Zillow Neighborhood Advice Screenshot

Zillow has rolled out something cool, and really beneficial for those thinking about moving to a new neighborhood or area. If you’re thinking of relocating to the Santa Clarita Valley or just a different part of it, then consider asking a Facebook friend who’s most familiar with the area.

With Zillow’s new Neighborhood Advice tool, you can now connect your Facebook account with your Zillow account. When searching potential areas to move to, or honing in on that one you’ve had your eye on, you can take a look at which of your Facebook friends are familiar with that area. And via a link that says, “Ask For Tips,” you can privately message your Facebook friend to get their opinion or advice on the neighborhood particulars.  Zillow Neighborhoods take the Facebook check-ins of your friends, and other data collected, to formulate which of your friends are most familiar with the area you’re searching.

This will be extremely useful for those of you thinking about relocating to the Santa Clarita Valley. You’re probably not very familiar with Santa Clarita and it’s various neighborhoods, however you may have some friends that are.

Usually friends like to chat about what they like, and don’t like about neighborhoods. This is an excellent option for homebuyers and those simply relocating to Santa Clarita who may rent. Realtors are sometimes perceived to be bias, or out for a quick buck (damn Realtors), so this opens up the door for the consumer to easily ask their friends for their thoughts in addition to that of an agent.

Zillow has created the perfect way to give consumers more options in real estate and lifestyle searching.

Don’t have friends? (or Faceook?)

We’re here to help the friends of the friendless. As local Santa Clarita real estate experts, and, having lived in the Santa Clarita Valley for a combined 60+ years, us guys at The Robert and Brian Team are well positioned to give you some excellent insight into this great place…the SCV! Contact us anytime @ 661-964-1760 or just shoot us a note here.

PS.. while we’re on the topic of Facebook (sorta), please LIKE our page! (shameless we are)

While we sell Santa Clarita real estate, and are experts when it comes to the 4 walls and roof stuff, one of the most common questions posed to us agents is in regards to traffic conditions and commute times! It’s true!

With Santa Clarita being so close to Los Angeles, many Santa Claritans, and those looking to relocate to the Santa Clarita Valley, have the need to commute to the LA areas for work.

How Long Is The Commute To…?

Now you can consult Walk Score for the answer!  Walk Score is a website that offers information about how close (or far) any one address is from places such as stores, parks, schools, restaurants, and…you get the point. They relate the addresses proximity via a score of 0-100. The larger the number, the more pedestrian friendly the address inputted. Walk Score has become an integral part of real estate listings online. Often times the Walk Score shows up right next to a price, or other key information about a home. Walk Score now offers a new metric…commute time!

If you’re new to an area, or just considering how long it takes to drive from one end of town to the other, Walk Score’s Commute Report can easily assist you. Just type in your address on the home page, or an address you’re considering to rent/purchase, then click the Your Commute tab. There you’ll input the address you commute to, to render the Commute Report and all of its wonderful information.

It’ll tell you how long it’d take you to walk there.

It’ll tell you how long it’d take to bike there.

And, most useful, how long it’d take to drive there!

Is There Traffic at ___ Time?

Now if only the Commute Report at Walk Score actually told you what the commute would be at various times of day, or at a time you inputted as your commute time. That’d be cool! Perhaps they’re reading this and will add that? 

Thinking of relocating to Santa Clarita? Will you be commuting for work? Curious about how long it takes to get from point A to point B? We can still answer these questions for you. It’s what we do. And having lived in the Santa Clarita Valley our entire lives, we know a thing or two about it! Contact us here at The Robert and Brian Team, let’s connect about your commute…and maybe even homes?

Around here, we pay the Santa Clarita Sunshine Tax. It’s baked into most prices. Most communities around the United States get a fair amount of sunshine during the spring and summer. And their cost of living isn’t affected, too much.

Come to Southern California, however, and the cost of living goes up. Why?

BAM!

Sunny. Not a cloud in the sky. Visibility for miles. Oh, and it’s 81 degrees here in the Santa Clarita Valley on January 5, 2012. I’ve come to the conclusion, that we’re either really blessed here in Southern California, or the world really is ending in 2012? With temps like this, who cares? I say, let’s keep paying the Sunshine Tax here in Southern California, so long as Mother Nature keeps up the good work.

Santa Clarita in January 2012

January 5, 2012 - Valencia, Ca temperature.

Santa Clarita Garden

Spring has sprung and there is a lot going on in the neighborhoods of Santa Clarita. From Saugus, to Newhall the rain is preparing our soil for planting and painting our hills with green. If you haven’t had a chance to get outside and enjoy our paseos and parks it is time to take advantage of it. If you are new to Santa Clarita, you are in for a treat! The weather is just about perfect (in between rain storms) for an amble with the pup of your choice or the person of your choice. You can also go off the beaten track we call paseos on to one of our many wonderful hikes.

Community Gardens of Santa Clarita

If you haven’t had a chance, stop by Central Park in Saugus and visit your local neighborhood gardeners. We have successfully opened our first garden site of the Community Gardens of Santa Clarita and the gardeners are in full swing. Everyone is gardening, taking classes, and helping one another. We are really creating a sense of community, so stop by and visit the plots are full right now but if we get enough interest the city might let us expand our project.

