STUDIO CITY Neighborhood Guide: Celebrity Neighborhood & Historic Architecture

Studio City is one of my favorite neighborhoods in all of Los Angeles. In this video, I’ll tell you all about my favorite spots, the schools, homes, and more.

Hello everyone, my name is Cameron Stephens and I’m a local real estate agent in Los Angeles and the owner of Stephens Real Estate.

Today I want to talk about Studio City, one of the coolest neighborhoods in all of Los Angeles. Studio City is a neighborhood in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is surrounded by Burbank on the east, Sherman Oaks to the west, and the Hollywood Hills to the south. In fact, the southern portion of Studio City gets quite hilly and has some amazing hillside properties that rival anything in the Hollywood Hills.

To the north you have a plethora of areas like Valley Village, Toluca Lake, and Van Nuys. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 1927, now known as CBS Studio Center.

The main north south thoroughfare is Laurel Canyon Boulevard, and some people consider that intersection of Laurel Canyon and Ventura Boulevard to be the heart of Studio City. In fact, it is Ventura Boulevard that has all of the shops, restaurants, bars, shopping and other entertainment which we’ll get to in a second. The other cool thing about Ventura is it mimics the LA river, and this portion of the river in the valley has been revamped with bike paths  and walkings paths for either transportation or leisure.

Ok let’s get to the good stuff, all the cool spots in Studio City. Ventura Boulevard in Studio City is nicknamed Sushi Row, so the sushi spots are plentiful. Asanebo is a lovely mixed omakase restaurant with a Michelin star, whereas Iroha Sushi of Tokyo is more laid back but still well loved. Katsu-Ya is an internationally recognized sushi star, but the Studio City location is the original one that birthed the legend. There’s even a Sugarfish in Studio City too, which is a great standby.

Laurel Tavern is for the beer lovers and is both the date spot and the hangout place for sure, or you have Stout Burger for burger and beer needs. For a little more upscale, Black Market Liquor Bar has your bar food and cocktails on lockdown.

Brunch is at the ​​The Front Yard tucked away inside the Garland Hotel or Joan’s on Third (not on 3rd street, but just as good as the original location in the Beverly Grove. Aroma Coffee and Tea is well loved by locals, and there is an Alfred’s coffee on Ventura as well. Ice cream is from Salt and Straw, again on Ventura.

And just to put a little bow on this food section, Studio City has their farmer’s market on Sundays and it is well known as being one of the best in the whole city.

Ok let’s talk living in Studio City. The Lifestyle is mellow, quiet, and surprisingly hip. A lot of celebrities live in the hills of Studio City and a lot of entertainment industry veterans and high ups come for the great schools and beautiful architecture but otherwise this is an old school neighborhood that has a lot of local mom and pop type places that keep a lovely mix between vibrant and relaxed.

Hiking is plentiful in the canyons, specifically Fryman Canyon being the most notable one. Gorgeous views at the top and then winding snaking trails that dip down into a rainforest-like oasis, only to climb up the mountain once more for a view of all the celebrity homes in that enclave. It’s a great hike for beginners all the way up to serious hikers who don’t want to travel far to get their outdoor fix.

The schools are excellent, with Carpenter Community Charter being the coveted public charter school and Harvard-Westlake being the coveted private school in Studio City. Walter Reed Middle School also ranks decently high, and North Hollywood Senior High ranks up there as well. Overall this isn’t the best school district in Los Angeles but it's definitely up there, for sure.

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As for the homes, you get a lovely mix of homes in Studio City, but there is plenty of fantastic historic architecture that is well preserved and updated, even lovely examples of mid century like the Goodwin House and Lechner Houseby, both by Rudolph Schindler. Also, bet you didn’t know the Brady Bunch House is in Studio City, did you?

Studio City’s homes are an average price of $1.5 to $2 Million depending on size. Due to that price point, homes do tend to be on the market a little longer, averaging around 40 to 50 days. But just to give you a little idea of the diversity of homes, the cheapest is a 1 bedroom condo on Laurel Canyon that is listed for $399,000 and the most expensive home is a massive gated and private estate on Sunshine Terrace listed at $12 Million. But again, most single family homes fall into that sweet spot of 1.5 to 2 Million.

Ok there you have it! Thank you for watching, I hope you learned something about Studio City, and if you did be sure to like and subscribe, and if you found this valuable, I’d incredibly appreciate you sharing this video with someone that could benefit by connecting with me. It’s super simple, and on my website there’s a button to Book A Consultation that connects directly to my calendar. I almost exclusively work with referrals because you all are people I know, trust, and appreciate the service I offer, so thank you so much for referring me! And of course, if you just found this video and you like my energy and personality and think my expertise would benefit you, I’d love to work with you as well!

At Stephens Real Estate, we offer a few value adding programs for both buyers and sellers

that no one else is offering. For buyers, we put together a full marketing plan that paints you as the right buyer for your dream home. We can help recommend local lenders that will fit your financing situation, even if you’re freelance. And don’t worry about the inspections, we’ve got you covered. They’re free, all of them, no questions asked.

And If you’re looking to sell your home, we offer the ability to REMODEL NOW, and PAY WHEN YOU SELL with Zero fees, no interest, no upfront costs. Plus, we pay for all of the aspects of digital marketing from photography, drone footage, videography, 3D walkthrough and virtual open houses, social media campaign, custom website, targeted emails and more.

Thanks again for watching, and if you’re not on your phone, go ahead and pop your phone open and scan this QR code to be taken directly to my website to learn more. Otherwise there should be a link right somewhere down there where you can click to learn more.