Mountain View: A Vacant Office Building Becomes 71 Affordable Homes
Lake Forest is a city known for master-planned communities and market-rate development. Baker Ranch brought 2,380 homes to the northeast foothills. The Meadows put 675 luxury residences on former nursery land. But when National CORE proposed converting a largely vacant office building on the El Toro Road corridor into 71 affordable apartments, the City Council voted 3 to 2 to approve it — the city's first major affordable housing project since 2015.
That vote in August 2020 set in motion a development that opened in January 2024 as one of the most fully realized affordable communities in south Orange County. Mountain View at 24551 Raymond Way offers one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments to households earning 30 to 60 percent of the area median income, with eight units reserved for people who have experienced homelessness. National CORE serves as owner, developer, general contractor, and property manager. The Hope through Housing Foundation provides resident services on-site. And a Boys and Girls Club partnership brings after-school programming for children in the building.
What was once an underperforming commercial building is now home to teachers, service workers, and families who could not otherwise afford to live in Lake Forest.
The Site: From Office Park to Affordable Housing
The Raymond Way parcel sits off El Toro Road, one of the primary north-south corridors through Lake Forest connecting the 241 Toll Road to the older commercial strips in the city's core. The area around El Toro Road has historically been a mix of office, retail, and light commercial uses — the kind of mid-tier suburban employment corridor that proliferated across Orange County in the 1980s and 1990s.
By the time National CORE identified the site, the office building on it was largely vacant — underutilized in an era when remote work and commercial consolidation had eroded demand for small suburban office space. Converting the site to residential use required a land use redesignation, which is what put the project before the City Council in 2020.
The location has practical advantages for affordable housing. It is within walking distance of schools, grocery stores, and retail shops — meaning residents are not dependent on a car to access daily necessities. Access to public transit along the El Toro Road corridor further reduces the transportation burden for households at the lower end of the income spectrum. When Mayor Mark Tettemer described the project at the grand opening, he called it "a great example of a public-private partnership" that put a stagnant piece of real estate back to productive use.
"A beautiful apartment complex replaced a largely-vacant office building, and members of our most vulnerable population now have safe, affordable homes."
Lake Forest Mayor Mark Tettemer, Mountain View Grand Opening, March 2024A 3-to-2 Vote and the Bus Tour Strategy
The August 18, 2020 City Council vote was not unanimous. The 3-to-2 decision reflected genuine community tension around affordable housing in Lake Forest — a city where the dominant housing stock is single-family and where new affordable projects had not been approved since 2015. NIMBYism was a real factor in the pre-approval environment.
National CORE addressed it directly. Rather than relying solely on public comment testimony and planning presentations, the organization took an unusual approach: in October 2019, it organized an affordable housing bus tour for Lake Forest residents and City Council members, transporting them to two existing National CORE communities in Yorba Linda. The tour let skeptics see completed projects in person, with real amenities, real maintenance standards, and real residents — rather than imagining what might be built.
During the tour, National CORE staff walked attendees through the proposed Mountain View development and opened the floor for concerns. Many residents on the tour shared their own struggles with housing security. National CORE's President Michael Ruane credited that outreach with building the trust and support necessary to get the project approved.
The approval added 71 units to Lake Forest's affordable housing inventory — an increase of approximately 20 percent in the city's total affordable supply at the time.
"These homes will be filled with teachers, the people who work in the stores where we shop, the restaurants where we eat."
Mayor Pro Tem Scott Voigts, August 2020The Project: Unit Mix, AMI Targets, and Homelessness Set-Aside
Mountain View contains 71 apartments across a mix of bedroom configurations designed to serve a range of family sizes. The unit mix reflects a deliberate effort to create a community rather than a concentrated block of studio or one-bedroom units.
| Unit Type | Count | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| One-Bedroom | 18 | For singles and couples at lower AMI bands |
| Two-Bedroom | 34 | Largest share; suited for small families |
| Three-Bedroom | 18 | For larger families |
| Manager's Unit | 1 | On-site property management |
| Total | 71 |
All units serve households earning less than 60 percent of the area median income, with income-qualifying maximums ranging from 30 to 60 percent of AMI. Eight of the 71 units are reserved specifically for individuals and families who have experienced homelessness or who were at imminent risk of homelessness — a set-aside that positions Mountain View as more than market-supportive housing. It is part of the region's response to chronic homelessness in south Orange County.
