Welcome to the San Fernando Valley
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San Fernando Valley
We have been called the bedroom of Los Angeles, as many of our residents live in the Valley but work in L.A. But why do we live here? Could it be the location? We are just minutes from downtown L.A., the mountains, desert and the best beaches on the West Coast. Could it be the available housing ranging from studio apartments to multimillion dollar estates? Could it be the climate? How about the diversity of the people who live in the valley? We would bet it is all of the above. If you would like to know more about our "Valley" read on.
The San Fernando Valley or The Valley is an urbanized valley in
Southern California
,
United States
. The basin is located in western Los Angeles County. Most of its communities are part of the northern section of the
City of Los Angeles
.
Geography
The San Fernando Valley is 345 square miles bounded by the Santa Susana Mountains to the northwest, the Simi Hills to the west, the Santa Monica Mountains to the south, the Verdugo Mountains to the east, and the San Gabriel Mountains to the northeast. The
Los Angeles River
is thought to originate in Chatsworth and flowing east along the southern areas of the Valley. One of the river's only unpaved section can be found at the Sepulveda Basin. Another waterway, the Tujunga Wash, comes down from the San Gabriel Mountains and winds south in the eastern communities of the Valley before merging with the Los Angeles River. The valley's elevation is about 250 - 1,200 ft. above sea level.
Most of the San Fernando Valley is within the City of Los Angeles, CA, although several smaller cities are within the Valley as well;
Burbank
and
Glendale
are in the southeast corner of the Valley, and
San Fernando
, which is completely surrounded by the City of Los Angeles, is in the northeast Valley. Universal City, an enclave in the southern part of the Valley, is unincorporated land housing the
Universal Studios
filming lot. Mulholland Drive, which runs along the ridgeline of the Santa Monica Mountains, marks the boundary between the Valley and the communities of Hollywood and Los Angeles' westside.
Prior to development, before the arrival of the Los Angeles Owens Valley Aqueduct water, the valley was a bleak semi-desert, too dry for extensive agriculture over more than a small part of the valley. The water brought farming, followed quickly by residential and commercial development.
Climate
The Valley shares the Los Angeles Basin’s's dry, sunny weather. Although the southwestern edge of the Valley is less than 10 miles from the Pacific Ocean, the Valley can be considerably hotter than the Los Angeles Basin during the summer months and cooler during the winter months. The West Valley community of Woodland Hills has set the highest recorded temperature in the City of Los Angeles of 119° F (49° C) in 2006, the coldest recorded temperature was in Canoga Park 18° F (-8° C) in 1989. Also, rainfall accumulations tend to be somewhat higher in the Valley during the rainy season in comparison to the Los Angeles Basin and the coast. The valley has also more chance to snow during winter months than the warmer Los Angeles basin, although snow in San Fernando valley is rare(some Arctic storms have created snow in the San Fernando Valley). The Valley suffers from heavy concentrations of smog, particularly in the summer, because of the mountain ranges surrounding it.
Demographics
The San Fernando Valley had a population 1,696,347 in 2000. A recent estimate by the Los Angeles County Urban Research Unit and Population Division puts the 2004 population at 1,808,599.
Whites and Latinos are nearly even in numbers, combining to comprise more than four out of five Valley residents. In general, communities in the northeastern, central, and northwestern parts of the Valley have the highest concentration of Latinos. Whites live mainly along the communities along the region's mountain rim. The city of Glendale has an influential and very large Armenian community. Asian Americans make up 10.7% of the population and live throughout the Valley.
African Americans compose 5.1% of the Valley's population, living mainly in the Los Angeles sections of Sylmar, Lake View Terrace, Pacoima, Reseda and Chatsworth. Another large ethnic element is the Iranian community with 200,000 people living mainly in west San Fernando Valley.
Poverty rates in the San Fernando Valley are lower than the rest of the county (15.3% compared to 17.9%). Eight San Fernando Valley communities have at least one in five residents living in poverty.
