Playa del Rey

Playa del Rey was laid out in 1902 around a lagoon and a pier as a resort, and the Del Rey Lagoon park still marks the old center. The neighborhood grew slowly through the twentieth century, and much of its hillside was cleared in the 1960s and 1970s for LAX runway approaches, which left the Westchester bluffs above it largely open.

Today the neighborhood has three parts: the beach and lagoon area at the bottom of Culver Boulevard, the hillside streets above it toward Westchester, and the strip along Vista del Mar and the jetty at the Ballona Creek entrance. The Ballona Wetlands and Playa Vista border it on the north-east.

Homes near the sand and the lagoon, along Pacific Avenue and the streets off Culver Boulevard, range from older beach cottages to new construction, with condos in small buildings along the beach and Vista del Mar. The hillside streets above Culver carry 1940s to 1960s houses and larger rebuilt homes, many with ocean views.

Prices sit below Marina del Rey and Venice for comparable beach proximity, partly because of aircraft noise from LAX on the southern streets, which buyers should check by visiting at different hours.

Los Angeles Unified School District serves the neighborhood, with Paseo del Rey Elementary inside Playa del Rey and middle and high school assignments in Westchester. Boundaries follow streets, so check a specific address with the district.

Culver Boulevard and Lincoln Boulevard connect the neighborhood to the 90 Freeway, Marina del Rey and the 405, and Vista del Mar runs south along the beach to Manhattan Beach. LAX is a few minutes away. The beach bike path runs from Playa del Rey north through Marina del Rey to Santa Monica and south past Dockweiler.