IRVINE, CA—The New Home Co. has sold 23 luxury homes in its new neighborhoods Trevi and Amelia in the Orchard Hills master-planned community here since they opened less than two months ago. The sales represent more than $50 million.

The developer unveiled the model homes in the two neighborhoods during the Orchard Hills grand-opening weekend of May 31 and June 1. Since then, thousands of would-be buyers have visited Trevi and Amelia, and the sales pace has exceeded expectations.

Joan Marcus-Colvin, SVP of sales, marketing and design for New Home, tells GlobeSt.com, “We knew the market fundamentals in Irvine had remained strong, with the exceptional local employment base, great public schools and coastal OC location, but the actual response to our homes—specifically the design and innovation of the floor plans and specifications—has proven that product, not just location, can assist in driving a higher sales pace.”

Marcus-Colvin adds that design innovations such as the developer's family office (a space where multiple work stations are designed while incorporating a large island for projects, and storage is located between the kitchen and garage) and a foodie kitchen (a multiple-island design with prep kitchen and wine room that opens up to a home garden and outside entertainment area) are resonating with its buyers. “We spend a lot of time and effort in researching how our buyers live, and I think we were successful here in translating those trends into our homes.”

Trevi, which offers homes priced from the low $2 millions, features homes that are among the largest in Orchard Hills. In a secluded European-inspired hilltop setting, the homes are designed with up to seven bedrooms and seven-and-a-half baths in up to 6,271 square feet.

Amelia's homes, which are priced from the high $1 millions, are designed to reflect a European village and include floor plans with up to 5,234 square feet of living space, seven bedrooms and seven-and-a-half baths. Through New Home's on-site design studio, homeowners have the ability to customize their living spaces at both neighborhoods.

The New Home Co. has been an active developer in Northern California as well. As GlobeSt.com reported earlier this month, the firm has broken ground on 76 waterfront condos on a 2.9-acre site in San Mateo and hopes to start selling units this fall.