What you need to know about LA neighborhood prices, in one chart

Housing prices vary as widely in Los Angeles as do its neighborhoods. Some people will pay a premium for an oceanside property, others for a high-rise in Downtown or a slice of LA’s hipster capital.

That’s according to an analysis by real estate research firm NeighborhoodX, which shows the range of asking prices on a per-square-foot basis for more than twenty LA neighborhoods.

The neighborhood-by-neighborhood breakdown highlights how quickly some areas of Los Angeles have changed in terms of affordability.

Venice Beach, once known for its crime, drugs, and eccentrics, is now the priciest neighborhood by entry point. Asking prices in the the oceanside neighborhood start at a whopping $794 per square foot, compared to Beverly Hills, which starts at $447 per square foot.

While Venice has indeed undergone a transformation, the price-points might also be an indication of potential development value, says Constantine Valhouli, co-founder of NeighborhoodX.

Downtown LA and Silver Lake, both neighborhoods that have changed rapidly, share a similar starting point to Beverly Hills, at $445 and $429 per square foot. However, Silver Lake, poster-child of gentrification, tops out at just $956 per square foot, while Downtown has the city’s most expensive condo listing on a per-square-foot, a unit at the Ritz-Carlton asking $1,894 per square foot.

The average across the city is $695 per square foot, but drops to $417 when the Valley is include din the calculation.

Beverly Hills has the widest range, with prices starting at $447 and ending with the city’s most expensive listing on a per-square-basis, at $3,421 per square foot.

Meanwhile, Boyle Heights, a neighborhood still in the early stages of change, has the lowest listing and the lowest average, at $307, but edges above several neighborhoods, including Hollywood, at the upper-limit.

One caveat of the per-square-foot analysis in a diverse housing market like Los Angeles is that some areas are suburban with significant acreage, while others are densely populated and vertically developed as condos, Valhouli noted.

The analysis is based on regional MLS data for market-rate listings in August 2017, and excludes some listings like foreclosures and development sites.