Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 8, 2012

12

HOMES & PROPERTY

 Mountain Views News Saturday, September 8, 2012 

One Of A Kind: Featuring unique homes and gardens and the people who create them Story by Chris Bertrand. Photos courtesy Thornton and Orme


JUST LISTED: 
HISTORIC 
1880 HOME IN 
GLENDORA

 
In 1877 the families of Philip Shorey, John P. 
Englehart, Cal Johnson, J. Charles West and 
James J. West settled in the Glendora area. 

According to the Glendora city website, www.ci.Glendora.ca.us, 
“Before the turn of the century, vast groves of orange and lemon 
Glendora Heights Extra Fancy citrus crate label trees began to establish 
Glendora as a center of the new Southern California citrus industry. In 
1896, Glendora built its first packing house, and for a while the largest 
citrus packing house in the world was located here. Glendora had the 
great honor of loading a weekly supply of oranges and lemons aboard 
the Santa Fe train bound for the White House dining table of President 
William Howard Taft during his term of office from 1909 to 1913.”

The West’s land purchases included the property where today’s featured 
home is located. Local lore suggests the property was purchased for a 
shotgun and a mule, according to the current owner. They are told the 
site of the home was originally a sod house in the middle of a citrus 
grove, used as a storage facility for the fruit grown there.

The delightful three bedroom, 1392 square foot main home was 
constructed in 1880 in the Queen Anne Victorian style. The floorplan 
is flexible and offers twelve foot ceilings, transom windows over 
substantial wood doors, even a claw foot tub!

“When I saw the house, I knew I just had to have it,” chuckled the 
owner. “I didn’t even know why at first. I walked through it one time 
and was charmed, and fell in love with it. It’s so peaceful and quiet!”

Though the home offers central air conditioning, a part of the charm of this home is its 
expansive front porch and second screened porch.

A second outbuilding was originally part of a carriage house, now divided into three areas, 
including a garage, workshop and a study or guest room, which features an antique sink and 
wood burning stove. 

Outside, the homesite is very private, almost removed from the neighborhood and town, 
surrounded with mature trees and water features including a koi pond and wine barrel 
waterfall

The current .34 acre homesite feels extremely secluded by its perimeter landscape, yet is 
an easy walk to 
the wonderful 
boutiques and 
restaurants in 
“The Village” 
shopping area, 
primarily on N. 
Glendora Avenue. 
Shop owners pride 
themselves in their 
personalized 
service, as well 
as high quality 
cuisine and 
merchandise, 
whether casual or 
elegant.

Glendora, a city of 
2.5 square miles, 
was incorporated 
in 1911. Today 
its city limits encompass 19.5 square miles, with a population of approximately 52,000. 
Several commercial developments in the city’s Diamond Ride and Glendora Market Place 
include large retailers and a multiplex movie theater, providing a significant tax base for the 
community.

In addition to proudly celebrating its historic centennial last year, the city maintains its small 
town personality, with its Christmas and Homecoming Parades. 

Excellent public education has always been a priority in Glendora. In fact, according to 
the city website, “California approved legislation to build union high schools in 1891, and 
Citrus Union High School was the first to be established in the State. In 1915, Citrus College 
became the first Junior College in Los Angeles County.”

Today’s student test scores are still top notch, and can be viewed at the district website, www.
glendora.k12.ca.us along with other information about this highly rated school system. 


250 N. Live Oak Avenue in Glendora is offered at $450,000 by Sue Orme of Coldwell Banker. 
For more information about this unique home, call 626-826-8511 or 626-893-3303.


WHEN LESS COSTS MORE

"Timing the market" in real estate doesn't work the way it does with stocks. Homes are bought and 
sold more out of necessity than to make an easy buck. However, some indicators give a clue when it's 
a good time to buy. Like now!

Despite the fact that rates are low and prices may still drop, now is the time to move if you have good 
credit and funds for down payment. It would be a mistake to "wait and see" if rates or prices fall any 
more. Why?

Rates are low now because of federal bailouts, but continued low rates can fuel inflation. Fear of inflation 
causes "the Fed" to raise those rates. Waiting for a lower price on a home while interest rates rise 
could make the home more expensive.

Example: purchasing a home now for $177,000 at 5% could make the total cost around $370,000 by 
the end of the loan term. But what if you wait for prices to fall more, and next year you get that home 
for $160,000. You saved $17,000 - right? Wrong!

If rates rise 2% during that time, you could pay over $400,000 over the life of the loan - $30,000 more 
than if you bought now! If the math is still fuzzy to you, call me and I’ll be glad to crunch the numbers 
with you. You'll be glad you did.


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com