November 5, Light the NightEach year, in communities all across the United States and Canada, teams of families, friends, co-workers and local and national corporations come together to raise funds for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light The Night Walk events and bring help and hope to people battling blood cancers. Walk Distance: 2 miles. The Walk is done at a leisurely pace and takes less than an hour to complete. Time:  6:00 pm - 11:00 pmLocation:  Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del MarFor more information visit www.lightthenight.org/sd     November 5-6, Bike the CoastBike the Coast is a cycling event which offers opportunities for everyone from the beginner or junior rider up to the more serious regular rider to enjoy the coast and hills of North County.  Choo... 10/27/2010

The area between highway 94 and 125 known as the Brookside subdivision is one of the first master planned home tracks in the La Mesa/Spring Valley area. This subdivision was built between 1950 and 1960 to satisfy the explosion of growth in the Spring Valley area that was mostly large ranches before the more than 400 homes that were built here.A typical home in the Brookside subdivisionBefore that the land used to be the La Mesa Country Club and before that Bancroft Lake that was named after one of the early settlers of this area.Because of this, many streets names are associated with golf. Streets such as Link, Fairway, Par, Trophy, Birdie, and Niblick can be found in the Brookside area.Residents in the Brookside neighborhood hold a famous annual garage sale ever year that many resident... 10/14/2010

La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market Hi Folks. In this section of the La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market series we are going to talk about buying homes, condos & multi-unit rental properties as investments. Now, we know that La Mesa has great schools (None have API scores under 750). We know that it's charming (Please see Downtown La Mesa) and has plenty to do (Please see Lake Murray, Seau's Sport's Complex). And we know that home prices are great for what you get. All of these things make La mesa a great place to buy a home. These are the same reasons that La Mesa is a great place to invest in rental property. That, and it has a vacancy rate of only 3%, one of the lowest in the county. That's all fine and dandy, but what about the end result? How much rent can you get vs. the pric... 10/09/2010

La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market Hi People. This addition of La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Marketis going to deal with walkability, or the Walk Score of La Mesa. Que? I said WALKABILITY (Sorry for shouting). Walkability (Calculated into a Walk Score) is defined by the good people at Walk Score as: "Walk Score measures how easy it is to live a car-lite lifestyle-not how pretty the area is for walking. Walk Score uses a patent-pending system to measure the walkability of an address. The Walk Score algorithm awards points based on the distance to amenities in each category. If an amenity is within .25 miles (or .4 km), we assign the maximum number of points. The number of points declines as the distance approaches 1 mile (or 1.6 km)-no points are awarded for amenities further than 1 ... 10/02/2010

STREET SCAPE UPGRADES COMPLETED for La Mesa, Ca Oktoberfest Octoberfest LA MESA Just in time for this weekend's Octoberfest celebration, the La Mesa Downtown Village Streetscape Improvement Project has finished its work on Allison Avenue.New crosswalks, street striping and a large parking lot at the Spring Street intersection where the post office once stood are now in place, the City Council said at its meeting this week.Also discussed at the session: · More traffic control by way of speed bumps. Twenty- three have been fitted with the bumps, and Harris Street, Sacramento Drive and Tanglerod Lane will be next.  · Enhancements to the city's emergency notification system for residents. Proposals include subscribing to the website Nixle and adding an official city of La Mesa page on Faceb... 10/01/2010

37th Annual Oktoberfest ~ La Mesa October 1-3 Nothing says Oktoberfest like brats and beer! There will be plenty of both to be found at the 37thannual Oktoberfest this weekend October 1st through 3rd in La Mesa Village! Once a small street fair,this now 3 day festival is something we all look forward to every year! Each year it seems to get bigger and better! Attending Oktoberfest in La Mesa has become a family tradition for over 200,000 San Diegans! The kids look forward to the carnival rides, kettle corn and cotton candy while the big kids look forward to the Lowenbrau Beer Gardens and Oom-pah-pah bands! Throw in a grilled bratwurst and a good polka and watch out Germany! You have got yourself some competition! You will find 6 city blocks consisting of over 300 craft booths, 3 beer ga... 09/29/2010

Median Home Values in Mt Helix - Casa de Oro, CA Neighborhoods The recent average home sale value in the Mt Helix - Casa de Oro area as of December 9, 2010 for 6 months back is $449,278 at $223.08 a square/foot with 3 beds and 2 baths on average with 2101 sq/feet of living space. The average asking or list price of a home in this neighborhood is $538,673 at $231.78 per square foot and is approximately 2308 square feet. The average days on the market is 58 days before an escrow is opened up. More statistics on Mt Helix homes are below. You can also click on any of the images to see free daily updated home for sale and home values that have sold of properties in the Mt. Helix and Casa de Oro neighborghoods. If you are thinking of selling or buying a home in this area, I look forward to ch... 09/28/2010

