Westlake Village Real Estate Blog » Local Information

Be Watchful for Your Pet This Spring, Warns Banfield Hospital

Sher Hann — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 22:38:47 +0000

As Spring draws near we will again enjoy the blooming trees and flowers in our yards and around the neighborhood. While we may gladly welcome the new season, our dogs may not. According to the Banfield Pet Hospital there are a multitude of Spring plants that are toxic for your dog. The side effects of these plants may range from minor such as a rash to as severe as fatality. In order to prevent this, dog owners should educate themselves on toxic plants. Some of these include, but are not limited to Azaleas, Foxglove, Jasmine, Oak Trees, and Wisteria.

Banfield Pet Hospital urges owners to take the time to identify any potentially dangerous plants. If you believe that your dog has swallowed one of these toxic plants, go to your nearest veterinary immediately. Banfield Pet Hospital has several locations in the area such as Westlake and Thousand Oaks. Educate yourself on dangers for your dog, and don’t take any chances!

2011 North Ranch Sold Report

Sher Hann — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:04:14 +0000

2011 North Ranch Sold Report

This report does not include sales in the Master Series, the Ben Johnson Fairway homes, Fairway Oaks or Fairgreen Townhomes. For this information or for a 2012 update to this report, please contact me.

The information in this report was provided through the Southland Regional Association of Realtors MLS as of 2/6/12. The listings and sales are not exclusive to Ewing & Associates Sotheby’s International Realty and may have been represented by other brokers. Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed by the MLS.

So You Want to Be a Landlord

Sher Hann — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 19:39:49 +0000

With bargain home prices out there, you may be tempted to buy investment properties – certainly a good long-term strategy for building wealth. In fact, a chart from MSN Money indicates real estate has yielded a 43% return on investment since 2009 – much more than an y other investment vehicle.

But being a landlord can be a hassle. Here is a good Wall Street Journal article to help you determine if being a landlord is a good fit for you:

WSJ.com – Are You Ready to Be a Landlord?

Joel McCrea Ranch

Sher Hann — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:07:33 +0000

Joel McCrea

Historic McCrea Ranch, located at the base of the Norwegian Grade, was home to legendary film actor and western movie hero Joel McCrea. Originally purchased in 1933, the ranch has a long tradition of dry land farming. Joel and his wife of 57 years, movie star Frances Dee, raised their three sons here, living a simple lifestyle and actively participating in the community. The family, along with hired hands, farmed and ranched the land, raised feed crops for animals, and ran an average 150 head of cattle. In 1995, the McCree: family donated 225 acres of the ranch, including the family home, to the Conejo Recreation and Park District (CRPD).

The new 1,400-square-foot Visitor Center, which includes an exhibit/display area, meeting room, restrooms, and an expansive deck, will offer a variety of interpretive, educational and programming opportunities. The Visitor Center vividly portrays family ranch life during the 1930s -1950s.

The Joel and Frances McCrea Ranch Foundation exists to honor and preserve the legacy of Joel and Frances McCrea by raising and managing funds to support the restoration and preservation of McCrea Ranch.

Public access to the McCrea Ranch Visitor Center will initially be managed through scheduled programs with CRPD. As the trained docent and volunteer base expands, and funds are available, hours of operation will be established allowing the Visitor Center, as well as other parts of the ranch, to be open to the general public.

For the visitors center, call 805.495.2163.

LA Still High on Buyers’ Search List

Sher Hann — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:09:26 +0000

Despite all the doom and gloom we hear about the housing market, the LA area continues to be high on home buyers’ search list. According to REALTOR® magazine, the most searched housing markets in August were:

1. Chicago
2. Las Vegas
3. Detroit
4. Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif.
5. Atlanta
6. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.
7. Philadelphia
8. Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz.
9. Dallas
10. Boston-Worcester-Lawrence-Lowell-Brockton, Mass.-N.H.

How to Survive When the 405 Is Closed

Sher Hann — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:50:11 +0000

By now, most people know the 405 will be closed for 53hours beginning the evening of July 15 and ending early the morning of July 18. The northbound 405 will be closed for 10 miles between the 10 and 101 freeways, and the southbound 405 will be closed for four miles between the 101 Freeway and the Getty Center Drive exit. The work is part of a larger $$1-billion freeway improvement project that includes constructing a 10-mile northbound carpool lane to complete what officials say is a network between Orange County and the San Fernando Valley.

La Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa suggests people go on vacation. Here are five better ideas – all cheaper and do-able from home:

1. Read a good book.
2. Write a note (not an e-mail!) to a family member or friend
3. Make a summer recipe (suggestion below).
4. Work in the garden.
5. Attack that honey-never-does list.

Pesto for anything you want to put it on

1. 16 leaves of fresh basil
2. 3-6 cloves of garlic
3. 6 T parmesan cheese
4. 1/3 cup walnuts or pine nuts
5. ½ c extra virgin olive oil

Put ingredients 1 – 4 in a blender or food processor and blend. Add olive oil slowly and blend again. Enjoy!

