Santa Monica

Santa Monica is a beachfront city west of Los Angeles with a walkable downtown, a pier and some of the area’s best-ranked schools. It is expensive but offers a coastal lifestyle with growing transit.

Waterfront
Upscale
Family friendly

Indicative figures · our listings & transactions

Median sale: $1.7M
Median rent: $4,600/mo
Price per area: $1,161/sq ft
Year on year: Up +1.5%vs last year
Days on market: 48days
Walk / transit: 80 / 58/100

Overview

About Santa Monica

Beach bungalows, mid-century apartments and modern condos sit a short bike ride from the Pacific. Third Street Promenade, Main Street and the pier draw locals and tourists alike.

The E Line connects Downtown Santa Monica to downtown Los Angeles in about 45 minutes, and the Big Blue Bus covers the city. Traffic on the 10 and Wilshire Boulevard is heavy.

In 2026 the median sale price is about $1.65M, roughly $12,500 per square metre, and a typical 2-bedroom rental costs about $4,600 a month. Prices are up 1.5% on a year ago and homes take around 48 days to sell, which points to strong demand.

Rent control applies to many older apartment buildings, and beach-area parking is tightly managed. Salt air is hard on exteriors.

Long white apartment building with blue balconies and curved white columns

Bright spacious living room with marble floor, teal sofa, curtains and wall-mounted television

Walk score80 / 100

Market

Prices and rents

Typical sale price
$1.7M
Typical rent
$4,600/mo

Santa Monica is growing steadily rather than sharply. Well-priced homes still sell within weeks, but there is room to negotiate on listings that have sat for longer than the local median.

Indicative figures from our listings and transactions.