California Poppies

The poppies are starting to bloom in the valley and soon it will be time to drive up north to the Antelope Valley and enjoy the scenery. Until then, it’s a great time to plant those 4” pots of poppies that you will find at Green Thumb Nursery on Newhall Avenue when you come over on Saturday March 26, 2011 to listen to Tami Smight and Julie Molinare (me) present a Complimentary Design Seminar called “Make Your Garden Sing” at Green Thumb’s Spring Opening. We would love to meet you, give you tips and have you enter the raffle. Green Thumb offers great prizes, and a discount on all items purchased on Saturday.

Make Your Garden Sing with Tami Smight & Julie Molinare

March and April are prime gardening time in Santa Clarita, so you can begin buying new plants, fertilizing, planting fruit trees, planting vegetable crops, going to one of the many tomato events that are starting to pop up, and putting a nice new layer of mulch down. This is your spring wake up call, time to get out there and enjoy Santa Clarita’s wonderful weather!

As part of my job, I like to be hip with what’s happening in the SCV. When I sell homes, it’s not just about the walls and roof. It’s about the lifestyle options the area offers, too. You know, culture. With that in mind, I made plans to attend the SCV Food Truck Festival that was taking place at Central Park, in Saugus. For those out of area peeps, Saugus is in Santa Clarita, Ca.

I was not only attending, but I was attending with my best friend who happens to be a culinary expert and guru. He was going to edu-muh-cate me about everything I was to devour since most of the dishes have funny names to a guy like me, like Banh Mi (or something). These are gourmet food trucks, after all.

The event had originally been scheduled for February 19, 2011, but had been postponed, due to rain. All that, only to have been rescheduled for a week later, and a snow day, of all days. That just never happens in Santa Clarita. Needless to say, us Santa Claritans were pretty cold, as it was freezing. Literally.

In my opinion, this weather factor, kept the crowd down somewhat. The lines weren’t that bad. We had arrived right before 12pm. There was a long line to get in. It went fairly fast. And it was all calories, from that point on. About 4 hours of pure consumption, with occasional breathing. And drinking. There was a beer tent. We couldn’t turn that down, regardless of outside temps. The longest line we stood in, was for the Nom Nom truck. I wasn’t that impressed, but I was happy to try it and even wait for the experience. I was really disappointed that the Kogibbq truck wasn’t there. That’s really the only food truck I had been to, before this food truck festival. Despite that, there were plenty of great dishes. I loved the LA Balls truck, Kotaco truck, bool truck was awesome, and to top it all off with the chunk-n-chip truck was heaven.

It was an amazing day. I had never attending anything like it before. To have almost 40 different varieties of food, that to me, is put together like art, is simply a cool experience. Here’s to hoping that the 40 food trucks, come back, and come back often! I’d pay the cover charge ($5+small fee) each week to have those dining options.

Now, time to run off all of those calories. Really.

Enjoy some of the sites from the Santa Clarita Food Truck Festival:

We had a blast hanging out at the Santa Clarita Art Walk in Old Town Newhall, last Thursday. The event, which is now slated for the first Thursday of each month, consisted of farmers market vendors, art gallery show inside the Repertory East Theater, gourmet food trucks, and of course, arts and craft type vendors/booths.

As the sun started to set, the crowd began to grow. It was nice seeing so many people, in what has been in my opinion, until now, a much forgotten part of town. Old Town Newhall is making a come back! And I’m definitely glad to see it. Hopefully one day, our team can contribute in some small real esatate-e type of way, to its growth.

Cool sun, food truck dishes, fresh produce, art exhibits, and a $3 El Trocadero margartia to top off the night. It was great. Thank you to the Santa Clarita Art Walk hosts for putting it together.

Here are a few scenes, from our vantage point! See you there, next month.

UPDATE: The city’s This Week In Santa Clarita just posted this video about the Santa Clarita Art Walk/Farmers Market on the first Thursday of each month.

Finally, after a rare 20 plus year cold weather pattern hit the Santa Clarita Valley yesterday, we have a bit of pictorial proof, that the Santa Clarita Valley can indeed receive inclement weather. Nevermind that the fact that it’s weather that any northwest, midwest, or east coast state would laugh at. This is California, what do you expect? When our palm trees are covered with snow, it’s a big deal. So, carry on.

View of Santa Clarita Valley Mountain Landscape

View of Santa Clarita Valley Snow-Capped Mountains

We like to Mountain Bike Ride here at The Robert & Brian Team. We like it, a lot. So, we decided to make an annual event of one of our favorite past times.

Introducing the 1st Annual New Years SCV Mountain Bike Ride.

Where: Tapia Canyon Trails in Castaic. Meet at the Castaic Sports Complex parking lot. Turn in, and make first right in the parking lot. That’s where we’ll be.

How: Bring your bike, and gear (helmet, water pack/bottle, gloves). Depending on weather, it may be smart to bring optional warm clothing.

