Category Archives: Home Hunting

Home Hunting

On Fire Watch!!1! close to home

Smoke from the Calabasas fire in the distance

Smoke from the Calabasas fire in the distance

I was getting ready for work when I heard the steady thump of a helicopter. My curtains were not completely open, so I opened them more and saw the telltale ochre skies. Oh, yeah. Brush fire.

This one turned out to be in Calabasas and it burned toward Agoura Hills. It looks really big, from the pictures I took, and I of course did what Trinity hates me to do — drive-by shooting with my camera. What?? This is what I do. Just be glad I have a lot of practice.

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Time to buy?

Buy Or Rent?

The FiLife blog points out that in some places, renting is still smarter than buying….of course this flies in the face of conventional wisdom that renting is throwing your money away. Or is that just a line real estate agents give potential buyers? Anyway,¬† to figure out if the cost of ownership outweighs the cost of renting, do this. Take the cost of a comparable home for sale/the annual cost of your rent = the number you get is your rent ratio.¬† My rent ratio happened to be 20, which, according to the NY Times column that inspired the post, which is the point when the monthly costs of ownership starts to exceed the costs of renting. But right at 20 — does that mean it would still be doable?

At any rate, this is all moot, since Trin and I haven’t started really socking away a down payment just yet. But the post did garner one comment with a link to this cool buy or rent calculator.

Got $5,000 lying around?

Probate Auctions In LA

Trin and I are in no way ready to buy a home, true, but I can’t help checking out foreclosure and probate websites from time to time. A story tonight about new, luxury homes going up for auction made me think of it, so I checked out Kennedy Wilson‘s site for fun, between stories.

You might blast me for posting this so last minute, but if you’ve got five grand lying around, you can score some property that’s got major potential in Valley Village (Radford near Laurel Canyon!) or North Hollywood (Laurel Canyon and Cantara!). But, ah, the auctions are tomorrow morning at 10 and 11 a.m. Anyway, there are more requirements for these types of transactions, but if you’re that interested, go check out the brochure (PDF).

Consequences of bad choices trickle up

I don’t own my own home and am nowhere near saving up for a down payment for one. But at least my husband and I have a plan (save up at least $20,000 to $50,000 for a down payment, although I have no idea how we’re going to do it, and buy a house that isn’t in that crazy $500,000 range for a measly 3 bedrooms – give me a break!). Which is more than I can say for a lot of people who are caught up in this housing mess.

This entire mess, which has reverberated all the way up to the federal government, who are now going to meddle in what is supposed to be a free market, just supports the theory that people should do what’s right. Think of this as the butterfly effect, except that each action is a choice made by a person. Continue reading →

Prettiest library ever?

I’m pretty sure the Agoura Hills public library is the prettiest library in the county. When I went here a couple of weeks ago for the first time, I was shocked at how pretty it is. It’s location on Ladyface Court is relatively new — the library moved here (in the same complex as Agoura Hills City Hall) in October of 2001.

I mean, just look at this little walkway, on the edge of a circular courtyard. On a lazy day off, I can easily imagine coming out with my free library books and settling down on that bench to enjoy the sunset.

Secure in the belief that this is one of the prettiest libraries in the county, I set out to prove it with pictures. This is the entry of the library — I’m standing in the “Friends of the Library” section, where they keep stuff that’s for sale. Check out those woodsy eaves and the enticing shelves of CDs and DVDs available for borrowing. FYI, I tried to take these pictures on the down low, since I’m not entirely sure what the policy is on taking pictures at a public library. I was also not trying to look like a pedophile, thank you very much. Technically, I think you should be able to take pictures at a public library, since it is public property.

Here, among the shelves and turnstiles of popular fiction, there are study tables alongside windows that look out onto these great trees.

I love the decor of this library — its so welcoming. I think it actually looks more welcoming than Barnes & Noble or Borders, where so many — including myself — are guilty of spending way too much time, and thus too much money.

I shot the children’s section through shelves — it turned out pretty all right, and I didn’t get any kids in the picture. Whew.

So, with this post, I am issuing a challenge to other bloggers — get out and check out your local library. Take pictures and post them, and if you think they’re as welcoming and handsome as the Agoura Hills library, well, we’ll see. Why the challenge? Well, I tend to think we (not just blogger, everyone) don’t spend enough time in our libraries. Our counties and cities have spent a lot of money upgrading a lot of them, yet, we have no idea about them! So this challenge, in a way, is a shout out to my library and community and a way for you to do the same. Just, uh, be careful about taking those pictures.

Also, I think that the Central Library in downtown should be disqualified from the get go — obviously its a favorite for many. The point is for all of you to visit your local libraries and share them with the world.

And if you want to visit the Agoura Hills library yourself, its at 29901 Ladyface Court in Agoura Hills and is open Monday through Wednesday, 10 to 8, and on Thursday through Saturday from 10 to 5.