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Laurel Canyon

Laurel Canyon is located in area that’s east of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and north of Sunset Boulevard. Additionally, Mulholland Drive is directly to the north. Other neighborhoods like Bel Air, Holmby Hills, Trousdale, and Beverly Hills Flats are all located near Laurel Canyon. Most of the real estate you will find here has a nice Hollywood flare, but still contains the bohemian felling that many residents love. This feeling comes from its hippie roots.
The magnificent music traditions that resonate from this area are all truly incredible and they started during the 1960s. There were many famous musicians during that time who decided to live in Laurel Canyon. Some of these big names included The Byrds, Graham Nash, Joni Mitchel, Frank Zappa, and Jimmy Morrison from The Doors. Laurel Canyon also has a fantastic homeowners association that handles all of the administrative pieces that come with living in this neighborhood. They maintain its upkeep and protect that high-quality standard of living that can be found here.

Important Real Estate Information

The homes located in Laurel Canyon are extremely unique compared to other cities in Los Angeles County. There are not many single-family homes located in this area, but the incredible amount of privacy that residents receive here is truly incredible. Bird Streets located in West Hollywood as well as the sites near Mount Olympus are great places for single family homes. That being said, the European-style streets that ascend up the mountain provide a nice historic feel. This view displays that of Italian seaside villages which is an extremely attractive aspect that draws in many buyers.

The homes in Laurel Canyon are located very close to the San Fernando Valley and Sunset Strip. Also, plenty of top recording studios as well as movie production sets are close by which makes Laurel Canyon an extremely desirable location for many young business professionals who work in the entertainment industry. In additional, the homes in Laurel Canyon are much less expensive than homes located in other cities throughout Los Angeles County. The median price for a home here is about $2,860,000. This rounds out the median price per square foot to be about $1,060. The current population of this area is 1,705 people so this is quite the intimate community setting.

About 43% of the people who live in this neighborhood like to rent. This means you can assume that your neighbors are friendly, but everyone mostly likes to keep to themselves. The median age here is about 44 years old. Additionally, most people who life in this area don’t have children so the average size of any one household is two people.

The History of Laurel Canyon

This mountainous and magnificent neighborhood is located within the Santa Monica Mountains in the Hollywood Hills region. More specifically, Laurel Canyon is in the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles County.

The Tongva people originally inhabited this area a long time ago. These indigenous people of California were a regional tribe for thousands of years. They used the spring-fed stream located in the area as their main source of water and vegetation. Various real estate developers decided to place a nice vacation site right on the slope of the Lookout Mountains which are very close by to Laurel Canyon. All these developments occurred during the early 20th century. Eventually, this turned into what is now the Laurel Canyon neighborhood. After the initial creation of the neighborhood, it soon became a celebrity enclave given the exact location the city developed.

Many celebrities enjoyed how close the land was to other movie studios as well as the hardy look of the land itself. Movie stars chose this area as their home because of how close this serene site was to their jobs in the spotlight of Hollywood. Laurel Canyon became even more popular during “The Golden Age of Hollywood”. Once the 1960s rolled around, this neighborhood became a counterculture center where many different musicians could feel comfortable and at peace. Given all the different types of musicians who flocked here, Laurel Canyon was the birthplace of many significant musical collaborations.

The Lifestyle

It’s very important that people know the main forms of transit in whatever location they are looking to move to in Los Angeles County. Most of the activities you want to complete are going to require that you use a car. You can still take a nice daytime or nighttime stroll if you’d like, but most of the activities you’re going to want to take part in are going to require you to drive there. There are public transit opportunities here such as the Metro which is the Los Angeles bus. Fortunately for residents, there are five different Metros that are always available for public use. The Bob Hope Airport is closest to Laurel Canyon being only about a 25-minute drive (7.8 miles).

Major Attractions

Laurel Canyon has great places to eat and relax if you are in the mood to enjoy a day out on the town. You can go to a chain site such as Starbucks or enjoy some of the more local coffee options. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, or Aroma Coffee and Tea Company are all great options that will satisfy your coffee cravings. Additionally, there are great places around this area for you to grab a quick bite to eat with your friends. For a tranquil, weekend brunch, you can go to any of the following: Sunset Marquis, Mantee Café, or Vivian’s Millenium Café. If this wasn’t enough, Laurel Canyon has some of the best local dessert shops for when you need to satisfy your sweet tooth like Artisan Cheese Gallery, Mashti Malone Ice Cream in Laurel Canyon, and Stolichnaya Bakery. All of these options will provide you with a magnificent cold treat on a hot summer’s day. Below is a more detailed list of some sites that are local favorites.

Canyon Country Store

This is a very small, red-brick market that has many different incredible murals that have been standing since the year 1929. These murals represent the amazing history that makes up the early days of Laurel Canyon. This store sells various goods that visitors and residents just can’t get enough of. The main items are deli-style sandwiches, candy bars, and wine. During the 1960s, the local musicians would come together to have their own personal concerts on the front porches of their estates. This is the true birthplace of some of the most amazing musical collaborations. The Byrds and Buffalo Springfield members were strong leaders of these front porch jam sessions.

The Log Cabin

Zappa lived in a house that was called “The Log Cabin”. Originally, the building was a roadhouse that was built during the era of silent films. During the year 1968, he moved onto the property enjoying the site of the bowling alley that was located in the basement. There was always an enormous entourage of groupies that followed him around everywhere he went. This house was a perfect hotspot for the groupie hangout sessions. These groupies consisted of people who really loved the music as well as those people who were aspiring to be famous musicians themselves. He never locked his doors because he was always ready to party with whoever wanted to drop by. Unfortunately, the Log Cabin actually burned down in 1982, but the remains are still on the property. If you walk past the corner of Laurel Canyon Boulevard, you can still see the ruins as well as Lookout Mountain.

For the Children

Although a decent amount of the families who live here don’t have children, there are still a lot of great activities that children will enjoy. There are plenty of parks, daycare centers, and playgrounds near Laurel Canyon. Some of the previously mentioned parks include Plummer Park, the Wattles Mansion, and South Weddington Park.
The daycare centers really come in handy when both parents work outside of the home and need safe places for their children to stay throughout the day. There are also some very highly rated preschools in the area as well. Some child daycare options include Gardener Little School, Kumon Math and Reading Center of West Hollywood, West Hollywood Children’s Academy, and Laurel Canyon WeeCare. All of these areas are great places for kids to have a great time as well as the adults watching them. There are also plenty of urgent care centers close by such as Quick Stop Urgent Care, Sunset Urgent Care, and Direct Care. These may come in handy if you ever find yourself in a serious emergency.

School Systems

As are many of the cities in Los Angeles County, Laurel Canyon provides great educational opportunities for families with children. Some of the public schools offered here are Delphi Academy, Saint Robert Bellarmine Catholic Elementary, Legacy Schools, MUSE Global School, Montessori House of Children, North Hollywood Christian Academy, Manzanita School, The Country School, and Stratford School – West Los Angeles. All of these schools will provide a great education and community for the children that go there.