Camarillo Life & Real Estate

There have been many reports regarding an increase in Southern California's 2008 Real Estate activity compare to 2007's Real Estate trends.

This summer, 2008, I was much busier with home buyers' inquiring about properties in Camarillo than last summer.  This could be correlated to an increase in bank owned/REO homes for sale and the lower pricing of bank owned/REO homes.

Below is a Comparable Real Estate Market Analysis for Camarillo. The table below demonstrates the number of homes sold and median home prices in the first 9 months of 2008 compared to the number of homes sold and median home prices in the first 9 months of 2007.

Source: Ventura County Regional Data Share.

It's amazing to see that there were no bank owned homes sold in the first 9 months of 2007!

The number of homes sold in Camarillo in the first 9 months of 2008  fell by 9%  over the same period last year.

Also, the median price of homes sold in Camarillo in the first 9 months of 2008 decreased by 19.75% compared to the same period last year.

See how Ventura County's Real Estate Market performed for the same period.

If you are interested in purchasing a home anywhere in Camarillo, don't hesitate to contact me: (805) 443-8898.

The National Red Ribbon movement is the leading drug prevention program across the nation, educating millions of our children about drug abuse during Red Ribbon Week.

From October 23-31, 2008 our children are encouraged to dress in red and wear the badge which reads "Say NO to Drugs". 

This year the Pleasant Valley School District (PVSD) and Camarillo Council PTA invites all students and their parents in Camarillo to attend The Red Ribbon Week Information Panel.

The guest speakers for this event are:

• Nancy Szakacsy: Founder of Stone Eagle Retreat in Malibu, California.
  
• Doug Szakacsy: Director of Health and Wellness at the Stone Eagle Retreat.
• Deputy Crone: Camarillo Youth Officer.
  

What to Expect at the Event:

• Learn about how to talk to your children about drugs and alchohol.
• Learn about what the Camarillo police are seeing in Camarillo.
• Learn about the signs of drug and alcohol abuse. 
• Learn about the ways to get help for your children in case of drug and alcohol abuse.

Location and Time:

Location: Rancho Rosal Elementary School, 3535 Village at the Park Drive, Camarillo.
Time: Wednesday, October 29, 2008 From 7:00pm-8:30pm.

Please note: some subjects discussed in the Red Ribbon Week Information Panel might not be suitable for students in Elementary grades.

It has taken me nearly a year to finally take the plunge and join the most talked about social network of our time, Twitter. Not because I did not believe the words of my fellow Active Rainers, but because I was troubled by the thought of spending more time on my computer. As it is my family complains about the amount of time I spend on my blog and the Rain, but I think the paychecks every now and then keep them happy. :0)

Anyway, I digress. Like any other adventure in my life, after joining Twitter (one month ago) I had to jump in and learn all there was to learn about this new phenomenon. What's so great about this place? All I see is a page with my picture and a brief bio I have created to the right? So now what?

After being on Twitter for an hour I found some AR members. Within 2 hours of my membership I had made a lunch date with Elaine Hanson!!! Wow, this place is pretty cool.

My quick search of Twitter Tools directed me to some of the most amazing sites dedicated to Twitter and third party developers who have created applications for Twitter. As a Realtor I am more interested in the business aspect of Twitter and the tools that make my discussions on Twitter easier.

So with no further ado here is a list of Twitter tools and applications I found helpful as a Tweeting Realtor:

  
Plugins:

• Twitt-Twoo: Allows you to update your Twitter status right from your blog's sidebar.
• Twitter Update: Sends an automatic update to your Twitter account when you post, edit, or update a Wordpress post.
• Google Toolbar button: Allows you to see your friends tweets on your Google toolbar for IE.

Maps:
Know where your followers and people you are following on Twitter are twitting from:

• GeoTwitter: Google map Based.
• Mibazaar: Google map Based.
• My Tweet Map: Google maps and twitter integration.
• Twitt Earth: A fancy spinning globe that shows tweets.
• TwitterMaps: google maps based.
• TwitterVision: google maps based.

Web Services:

• CrowdStatus: Allows you to organize your contacts into any group you like.
• GroupTweet: Allows you to send private messages to specific groups.
• PingTwitter: Allows you to automatically update your Twitter account when you publish a new post to your blog.
• Timer: You can set up an alarm for things you need to remember, e.g. my birthday.
• Twitzu: Allows you to broadcast your events to your followers. I think this would come in handy for open houses!!!
• Twitabit: Allows you to store your tweets when Twitter is down and posts them when Twitter is back up and running. 
• TwitThis: Allows people to tweet about your blog posts or website.
• TwitterShare: Allows you to share files less than 10 MB with other members (pictures, music, and videos).
• Twist: Allows you to see trends in Twitter.

