5 great reasons to live in Calabasas

If you have watched any reality TV lately you have probably heard of Calabasas.

What was once a sleepy little corner of the San Fernando Valley has become the must-live location for the rich, famous and infamous. These days everyone from the dreaded Kardashians to Drake to Justin Beiber call Calabasas home. Why?

Ex Hidden Hills mayor David Stanley described the community to The Hollywood Reporter in 2012:

“People are out walking, the kids gather at the community center to swim and BBQ, and once a year we put on a parade to celebrate the founding of our city—marching bands and all.”

You could be forgiven for assuming he was talking about Mayberry in the 1950’s. But this level of peace and safety is why people are flocking to this wonderful town.

Calabasas was not even incorporated until 1991 and occupies a little over 13 square miles. It boasts one of the best climates on the planet and a very young, well educated population; The median age is only 43 and 63% of residents have a bachelors degree.

Here are five other reasons that Calabasas should be on your list of places to consider if you’re thinking of relocating to (or within) Southern California.

Technology

The 90’s boom in internet startups saw many technology companies flock to Southern California. Many of them located in Calabasas, along Agoura road. So many companies moved in, for a time it was known as the 101 Technology corridor (The street runs parallel to 101 highway). Amgen, the huge Biotech company is just up the street and Alcatel-Lucent, Spirent and Digital Insight all have offices in the area.

The city itself is very pro-active in this regard and even has a Communications & Technology Commission whose mission is “to assure that Calabasas has up to date technologies that will enhance the quality of life for all at home, school, work and play.”

The Commission advises the City Council on various matters relating to the City’s cable television franchises, video services, telecommunications issues, communication technology, and other relevant emerging technologies.

Schools

Not only is Calabasas one of the safest areas in Southern California it also boast some of the best schools in the nation. Calabasas high school is ranked 77th out 1371 California public schools for college prep and 809th out of almost 20,000 public high schools in the country.

The Niche.com website ranks schools across the nation and if you do a search for Calabasas schools you’ll get over 200 results, the overwhelming majority are ranked either A or A+. The city prides itself on it’s excellent school system. Some of the award winning schools include:
Arthur E. Wright Middle School (which according to schooldigger.com is in the 90th percentile of all US Schools and Calabasas High which is in the 85th percentile

Environment

As you would expect from a well educated California town, Calabasas is extremely environmentally conscious. Some of the cities more notable efforts include;

In 2005 voters passed measure D to protect and preserve open space and parkland.
In 2011 The council passed Ordinance 282 which banned single use plastic bags.
That same ordinance mandated a 10c surcharge on paper bags.
Ordinance 233 banned retail food outlets from using expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) packaging.

The city also prohibits smoking in all public places in Calabasas including both indoor and outdoor spaces. It is a very healthy, environmentally forward-looking place.

There are 10 public parks within 20 minutes of Calabasas and the city itself is tree-lined and verdant.

The Pacific Ocean is just over the hill. Iconic beaches like Point Dume, Will Rogers State Beach, Topanga State Beach and Malibu are less than a 40 minute drive away. There are plenty more beaches within an hours drive of Calabasas

Home value

When you see an area where the rich and famous choose to live that’s usually an indicator that something good is going on there. This is the case with Calabasas; According to The LA Almanac the average home price has risen almost half a million dollars in 6 years. $412,400 dollars to be exact. So it’s easy to see why this is such a desirable location.

Apparently Drake is developing his own real estate empire in Calabasas, owning no less than three properties here.

Some other current or former Calabasas residents you may know include; Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Katie Holmes, Selena Gomez and Miley Cyrus.

Here’s a more in-depth explanation of why so may celebrities are calling Calabasas home

Home desirability

This month the number of active listings in Calabasas dropped by 12.7% from the previous month. And each month it seems there are fewer and fewer homes on the market. This is great news for anyone owning or selling a home! It increases the prices and shortens the average sale time. In fact Calabasas has one of the shortest Days on Market (DOM) in the country at 47.