Los Angeles Real Estate Blog & Market Updates

California's FAIR Plan is raising residential insurance rates by an average of 29.1% starting October 15, 2026, but that number is a statewide average, not what any one homeowner will pay. In San Fernando Valley communities like Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Woodland Hills, and Calabasas, the real difference comes down to whether a home sits in the flats or climbs into the hills, with hillside and canyon-adjacent properties facing the steepest increases.

New restaurants in Tarzana this year include Danny's Corner Kitchen, Flavez Burger, Wakey Wakey, Shams Cafe, Labanz Cafe, Tillie's Coffee, and Burritos Blvd, all open now along Ventura Boulevard, with Handel's Homemade Ice Cream coming soon and Philz Coffee expected to open September 14, 2026. Tarzana's longtime treasures are still going strong too, places like VIP's, Fabrocini's, and Tasty's Donuts that have fed this community for decades.

The Sherman Oaks restaurant boom along Ventura Boulevard is bringing a wave of new spots within easy walking distance of each other, from Jawny's Philly cheesesteaks and Burger She Wrote's smash burgers to Kreation Organic's cold-pressed juices, with Yama Sushi Marketplace and Hapa Haus's golf simulators on the way. For anyone living in or considering Sherman Oaks, it is turning a familiar stretch of the Boulevard into a genuine walk-to-dinner neighborhood.

Studio City's Ventura Boulevard is in the middle of a genuine restaurant boom. More than a dozen new places have opened along the Boulevard in the past several months, spanning open-fire Argentine dining, coastal Italian crudo, all-day brunch, craft coffee, a post-apocalyptic bar, an East Coast bagel shop on the way, and a brand-new entertainment venue in the former Oil Can Harry's space. If you have not been out to explore lately, now is a great time to go.