An Irvine-based real estate developer and homebuilder has completed three land sales this year involving more than 160 planned homes across Southern California, highlighting a business strategy built around securing development approvals and selling construction-ready sites to national homebuilders.
City Ventures sold three properties to homebuilders, with two disclosed transactions totaling $35.3 million.
“Half our business is building and developing residential lots for other merchant builders, typically public builders,” Craig Atkins, co-chairman of City Ventures, told the Business Journal. “The other half is building houses. We approach different deals in different ways. But we try to create profits out of two buckets, basically.”
Founded in 2009, City Ventures has built more than 5,000 townhomes, condos, lofts, mixed-use developments and single-family detached homes throughout Southern and Northern California.
The company is known as an eco-friendly builder,
The company is known as an eco-friendly builder, with each home solar-powered and all-electric. Its current projects include developments in La Habra and Santa Ana.
Beyond building homes, City Ventures acquires properties, navigates the often lengthy local, county and state approval processes, and sells development-ready sites to other homebuilders.
The strategy allows builders to focus on constructing and selling homes while City Ventures takes on the time-consuming and expensive process of preparing land for development.
Irvine-based FivePoint, the master developer behind Great Park
Irvine-based FivePoint, the master developer behind Great Park Neighborhoods, uses a similar approach. Its Great Park venture sold land for 920 homes for nearly $782 million in 2025, according to the company’s annual report.
Unlike FivePoint’s large master-planned communities, City Ventures focuses mostly on smaller infill developments.
Securing approvals requires patience and community outreach, Atkins said.
“There’s just a lot of regulation,” he said. “Oftentimes, neighbors don’t want to see new houses next to their houses.”
Atkins called the approval process lengthy and expensive, with some builders and developers eventually giving up. Coastal areas of California can be particularly challenging, with entitlements often taking years.
It’s so frustrating dealing with the bureaucracy, he
“It’s so frustrating dealing with the bureaucracy,” he said. “The state has tried to streamline things as much as it can, but there’s still bureaucracy involved.”
Opposition from nearby residents, sometimes referred to as NIMBYs, can also complicate projects. To address those concerns, City Ventures conducts community outreach early in development.
City Ventures’ most recent transaction involved a 2.65-acre, flag-shaped parcel at 19081 Yorba Linda Blvd. in Yorba Lina, which it sold to Beazer Homes for $21.8 million in September.
Atlanta-based Beazer plans to take over the approved
Atlanta-based Beazer plans to take over the approved development, which calls for 62 three-story townhomes ranging from 1,300 to 1,600 square feet, according to city documents.
The Yorba Linda sale followed a July transaction in which City Ventures sold a development site approved for a 45-lot development at 510-520 N. Harbor Blvd. in Santa Ana to Century Communities for $13.5 million, or about $7 million per acre
The 1.94-acre property was fully entitled, with grading, utilities and streets completed before the sale, allowing Century Communities to move directly into home construction.
Earlier this year, City Ventures also sold Paseo
Earlier this year, City Ventures also sold Paseo Park Center Townhomes, a 53-lot community on a 2.3-acre site in Santee, to Lennar in February. The sales price was not disclosed.
The company has more land sales lined up for 2027 Selling entitled land allows City Ventures to recover its investment more quickly, while building and selling homes can generate greater profits over a longer period
“When you sell land, you sell everything in one day,” Atkins said. “When you sell the houses, it takes you a period of time, but you make more money selling homes.”
