Where to live between Torrance and brentwood (Santa Monica, Hermosa Beach: school district, beach)

[Skb2000]

My husband will be working at UCLA harbor in Torrance - there is a job I am looking at in Brentwood. We have two small kids, so schools are very important, and would like to have decent commutes. Any possibilities? Manhattan or Hermosa Beach? Santa Monica? (although worried about schools) I assume PV would be out of the question

Thanks to all who have answered previous posts - it has helped a lot in our transition from East Coast to West Coast

[BRinSM]

hermosa, manhattan, el segundo, and culver city would all be good options although hermosa might be a stretch to get to brentwood in a reasonable amount of time. ultimately, it depends on your housing budget. all the cities i mentioned are quite expensive though, so if you can afford one, you can probably afford all of them. there's also an area of hawthorne (considerably cheaper than the the beach communities) near LAX and el segundo that has it's own school district (wiseburn) that is supposed to be very good and would make for a good midpoint for you and your husband's offices.