Del Obispo

Del Obispo Real Estate

Del Obispo, situated between the neighborhoods of Lantern Village and Capistrano Beach a neighborhood that encompasses both parts of Dana Point and the southwestern-most tip of San Juan Capistrano. The boundaries of Del Obispo are the 5 Freeway to the east, Del Obispo street to the west, Camino Del Avion to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south, with San Juan Creek heading northward right through the middle of the neighborhood.

Del Obispo is very much one of the smaller Dana Point Neighborhoods, with about 6,000 residents spread out over 1.7 square miles. This makes it one of the least dense areas of all Dana Point, and depending on what part of the Del Obispo neighborhood you live in, your home choices likely include houses with much larger lots than are generally available in Dana Point or in Orange County as a general rule.

As such, compared to other nearby areas, you might sense a decidedly less “urban” feel as you explore this area when comparing it to other nearby choices, especially with the creek and the beach areas.

Del Obispo Home Prices

Like all of Dana Point, Del Obispo real estate constitutes a real bargain if you were to compare houses on an apples-to-apples basis to nearby Newport Beach or Laguna Beach. However, homes in Del Obispo are particularly reasonable when comparing what you get for what you pay.

As Del Obispo’s geography ranges from “on the beach” to “by the freeway”, there is a huge variation in home prices for the neighborhood. Very small 1 bedroom condos (600 square feet or less) near the beach can sometimes be found in the high $200,000’s range, and 6,000+ square foot homes that can only be described as “estates” can be found in the $5 million range in areas such as San Juan’s Cook Lane Estates. 

The most commonly purchased homes in the area run from around $600,000 to $800,000 for 3 bedroom homes of up to around 3,000 square feet with lot sizes ranging to 10,000 square feet or so.

Living in the Del Obispo Neighborhood

Most of Del Obispo consists of a fairly quiet neighborhood, with the most notable parts of the area being Doheny State Beach to the South, and Dana Point Harbor just to the west of the beach.

Doheny State Beach is a popular surf spot, and is a 62 acre facility consisting of one of California’s most popular camping grounds, as well as tide pools and aquariums for the amusement of visitors. The beach features numerous amenities, including 170 picnic tables and 99 barbeque grills.

From Doheny State Beach heading North is San Juan Creek, and those who like hiking can take advantage of the San Juan Creek Trail, which you can follow from the beach all the way until you get to the quaint shops and eateries present in old town San Juan Capistrano. Schools in the area are very good – all students in the area attend schools that are part of Capistrano Unified School District, and depending on where speicifcally in the neighborhood you reside, publicly schooled teens will either attend Dana Hills High School or San Juan Hills High School, both of which are considered to be within the top 150 or so high schools in the entire state of California.

Del Obispo Pros and Cons

Like all of Dana Point and south San Juan Capistrano, many of the good points or bad points become the exact opposite depending upon whom you speak with. With the exception of the beach, Del Obispo is a quiet, south Orange County neighborhood which is reasonably close so some areas where there are things happening, but certainly not within walking distance of many goings on.

This makes for a fantastic dynamic for people looking to live in a quiet area – not a lot of activity means not a lot of tourists, though some few do pass through on the way to Dana Point Harbor, and not a lot of turmoil, as visitors in the neighborhood to visit the Dana Point Marina tend to be quite a bit different than visitors to Newport Beach that happen to be in the area to visit the most raging, over the top drinking establishments.

Also, being within a 5 minute drive to the marina is fantastic for those that are into the boating scene, and if you fancy a trip to Catalina, it’s just a quick hop onto the Catalina Express, which is the only year-round boat service to Catalina.

While the area does have some tourists coming through for the campgrounds, they tend to stay at the campgrounds, as there is no real nightlife to speak of in Dana Point and comparatively little action – and surfers tend to drive in, park, and go straight to the ocean.

While a beach area with no nightlife may sound like heaven to families, many young singles may feel isolated as not only is there no nightlife in the immediate area, there’s not really a lot of it nearby either, so younger shoppers may feel more comfortable in areas like the southern portions of San Clemente or further north near Costa Mesa.

Who is Del Obispo Real Estate best for?

While living in the Del Obispo area is not for everybody, folks that want to be near the ocean, but don’t want to be near a “beach town” will probably feel most at home in the Del Obispo area. It’s also a great area for folks that want to live in South Orange County, but prefer the closer-knit, smaller community atmosphere that the area affords than those who want to live in a vibrant community with lots of glitz and glamour.

Lastly, the area is one of the tops on the list of “bargain hunter” neighborhoods – areas that, based on what you get, considering the area home prices, give outstanding value relative to much of the other beach communities available in Orange County.