Why is Beverly Hills so expensive? (Los Angeles, San Diego: sale, salons, real estate)

[CmpEngineer]

Why is Beverly Hills so expensive? It is not near the ocean like Malibu or Pacific Palisades, so that Beverly Hills can get warm during the summer. Beverly Hills is in the middle of gang-infested smoggy Los Angeles.

I visited some family friends who live in the cheapest part of Beverly Hills (90211), and was not sure why they were willing to live in a small old house in Beverly Hills that was worth $1.4 million instead of living in a nice new large house in another city.

[fairweathergolfer]

Excellent question! I often ask myself these same things. I don't live there (I live close to the water), but have spent time in all areas of BH. My sense is (and I look forward to other's comment, beyond my own limited perspective), is the AMAZING shopping, restaurants, museums, close to Hollywood activities and functions, close to some beautiful and amazing homes, little neighborhood business areas usually close by, and of course they live--even it is the worse part of it--in Beverly Hills.

They are also centrally located to much of LA--west, south, east, and north. Each area has a 'feel', some people love the vibe of BH, some PP, some Malibu, some SM, some Hollywood. There are also many microclimates and at least two in West LA, which means they may prefer a bit more heat and less cloud cover. The moment you cross to the east side of the 405, you get a lot higher temperature's consistently. Some people like this better, not me, but some prefer it.

Beverly Hills has a frou, frou feel and some people just love living there for the combination of those reasons. If you and your dog walked around in fur (or faux fur) all day long in 90 degree heat in BH, few people would bat a fake eyelash (They may want to, but they won't. After all this is Beverly Hills, darling.) This is my guess. Crazy isn't it? Sometimes I think one has to live here for awhile and really see what a community has to offer over the long term to see why we suffer so in these tiny little homes, when we could be living in guarded mansions elsewhere.

[UB50]

Sometimes I think one has to live here for awhile and really see what a community has to offer over the long term to see why we suffer so in these tiny little homes, when we could be living in guarded mansions elsewhere.

Ain't that the truth!

I imagine $1.4 million would buy you quite the mansion in Podunk Iowa, but who wants to live there?

On the other hand, could you imagine the stampede if houses were selling for $200K in Beverly Hills?

[CmpEngineer]

Originally Posted by UB50

Ain't that the truth!

I imagine $1.4 million would buy you quite the mansion in Podunk Iowa, but who wants to live there?

On the other hand, could you imagine the stampede if houses were selling for $200K in Beverly Hills?

Even though California is much more expensive than other parts of America, you can get a nice house with an ocean view in Laguna Niguel for $1.4 million. YOu can also get a nice house in Ladera Ranch, Yorba Linda, or Anaheim Hills. Long Beach has nice areas where $1.4 million will get you a nice home (OR, you can buy an old house in a nice area of Long Beach and knock it down, then build a nice large home on that lot for a total cost of $1.4 million).

I wonder what % of people live in Beverly Hills simply so they can brag to everyone that they live there. Beverly Hills is so famous and glamorous (it's famous and known throughout America and Canada) that you can even go to Podunk, Iowa, and impress them with the fact you live in Beverly Hills.

[fairweathergolfer]

One point about moving to many of the other areas you listed is the change from a pedestrian culture (Beverly Hills) to a commuter culture. When you really crunch the figures with the sale of the house in BH (especially the worse part-and remember the prices are going down right now, so 1.4 may have just become 1.1 or 1.2) then the real estate agent gets paid from that. Then one must find a new home in a new community (which is not as pedestrian friendly or close to all that Beverly Hills is) and become more of a commuter (This is a huge quality of life change for people who are pedestrian culture dominant). And no money or nice house can really make up for all the time spent in the car for many of us.

Traffic even to the store sometimes can be unpredictable. Also a lot of those areas are out of the city and BH is part of a city, so they would also have to leave the city. City people like the city, so much they are willing to suffer the smaller house and increase in smog and noise. If one has a decent house in one of the nicer areas or close to in a city it is hard to give up. Especially when they have to move not to a nicer neighborhood in the city, but completely away from the area they love.

The prices in the areas you listed are also very high and unless one is a builder or contractor it is prohibitively expensive to buy a house in those areas and then hire an architect, builder and build a new home for all under the sale of the house minus moving costs including the agent. Plus new landscaping and higher taxes on top of all the other costs.

All of a sudden staying in BH looks pretty darn good. I say this as I have examined all of those options. Building costs are very high right now and I am in a house that only a year and a half ago was priced at 1.6 and may now only sell of 1.2 or 1.3. Who knows what the market will bring. Maybe I''ll get 1.4, but that is not a given and pricing all over S. Cal. is expensive, even in Laguna Niguel.

