What's on around Los Angeles

The night before Thanksgiving, the Rams host the Green Bay Packers at SoFi Stadium. The league has never played a game on Thanksgiving Eve, and the Rams' own announcement puts kickoff at 5 p.m. Pacific, streaming on Netflix rather than going out over the air. That is one Wednesday in a month that also carries an election, an auto show, a crosstown football game at the Rose Bowl and a parade down Hollywood Boulevard.

November in Los Angeles and Orange County opens with the last Día de los Muertos altars downtown and the general election, and closes with the LA Auto Show, the UCLA and USC game, and the Hollywood Christmas Parade.

Every date below was confirmed for 2026 with the organizer, the venue, the city or the school that runs it. Anything I could only find on a previous year's listing was left out, and there is a section further down naming which ones those were.

I'm Jeff Moran, NMLS #483943, a mortgage broker licensed in California through C2 Financial Corporation, and I have been in the mortgage business since 1996. I work out of Bluffton, South Carolina, so nothing here is a first-hand claim. Every fact comes from a public source, linked beside it, and the dates were checked on October 21, 2026. If you are looking at homes in either county this fall, the Los Angeles area buyer's guide covers the regions, the tax rules and the insurance questions that go with them.

The first weekend: both Los Angeles teams at SoFi, and the last altars downtown

The Rams and the Chargers play each other at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Sunday, November 1. The Chargers' published 2026 schedule lists a 1:05 p.m. Pacific kickoff on FOX, with the Chargers as the road team in their own building.

Downtown, the Día de los Muertos altars at Gloria Molina Grand Park are in their final days. Grand Park's own event page has the free outdoor exhibition of community altars running October 24 through November 2, open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. The closing Noche de los Muertos celebration is on Sunday, November 1 from 3 to 7 p.m. The park is on North Grand Avenue, a short walk from the Civic Center and Grand Park station.

Tuesday the 3rd is the general election

Election day is Tuesday, November 3. The governor's office is open because Governor Newsom is term-limited, and voters in the City of Los Angeles also decide the mayor's race. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder publishes vote center locations and hours, and same-day registration is available at county election offices and voting locations.

Two things on that ballot reach a home purchase directly, and I am not taking a position on either one. In the City of Los Angeles, the City Clerk's voter information pamphlet carries Proposition TE. A documentary transfer tax is what a city or county charges once, at the closing table, when a property changes hands. Proposition TE would create a one-time exemption from the city's Measure ULA version of that tax for residential property damaged or destroyed in the Palisades Fire and sold within five years of it. LAist's write-up of the measure adds that owners as of January 7, 2025 would qualify, that owner-occupancy is not required, and that tax already paid could be refunded.

Across the county, fourteen school districts have bond measures on the same ballot, and a school bond is repaid through a property tax on assessed value. NBC Los Angeles has the district-by-district list, including Charter Oak Unified's Measure S, a $75 million bond whose estimated levy the district puts at $40 per $100,000 of assessed value.

A bond levy arrives every year on the tax bill, and in a purchase year it can also show up on a second bill of its own. If you want the mechanics of that, the California supplemental property tax bill explains the extra bill that reaches you after a sale.

Irvine holds a Great Park development update the same day, Tuesday, November 3. The city's calendar of events lists it as one of four community meetings this year. The meeting covers what is being built at the Great Park, which is worth knowing before you compare a home near it with one somewhere else.

Sunday the 8th: the Rose Bowl parking lot, then the Texans at SoFi

The Rose Bowl Flea Market takes over the stadium's parking lots on Sunday, November 8, which is the second Sunday of the month and the pattern R.G. Canning has run it on for 58 years. The November listing gives general admission from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, with early entry from 5 a.m.

Pasadena Now reports that the box office closes at 3 p.m. and shopping carries on until 4:30. Admission and whether the gate takes cash differ between listings, so the organizer's own ticket page is the one to go by.

Across town, the Houston Texans are at SoFi Stadium that same afternoon at 1:05 p.m. Pacific, per the Chargers' schedule above.

Saturday the 14th has a beach festival and a piano concerto

Darker Waves is back on the sand at Huntington City Beach on Saturday, November 14. JamBase's report on the lineup names Morrissey, The Smashing Pumpkins and Simple Minds as headliners, with Bad Religion, Adam Ant, The Psychedelic Furs, Soft Cell, The Damned, Gary Numan and Manic Street Preachers also on the bill. Post-Punk.com's announcement counts more than 35 acts across three stages.