La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market Hi People. Please scrutinize the things you read, even this. The news media takes some basic stats, with out explaining them, and throws them at us and either gets us feeling too good, or too bad about our housing situation. The San Diego Union-Tribune came out with a huge graph of all the zip codes in the county and how much those zip codes appreciated, depreciated, and how many homes they sold compared to last year. Today, we'll just focus on La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market, 91941. So, digging into the La Mesa Homes For Sale And The Market we see that in August of 2010 the percentage change was 12.5% from August of 2009 for single family homes. Going from $380,000 in '09 to $427,500 in'10. That is a huge jump and very misleading. In August o... 09/23/2010

Imagine, 90 years of graduates, all getting together this Saturday Sept 25 from 10AM to 4PM at Grossmont High School. If you're coming in from out of town, you can enjoy the football game Friday night against Santa Fe Christian, then rest up for the big event the next day. This all- class reunion will celebrate 90 years of academic excellence. Here is a hint of what you can expect at this exciting event, excerpt courtesy of the Grossmont  website: Hear the Red Robe Choir, celebrate the achievements of our new 2010 "Hall of Honor" inductees  (Colonel Ed Fletcher, Coach Jack Mashin and GHS astronauts Ellen Ochoa and Rick Sturckow), visit the GHS Museum, tour the Old Main and be present as we open the cornerstone time capsule that was sealed in place back in 1922.  Walk by your old classro... 09/21/2010

Like Beer?...Oktoberfest San Diego is Almost Here    La Mesa is well known for their celebration of Oktoberfest.  Every year, for the past 36 years, La Mesa has put on a big ole party for Oktoberfest and this year is no different. Here’s what to expect at this year’s Oktoberfest: Crafts and Commercial Booths Kids Carnival 5 Food Courts 2 Beer Courts     And a Huge Beer Garden!  Stop on by.  October 1st and 2nd from 11:00- 11:30pm October 3rd 12:00-6pm View Larger Map 09/21/2010

For those of you who love outdoor living and the wonderful Garden Center at Grossmont Mall, you've got 2 more weeks to enjoy all the colorful plants before Target gets out of the garden business. I was in there yesterday and everything's on sale, even if the price doesn't look marked down, they'll take at least 15% off at the register. They've still got some cool plants, morning glories, petunias, grasses, lots of bedding plants, some colorful cacti, a few assorted tools and fencing. Target's Garden Center at Grossmont Center in La Mesa will close Sept 30th   They officially close on September 30th and will keep marking down the prices until the very end. Garden Center closes Sept 30 I'm really going to miss the peacefulness of wandering in there among all the green and colors, away fro... 09/16/2010

Elegant La Mesa Home Overview Maps Photos Market Stats $535,000 Single Family HomeFor Sale Main Features 3 Bedrooms3 BathroomsInterior: 2550 sqft Location 4392 BellflowerLa Mesa, CA 91941 To get updates on open home dates and other property events, please click the "Like" button below: John Goodell (619) 504-7985drearose87@hotmail.comhttp://www.sdhomepros.com Listed by: John Goodell See more La Mesa, CA real estate for sale 08/10/2010

Here’s an easy way you can support the La Mesa Parks and Recreation Foundation’s It’s Child’s Play playground renovation project. You don’t even have to go to an event! It’s simple…. This is an email silent auction. Below is a list of items you can bid on. Simply email kmcelroy@ci.la-mesa.ca.us and during the auction Kaaren from La Mesa Community Services will let you know if anyone bids higher on your selected item(s). If you are the high bidder at the close of the auction 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday August 4th you get the item. You will be notified and all items can be picked up at the La Mesa Community Center at your convenience. They will accept checks or VISA/Mastercard credit cards. Here is the list….. Barona Resort and Casino Round of golf for 2 & dinner for 2 at the Sage Café Value $... 08/02/2010

Have You Ever Been To The "DIVE-IN" Movies? No, I didn't mean Drive-In, I really do mean DIVE-IN Movie! Really! What exactly is the DIVE-IN Movie you ask? Only one of the best times you and your family can have this summer! That's right! Gather your swim suits, towel and something to float in and enjoy a movie under the stars at the La Mesa Municipal Pool! Located at 5100 Memorial Drive, the La Mesa Municipal Pool will be hosting a FREE movie night on July 16, 2010. The pool will open at 7:30 and the movie will begin at 8 pm. Float around and swim while you enjoy the DIVE-IN movie from Disney/Pixar, "UP". This fun family movie will have you splashing your approval at every wave! This is such a cute movie where Carl, a retired balloon salesman, realizes that sometimes life's big adventur... 07/10/2010

