Dana Point, CA Real Estate

It’s often called “The most romantic city on the California Coast.” A popular local destination for surfing, Dana Point was named after Richard Henry Dana, author of Two Years Before the Mast, which describes this area in the early to mid 1880’s. The anchorage where Dana described hides being tossed down to sailing ships is now a developed harbor containing a museum replica of his ship, the Pilgrim.

Dana Point has 35,000 residents and is blessed with nearly seven miles of high coastal bluffs and gently rolling hills facing the Pacific Ocean.
Dana Point Harbor provides slips and mooring for over 2,500 boats along with over 50 specialty shops and restaurants. The Harbor attracts thousands of visitors annually for shopping, sport fishing, walking, bicycling, parasailing and a host of recreational activities including whale watching. Catalina Express boat service is available from the harbor to Avalon on Catalina Island.

Make a reservation and you can usually get a perfect window table overlooking Dana Point Harbor at either Cannons Restaurant or The Chart House. For an exquisite place to stay high on a bluff over the harbor, choose the Blue Lantern Inn. In all, Dana Point provides over 1,400 hotel rooms ranging in accommodations and services from economy hotels to the five star Ritz Carlton.

There is a high demand for homes here since few more can be built and few buildable lots remain in the median price range.Neighborhoods include Del Obispo, Lantern Village, Dana Hills and The Headlands. The Headlands was long in coming; for years various developers proposed projects on this bluff that overlooks the harbor and the ocean.

The Strand at the Headlands is now under construction and may well be one of the last seaside developments in the area. Monarch Beach, just north of the town of Dana Point has properties ranging from affordable condos to luxury single family homes with views. Because of the general scarcity of costal property, Dana Point property values have held up well in recent years.

Most developments in Dana Point built since the 1980’s have Home Owner’s Associations established to maintain common areas and enforce architectural and landscape standards, so all potential buyers should have a careful look at the CC&R’s as well as individual neighborhood rules and by-laws. Also, be sure to factor in monthly HOA dues.

The city is served by Capistrano Unified School District. It includes Dana Hills High School, one of the oldest in the area which opened in 1972. Dana Point is easily accessible from Pacific Coast Highway (State Highway 1) or Camino Capistrano off the 5 Freeway. The closest commuter rail stations are in San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano.