2010 May

#4 Free Summer Movies at the Simi Valley Civic Center Regal Theaters 365 Things to do in Simi Valley

May 31, 2010 By Ted Mackel 1 Comment

Looking for things to do in Simi Valley? What a great way to beat the Simi Valley Summer heat with Free Summer Movies at the Simi Valley Civic Center Regal Theaters.

The Civic Center Regal Theaters is offering free movies at 10:00 am on Tuesdays and Wednesdays as listed below during the Summer Family Film festival. Tickets and seating are first-come, first-served and are limited to theatre capacity. You can pick up tickets at the Box Office the day of the show.

Civic Center Stadium 16 & IMAX
2751 Tapo Cyn Road
Simi Valley ,CA 93063
805-526-0232

06/15/2010-06/16/2010 Kit Kittredge: American Girl (G) Alvin And The Chipmunks Squeakquel (PG)

06/22/2010-06/23/2010 Tale of Despereaux (G) The Spy Next Door (PG)

06/29/2010-06/30/2010 Paul Blart: Mall Cop (PG) Surf’s Up (PG)

07/06/2010-07/07/2010 Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs (PG) The Waterhorse (PG)

07/13/2010-07/14/2010 Madagascar 2 (PG) Where The Wild Things Are (PG)

07/20/2010-07/21/2010 Doogal (G) Night At The Museum II (PG)

07/27/2010-07/28/2010 Curious George (G) Monsters Vs. Aliens (PG)

8/03/2010-08/04/2010 Hotel For Dogs (PG) Planet 51 (PG)

08/10/2010-08/11/2010 Charlotte’s Web (G) Imagine That (PG)

Filed Under: 365 Things to do in Simi Valley Tagged With: Civic Center, Film Festival, Free Movies, Regal Theaters, Simi Valley

#3 Santa Susana Train Depot & Museum 365 Things to do in Simi Valley

May 30, 2010 By Ted Mackel Leave a Comment

(Video Below) The Santa Susana Train Depot & Museum is a major historical landmark for Simi Valley. Constructed by Southern Pacific Railroad in 1903, this was a typical design used for a Southern Pacific railway station with living quarters for the station operator upstairs. Until the spring of 1904 all trains traveling to Los Angeles had to go west out of Simi Valley and then be transferred onto the line that would go out through Santa Paula into the Saugus Newhall area. The Construction of the tunnel through the Santa Susana Mountains in the Chatsworth began in 1900 and was not completed until the spring of 1904.

The Santa Susana Train Depot was originally located at Tapo Street and Los Angeles Ave. The Depot served passengers and freight and also was a communication hub for the community with telegraph and telegram service. The Santa Susana Train Depot remained in service until 1963 and in 1973 was sold to the Rancho Santa Susana Park District for one dollar. In 1974 the depot was moved at a cost of $70,000 to the east end of Simi Valley. The Depot sat to the location at Katherine for close to 10 years before any renovation was done to the building. The structure suffered from vandalism, graffiti and fire.

The renovations took place from 1983 ending in 1996 with its opening to the public. The station now serves as a museum. The ticket house and office resembles a scene from 1930s. A section the main structure is operated by the Santa Susana Railroad Historical Society which maintains an HO scale model train which resembles the Simi Valley area during the 1950s. The SSRHS operates trains on weekends for the public. Private tours are available. The back end of the structure is large open area which can be rented for meetings or groups. The building is well-maintained by the Rancho Simi Foundation and volunteers. It is one of the few remaining original structures of its kind. This is a great educational outing for the entire family. The station house has many buttons to push that operate signals, the telegraph and telegram machines; lots of fun for kids of any age (even us older ones) and definitely a must see for Simi Valley.

For information on times, location and events please visit

Rancho Simi Foundation

Santa Susana Railroad Historical Society

Filed Under: 365 Things to do in Simi Valley Tagged With: 365 things to do, museum, Santa Susana, Simi Valley, southern pacific railroad, train depot

#2 Hit Balls at the Simi Hills Driving Range 365 Things to do in Simi Valley

May 28, 2010 By Ted Mackel Leave a Comment

(Video Below) The Simi Hills Driving Range is open late. How Late? 9:00 pm or an hour after dark. The range opens at dawn. I have a bunch of athletic kids and they wanted to come out with me. The Simi Hills Driving Range and Golf Course supports junior golf and has buckets of balls at $2.50 for those under 18. The discount bucket is for 50 balls. The facilities also has a large well maintained putting green for some practice after hitting balls on the range. The website and information for the Simi Hills Golf Course and Driving range is at www.simihillsgolf.com

View Larger Map

Filed Under: 365 Things to do in Simi Valley, Local Events & Activities Tagged With: 365 things to do, driving range, Golf Course, Simi Hills, Simi Valley

365 Things To Do In Simi Valley- New Section on my Blog

May 25, 2010 By Ted Mackel 4 Comments

Yes, that’s right, I’m opening a new section on my blog entitled 365 things to do in Simi Valley. I know this is an ambitious project and will probably create an extra workload, but as a resident of Simi Valley since 1986 and a local real estate agent, my friends, family and clients are always interested in things to do in the area.

