Thousand Oaks

Thousand Oaks fills most of the Conejo Valley, a bowl of rolling hills and old valley oaks between the Santa Monica Mountains and the Simi Hills. The city was planned around preserving its ridgelines, and it shows: protected open space wraps around nearly every neighborhood, so many homes are a short walk from a trailhead.

It is a suburban, family-oriented city with a strong employment base (Amgen and other biotech and finance employers are here), a performing-arts center, a university, and a large regional hospital. Westlake sits on its south-east side and Newbury Park makes up much of its western half. Buyers find everything from 1960s ranch homes to golf-course estates and newer hillside communities.

• Thousand Oaks Boulevard is the city's main street, with the Civic Arts Plaza (Bank of America Performing Arts Center) and its Kavli and Scherr theaters.
• The Oaks mall and The Lakes cover shopping and dining; The Promenade at Westlake and Westlake Plaza are on the east side.
• Gardens of the World is a free, landscaped garden next to the Civic Arts Plaza.
• California Lutheran University adds sports, concerts and lectures, and the Conejo Valley has an active youth-sports scene.

The Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA) manages roughly 15,000 acres of open space and well over 100 miles of trails in and around the city. Favorites include Wildwood Regional Park (with its waterfall), the Los Robles Trail along the Santa Monica Mountains, and the Lang Ranch and Sapwi Trails open space in the north.

Neighborhood parks, pools, the community centers and most recreation programs are run by the Conejo Recreation & Park District (CRPD). The beaches of Malibu are 30 to 40 minutes away over the mountains.

• Conejo Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) serves Thousand Oaks, Newbury Park and the Ventura County side of Westlake.
• Comprehensive high schools: Thousand Oaks High, Westlake High and Newbury Park High, plus alternative and independent-study options.
• The district also runs magnet and choice programs at several elementary and middle schools.
• California Lutheran University is in town and Moorpark College is about 20 minutes north.

Attendance areas can split neighborhoods; confirm the school assignment for a specific address with CVUSD.

• Lynn Ranch, Wildwood and the Conejo Oaks area (north-west): established homes near Wildwood Regional Park.
• Lang Ranch (north): 1990s and 2000s single-family homes at the edge of open space.
• North Ranch and Westlake (east): larger homes, gated and golf-course neighborhoods around North Ranch Country Club and Westlake Lake.
• Central Thousand Oaks: mid-century ranch homes and condos close to Thousand Oaks Boulevard.
• Newbury Park (west) has its own guide on our Newbury Park page.

• Freeways: US-101 crosses the city east-west and SR-23 runs north to Moorpark and the SR-118.
• Transit: There is no Metrolink station in Thousand Oaks; the closest are Moorpark and Camarillo. Thousand Oaks Transit and VCTC Intercity buses connect regionally.
• Approximate drive times (light traffic): Woodland Hills/Warner Center 15 min, Camarillo 15 min, downtown Los Angeles 45 min to 1 hr (longer at rush hour), Santa Barbara about 1 hr 10 min.
• Airports: Hollywood Burbank about 40 min; LAX about 50 min via the 405 when traffic allows.

Electricity: Southern California Edison (SCE) owns the lines, reads the meter and sends the bill (sce.com, 1-800-655-4555). Thousand Oaks is a member of Clean Power Alliance (CPA), so homes are enrolled in CPA for the power supply by default; the default tier is 100% Green Power. Customers can switch tiers or opt out at cleanpoweralliance.org or 888-585-3788.

Natural gas: Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) (socalgas.com, 1-800-427-2200). Some rural and hillside homes use propane instead, so check the listing.

Water: Four retail providers serve the Conejo Valley, so it depends on the address: the City of Thousand Oaks (central city; water bills 805-449-2201), California American Water (western Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park; 888-237-1333), California Water Service (eastern areas; 805-497-2757) and Camrosa Water District (805-482-4677). All buy imported water from Calleguas MWD. See the City's water providers page and purveyor map.

Sewer: City of Thousand Oaks Public Works; wastewater is treated at the City's Hill Canyon Treatment Plant.

Trash and recycling: Athens Services under an exclusive City franchise since January 2022 (805-852-5264).

Internet: Spectrum (cable) is the most common wired option; Frontier or AT&T offer DSL or fiber depending on the neighborhood, and fixed-wireless (T-Mobile, Verizon) and satellite services fill gaps. Look up the exact address on the FCC National Broadband Map.

Providers can change from one street to the next. Before you close, confirm each service for the exact address with the provider (or ask us and we will help).