Home sales are exploding in L.A.’s Silicon Beach, which is rapidly resembling its techie-entrenched cousin up the coast.
Playa Vista, a Silicon Beach neighborhood known for its young, techie population, saw a 317 percent increase in sales volume for single-family home sales over the same period last year, the Los Angeles Times reported. That includes July, August and September.
West L.A. — which includes Sawtelle-Japantown — counted an 89 percent rise in sales volume in the same period, while Venice increased 10 percent and Playa del Rey increased 52 percent, according to a survey by the Combined L.A. Westside MLS.
“Tech companies such as Facebook and Google have moved to these areas, and many employees of these companies are looking for homes near their offices,” MLS CEO Annie Ives told LAT. (Facebook also just signed a lease in the much-cheaper San Fernando Valley.)
The uptick in prices is forcing some to seek housing in other neighborhoods, such as Marina del Rey, where 47 home sales combined nearly $73 million in sales volume in the third quarter. That represents an increase of 119 percent over the same period last year.
Overall, there were 2,688 single-family-home sales across the county during the third quarter. Approximately 36 neighborhoods experienced home sale growth, and 15 experienced a decline. [LAT] – Natalie Hoberman