I’m not even sure if there’s 365 show-stopping things to do in our town Simi Valley so I may venture outside the city boundaries for things that are close and fun. I know of many things that are not particularly related to individual small businesses, but I will focus on many of the small businesses in our Town Simi Valley as well. One more bar to set as a goal for this section is I hope to provide a video post for almost all the places I visit. I use the Internet myself as a tool to learn about things and places I go to, investigate businesses I plan to patronize and many times the information provided on the Internet is pretty vanilla.

If you own a business in Simi Valley and want to be part of place I visit please e-mail, call, contact me on twitter or Facebook will be happy to set up a time for visit. Please remember I’m not interested in creating a commercial, the people in Simi Valley, those people moving the Simi Valley were visiting Simi Valley want to get to know you, your organization or your business.

For my readers please feel free to use comment section on any of the posts and please remember to be cordial as this is supposed be fun and a place for all of us to share about the great places in and around Simi Valley.

Filed Under: 365 Things to do in Simi Valley, Local Events & Activities, Simi Valley News Tagged With: 365 things to do, Simi Valley

Simi Valley Homes For Sale Market Report for April 2010

May 17, 2010 By Ted Mackel Leave a Comment

Simi Valley homes for sale for the month of April 2010 had a slight uptick. The gain in average sales price and the slight gain in the total number of Simi Valley homes sold, is largely related to the federal tax credit that expired April 30. Effects from the federal tax credit will be seen in the Home sales reported for May and June as part of the tax credit regulation required that Simi Valley home buyers have a property in escrow by April 30 but close their escrows by June 30.

Still looking at the charts below you can see that the action is in the lower end of the markets as this trend has continued over the last year. Even-though the tax credits have given us a little positive momentum there is still quite a bit of softness in home pricing throughout Simi Valley. A property I sold in May, in the Simi Valley Oakridge Estates, dropped below 2003 prices. Another property I am working on in the Madera Hills Tract would’ve had higher offers last fall than what we’ve been seeing this last week.

What has become significant in the Simi Valley market is the number of short sales occurring. Most of the listing calls I’m getting at this point are coming from people who need to short sell their property. While I work with plenty of equity sellers, short sales create their own drag on the overall market.

This is a Quick Graph of the Volume of Simi Valley Home Sales by Month since 2003 for single family detached homes. If you follow the chart you can see that the May, June and July figures all stay pretty close over the last couple years beginning after 2007. The news such as papers and TV reports on a much larger regional scale which lump the sales data for very large areas into one report. If you’re planning to buy or sell a home in Simi Valley, you need to know what’s going on in Simi Valley in order to come up with a strong strategy. Please bookmark or subscribe to this blog so you can see what is going on locally in Simi Valley.

Search for Homes in Simi Valley California

Thanks for reading Simi Valley’s Premiere Real Estate Blog!
Author – Ted Mackel Simi Valley Real Estate Agent – Keller Williams Realty
Ted Mackel is a top producer at Keller Williams Realty Simi Valley,
specializing in Simi Valley Real Estate
(805) 432-7705

Filed Under: Market Updates Tagged With: Home Buyers, Home Sellers, homes for sale, Market, Market Report, real estate, Short Sale, Simi Valley

Mackel Family Legacy for Southern California Real Estate

May 12, 2010 By Ted Mackel 5 Comments

My uncle Larry has been the unofficial Mackel family historian. When my grandfather died in 1992, Larry was very good at bringing out many artifacts from my grandfather’s youth. One of the more interesting items was his savings account passbook from Security Pacific National Bank and it was fun in looking at the kind of deposits and withdrawals my grandfather would make as a young man around the time of the first world war and in the 1920s. Along with the treasure trove items was this newspaper clipping taken from the LA Times in 1932.

My great-grandfather James Mackel immigrated from Ireland to Los Angeles in 1882. The family story claims that his move from public service into real estate was prompted by an accident while working a fire. As the story goes, he caught a survivor jumping off the second floor and broke both his arms. When my great-grandmother answered the door upon his arrival, she fainted and he could not catch her. James Mackel’s youngest son, John (my grandfather), bucked the tradition and attended the University of Michigan where he obtained a degree in structural engineering. While running a successful engineering and architectural firm in Los Angeles, he did purchase real estate investments with my grandmother Maguerite, however, it was not until my father graduated from USC with a degree in business emphasizing in Real Estate, did we have a broker back in the family.