  Remember the days when you just changed your oil and didn't think too much about where all the gunk was going? Those days are long gone, but making life easier for you is alive and well in La Mesa, CA. Aside from all the wonderful Summer events which launched with last weekend's Flag Day Parade, summer's in full bloom now with the OIL FILTER EXCHANGE on Saturday June 12. Just bring in your used oil filters to be recycled and receive a FREE oil filter!  And your free filter is not limited by brand or model. June 12, 2010, 10 am to 2 pm  Kragen O'Reilly Auto Parts 5350 Jackson Drive, La Mesa OK, so here's the disclaimer: This offer is only valid at the specific date, time, and location below. Only drop off used filters during business hours. Limit one new filter per customer. La Mesa's ... 06/10/2010

  Ready for some summer fun? La Mesa Flag Day Parade If you missed it last year, make your plans to attend this year's event now! Two patriotic concerts will begin the festivities at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 5. Flag Day Parade starts at 10:00 a.m. and follows La Mesa Boulevard through the downtown Village, from Memorial Drive and across Spring Street.  Spectators are encouraged to dress in patriotic attire and cheer on the participants in this annual parade. La Mesa has long been known for its variety of community events which run year long, and the Flag Day Parade is our summer kickoff.  Next to watch for: the weekly classic car event right in the Village in Downtown La Mesa.  You'll get to see our city blocks filled with restored collectible classics, mainly from the 50s and 60s. A... 05/26/2010

Homes For Sale La Mesa ~ 5 Days on The Market This beautiful La Mesa Home in the fantastic community of Grossmont Village was on the market for 5 days. Working with some fantastic sellers and a really reasonable bank we were able to get this short sale approved within 1 week prior to listing. The seller submitted all of the required documentation in a day, the appraisal was ordered by the bank and completed 4 days later. The following day the bank provided their net sheet and approval to proceed with the short sale. Thursday evening the property went on the MLS and many potential buyers saw this La Mesa condo over the weekend. By the end of the weekend we had 2 strong, full price offers! Tuesday afternooon an offer was accepted and voila! off to escrow we go!   Are you looking to purcha... 05/26/2010

Don't Let the New Looks Fool You-- Do a "Gut Check" on Rehabs.  Sometimes what's lurking underneath the fresh paint can cost you a bundle!  There are a lot of investors out there buying at auction or using their cash to scoop up distressed properties and then rehabbing them quickly and flipping. Some literally toss on a few cans of paint and add new carpet and a granite countertop, then add a hefty price tag, leaving  buyers to wonder about the real value (and some secretly wising they could have done the same thing). With these homes, although they may sparkle like new and feel refreshingly clean, you must do a very thorough inspection of the guts-- particularly the roof, electric and plumbing, which probably have not been updated, as these are the high ticket items.  If your first gen... 05/25/2010

  The weatherman is predicting beautiful weather for this weekend and what could be better than spending Sunday afternoon up at Mt. Helix Park listening to a free concert?   The East County Youth Symphony will be performing at 4 pm this Sunday, May 23.  Shuttles will begin running at 3:30 pm from the lot next to the fire station at 10101 Vivera Drive.   The performance will be Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony.  Our thanks to East County Friends of the Arts for making this free concert possible.   Also, tickets to the Third Annual HeART of Mt. Helix, the event of the summer at the top of the Hill, go on sale June 1.  This August 14 event features local restaurants serving signature appetizers, art, auction items, wine tasting and dancing under the stars to the Big Daddy Orchestra.  For more... 05/22/2010

All over  La Mesa you'll see them-- smaller homes with character and flair. La Mesa real estate has always been coveted for its excellent location, just 12 minutes from downtown, beaches, top attractions and the San Diego airport. And people who look for La Mesa homes do so because of the friendly neighborhoods, community spirit, local events and excellent schools. These days, lots of people are wanting smaller homes-- sometimes because they are downsizing, but other times because they feel like "less is more" Less to clean, less to take care of, less electricity, water, gas, you name it, they are looking for a more simplified life. You'll find downtown La Mesa homes built in the early part of last century have plenty of charm, like this one, surrounded with flowers. Downtown La Mesa co... 05/22/2010