That evening in Long Beach, the Long Beach Symphony plays Ravel's Boléro, Strauss's Don Juan and Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto at the Terrace Theater on East Ocean Boulevard. The orchestra's own 2026-27 classical series page has Eckart Preu conducting and Michelle Cann at the piano, with doors at 6 p.m., a pre-concert talk at 6:30 and the concert at 7:30.

The holiday season starts on the 13th in Anaheim

Holidays at the Disneyland Resort opens on Friday, November 13 and runs through January 6, 2027, across Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure. Fox 11's report on the resort's announcement has World of Color: Season of Light returning to Paradise Bay for the same window, with Santa appearances from November 13 through December 24.

The resort first announced a November 18 start and then moved it almost a week earlier, which MickeyVisit covered in July. Older listings still carry the 18th.

The Auto Show and Knott's Merry Farm both open on the 20th

The Los Angeles Auto Show runs November 20 through 29 at the Los Angeles Convention Center on South Figueroa Street. The show's own press release confirms those public dates and puts AutoMobility LA, the media and industry day, on Thursday, November 19. One third-party explainer has the run going through November 30, and it disagrees with the show.

Knott's Merry Farm opens at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park the same Friday, November 20, and runs through January 3, 2027. The park's events page has it on regular park days rather than on select nights, with the Home for the Holidays revue, the Peanuts ice show and a nightly parkwide lighting moment.

The Doo Dah Parade comes back to Old Pasadena on the 22nd

Pasadena's Doo Dah Parade is on Sunday, November 22, in its 46th edition and its first since 2024. NBC Los Angeles reported the date, and Colorado Boulevard carried the organizers' announcement that the parade skipped 2025 over funding and the aftermath of the Eaton Fire.

The 2026 route and start time were not published when I checked. Earlier parades stepped off at 11 a.m. from Holly Street and Raymond Avenue, so the organizers are the ones to ask before you plan around it.

Thanksgiving week

Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26. The Rams and Packers play the night before, on Wednesday the 25th at SoFi Stadium, and the NFL's own schedule coverage calls it the league's first Thanksgiving Eve game.

The Dana Point Turkey Trot goes off Thanksgiving morning in Dana Point Harbor, in its 49th year. The event's registration page has race-day hours from 6 to 11 a.m., check-in in the Dana Marina Plaza parking lot, a 10K at 7 a.m. and a 5K at 8:30, plus a one-mile Gobble Wobble for the kids. The Dana Point Chamber of Commerce runs it, the course is USA Track and Field certified, and the races sell out.

Saturday the 28th is UCLA against USC at the Rose Bowl. UCLA's athletics department and USC's both have the date and the venue. Kickoff time and television were still to come when I checked, and one outdated page has it on the 26th.

The Hollywood Christmas Parade closes the month on Sunday, November 29, along Hollywood Boulevard. The parade's own details page says it is held the Sunday evening after Thanksgiving and that curbside viewing is free along most of the route, with grandstand seats sold separately. Ticket listings show a 5:30 p.m. step-off, and the organizers had not confirmed a time.

Farmers markets in Santa Monica

Santa Monica's downtown markets run straight through the winter. The city's own farmers market page has the Wednesday market on Arizona Avenue between 4th Street and Ocean Avenue, and the Saturday market at Arizona and 3rd Street. Both run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine, and both are open year round. That gives you Wednesdays the 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th, and Saturdays the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th. The city does note that a market can close for selected holidays, so it is worth a look before Thanksgiving week.

The Saturday market is the oldest of the four, going back to 1991, and the city says it carries the largest share of certified organic growers. There is a Sunday market on Main Street as well, and Los Angeles County's service locator lists it at 2640 Main Street from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., year round.

Dates I could not confirm for 2026

Several things turn up on November lists around here and are not in the dated list above, because this year's date never came from the organizer.

Veterans Day is Wednesday, November 11. The area's usual observances include the San Fernando Valley parade in Mission Hills, a ceremony at Forest Lawn in the Hollywood Hills, and events in Long Beach. The valley parade has stepped off at 11:11 a.m. in past years. None of them had posted 2026 details when I checked, and the times circulating online belong to earlier years, so all of them are out of the list. Fox 11's roundup from a past year is still the best guide to which organizations hold them. If you are buying here with a VA loan, VA loans in California covers how the program works across the state.

