Neighbor Goes Solar, Eliminates Electricity Bills

A 10-YEAR RESIDENT of Atwater Village recently converted his house to solar electricity. This is his story (and his photos):

"Last week I had 20 solar panels put on my roof that cover 100% of my electrical usage! DWP [Los Angeles Department of Water and Power] covered half the cost! I would love it if you could blog about it as I think there are loads of houses in this neighborhood that would be perfect for solar. You cannot even see them!

"Basically I generate enough electricity that I cover my electricity needs - so I will no longer have an electricity bill! I will only be paying for natural gas which is next to nothing. I have no batteries. The current goes into the neighborhood grid. The meter spins one direction when current flows in from the grid and the opposite direction when I am putting power back on to the grid. I only pay if I generate less than I use. My system is designed to generate 110% of my average usage based on my bills for the last two years.

"The company who did my install [Mimeos Sustainability Consultants] was great. They did all the paperwork for the rebates, handled the contractor and made the whole thing completely painless and transparent."

New Reviews of The Mews Housing Development

AFTER ITS grand opening last weekend, The Mews housing development in Atwater Village (4254 - 4310 Perlita Avenue) is getting some rave reviews.

Housing Watch reports, "A weekend open house brought out not only young couples but empty-nesters looking to downsize."

About the design: "Clean lines define the Mews' boxy shape outside; inside, the townhomes are light filled from numerous clerestory windows and large sliding doors that lead to small courtyards. Green building attributes include solar power panels that provide up to 1,000 kilowatts of electricity, bamboo flooring and driveways that are paved with grasscrete that allows for rainwater to return to the ground rather than into storm drains."

Any downsides? Maybe price: "List prices at The Mews start at $599,000, for the 1,500 to 1,600 square foot, three bedroom, two-and-a-half bath homes, with attached two-car garage, and reach up to $669,000, which is above comparable prices within the surrounding area."

And perhaps some of the immediate neighbors would deter homebuyers: "The neighborhood is dotted with 1920s bungalows, some behind iron bars and gates, some restored and updated. While close-in to Griffith Park (Beacon peak is in view), the neighborhood is mixed with well kept and tidy homes sited next to shoddy, stuccoed multi-family units."

• LA's New Modern-Home Subdivision (Housing Watch)
• Modular Green Solar Homes Open in LA (Jetson Green)
• The Mews Indoor/Outdoor Housing (official site)

Become a Landlord in North Atwater Village

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FOR SALE: A 4-unit apartment building in a formerly gang-ridden area of Atwater Village. The "garden style" building at 4031 Sequoia Street offers units with 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, hardwood floors (under carpet), patios and fireplaces.

• Listing: $599,000

Let's say you buy the place with a great 5 percent mortgage rate and 20 percent down. Your monthly payments would be about $2,500. Considering ongoing maintenance and management, would you make your money back if 4 tenants paid $1,000/month each? Would you pay that to live on Sequoia?

The Mews Grand Opening: Third Week of January

THE ECO-FRIENDLY, 23-unit housing development in North Atwater Village has set a tentative grand opening for the week of January 18, 2010. Units in The Mews, as the development is called, at 4254 to 4310 Perlita Ave., start at $599,000 for a 3-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom, 1,600-square-footer.

• More: The Mews Indoor/Outdoor Homes

Burnt House Was Location of 1985 Kirk Douglas Film

THROUGH AN INFORMATIVE reader comment we learn the Atwater Village house that caught fire last week was the location of "Amos," a 1985 made-for-TV movie starring Kirk Douglas. Look at a subtitled YouTube version. Perlita Avenue appears toward the end of the credits, around the 2:00 mark. And then take a look at how the house looked pre-fire on Google Street View. Good news: the commenter says the house will be rebuilt by summer.

LAFD Knocks Down Atwater Village House Fire

View Perlita Avenue Fire in a larger map

THE HOUSE FIRE was labeled "stubborn" and "heavy" at first, but 50 firefighters took just 24 minutes this afternoon to extinguish it at 3507 W. Perlita Avenue in Atwater Village. From LAFD's Twitter feed:

• Update #1: Structure fire through roof of 2-story home
• Update #2: 50 Firefighters battling stubborn fire with heavy attic involvement
• Update #3: Knockdown; 50 firefighters took just 24 minutes; No injury; Confined to 2nd floor and attic

MORE: In a later report from the LAFD, we learn one firefighter was injured with first- and second-degree burns. He was treated and released to remain off-duty. The cause of the fire "remains under active investigation."