Many wealthy families live in the hills south of the Ventura Boulevard; as a result, the phrase "South of the Boulevard" has become a commonly used buzzword in local real estate.
Economy
The Valley is home to numerous companies, the most well-known of which are involved in motion pictures, recording, and television production (including
CBS
Studio Center,
NBC-Universal
,
The Walt Disney Company
(and its
ABC
television network), and
Warner Bros.
. The Valley was previously known for stellar advances in aerospace technology by companies such as Lockheed, Rocketdyne, Hughes Aircraft, and Marquardt which helped put man on the moon and armed the modern military. It was also home to one of GM’s assembly plants.
Most of these enterprises have since disappeared or moved on to regions with friendlier political climates.
For more information on the San Fernando Valley follow the links below.
For more about San Fernando Valley Real Estate contact us today.
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Things to do in the LA Area
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Living in the San Fernando Valley we have the best of all worlds. We are just minutes away from beaches, mountains, the desert and downtown Los Angeles. There is always something to see or do. 
The Los Angeles area boasts some the worlds best museums, cultural centers, amusement parks, restaurants, sports and entertainment. 
What makes Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley so special is our cultural heritage and diversity. For more information on our history, things to do and see, special events in our area, click on the links below.
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Special Events
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Do you know of a special event in or around the San Fernado Valley? Contact us today to help keep our site updated!
We'd love to hear from you!
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California is the most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W).
Area, 158,693 sq mi (411,015 sq km).
Pop. (2000) 33,871,648, a 13.8% increase since the 1990 census.
Capital, Sacramento.
Largest city, Los Angeles
Nickname, Golden State.
Motto, Eureka [I Have Found It]. 
State bird, California valley quail.
State flower, golden poppy.
State tree, California redwood
Ranking third among the U.S. states in area, California has a diverse topography and climate. A series of low mountains known as the Coast Ranges extends along the 1,200-mi (1,930-km) coast. The region from Point Arena, N of San Francisco, to the southern part of the state is subject to tremors and sometimes to severe earthquakes caused by tectonic stress along the San Andreas Fault. The Coast Ranges receive heavy rainfall in the north, where the giant cathedrallike redwood forests prevail, but the climate of these mountains is considerably drier in S California, and S of the Golden Gate no major rivers reach the ocean. Behind the coastal ranges in central California lies the great Central Valley , a long alluvial valley drained by the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. In the southeast lie vast wastelands, notably the Mojave Desert, site of Joshua Tree National Park.
Rising as an almost impenetrable granite barrier E of the Central Valley is the Sierra Nevada range, which includes Mt. Whitney , Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park, and Yosemite National Park. The Cascade Range , the northern continuation of the Sierra Nevada, includes Lassen Volcanic National Park . Lying E of the S Sierra Nevada is Death Valley National Park. California has an enormously productive economy, which for a nation would be one of the ten largest in the world. Although agriculture is gradually yielding to industry as the core of the state's economy, California leads the nation in the production of fruits and vegetables, including carrots, lettuce, onions, broccoli, tomatoes, strawberries, and almonds. The state's most valuable crops are grapes, cotton, flowers, and oranges; dairy products, however, contribute the single largest share of farm income, and California is again the national leader in this sector. The state also produces the major share of U.S. domestic wine. 
California's farms are highly productive as a result of good soil, a long growing season, and the use of modern agricultural methods. Irrigation is critical, especially in the San Joaquin Valley and Imperial Valley. The gathering and packing of crops is done largely by seasonal migrant labor, primarily Mexicans. Fishing is another important industry.
California continues to be a major U.S. center for motion-picture, television film, and related entertainment industries, especially in Hollywood and Burbank. Tourism also is an important source of income. Disneyland, Sea World, and other theme parks draw millions of visitors each year, as do San Francisco with its numerous attractions.
*Information from Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | |
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