City vs. Suburbs and School Info

[Nysee53]

Wow, thanks for the pictures. In our price range we have quite a few new construction options and I think we will stick to that, although our agent said that some homes have been retrofitted when they were rebuilt so they are just as good.

[Nysee53]

What would the public or private school situation be in Bel Air? Does the Hotel Bel-Air attract traffic? Is there a lot of pedestrian traffic and crime in Bel Air?

My husband is interested in Bel Air but the traffic on Sunset Blvd concerns both of us. I have been looking for fixer-uppers in lower Bel-Air but have had no luck. We are looking for something with 3-4 bedrooms thats all, which I know is small for lower Bel Air.

[Vicman]

Originally Posted by Nysee53

What would the public or private school situation be in Bel Air? Does the Hotel Bel-Air attract traffic? Is there a lot of pedestrian traffic and crime in Bel Air?

My husband is interested in Bel Air but the traffic on Sunset Blvd concerns both of us. I have been looking for fixer-uppers in lower Bel-Air but have had no luck. We are looking for something with 3-4 bedrooms thats all, which I know is small for lower Bel Air.

Some of Bel-Air is zoned to Warner Avenue ES while some is zoned to Roscomare Road ES.

All of it is zoned to Emerson MS and University HS.

Originally Posted by missionhome

Enicno attends either Birmingham High School which is a 3/10 or Reseda High School which is a 3/10 in API. Again, very bad scores. These schools are in LAUSD which in general has horrible schools. Encino would be a private school also.

An L.A. Times article about the school says that the academics are fine; it is the social issues (students who are used to getting Fs in middle school suddenly being hit by the seriousness of high school) which produce the low scores: Back to Basics: Why Does High School Fail So Many? - Los Angeles Times

[Sorcerer68]

Hancock Park is considered more upscale than La Canada (in most places except La Canada). You're hard pressed to find a prettier neighborhood and more gorgeous houses. It's got the "old money" feel and is a very safe neighborhood. I personally prefer it to BH, it's free of McMansions and is prettier and warmer. I don't know about private but one of the public schools in HC is sensational (check Greatschools.net). HC attracts some movie stars as well. It's been a filming location for several movies due to it's look and proximity to the studios. It has underground utilities and the historic streetlights. It's also spotless and surrounds the Wilshire Country Club. Homes are Moorish, Spanish Revival, Mission Revival, Spanish Colonial and a smattering of Colonial and Traditional.

La Canada is a really nice area, it's just different. HC is flat, LC is on a hillside. Your "mother ship" is Pasadena. If you're in the right spot, you can watch the fireworks from the Rose Bowl. Housing stock is different, there's lots of Mid-Century, Traditional and Architectural homes. There are also plenty of fairly average Ranch Style. Public schools are very, very good here. I can't tell you a thing about private here either.

[the one]

the latimes has a database of schools ranked by API. and schooldigger.com also has very good information on schools.