Something Fishy for Sale on Sunnynook Drive

MORE TIDBITS about that 2-story $1,096,000 listing on Sunnynook Drive: Turns out the seller is a musician named Ginger Fish, a drummer for Marilyn Manson. The Real Estalker gives the lowdown and adds a fresh opinion about our neighborhood:

"The 3 bedroom and 2 bathroom house is located in a modest section of Los Angeles called Atwater Village, a neighborhood with a Silver Lake zip code that borders Glendale, Elysian Valley, Glassell Park, Los Feliz, and the sprawling Griffith Park. Being the hub in a geographic wheel certainly makes Atwater Village accessible to and from many parts of the Tinseltown but, as far as Your Mama and the Dr. Cooter are concerned, it's far to [sic] hot and smoggy for our delicate constitutions..."

Real Estalker's POV aside, the Fish house adds another note (with Beastie Boys, Eels, Black Eyed Peas) to the musical history of Atwater Village.

Fixer-Upper, Not Pooper-Scooper, on Glenfeliz Blvd.

Clear Instructions, originally uploaded by Atwater Village Newbie.

Atwater Village: 'Flat, Friendly, a Little Dull'

REAL-ESTATE BLOG Curbed LA takes a shot at Atwater Village in yesterday's post about an apparently overpriced $775,000 home on Glenhurst Avenue: If there's one neighborhood that causes people to go ballistic over prices, it's Atwater Village. Maybe it's the geography of the neighborhood: Real estate agents sneakily try and list the homes under "Los Feliz," perhaps thinking that Atwater is the next Los Feliz, the next upscale hood. No, Atwater is just Atwater: Flat, friendly, a little dull. There's a certain harsh truth to this, despite a spate of recent undull events. But maybe flat (wider streets, easier access, more parking), friendly (neighborly, hospitable, easy-going) and dull (stable, established, predictable) are just what couples and families want on our side of I-5. I guess when the crazy kids of Los Feliz get real jobs and real relationships and grow weary of waiting for Adrien Grenier to notice how cleverly they ask for Splenda at The Alcove, they might seek something flatter, friendlier and duller. Till then they should know that Curbed LA is hiring bloggers. I think they pay like $10 per post. Write about 77,500 posts and then maybe rethink that house on Glenhurst.

Take a Peek Around a Neighbor's House

THIS ONE IS at 3145 Madera Avenue in what we call South Atwater Village: $538,000 Built 1924 2 bedrooms 1 bathroom 1,018 square feet Garage

What Accounts for 'Starter Homes' Here in Atwater Village

ALTHOUGH THE WISDOM of getting into a mortgage these days is a bit suspect, a couple of Atwater Village "starter" homes are still available: 3721 Dover St. - Spanish, 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, $499,000 3427 Ferncroft Rd. - Tudor, 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, $549,000

Rent a House in the 'Beverly Hills' of Atwater Village

I RECENTLY LEARNED OF 2 rental properties available on Valleybrink Road, once described to me as the "Beverly Hills of Atwater Village." (I'd like to include Griffith View Drive in that distinction, though there's one particular house around the corner on Sunnynook Drive that should be de-annexed entirely.) From their Craigslist ads: 3675 Valleybrink Rd., 90039 $3,100/month $3,100 deposit 2 bedrooms 1 bathroom 1-year lease minimum Cats and dogs OK 3752 Valleybrink Rd., 90039 $3,000/month Deposit unspecified 3 bedrooms 2 bathrooms Central air/heat Keep in mind that these properties, like most single-family homes in Atwater Village, won't offer nearly as much real estate as you'd find in the real Beverly Hills. The average Atwater residence was built 80 years ago and is about 1,100 square feet.

What $580,000 Gets You in 'Atwater Village Adjacent'

THIS IS WHAT THEY CALL, in Los Angeles anyway, a starter home. It's a 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom in Frogtown, also known as Elysian Valley, also known by real-estate agents as "adjacent" to Atwater Village and Silver Lake. This home at 2831 Denby Ave., listed at $580,000, has "excellent bones" and some wildly inappropriate Michael Buble-ish soundtrack on its four-minute slide show. Enjoy.

Atwater Chatter - Getting Things Done Edition

EVENTS AND DOINGS in and around this northwest corner of Northeast Los Angeles. (If that makes sense geographically.) Artwater Music & Art Festival - Saturday April 21, 2:00 to 10:00pm along Glendale and Los Feliz, with shuttles between. Concert, retail offers, restaurant tastings included in $20 admission after 6:00pm. (Hmm, Sunset Junction fair was only $15.) Download snazzy flier here. Check photo exhibit submissions here. Mine here. Crime Watch 1 - No rapes, robberies and homicides reported in Atwater Village in March 2007. Stats here. Crime Watch 2 - On the other hand, not all neighborhood regulars avoided trouble as the Black Eyed Peas' most famous member is accused of being too drunk to fly from LAX, and the band's least famous member is stopped for being too wasted to drive in LA County. The Midwest Strikes Back - Lawrence, Kansas, 2-bed 1-bath: $133/sq ft. Atwater Village 2-bed 1-bath: $661/sq ft. Full comparison here. New Entry in Blog-LA-Sphere - East of the 5 New Newbie in Atwater Village - Ronckytonk Rent Check - $700, $1,350, $1,795, $2,200, $2,950