Being a 3rd generation native son of Los Angeles and southern Californian is something I am very proud of and the wonderful history my family has had in southern California makes me even prouder to call southern California my home.

Filed Under: Real Estate News Tagged With: 1932, LA Times, Los Angeles, mackel, real estate, southern california

Free Drop off Day for Simi Valley Residents at the Simi Valley Landfill this Sunday May 16th

May 10, 2010 By Ted Mackel 1 Comment

Attention Simi Valley Residents: If you want to keep off the show “Hoarders” well this may be your chance. The Simi Valley Landfill is having a free drop off day to bring in your items.

What can you bring?

Your Garbage. Appliances, clean concrete and asphalt, clean wood and greenwaste, and construction or demolition material will also be accepted for recycling. Please separate recyclable materials from rubbish so it can be recycled and not end up in the landfill.

What you cannot bring:

No commercial waste, hazardous waste, liquids, tires, household batteries, products containing mercury (such as thermometers and thermostats), or fluorescent light tubes and bulbs will be accepted.

How About Electronic Waste?

Goodwill Industries will be on site collecting gently used items for donation and electronic waste (such as televisions, computers, etc.)

Requirements:

Don’t get a ticket on the way to the Simi Valley Landfill; the Highway Patrol requires all loads to be covered to prevent spillage. You will need proof of Simi Valley residency, such as a driver’s license with a Simi Valley address. Residents must unload their own vehicles. This event is for residents and nonprofit organizations only.

Location, Date and Times:

2801 Madera Road, on Sunday, May 16, 2010, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Filed Under: Simi Valley News Tagged With: drop off, Electromic waste, Simi Valley Landfill, Simi Valley residents

Wachovia World Savings Streamlines Short Sales for Simi Valley Home Owners in Distress

May 5, 2010 By Ted Mackel 1 Comment

You’re in luck if you have a Wachovia or World Savings home loan and you are facing a short sale as your only option. There is a local representative for Wachovia assigned to the Simi Valley – east Ventura County area covering into the San Fernando Valley including the Santa Clarita areas. This process is unlike any other in the industry.

First, call or text me at (805) 432-7705 and I will come over with a comprehensive Market Evaluation and Marketing Plan for your home. After we list your home for sale, I contact the Wachovia Rep directly who will then schedule an appointment to meet with you in your home and discuss your hardship in person. This in person meeting is extremely important and I believe a welcome step by Wachovia. When the bank representatives can see the property and the condition and directly hear your hardship case, it helps tremendously when we try to justify an offer price from potential buyers.

The sets up essentially a conditional pre-approved Short Sale. Part of the Wachovia plan is to turn around approval on an acceptable offer in 7 days. Currently the process with most banks I have worked with take more than four weeks and in many cases 6 to 8 weeks to obtain approval. Keeping buyers interested during these long approval times has been the biggest problem in the short sale process. Buyers get tired of waiting and many times move on to different properties by the time the approvals come through.

Another advantage to the Wachovia system is that they require very little paperwork to move forward with short sale. All the other lenders I’m working with now require detailed financial data where Wachovia is not making this a requirement. If you are considering Short Sale as one of your options and you have a Wachovia or World Savings Home Loan, this is the opportunity to forward.

To understand the short sale process better please read

Thanks for reading Simi Valley’s Premiere Real Estate Blog!

Author – Ted Mackel Simi Valley Real Estate Agent – Keller Williams Realty

Ted Mackel is a top producer at Keller Williams Realty Simi Valley,

specializing in Simi Valley Real Estate

(805) 432-7705

Filed Under: short sales Tagged With: San Fernando Valley, santa clarita, Short Sale, Simi Valley, Wachovia, world savings

Ted makes a guest apperance on the Cindy Dole Home Wizards Show KFWB 980 am

May 4, 2010 By Ted Mackel 1 Comment

Saturday, May 1, 2010 (Los Angeles) - I was given the privilege of a guest spot on the Cindy Dole Home Wizards Show on KFWB 980 am. The show airs every Saturday morning from 8 AM to 10 AM. Cindy covers a variety of topics on home improvement and gardening. I’ve always been a fan of talk radio and prefer to listen to talk radio over other programming. Cindy Dole’s Home Wizards Show, is great programming for Saturday morning that I can turn on my transistor radio while working around my home or listen in my car on a Saturday morning on the way to meet clients and show property.

