camper,” Field said. “But it’s worth it for a house we always wanted.”
The Fields and several other families camping on Main Street and Paseo Westpark near the outskirts of the J. M. Peters Westpark housing development want first pick of the 56 houses in the project. The homes, which are individually designed, are expected to cost from $175,000 to $225,000.
Bill and Ruth Fields were the first ones to camp outside the development on Thursday night. Renting a motor home, they gathered their sons, Samuel, 4, and Jonathan, 13 months, packed blankets, food and water and parked. They plan to stay as long as it takes to get first choice of a two- or three-bedroom house.
“We saw several houses we like,” Ruth Field said. “This is the only way we know to make sure we are going to get first pick.”
The Fields, who rent a house in the University Park area, debated whether they should camp out or risk losing the house of their choice. “At first we wanted to wait to see if anybody was gutsy enough to stay here. But then we kind of panicked and here we are.”
Richard Martin, 33, an architect, has been camping in his pickup, topped with a shell and insulated with blankets, since Saturday night. His wife, Gail, a real estate agent, and his daughter, Manon 2, keep him company during the day, and he keeps the vigil alone at night.
“This was purely a gut reaction,” Martin said a bit sheepishly as he tipped his baseball cap. “But if it takes spending Christmas out here to get the place we want, that’s what we are going to do.”
Second Camper
Brad Palmer, 32, an insurance underwriter, was the second camper to stake out a spot. Palmer said he was not planning to do anything until he saw the Field family.
“As soon as I saw their camper, I thought, ‘Oh my God!’ ” Palmer said. “So I stayed overnight Friday in the front seat of my car.”
The next day, Palmer came better prepared by borrowing a friend’s Volkswagen van and stocking up on bagels and citrus punch.
Palmer said he does not want to spend Christmas in the van. “I wanted a special one for my son. But this can very well turn out to be a Christmas present. My wife is planning to buy a Christmas tree and plant it in the lot.”
So far, the hardest parts of waiting are boredom and sleeping in the cold. “It’s so cold and damp at night,” Palmer said. “It’s just like camping.”
Field said her family is making the most of waiting. “The kids think we are on vacation,” Field said. “We know we can’t leave or else we might lose our turn. So we are staying. But we’re relaxing. We got all our Christmas shopping done, so we’re having the best time here.”
Palmer agreed. “Hey, we’re all prepared to stay as long as it takes,” Palmer said, winking at Field and Martin. “But you know, at least we are getting to know who our neighbors are.”
