Rogue Valley developer Laz Ayala’s latest project is a $3.35 million flip in Ashland

Published 8:00 am Sunday, June 11, 2023

Southern Oregon real estate developer Laz Ayala walked past a residential property for sale in his Ashland neighborhood for almost three years and wondered, “what’s wrong with this house?” It hadn’t sold during the pandemic panic buying, when the number of homes for sale and mortgage interest rates hit rock bottom, and bidding wars broke through asking prices, sometimes by six figures.

The Northwest contemporary dwelling was appealing from the outside. It sat on a quiet, 0.39-acre corner lot in Ashland’s Strawberry Meadows, a tony new subdivision with postcard views of Grizzly Peak. At the base of the mountains lies the art-centric city’s downtown.

The original asking price was $1,935,000 in October 2019, when the residential real estate market was galvanized by average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rates that fell to 3.5%.

Five months later, in March 2020, stay-at-home orders were issued to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, which motivated people to hunt for larger homes to work remotely. The listing for the two-story house with 4,717 square feet of living space plus a lower-level bonus area expired in April 2020, and in May 2020, the house was for sale again for $50,000 less.

Mortgage rates were heading to an all-time low, eventually reaching 2.65% in January 2021 when the property was offered at $1,667,000. Throughout 2022 the market continued to favor sellers, leaving home shoppers frustrated by their low options. Ashland properties were selling fast, and yet, there were no takers for 191 Birdsong Lane.

By May 2022, the original asking price for the custom house built in 2008 had been cut $810,000 to $1,125,000.

Ayala, who owns KDA Homes development and construction company, says he kept thinking, what is off-putting about the interior of this home that is turning away potential buyers?

He says he instantly knew when he entered the front door. The expanse of the great room was blocked by unnecessary walls and paint colors competed with the chocolate marble floors. A powder room seemed out of place, floating between the dining room and kitchen. What could be a dramatic staircase was concealed and there was no fireplace in the main living area.

He could fix this. The house itself was solid, constructed of insulated concrete forms and structural insulated panels with tall panels of glass framing the views, and handsome maple cabinets, doors and window frames. The structure had earned LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and Earth Advantage certifications, making it energy-efficient and eco friendly, which are top-selling features of KDA Homes.

Ayala says he knew he could remove the design flaws and flip the house. It would just take hands-on work, time and money. He could figure it out. He has faced difficult situations before.

The 2020 documentary, ”Illegal The Project” tells the story of Ayala at 14, when he escaped the Salvadoran Civil War in his home country. In 1981, he and family members traveled nearly 3,000 miles, through Guatemala and Mexico, by bus and then crossed the border into California hiding in the trunk of a car.

Today, Ayala is a naturalized U.S. citizen who funds college scholarships for young immigrants who, like him, call themselves “Dreamers.” The Lazaro Ayala Opportunity Scholarship’s stated preference is for first-generation students of Hispanic origin whose parents did not graduate from college and who do not qualify for federal financial aid based on their immigration status.

Ayala also founded a soccer program at Kids Unlimited Academy, a year-round public charter school in Medford, and he donates to Southern Oregon University Academia Latina, a summer residential academic and leadership program for middle-school students.

In the documentary and at Rotary Club meetings and other gatherings, Ayala talks about growing up in a dirt-floor shack made of sticks, wire, tin and rocks. He and his four siblings would walk down a hill to a spring to get fresh water and haul it home. After his mother died when he was 8, he worked on his aunt’s dairy farm. It was a simple life, he says. “There was need and poverty but I have nothing but beautiful memories of my village,” he says. “This was home.”

After passing general educational development tests to earn an alternative to a high school diploma in California, he moved to Oregon and settled in the Rogue Valley. In 1988, he had a new real estate license and made his first sale six months later. His commission: $20,000.

Fast forward: On Sept. 16, 2022, he purchased the Birdsong house for $1,150,000, close to its decreased asking price. He brought in a crew to preserve what worked and pull out anything that disrupted the inviting indoor-outdoor feel.

He had the powder room removed near the kitchen, which allows eyes to scan from one side of the great room to the other. Walls were painted white and serve as a clean backdrop to the polished Michelangelo Marble flooring. White onyx tile flooring was used to define the seating area that fronts a new fireplace. The office on the main level, once closed off by doors, is now open to the great room. It, too, has white onyx flooring.

The main-level master suite spans the entire west end of the home. An exposed staircase with onyx stairs and see-through balustrade leads to two more bedrooms and another of the three bathrooms.

The whole-house remodel also included improvements to the open kitchen, a powder room and the lower level that could be an art studio or media room.

After new landscaping and a pergola were installed for outdoor entertaining, the property was listed for sale on June 2 by broker Chris Martin of Martin Outdoor Property Group and LandLeader. The asking price, based on a recent appraisal: $3.35 million.

“The … sleek lines and exceptional design of this Northwest contemporary residence create an awe-inspiring atmosphere,” says Martin. “Stepping into the home is breathtaking with a light and bright living space and panoramic mountain views.”