Visual Aids:

• MobyPicture: Allows you to post pictures from your cell phone to your Twitter or Flicker acount. 
• TwitPic: Allows you to share pictures on Twitter from your phone or computer.

Widgets:

• BeTwittered: A Google Widget for Twitter.
• Spinlets: A Widget that displays Tweets.

And many, many more. The list above is just a few tools that I thought I would use for my business. If you want the 411 on Twitter tools please take the time and visit Mashable where you can find all that is new on the web, not just Twitter.

Happy Tweeting.

Real Estate Market Report For Las Posas Estates, September 2008

The communities such as Las Posas Hills, Sterlling Hills, and Spanish Hills are regions of Camarillo known as Las Posas Estates or area 43 by the Ventura County MLS.

This is a recap of real estate activities for Las Posas Estates in the month of September 2008.

Las Posas Estates Single Family Homes:

• Homes listed for sale in September 2008: 15
• Homes sold in September 2008: 3
• Average selling price of homes: $893,333
• Median selling price of homes: $990,000
• Average day on the market: 27
  
• Average selling price % of listed price: 98.62%

Currently there are 54 homes for sale in Las Posas Estates. From these homes for sale in Las Posas Estates, 7 are short sale homes and 1 is a bank owned/REO home.

Is this your neighborhood?

Has the current real estate market left your kids wondering what happened to your neighborhood?

Well, let's hope the new government bail out plan makes things better!!! ...if it doesn't, a less-intense sugar-buzz for our kids will be the least of our worries.

Picture By: Ed Stein, Rocky. Mtn.News

In Case you missed the notification from Pleasant Valley School District (PVSD), I am here to remind you that Wednesday October 8, 2008 is National Walk to School Day.

In 1997, the Partnership for a Walkable America sponsored the very first National Walk to School Day in Chicago. Since then, all 50 Stats have joined this annual event to promote one main cause, a more Walkable America. 

In our City of Camarillo schools such as Las Posas Elementary School will honor all students who participate in National Walk to School Day by presenting those students with a National Walk to School Day tag!


So, residents of Camarillo, I encourage you to join the rest of the country by walking your child to school for a healthier lifestyle, less traffic, cleaner air, and most importantly a chance for some bonding time.


Also, if while on your walk you happen to see a house that you wish to know more about, please don't hesitate to contact me, Mana Tulberg, your Camarillo Realtor: 805-443-8898.

While residents of Camarillo get ready to vote on Measure U in November 4, 2008, both Pleasant Valley School District (PVSD) and Oxnard Unified High School District (OUHSD) continue their spending on their lengthy legal battle.

Payment records from the PVSD and OUHSD show that both districts have spent more than $411,000 in legal fees related to the unification issue.  The PVSD has outspent OUHSD by paying $273,034 to their attorneys in the last 18 months.  This all happens while school budgets are being slashed and programs are being canceled in the district. (Source: Camarillo Acorn)

In our recent conversation with the OUHSD superintendent, Dr. Dunlap, we were informed that OUHSD has retained the land in Camarillo (adjacent to Camarillo Library) and has every intention to build a high school site on this location. OUHSD has postponed building Camarillo a new high school due to unification issues. In March of this coming year, 2009, the proponents of Camarillo Unification have a standing court date which accourding to Dr. Dunlap will again delay the promissed new high school in Camarillo by OUHSD.

Measure H will allow to construct, rehabilitate, modernize and or replace school facilities. This measure has already accepted 2 high schools for OUHSD one to be build in the city of Oxnard and the other in the city of Camarillo.

Dr. Dunlap declares that OUHSD has every intention of building two high schools. Which one will come first will be decided when the Unification issues are put to rest and Measure H Bond can be disscused by the OUHSD committee. Perhaps both high schools can be built at the same time, Dr. Dunlap stated, but those are issues to take up when Unification is off the table.

If you are interested in listening to Dr. Dunlap or ask her any questions regarding Camarillo Unification you are urged to attend the OUHSD Council Meeting at Adolfo Camarillo High School's Cafeteria on Wednesday October 8, 2008 at 6:30 pm.

My question to you is: Do you really think after spending some of our Tax Dollars on legal fees do any of these Districts, OUHSD and PVSD, have enough money to deliver what they have promissed.

Also, I would love to hear your thoughts on Measure U.

The poll below is designed so your thoughts (anonymously) on Camarillo Unification can be calculated and published before November 4, 2008.