Aliexpress is a Bargain

Here are my 11-11 orders check out the prices.  These are just everyday items.  The difference is waiting or anticipating instead of having to buy locally saves 80-90%.  10 inch iPhone cords for 81¢.  10 ft iPhone cord for $3.52.  Plastic micrometer less than a buck.  LED bulbs for my Maglite flashlights $2.87.  The savings in batteries alone justifies what looks like a high price.  Dremel accessories, x-acto knives, all for pennies.  Most will be stocking stuffers for the kids. 

Sign of a Market Top

Wow, it's been a while since we talked about peak pricing. Long time readers know I am slow to supper but I rarely miss the meal. Here is someone making a last call.

 

Built in 1922 the best you can say is well maintained and quaint.   I can hit this cutie with a snowball from one of my rentals. 

So.  What's the problem?  The problem is trying to squeeze the last nickel and being left holding the bag. See the price history below.  $352 per square foot and a lot of those square feet are 6 1/2 foot ceilings.  On a small lot.  On the "low side" of the street.  If $140k was a fair price in 2012 what in the world is $360k in 2018? 

Date	Event	Price		$/sqft	Source
7/26/2018	Price change	$359,900	-1.4%	$352	Country Life Realty
5/23/2018	Listed for sale	$364,900	+160.6%	$357	Country Life Realty
1/4/2012	Sold	$140,000	+15.7%	$137	Public Record
1/17/2002	Sold	$121,000	--	$119	Public Record

Fires Everywhere

This is Thursday 8:00 AM looking north from the Dawghaus.  Briggs Fire. 

This was the panorama looking south from the Camarillo airport at the Woolsey Fire as it approached Malibu.

Floral Interlude

From the NYC Botanical Gardens

Later today, election predictions that look almost like Firemane's and the CoreLogic report Sept Housing. 

Leaving Los Angeles

From the ever declining in quality MarketWatch:

A decade ago, the communities inland from Los Angeles became the poster children of the housing bubble. As real estate agents urged clients to “drive until you qualify,” the communities of Riverside County filled with eager house-buyers who weren’t afraid of 90-minute commutes – each way.
Then the economy crashed, jobs dried up, the loosey-goosey mortgages people had relied on to finance their purchases stopped cooperating, and the exurbs emptied out.
Now, that trend seems to be back. Californians are fleeing the high-cost cities and heading inland. Is it a sign of another bubble? Or a confirmation that the cutthroat housing market is turning some pricey cities into gated communities?

 It isn't "price" so much "available at any price."  Greater Los Angeles has gotten so crowded (dense) that there is no new infill that makes sense.  No new supply. 

Don't be fooled by the colors.  Anything that isn't green is throughly urbanized. 

Huck Finn Lives

Check out this Craigslist since deleted post.

 

If you put in a couple thousand dollars of labor I will let you cart away the trash so you can pay to have it dumped.   

Any resemblance to modern urban redevelopment plans is coincidental. 

Museum Addicts Anonymous

Every one from a different museum. 

Housing v. Household Income Necessary

I don't believe it but this is the graphic (click for larger readable):

Here is the Website:  How Much?

More Vaca Pics

Classic coastal marshland.

Museum stuff.

Love the Sail and powerboats on the top deck. 

Time to head south?

Overcast.

Accidental selfie. 

Power tools sorta. 

The loves their seafood.

Scenic. 

Dangerous With a Camera

 A few pics.  You'll be begging me to stop before long. 

This lil feller greeted us at the fish docks.

A real libarry.

Chatham is shark obsessed. 

We ate in a lot.  This was omelets and fried potatoes. 

Water everywhere.  This dock can be yours for $4.5m.  You get a house too. 

The P-Town Lesbians beat the Cape cod gay Girls in grab football. 

Early GPS. 

Colors are very late this year. 

A brook. 

It isn't a vacation without off roading in a rental. 

Sometimes the traffic felt like this. 

Back From Fall Vacation

Bob Lee Knows What Endures

Bob Lee is an architect.  His works aren't steel towers but they are signature and worth consideration.  Here is a listing near the Dawghaus:

1263 Vista Del Cima

Camarillo, CA 93010 

4 beds 5 baths 4,910 sqft 

$1,999,000

 

 Welcome to this amazing Bob Lee contemporary, on a sprawling one acre with mosaic tile pool/spa, pool house with bath and loft, and putting green, at The Summit, in Las Posas Estates. The moment you walk through the front doors, your eyes will catch the most exquisite views, from every room, through enormous picture windows. Soaring high ceilings, corian countertops throughout, tasteful contemporary architecture including a 42 foot long sky light, and marble floors, seamlessly guide you through the 5,100 square foot home. Enjoy gorgeous views from the master suite, complete with ample built in cabinetry, his and hers walk in closets, jacuzzi tub, and large walk in shower. More amazing views from the giant great room, featuring a large fireplace with marble all the way to the ceiling. The dining room features incredible views through large picture windows, a built in buffet for entertaining, built in glass cabinetry, and gorgeous glass and marble dining table with eight chairs, specifically designed for the home will be included in the sale. Island kitchen includes built in Sub Zero fridge, Viking double oven, Gaggenau range with deep fryer and grill, walk in pantry, and more of those fabulous views of Camarillo. There is a den/office close to a powder room, and two large guest bedrooms with large ensuite baths down the hall. Large garage has upstairs playroom with closet. 11 flatscreen tv's mounted throughout the home included. Live happily ever after in Camarillo.

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What makes a "Bob Lee" notable?  Low density, high quality, single story, accessible.  Jim the Raeltor can tell you about the premium those often command.   Click on the address for more.  Note also; built in 1987.  First resale 1997.  This is only the second resale in 31 years. 

I Can Guess McCaskill's Vote

Happy 100th Holst's The Planets

100 years ago, a symphonic blockbuster was born in London. The Planets, by Gustav Holst, premiered on this date in 1918. The seven-movement suite, depicting planets from our solar system, has been sampled, stolen and cherished by the likes of Frank Zappa, John Williams, Hans Zimmer and any number of prog-rock and metal bands.

Read and listen at NPR.  

Pricey, Immobile, and Unequal

Housing in America may be a microcosm of the nation itself: a bit less dynamic, far more costly and uncomfortably more unequal than we’d like.

More at:  https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-state-of-the-nations-housing-stagnant-unequal-far-too-expensive-2018-06-19

Ventura County BioRegions

Not really a topical post so much as a backgrounder for people who don't have a clear idea of where I live.  This is a rough map of the microclimes and ecosystems of Ventura County. 

 

The Dawghaus is on the northern slope of what is here called "Camarillo Hills."   I've been to many of these biomes.  With lots of overlap they are as unique as Boston accents.