REAL ESTATE : Newport, S. Korean Firms Team Up to Build Rancho Santa Margarita Homes

RGC, the Newport Beach home builder, said Monday it has teamed up with one of South Korea’s largest home-building firms to build a community of single-family homes in Rancho Santa Margarita.

Dubbed the “East Meets West” alliance, the international partnership is with K. Young Homes Inc. of Los Angeles, a subsidiary of Kunyoung, one of Korea’s largest publicly traded construction firms.

“One of the primary reasons for this alliance is capital; it’s a substantial sum they’re putting in,” said E. James Murar, chairman of RGC, though he would not say how much. “We always think there are things that can be learned by how they do things.” The alliance expects to build at least 400 homes on 23 acres it purchased in the Los Abanicos neighborhood in Rancho Santa Margarita’s town center, Murar said. The high density, single-family homes will be priced under $130,000.