Time: January 9, 2011. 8am. We will head out to the trails at about 8:30am.

The ride total will be about 15 miles long. About half of that is uphill. The other half is fun as heck downhill singletrack. Great for beginners, and experienced level riders.

We, the guys at The Robert and Brian Team, ride these trails every weekend. Come join us, and we’ll show you the way.

Disclaimer: Mountain Biking can be dangerous, and we are not responsible for your well being or safety by joining us in this ride. It is private property that is always open to Mountain Bike riders, and has become a very popular place to ride. And we hope it stays that way. Any huge group of riders would probably have to be run by the property owners, but we know this will be a small group.

Benefit: In the spirit of kicking off the year right, and having some fun, we thought it was also best to give back. We ask that by joining, you also bring a check made payable to the: Santa Clarita Valley Food Pantry in the amount of $15. You can donate more if you have the means. It’s a worthy charity, and they do a great service for the Santa Clarita Valley and its residents in need of help.

SIGN UP BELOW!

Thanks to all those who showed up, and helped us bring in the New Year with a great ride for an awesome cause. Enjoy the photos below! We look forward to next years ride!

By far the best place to check out a festive display of Christmas Lights in Santa Clarita, is over in the Saugus area, at Wakefield Ct. It’s right off of Copper Hill. Just turn on Courtland Way, and you’re there.

Santa Clarita's Very Own Candy Cane Lane!

Lights, everywhere! From street light to street light, to the lawns, to the roofs, to the cars. It feels as if there isn’t a single square foot of space outside that Southern California Edison is providing electricity to. It’s really beautiful, and the kids dig it. If you’re planning on checking it out, and you should, go on the weekend. It’s packed. And that’s the cool part, because you don’t see that everyday. There are lines of cars going about 1MPH down the street. Bumper to bumper, headlights off to enhance the experience for all. You’ll even see cars that are decked out and decorated as well as you pass them by.

Homeowners are all in on this festivity. Many of them hangout in the front of their house, like it’s a street party, warming up to portable fire pits on their driveways. I also noted a few people capitalizing on the experience, selling mistletoes for a dollar each. Another family had their garage open and they were playing their piano and drums, belting out holiday tunes.

Wakefield Ct - decked out car becomes an attraction

Some people park their car on Wakefield Ct, and get out to walk the entire street. Some park off the street in a separate area due to the congestion. It doesn’t really matter. I think you’ll enjoy the experience, walking it, or driving it.

If not this year, perhaps in 2011, you’ll check out Santa Clarita’s own Candy Cane Lane – Wakefield Winter Wonderland! Check out the photo below. Even Google got into the action at some point during the day, and snapped a photo of the street entrance, during the holidays. You can see the giant sized candycanes lining the street.

Even Google Visited Wakefield Winter Wonderland!

Check out my slideshow of what amounted to be just average photos, taken from a moving car, on the night I visited Wakefield Ct in Saugus with the family.

FLICKR SLIDEHOW – WAKEFIELD CT, SAUGUS, CA:

I’d like to give a BIG thank you to all of the homeowners/residents who collaborate to put this together. It’s an asset to the community.

Now how can I tie this to real estate? Let me start by saying, while I was driving through the extravaganza, my 5 year old son said, “Dad, I want to live on this street.” Could it be, that home values on this one particular street, could actually be higher, because of an added demand from people who’d love to be a part of putting this type of a show on for the public? I mean, it would be pretty cool to say that you grew up on that street. Cool memories, right? Unless you’re the hermit type. I’m sure its crossed more than one persons mind. With that said I was just looking at a real estate listing (old one) on this street, and it was actually disclosed in the private remarks of the Santa Clarita MLS that Wakefield Ct is a tourist attraction. Essentially warning buyers and their agents about the hoopla that happens every December. Interesting.

If you’re interested in viewing homes for sale in the community that Wakefield Ct is a part of – Ridge View tract of Saugus, just click that link. It’s a pretty low inventory community. There may not be any for sale at the time you’re checking.

Sometimes we’re all a little too busy to stop, and check out the beautiful surroundings of this place we call home, the Santa Clarita Valley.

I was reminded of this today when I stumbled across this video that features amazing time lapse photography of the San Francisco Bay area:

The Unseen Sea from Simon Christen on Vimeo.

While the San Francisco Bay area is quite different from the Santa Clarita Valley, and has some amazing features such as the bustling city, sky scrapers, and the San Fran Bay itself, I know…that beauty also exists here in the Santa Clarita Valley.

We pass by it everyday. Sure, it may not be contained at the intersection of Soledad Canyon Rd and Sierra Highway, but, it’s here. The Santa Clara River, the Santa Susana Mountains, the numerous Oak Trees, vibrant parks, Castaic Lake, Placerita Canyon, Bouquet Canyon Waterfalls, the Valencia Paseos, and much , much more.

Sometimes we like to think the grass is always greener, somewhere else. I challenge that our grass, here in the Santa Clarita Valley is quite green, and worth paying attention to. I don’t think we need time lapse photography from the top of a mountain to find it, either.