LEED Design, Sustainability, and On-Site Amenities
Mountain View was built to LEED standards, reflecting National CORE's commitment to durable, energy-efficient construction that keeps long-term operating costs low for both the building and its residents. Lower utility costs matter especially to households at 30 to 60 percent AMI, where energy expenses represent a meaningful share of a monthly budget.
The sustainability features include photovoltaic solar panels on the roof, plumbing systems designed to limit water waste, drought-tolerant native plants throughout the landscaping, and rainwater retention systems that reduce irrigation demand. These are not checkbox compliance items — they are designed to lower operating costs and extend the physical life of the building across the decades that National CORE intends to own and manage it.
On-Site Amenities
| Amenity | Detail |
|---|---|
| Community Center | Computer access and warming kitchen for residents and neighborhood |
| Courtyard | Outdoor fireplaces, leisure areas, and a playground |
| Laundry Facilities | On-site |
| Resident Services | Hope through Housing Foundation programs on-site |
| Youth Programs | Boys and Girls Club of Laguna Beach after-school and summer programming |
| Adult Services | GED classes, job preparation, parenting and financial coaching, health and wellness |
The Hope through Housing Foundation, National CORE's affiliated nonprofit, coordinates the resident services program. Its model treats housing as the first step, not the only step: on-site programming is designed to support economic mobility and educational attainment for families who would otherwise lack access to these resources. The partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Laguna Beach extends this programming to children in the building with free after-school and summer activities.
How Mountain View Was Financed
Like most affordable housing projects in California, Mountain View required a complex stack of public and private financing sources. No single source could cover the full development cost; the project was assembled through layered loans, tax credit equity, and public agency contributions.
| Financing Source | Role |
|---|---|
| City of Lake Forest Housing Loan | Local government contribution to project financing |
| Wells Fargo LIHTC Equity | Low Income Housing Tax Credit equity investment |
| Wells Fargo Construction Loan | Construction financing |
| CCRC Permanent Loan | California Community Reinvestment Corporation permanent debt |
| Orange County HOME Loan | Federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program funds via OC |
| Orange County Housing Finance Trust Loan | County-level housing trust fund contribution |
| CalHFA SNHP Loan | California Housing Finance Agency Special Needs Housing Program |
| Orange County Project Based Vouchers | Section 8 project-based rental assistance for targeted units |
The project-based vouchers from Orange County are particularly significant. They effectively fund the units reserved for households who have experienced homelessness, making those units financially viable without requiring those residents to compete for scarce portable vouchers in the open market. This mechanism is increasingly being used in affordable housing projects across California as a way to serve the lowest-income residents without concentrating market risk on the developer.
National CORE's second Lake Forest project, Aspan Court at 22471 Aspan Street, broke ground in March 2026 and will add 50 more affordable apartments to the city's housing inventory when it opens in 2028.
Mountain View: Full Timeline
- Pre-2019Office building at 24551 Raymond Way, Lake Forest sits largely vacant; National CORE identifies site as affordable housing opportunity
- October 2019National CORE hosts affordable housing bus tour for Lake Forest residents and City Council members, visiting two existing National CORE properties in Yorba Linda to address NIMBY concerns pre-application
- August 18, 2020Lake Forest City Council approves Mountain View on a 3-to-2 vote — the city's first major affordable housing approval since 2015; project will increase city's affordable supply by approximately 20 percent
- December 2021Construction begins at 24551 Raymond Way
- January 2024Mountain View opens; first residents move in
- March 2024Grand opening celebration with National CORE, City of Lake Forest, Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner, and community partners
- Present71 units occupied; Hope through Housing provides on-site services; Boys and Girls Club of Laguna Beach runs youth programming; National CORE retains ownership and management
Looking for Affordable or Market-Rate Housing in Lake Forest?
Mountain View serves residents at 30 to 60 percent of area median income. For those looking at market-rate options, Lake Forest offers a range of newer communities from master-planned neighborhoods to smaller infill projects across the city. Whether you are buying, selling, or exploring what is available, I am here to help.
Get in Touch