It’s no secret that people love the topics of real estate and home improvement. Some my most read articles on my blog are home improvement articles. Cindy’s show this time moved away from home improvement and gardening and focused in on a very serious topic related to home ownership and that topic was reminiscing events of the 1994 Northridge earthquake and the preparation for future earthquakes in Southern California. Two important issues came to surface immediately. First, was understanding that Northridge type events are more common for those of us in Southern California. Examples would be the Whittier Narrows earthquake, the San Fernando/ Sylmar earthquake, etc.

The second issue that came to surface from the experts was that they believe a section of the San Andreas fault between Palm Springs and Palmdale has a high probability rupture in the next 30 years. The difference between an earthquake generated from the San Andreas fault versus our more recent events is that a much larger magnitude quake accompanied by longer shake times (up to two minutes) – will most likely occur.

: My Brother Pete’s Bed with the chimney on top – seconds after he got out of the way

In sharing my experiences during the 1994 Northridge Earthquake and sitting in studio with the experts I quickly realized that 16 years has passed, which has created some complacency in my own preparation. This is an important topic to stay in touch with to make sure your home is safe, that you have enough supplies for several days and that you have adequate insurance in case of loss.

Good news for those of you contemplating purchasing a home. Sellers now supply a natural hazards disclosure report prepared by a third-party company that shows where fault lines and liquefaction zones are located in relation to the property you are planning to purchase. Other hazards such as flooding and fire zones are included in that report as well. If your home is located in one of these hazard zones, it helps to know so you can plan accordingly and be prepared for future likely events.

Also mandatory retrofit items for Ventura County / Simi Valley Home Sellers include water heater bracing and in Los Angeles County a earthquake shutoff valve for your natural gas service.

The player below is the recording of Saturday’s Show. You can subscribe to Cindy’s Show on iTunes or listen live every Saturday Morning at 8:00 am on KFWB 980 am.

If you can’t see the player for the show above here is the link

Cindy Dole Home Wizards Show on KFWB 980 am May 1st Earthquake Special

Make sure to Follw Cindy on Twitter @CindyDole

Also Cindy has a Facebook Page Cindy Dole on Facebook

And of course her webpage www.CindyDole.com

Northridge Earthquake 15 year Aniversary

Simi Valley Earthquake Preparedness Emergency Gas Shut Off

Simi Valley Earthquake Preparedness Water Heater Bracing

Cindy Dole’s Remembering Northridge Quake 1994

Filed Under: Home Improvement, Home Safety, Real Estate News Tagged With: 1994, Cindy Dole, Home Wizards, KFWB, KFWB 980 AM, Northridge Earthquake

Ding Dong the Witch is Dead – 1st Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Expires

May 2, 2010 By Ted Mackel 1 Comment

Friday, April 30th – The 1st time home buyer tax credit expired at midnight June 30, 2010. Stick a fork in it’s done! Ding dong the witch is dead! Hallelujah!

Okay what’s wrong with me? While the first-time home buyer’s tax credit was designed to stimulate the market and I’m sure you could probably find a few parts of the country where this did occur, but in Simi Valley California the first time home buyer tax credit had very little impact if any on the sale of homes in the last year and a half (see table of Single Family detached homes sold in Simi Valley).

Simi Valley Homes Sold from 2006 through April 2010

The 2010 first-quarter sales of Simi Valley homes saw a sluggish start. If the tax credit was the panacea then why did sales dramatically tail off after a record breaking December? While it looks like April 2010 sales picked up and will close out strong; the lesson here is that the increased activity we are seeing in April and that will follow in May and June, is deadline related. The deadline is what’s motivating these buyers to pull the trigger. Since there was no threat of losing the tax credit, buyers continued to flounder around and be critical of their purchase until the deadline drew near.

In California we have two more deadlines. Those taking advantage of the first-time home buyer tax credit only needed to get a home under contract by midnight of June 30, 2010. The next step, especially important if that home under contract was a short sale, is to get that escrow closed before June 30, 2010 to qualify for that tax credit. The second deadline will be the end of the year for those purchases in the state California. California in its infinite wisdom and expert money management activities at the state capital (sarcasm intended), has seen fit to offer $10,000 tax credit to home buyers for the remainder of 2010.

For those that took advantage of the tax credit, congratulations! For those who feel they may have missed out, I can only say that the government, my industry and the banking industry will fail big time if they try to force a market. There are many problems lingering in the markets, far too large to continue with tax credits. My phone rang more this weekend after the tax credits expired than it did in the last several weekends, I think that those planning to buy will still be able to find good properties for bargain pricing. Patients is all you need as a buyer for Simi Valley properties.

Thanks for reading Simi Valley’s Premiere Real Estate Blog!

Author – Ted Mackel Simi Valley Real Estate Agent – Keller Williams Realty

Ted Mackel is a top producer at Keller Williams Realty Simi Valley,

specializing in Simi Valley Real Estate

(805) 432-7705