Santa Monica
Santa Monica is an 8.4 square mile coastal city on the Pacific just west of the City of Los Angeles, with roughly 91,000 residents. The city divides into a beachfront and downtown zone anchored by the Santa Monica Pier and Third Street Promenade, a mid-city commercial spine along Wilshire and Montana, and residential pockets that extend north toward Sunset Boulevard and east toward the 405. Housing spans historic North of Montana single-family homes, dense multifamily blocks in Downtown and Mid-City Santa Monica, and mid-rise coastal condos along Ocean Avenue.
Santa Monica market notes.
Detailed market figures for Santa Monica are coming soon as MUVE connects each city's live data feed. In the meantime, ask a MUVE agent for current pricing, inventory, and days on market specific to your price range and target neighborhoods.
Talk to MUVE about Santa Monica →The Santa Monica neighborhoods we know best.
Santa Monica's submarkets are unusually well-defined for a city its size. North of Montana, Sunset Park, and Ocean Park each carry distinct architectural and price profiles, and each has its own local commercial spine.
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North of Montana
The residential blocks north of Montana Avenue between 7th Street and the city's northern boundary. Predominantly historic single-family homes on tree-lined streets, and one of the highest-price residential pockets on the Westside. Montana Avenue itself is the walkable retail spine.
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Downtown Santa Monica
The dense mixed-use core anchored by the Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica Place, and the Metro E Line terminus at 4th Street and Colorado. Mid-rise condos, historic small-lot single-family on the interior blocks, and the highest concentration of pedestrian retail on the Westside.
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Sunset Park
The residential neighborhood south of the 10 freeway between 20th Street and Cloverfield Boulevard. Predominantly single-family homes on quiet residential streets, with Ocean Park Boulevard and Pico as the local commercial spines. Adjacent to Santa Monica Airport.
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Ocean Park
The southern coastal neighborhood between Pico Boulevard and the Venice boundary at Marine Street. Historic beach-town single-family stock on smaller lots, with Main Street as the walkable commercial spine and direct beach access at the south end.
Schools, amenities, and getting around.
Schools
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District covers the city. Santa Monica High School ('Samohi') is the flagship. John Adams Middle and Lincoln Middle are the two middle schools. Elementary options include Franklin, McKinley, Roosevelt, Grant, Muir, and Edison. SMMUSD is one of the primary reasons buyers pay the Santa Monica premium.
Amenities and access
The Santa Monica Pier and Palisades Park anchor the beachfront. The Third Street Promenade is the walkable retail spine downtown. The Metro E Line (formerly Expo) terminates at 4th and Colorado in Downtown Santa Monica, providing direct rail service to downtown LA. Bergamot Station is a large arts complex on the eastern edge. Santa Monica Airport, currently in a phased closure toward park conversion, sits in Sunset Park.
Homes for sale in Santa Monica.
Live MLS listings for Santa Monica, updated throughout the day. Filter by price, beds, and neighborhood inside MUVE's full search experience.
Browse Live Santa Monica Listings →Buying or selling in Santa Monica.
What buyers and sellers ask most often about Santa Monica.
What is North of Montana?
North of Montana refers to the residential blocks north of Montana Avenue between 7th Street and the city's northern boundary at San Vicente Boulevard. It is one of the highest-price residential pockets on the Westside, dominated by historic single-family homes on tree-lined streets. Montana Avenue itself is a walkable retail spine.How does the Metro E Line serve Santa Monica?
The Metro E Line (formerly the Expo Line) terminates at 4th Street and Colorado Avenue in Downtown Santa Monica, providing direct light-rail service to downtown Los Angeles via Culver City and USC. It opened as far as Santa Monica in 2016 and has substantially changed the commute picture from the city to central LA.How strong is Santa Monica-Malibu Unified?
SMMUSD is one of the highest-ranked school districts in Los Angeles County and is one of the primary reasons buyers pay the Santa Monica premium. Santa Monica High is the district's flagship high school. The district has been in an active multi-year effort to split Malibu into a separate district, though that separation has not yet closed.How does Santa Monica operate independently from LA?
Santa Monica is a fully independent municipality with its own police, fire, city hall, and building codes, though it shares SMMUSD school coverage with Malibu. It is bordered on three sides by the City of Los Angeles (Pacific Palisades, Brentwood, West LA, and Venice). Rent control is substantially stricter in Santa Monica than in most surrounding areas.What is happening at Santa Monica Airport?
Santa Monica Airport is a general-aviation airport in Sunset Park that is in a phased closure under a 2017 consent decree with the FAA. Full closure is scheduled for the end of 2028, after which the site is planned to be converted into a large public park. The pending conversion is a meaningful long-term factor for adjacent Sunset Park real estate.
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