Best Buys In Ojai/Team Deckert – Our daily blog spotlighting the best in Ojai Valley real estate!

July 1, 2025

Quote of the Day

A good listener is usually thinking about something else.

– Kin Hubbard

This Day in History

July 1, 1963: U.S. Post Office introduces zip codes. On this day in 1963, the United States Postal Service (USPS) introduces the Zone Improvement Plan as part of a plan to improve the speed of mail delivery, inaugurating the use of machine-readable ZIP codes to facilitate the efficient sorting of mail at a national level.

The idea wasn’t totally new. In 1943, the Post Office had created numbered zones for more than 100 urban areas around the country. But in the post-WWII boom, that system quickly became inadequate. Between 1943 and 1962, annual mail volume doubled from 33 billion to 66.5 billion pieces, and the average mailed letter passed through an average of 17 sorting stops. Suburbs were sprouting exponentially, and mail transport was shifting from railway to highway and air, making old urban hub systems obsolete.

To launch the system, the USPS invested in a massive public relations campaign throughout the 1960s, first targeting bulk mailers like government agencies and magazine publishers, and then individual citizens. Massive advertising campaigns celebrated the new codes in magazines, newspapers, radio, television and public transit. A cartoon mascot named Mr. ZIP popped up on lunch boxes, tin banks and board games. Popular singer Ethel Merman recorded a promotional jingle to the tune of “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.” Even cartoon sleuth Dick Tracy endorsed the system. By the end of the decade, ZIP codes had achieved broad public acceptance.

Ojai Weather

Sunny – High 84 / Low 50

Lake Casitas water capacity – 95.1%

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

9:50 a.m.

There is a new listing on the market:

1107 S. Rice Road – $1,170,000

Pic of the Day

Monday, June 30, 2025

1:10 p.m.

Three new or “coming soon” listings have come to the market since Friday:

901 Drown Avenue – $795,000

Hendrickson Road (land) – $950,000

561 Tico Road – $1,199,900 (coming soon, 7/17)

Pic of the Day

Friday, June 27, 2025

1:35 p.m.

Five new listings have come to the market:

7450 Sulphur Mountain Road – $1,600,000

205 S. Lomita Avenue – $3,995,000

80 Watkins Way – $1,085,000

1348 Cruzero Street – $950,000

1131 Rancho Drive – $4,275,000

Have a great weekend! Here’s a quick check-in on mortgage rates before I leave you:

30-yr fixed: 6.72%

15-yr fixed: 5.96%

30-yr Jumbo: 6.84%

30-yr FHA: 6.22%

30-yr VA: 6.23%

Pic of the Day

I don’t know what this is, but if I’m the neighbor – I’m scared

Thursday, June 26, 2025

10:00 a.m.

One new listing has come to the market since Tuesday:

2139 McNell Road – $2,750,000

(There is currently no MLS link available)

Recently cancelled, withdrawn, or expired listings – back on the market as “new:”

11755 Mirror Lake Avenue – $849,000 (this had been recently withdrawn from the market on 5/12).
12710 Ojai Road – $2,100,000 (this is a second, duplicate listing marketed as “residential income” property).

Pic of the Day

When the burglar’s peephole is better than yours

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

11:25 a.m.

Two new listings have come to the market:

1225 S. Rice Road #23 – $359,900

119 Don Felipe Way – $339,000

Pic of the Day

Not quite as good as the Hollyweed prank, but it’s a start

Monday, June 23, 2025

11:35 a.m.

Four new or “coming soon” listings have come to the market since Friday:

305 W. Ojai Avenue – $1,250,000 (commercial property)

1853 Country Place – $1,189,000

616 E. Katherine Avenue – $875,000 (coming soon, 6/25)

107 Alto Drive – $1,449,000 (coming soon, 6/26)

I had a wonderful night last night with friends here in Ojai; first stop was the Ojai Playhouse to see 1980’s, “Caddyshack.” I had never see it before. Perhaps had I seen it as a teenager when it originally came out, I would have appreciate it more. But I love how the Playhouse house is showing these vintage films, as it really adds to the charm of Ojai in general. (I saw “Chinatown” for the first time a few months ago as well!)

We followed up the movie with dinner outside on the back patio at Zaidee’s – there isn’t a better outdoor venue for dinner in Ojai (although Jimmy’s Pub at the Ojai Valley Inn is right up there as well). Next event – 4th of July and fireworks, my favorite time of the year…

Pic of the Day

I’ll bet that tower in Pisa follows these doors on Instagram

Friday, June 20, 2025

3:10 p.m.

Heads up! Major changes to BBIO!

As of today, I will no longer be maintaining the Open House or All Listings pages. The reason for this is, after a three-week audit of the popularity of these two pages, I’ve found that they aren’t getting enough interest or “clicks” to warrant the time spent keeping them current. It takes me an average of 10 – 12 hours per week just to keep those two pages updated; it’s no longer an effective use of my time/resources. I need to devote these hours to prospecting for new clients and assisting my clients in the course of finding or selling their homes. I do this with much regret, especially as regards the All Listings page, as it’s been a staple of BBIO since the beginning in 2011. I will leave the last update up until Monday, June 23rd.

However, I will continue to keep you updated on this main page/blog with the newest listings and other fun and (hopefully) interesting facts. Long-time readers have probably noticed that I haven’t been putting much of a personal touch in the blog lately – the lack of time I have available is the reason why. Hopefully, I’ll be able to put more of this in to the blog in the near future. And so we move on…

Four new or “coming soon” listings have come to the market:

11570 Oakcrest Avenue – $1,350,000

279 N. Lomita Avenue – $2,349,000

10585 Ojai Santa Paula Road – $6,750,000

301 Park Road – $1,199,000 (coming soon, 6/27)

Recently cancelled, withdrawn, or expired listings – back on the market as “new” listings:

520 Foothill Road – $6,469,000 (this had recently been withdrawn on 6/9).
2259 McNell Road – $8,495,000 (expired on 6/8).

Pic of the Day

Thursday, June 19, 2025

12:55 p.m.

Three new listings have come to the market since Tuesday:

131 Christopher Lane – $1,980,000

65 Don Antonio Way – $365,000

65 Baldwin Road – $899,000

The All Listings page has been updated!

Pic of the Day

This isn’t a humorous photo, but rather a cool airplane I saw a couple of days ago at the Oxnard airport. It’s a vintage Douglas DC-3, manufactured sometime between 1936 and 1942. I spoke to one of the mechanics and they said they were going to repaint it, but I wish they wouldn’t. The patina and old-school fonts are fantastic!