But you bring up excellent points once again. Also I do think you are right. There are a lot of people who live in those areas, myself included that love the cache of where one lives. But I must tell you we lie all the time, because we don't want people to think we are snobby or pretentious (my husband and I), so we usually fudge to a more general neighborhood when we tell them where we live. So there is a lot of that going on as well. People not only react with understanding, many times they also react with very negative judgment, so it is a mixed bag. Something about this city is that once one lives here parts of it are oddly addictive and become hard to leave. This is the worst. I admire those that just hate it all and never like it. At least they can leave and go live in less expensive housing.

Finally one last point. My husband and I have looked north and south of the LA area, yet one thing I heard continually from those that live in those areas you mentioned that still had an attachment to the city was 'I'd give anything to have a home here'. They hated the drive. Yorba Linda is a fine area, but one still if they are of a certain city mind, drive into the city, which on a regular basis is tough. If I wasn't a city girl I might move, but I am, so that eliminates a lot of options. I wonder how much of this is true for your relatives. It is all bizarre. I have loads of families in nice suburban homes, but I would go crazy living there. I've tried it and it and the repetitive boring nature nearly killed me. There is also the stimulation factor as well. San Diego is lovely, but still not enough stimulation sadly. It is gorgeous there. By the way I love all the areas you mentioned and can understand how confounding this all is. It is to me too.

[UB50]

To add to what Fairweathergolfer posted:

Beverly Hills is also a better location if you have to commute to downtown LA or Century City; or if you do business with the "entertainment" (TV, music, movie) industries which are mostly located in San Fernando Valley and West LA. People who want to live out of town in the entertainment industry generally go north of LA -- to places like Thousand Oaks or Westlake Village and some of the gated communities northwest of Los Angeles. Of course, the further north you go, like up towards Santa Barbara, $1.4 million won't buy you much of a house either.

Go to realtor.com and check out what $1.4 million will buy you in Southern California -- then come back and tell us about it. Check out Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Pasadena, La Crescenta, Santa Barbara, Toluca Lake, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Studio City, Marina del Rey, Malibu (these are nice areas I can think of off the top of my head).

[Sassberto]

Why is a brownstone townhouse in NYC the same price as a 40-acre estate in upstate NY?

In every city you have prime urban neighborhoods. SF has Pacific Heights, San Diego has Mission Hills, LA has Beverly Hills, West LA, NYC has the UES, Brooklyn Heights, Boston has Beacon Hill, etc...

Prime urban neighborhoods usually fetch a premium because it offers the amenities of a city without the drawbacks. Given that the majority of our population lives in a city, the demand is very high for these properties.

And let's not forget - BH proper is a darn nice place. Big houses on big lots, well kept homes and streets. An historic and iconic LA neighborhood.

[Need_affordable_home]

Good question. I was thinking location, location, location and also isnt that where alot of rich and famous people like models, actors, singers live? They have too much money and Beverly Hills is affordable to them. Thats not to say BH is a very nice place from what I heard. Santa Monica, La Jolla and Santa Barbara are other nice expensive places. I have a few friends who are in love with La Jolla but cant afford it! Theres some realtively cheap places in San Diego if you dont mind commuting. Others just leave California and buy in an affordable city elsewhere.

[LivingLikeAGradStudent]

I actually prefer parts of Hancock Park to Beverly Hills, but the sentiments are the same: Good mid-city location, great shopping, neighborhood is kept up well, good-sized lots, walking rather than driving. Now, are some of those same elements available in Austin or Kansas City for a lot less? Yes, but the weather, access to beaches and mountains, and maturity explain some of the price differences.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

This is a great topic. Beverly Hills residents do have "the best of the best" attitude. While quieter streets and more friendly people are in areas nearby--there is truely no where else quite like Beverly Hills. The amount of luxurious restaurants, car dealerships, beauty salons, and services is staggering to the 'average-joe'. It is hard for an average person with a normal fulltime working salary (50-70k) to comprehend how and why someone would need such an upscale life to be happy. I imagine they don't need 'the lifestyle' to be happy, but to make them "happier," give them more self-confidence and bragging-rights.

I can picture it quite nicely- myself relaxing in a 5,000 sq. foot mansion on 3 acres, a huge green lawn, and lush landscaping. My housekeepers would cater to all my stressors-driving, cooking, cleaning the pool, etc. That would be nice.

On the other hand, you also have those people who live in the apartments off of Wilshire, away from the hills. They are probably struggling to pay their bills, living a terribly unaffordable and poor quality of life.

Personally, I love to take walks, see nature, and escape the craziness often. Beverly Hills is dead-stuck in the center of LA's livelyhood. Pacific Palisades or Malibu would offer me soo much more. I am also considering a move back south to wildly-expensive life in Newport. The nature trails, horse riding, cool ocean breeze--ah." Wouldn't that be great? I figure a decent home in any luxurious Southern Californian city starts at roughly $1.2 million.