Hollywood Forever's Día de los Muertos had no 2026 date posted, and every listing I found describes last year's all-day event on November 1. The Olvera Street Día de los Muertos festival runs nine days into November 2 in most years, and the only 2026 listing I found was a secondary roundup rather than El Pueblo's own calendar. The tree lightings at The Grove and the Americana at Brand had only prior-year dates, and Caruso's most recent press release on them is from November 2025. The Downtown Los Angeles Art Walk is on the second Thursday of every month, which would put it on the 12th, and the organizer had not published the November listing. Dreamstate SoCal at the Queen Mary waterfront appears on third-party calendars for November 20 and 21, with nothing from the promoter. For You Fest at Great Park Live in Irvine reads as one day on the city's events page and two days everywhere else.

Roads, parks and a hospital in progress

Van Nuys Boulevard is torn up through the winter. Metro began building the East San Fernando Valley light rail line along the boulevard in 2026, a 6.7-mile street-level route with 11 stations planned for Van Nuys, Panorama City, Arleta and Pacoima. Metro's street closure notices have utility work between Vesper Avenue and Arleta Avenue running from July 27, 2026 into early spring 2027, with lane restrictions and full side-street closures. Spectrum News 1 covered the start of construction and puts the project at $3.57 billion.

The park under the Sixth Street Viaduct is running late. The LA Local reports that the 12-acre Sixth Street PARC will not open until early 2027, months later than the city expected, because of scheduling changes to the playground equipment installation. The city's Bureau of Engineering project page is where the schedule gets posted.

Azusa broke ground on a wilderness park in October. Streetsblog Los Angeles reported on October 14 that construction started at 100 North Old San Gabriel Canyon Road, with the park expected to open by next September.

The Harbor-UCLA replacement is still going up in the South Bay. Los Angeles County's Department of Health Services describes a $1.695 billion program for a new nine-story hospital and five more buildings, targeted for completion in 2027. The county counts more than 800 construction jobs on it, and its stated goal is filling half of them from nearby communities including Inglewood, San Pedro and Watts.

The hospital hiring is the item on that list that reaches a loan file directly. A job that starts in a new city changes which documents a lender reads, and it matters early whether you are taking a salaried position or working for yourself once you arrive. Getting pre-approved in California covers what gets reviewed before anybody writes a letter, and self-employed mortgages in California covers the tax return side of it.

Common questions

What is happening around Los Angeles at Thanksgiving 2026?

Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26. The Rams play the Packers at SoFi Stadium the night before, on Wednesday the 25th, and the Dana Point Turkey Trot runs Thanksgiving morning in Dana Point Harbor. UCLA plays USC at the Rose Bowl on Saturday the 28th, and the Hollywood Christmas Parade is Sunday the 29th. The Rams' announcement and the Turkey Trot's registration page have the details.

When does the LA Auto Show open in 2026?

Friday, November 20, and it runs through Sunday, November 29 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. AutoMobility LA, the media and industry day, is Thursday, November 19. The show's own press release has both dates. Some third-party pages carry a November 30 closing date, which the show does not.

Is the Pasadena Doo Dah Parade happening in 2026?

Yes, on Sunday, November 22, after skipping 2025. Colorado Boulevard carried the organizers' announcement of the return and the reasons for the break. The route and start time had not been published when I checked on October 21.

When do the holiday events start at Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm in 2026?

Disneyland Resort starts Friday, November 13, and Knott's Merry Farm starts Friday, November 20. Both run into January. Fox 11's report on the Disneyland announcement and Knott's own events page have the windows, and Disneyland's start moved up from an earlier November 18 announcement.

Are the Santa Monica farmers markets open in November?

Yes. The city's farmers market page says the downtown Wednesday and Saturday markets are open year round from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the Main Street market runs Sundays. A market can close for a selected holiday, so it is worth a look at the city's page before Thanksgiving week.

I am moving to Los Angeles or Orange County this winter. Where should I start?

You'll want to start with which city the home is in, because that one answer changes the documentary transfer tax at closing, the permitting department and the local measures on your ballot. The City of Los Angeles, Culver City, Santa Monica, Pomona and Redondo Beach each add a city transfer tax on top of the county's, and no Orange County city does. After that, the California page covers the statewide rules.

The FHFA's 2026 conforming loan limit values put both of these counties at the high-cost ceiling, which is the top of the county range. Only about 75 counties and territories in the country are at that level, and the FHA limit for both counties matches it. The difference between conforming and jumbo explains what that limit does, and it is worth reading before you settle on a price range. If you already own a California home and you are over 55, the Proposition 19 property tax base transfer explains how your assessment can move with you.