Analytics built by: Location, Inc.
Raw data sources: American Community Survey (U.S. Census Bureau), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Methodology: NeighborhoodScout uses over 600 characteristics to build a neighborhood profile… Read more about Scout's Real Estate Data
With a population of 90,401, 45,487 total housing units (homes and apartments), and a median house value of $1,111,539, Santa Monica house prices are not only among the most expensive in California, Santa Monica real estate also is some of the most expensive in all of America.
Large apartment complexes or high rise apartments are the single most common housing type in Santa Monica, accounting for 65.54% of the city's housing units. Other types of housing that are prevalent in Santa Monica include single-family detached homes ( 17.91%), duplexes, homes converted to apartments or other small apartment buildings ( 11.97%), and a few row houses and other attached homes ( 4.36%). This particular housing mix is relatively uncommon and characteristic of cities that are compact and walkable, and which often have a lively downtown.
Santa Monica is dominated by renter-occupied one, two, or no bedrooms apartments. 71.96% of Santa Monica's dwellings are rentals.
At the end of World War II, American soldiers returned home triumphant and, with the help of the GI Bill, built homes by the millions on the edges of America's cities. These homes were predominantly capes and ranches, modest in size, but built to house a growing middle-class as the 20th century became the American century. Santa Monica's housing was primarily built during this period, from the '40s through the '60s. A full 40.24% of the city's housing hails from this era. Other housing ages represented in Santa Monica include homes built between 1970-1999 ( 34.16%) and housing constructed before 1939 ( 15.13%). There's also some housing in Santa Monica built between 2000 and later ( 10.48%).
Vacant housing appears to be an issue in Santa Monica. Fully 10.64% of the housing stock is classified as vacant. Left unchecked, vacant Santa Monica homes and apartments can be a drag on the real estate market, holding Santa Monica real estate prices below levels they could achieve if vacant housing was absorbed into the market and became occupied. Housing vacancy rates are a useful measure to consider, along with other things, if you are a home buyer or a real estate investor.
In the last 10 years, Santa Monica has experienced some of the highest home appreciation rates of any community in the nation. Santa Monica real estate appreciated 71.34% over the last ten years, which is an average annual home appreciation rate of 5.53%, putting Santa Monica in the top 10% nationally for real estate appreciation. If you are a home buyer or real estate investor, Santa Monica definitely has a track record of being one of the best long term real estate investments in America through the last ten years.
Over the last year, Santa Monica appreciation rates have trailed the rest of the nation. In the last twelve months, Santa Monica's appreciation rate has been 1.25%, which is lower than appreciation rates in most communities in America. In the latest quarter, NeighborhoodScout's data show that house appreciation rates in Santa Monica were at 3.61%, which equates to an annual appreciation rate of 15.24%.
Importantly, NeighborhoodScout’s exclusive research found that Santa Monica's housing market shows one of the <a href="/blog/highest-appreciating-cities">top real estate appreciation rates in the U.S.A.</a> in the latest quarter, which may signal the city’s near-future real estate investment strength.
Relative to California, our data show that Santa Monica's latest annual appreciation rate is lower than 80% of the other cities and towns in California.
One very important thing to keep in mind is that these are average appreciation rates for the city. Individual neighborhoods within Santa Monica differ in their investment potential, sometimes by a great deal. Fortunately, you can use NeighborhoodScout to pinpoint the exact neighborhoods in Santa Monica - or in any city or town - that have the best track record of real estate appreciation, by the latest quarter, the last year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, or even since 2000, to assist you in making the best Santa Monica real estate investment or home purchase decisions.
Very High for Nation
Very High for CA