June 4 is Community Clean-up Day in Thousand Oaks

Sher Hann — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 23:47:24 +0000

If you live in Thousand Oaks, Saturday is your lucky day! Get rid 0f your electronic waste, documents for shredding, green waste and generic trash. The event will be held at Conejo Creek Park between 8 AM and 3 PM. For “special waste” disposal (paint, batteries, pharmaceuticals, for example), you’ll need to make appointment at the City Municipal Service Center. For more information on both: www.toaks.org/GoGreen.

If you live in another jurisdiction, check out your city’s website.

Pain du Jour

Sher Hann — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 22:49:17 +0000

My first misshapen loaf of knead-less bread - neither boule nor baguette

I know this is supposed to be a real estate and community blog, not a cooking blog. But once in awhile a recipe that is too good to be true comes along, and I must share it. The last time I got carried away like this was with a scone recipe. If you missed it, click here.

Now comes a recipe for French bread that is so amazing it must be tried and enjoyed by many. When we first moved to Thousand Oaks from Los Angeles, in the Dark Ages of 1987, I couldn’t find a loaf of good bread in this community. That has now changed, with the likes of Stoneground Bakery and the presence of loaves from La Brea Bakery and various farmers’ markets. Still, for the best French bread – the kind that is lighter than air and so crusty it cuts the top of your mouth, I ‘ve found myself buying warm loaves from The Grill on the Alley (yes, for $5 The Grill will hand over a toasty boule).

Then, without warning, my friend Kym, another “foodie,” posted a recipe first published in the New York Times several years ago. The credit goes to writer Mark Bittner and baker Jim Lahey, of the Sullivan Street Bakery. What is really amazing, however, is that this bread – yes, it’s lighter than air and the crust cuts the roof of your mouth – requires no kneading! It’ so simple a child could make it.

What it does require is timing, about 23 hours of it, as I learned with my first batch, when I had to work at home to attend to my bread’s need for flipping, flopping and baking – and, of course, savoring just out of the oven. While its shape defied geometry, its taste was divine!

Welcome, staff of life, goodbye, low-carb diet! Mange, mange – and enjoy!

Headline Spotting

Sher Hann — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 03:48:50 +0000

If you want to follow the trends, just follow the headlines. In the past two weeks we have seen headlines pointing to a more positive real estate market. From the Huffington Post and other news outlets, 30-Year Mortgage Rates Top 5%. Why is this positive? As interest rates creep up, sooner or later home buyers begin to notice. The sentiment that there is no hurry, that an even better deal will be there tomorrow, begins to slip away. As this article points out, if interest rates rise from 5% to 6% and the price of a home drops from $500,000 to $450,000, the actual cost of the home over 30 years will be $90,000 higher.

From the LA Times, California Luxury Home Sales Jump 21% (even the wealthy like a bargain). And the Wall Street Journal, Cash Buyers Lift Housing, cites data from the National Associations of Realtors indicating 28% of home sales last year were all-cash deals – double the rate in 2008.

Finally, from the LA Times again, Now May Be the Time to Buy a Home. Says the usually pessimistic economist Christopher Thornberg, principal with Beacon Economics in Los Angeles, “Certainly, we’re pretty sure we’re at the bottom” for home prices, as quoted in the luxury home sales article.

What does it all mean? If you are a home buyer, it may be time to step up to the plate. Stories of homes selling in multiple offers are not uncommon. This means you could soon find yourself paying both a higher interest rate for your mortgage and a higher price for your home.

If you are a seller who is buying up, now may be the time to pick up that dream home. And if you are selling because of a personal or financial situation, don’t wait for prices to rise dramatically unless you have a lot of time. During the 1990s, in the LA area,it took 9.5 years for home prices to regain their 1990 peak.

Stella & Dot for Your Valentine

Sher Hann — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 20:14:47 +0000

Gentlemen, it’s February and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. What to do? Remember the old adage, Diamonds are a girl’s best friend? Or, in the current economy, let’s say, Jewelry is a girl’s best friend. So here’s an idea for you: Stella & Dot.

Enter Jessica Dreyfus, Stella & Dot stylist in Thousand Oaks. Stella & Dot is sold primarily through in-home parties – groups of friends enjoying a glass of wine, munchies and, of course, jewelry. You can also purtchase it directly from Dreyfus (see contact info below). According to Dreyfus, more than half the line sells for less than $50 – a great price point for the quality. For the little Valentine princess in your life, a little girls’ line debuted last year.

Says Dreyfus, “I love the versatility of Stella & Dot. I can find one piece that works at the park with my son, out with the girls, and at a spring wedding .”

So, gentlemen, perhaps you can get by this Valentine’s Day with only one purchase for less than $50! Contact Jessica Dreyfus (310.351.9652) to make your selection!

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