Rentslicer Slices Out Atwater Village

ONE OF THE HANDIEST housing tools is Rentslicer. This Craigslist mashup maps available rentals and average rents. I relied on it when we moved to Atwater Village last year. It was the easiest way to find Los Angeles neighborhoods and learn how much they cost. Now Rentslicer has expanded from LA to hundreds of US cities, thousands of neighborhoods. And it dropped Atwater Village. Today Craigslist has 16 Atwater Village rentals. But where are they on Rentslicer? Did we get wrapped into another neighborhood - or another city? Man, first FOX11 tosses us out of LA. Then Urbanspoon annexes us to Glendale. Now Rentslicer drops us off the map altogether. Atwater Village: the Rodney Dangerfield of LA neighborhoods.

Call Off That Search for LA's Best Pizza

BILL MAHER HAS BETTER dinner plans. From last weekend's Real Time on HBO, a comedic commentary that falls somewhere into the sliver of zeitgeist between Eater LA and Curbed LA: "New rule: Ex-New Yorkers have to stop bitching about how there's no good pizza in LA. "You're a junior agent at William Morris. Not Joe Pesci. "People in LA don't care about pizza. Because unlike New Yorkers, after we pay rent we have money left over to buy real food." The bit starts at the 0:30 mark on this YouTube clip. Maher adds, parenthetically, "I just bought another three years of bad press in New York." No word on how much bad press he bought with people paying overpriced rent in LA.

Zaio Values House at 17 Cents

ACROSS THE JOB TRANSOM this morning comes this opening for Photographers - Real Estate Exteriors: "Zaio Corporation is seeking 10 very hard working exterior real estate photographers to walk the streets throughout LA COUNTY (and 10 more needed in Orange County) to gather one photo of every residential property to create a real estate database... Essentially, the job is to walk the streets taking one photo of each residential property you see on both sides of the street, gathering hundreds of photos each day, then matching photos to addresses in software and uploading over high speed Internet daily. The company's Web site gives a few more details: Pay is 17 cents per photo plus weekly bonus Zone takes 4 to 6 weeks to complete Photographers are trained how to respond to inquisitive homeowners (5 to 15 met daily) The end result sounds like a more painstakingly detailed version of the defunct A9 Maps, where you could walk the streets, as Zaio puts it, without leaving your desk. And without getting punched by inquisitive homeowners.

A Neighborhood with 'Potential'

EVEN TV PEOPLE LIKE Atwater Village. Or at least its "potential." From a March 4 LA Times story about how they just don't flip houses like they used to: "Michael Corbett, a veteran home flipper, author of 'Find It, Fix It and Flip It!' and host of the 'Mansions & Millionaires' segment on TV's 'Extra,' recommends looking for property in historically low-priced areas that may be on the upswing. "In the Los Angeles area, he named Echo Park, Atwater Village, Culver City and Watts as neighborhoods with potential. "'I look at older homes in transitional areas.'"

'Mega' Housing On Other Side of the Tracks

While neighborhood worry-warts snivel and survey about a proposed 90-unit "mega" housing development in Atwater Village, a 44-unit "workforce" housing project - on the other side of the tracks in Glendale - is nearly complete. The City of Glendale released a list (PDF) of 700 eligible renters - from more than 13,000 lottery applicants - for apartments in the Metropolitan City Lights project. And a walk around the property this weekend shows it might be only a few more months before move-in. Find these green, gray and yellow boxes on Gardena Ave., overlooking where Los Angeles and Glendale meet, where Glendale Blvd. becomes Brand Blvd., just east of the railroad tracks.

Maybe Your Rent Isn't a Ripoff After All

Rentometer compares your rent to others nearby. Enter your current rent and address and get one of these fortune cookies: Your unit seems to be a great deal. Your unit seems to be a good deal. Your rent is very close to the average. Your unit should be in better condition. Your unit should be in top condition. The chart shows a range for Atwater Village in northeast LA, with $2,000 as median for a two-bedroom unit. (No, that's not my rent on the orange needle.) Thanks to fellow Villager Ben High for the tip. Be Ben's neighbor: $2,500 for a three-bedroom cottage, please. Rentometer says, "Very close to the average." Rentometer.com