Relaxed and rural, but not remote

In Somis, lots are measured in acres, not square feet, and kids ride horses instead of skateboards. The unincorporated area of Ventura County has 3,155 residents -- who are easily outnumbered by farm animals.

Beginnings

Many of the families that helped found Somis in the late 1800s have streets named in their honor.

History looms large here. Take the Fulkerson family, which established a blacksmithing business that eventually evolved into the hardware store that today carries its name. Customers are greeted on a first-name basis by Bob Fulkerson, grandson of Jonathan Fulkerson, who started the retail store.

Drawing card

Angelenos are drawn by the rural setting, yet Somis is close to the 101 and 118 freeways -- and only an hour from the Burbank airport.

“People like the Mediterranean climate here,” said Sunny Salzer of Sunny Salzer Realtors. Also, because it’s an unincorporated area, there are fewer residential restrictions, Salzer said.

Numerous estates and large ranches grow lemon, orange and avocado trees. Residents include active farmers and ranchers as well as commuting doctors, teachers and business owners and retirees. Somis’ median income of $74,821 is high compared with California’s median of $54,147.

“This is living the country lifestyle,” said Paul Donlon Ward, whose family helped settle Somis. “The people moving in want to slow down from the hustle-bustle of the city.”

For the kids, Underwood Family Farms has an animal center where visitors can get up close and personal with pygmy goats, rabbits and donkeys.

Another tourist landmark is the Somis Nut House, a 47-year-old, family-owned and -operated packing house of candies, nuts and dried fruits that is deluged with customers during the holidays.

Good news, bad news

The trees, fields and animals count as neighbors -- that’s how far apart the houses are. It can be a 30-minute round-trip drive to buy groceries, work out at the gym or rent videos.

“You have to plan your day and your car trips for a quart of milk,” Ward said.

And that’s just the way Somis residents like it.

SOS (Save Our Somis) is a vigilant group of residents who want to preserve the area’s rural character. The group successfully challenged a new home development about 15 years ago and a six-lane highway expansion in 2002.

Housing stock

Somis has one downtown residential tract that was built in the 1950s and numerous custom-built estates and ranches.

On the market now are single-family custom homes priced from $1.3 million to $9.8 million. Most are contemporary ranch style on lots of an acre or more that are zoned for horses.

A 2.27-acre four-bedroom estate on a hill has a covered porch with swing, hardwood floors, a large master bedroom with fireplace and a gourmet kitchen with granite counters. There is a pool, spa, gazebo, views and a gated entry. Asking price is $1,680,000.

Up the street is a gated 4-acre orchard, zoned for horses, with a Monterey-style five-bedroom, four-bathroom main house with views and a separate guesthouse, listed at $1,699,000.

Report card

There are two K-8 public schools serving Somis students. Mesa Elementary in the Mesa Union Elementary School District scored 837 out of a possible 1,000 on the 2006 Academic Performance Index Growth Report, and Somis Elementary in the Somis Union School District scored 723. Adolpho Camarillo High School in the Oxnard Union High School District, with a score of 791, also serves Somis teens.

Historical values

Residential resales:

Year...Median Price

1990...$387,000

1995...$326,250

2000...$466,000

2005...$1,029,000

2006...$1,000,000

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Sources: DataQuick Information Systems; somisrealestate.com; cde.ca.gov.