The Home Page | Don’t Mess With The Best

Credit: Sarah Sinclair

This edition of The Home Page was originally emailed to subscribers on January 11, 2026. To receive Sarah Sinclair’s real estate newsletter in your inbox each Sunday, sign up at independent.com/newsletter

Thursday night, the Santa Barbara Independent hosted our annual Best Fest party, a celebration of, with, and for the winners, runners-up, and finalists of our Best of Santa Barbara® 2025 readers’ poll.

In the real estate categories Kat Hitchcock (above, left) took home the title of Best Real Estate Agent for the third year in a row, and Austin Lampson (right) was crowned Best Mortgage Agent for the ninth consecutive year. In the center, Abel Ramos, managing broker of Compass Santa Barbara, which was named Best Real Estate Company for the first time this year.

The Hall Team (pictured right) — also of Compass — was voted Best Real Estate Team for the seventh year running. Shown above are team members Taylor Cook, Paige Harvey, Kevin Hall, Lesley Hall, and Alina Henrickson. One of the things that Kevin said about their win: “We never forget how fortunate we are to be a part of this community. Thank you to all who voted and continue to support us!”

Ah, Best Fest! We celebrated from early evening til late into the night at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum. After putting together our beloved-yet-beastly Best of Santa Barbara® issue this week, your mighty Indy sales & marketing staff let their hair down to celebrate. No photo booth prop was left untouched!

In Other News:

This coming Thursday evening, The Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation is presenting a lecture on “Water History and the Mission Tunnel” that they’re calling a deep dive into Santa Barbara’s water history. This talk by UCSB Geology Professor and Hydrologist, Dr. Hugo Loaiciga, will highlight the changes in water provided to the city by the Gibraltar Reservoir and the Mission Tunnel water systems, provisions being made, and challenges ahead. Thursday October 23, from 6-7 p.m. at the Alhecama Theatre. $5 suggested donation; free for SBTHP members. More info here.

This Week’s Cover Home:

Cruise on up to Solvang today … enjoy the green hills of the valley on your way to the lovely, private property at 793 Alisal Road. Gaze through the large picture windows of the great room to enjoy mountain views that conjure an artist’s inspired landscape painting.

Privacy abounds in this three-bedroom-two-bath, 2,300 sqft. property, with an open floor concept flowing seamlessly from the stylish kitchen to the inviting dining room to the spacious outdoor patio areas. The outside area is perfect for entertaining; there’s even a viewing platform for star gazing. Presented by Cimme Eordanidis, at $1,775,000, and open today from 12-4 p.m.

This Week’s Open House Listings:

We’ve gathered plenty more open homes for you to choose from today. Take a peek right here.

This Week’s Issue:

This week’s issue is all about the Best of Santa Barbara both front and back, plus all the usual news, events, open houses and info that you rely on. Thank you for reading. Sit back, relax, and enjoy!!