LOS ANGELES
THE ADDRESS: MARLOWE AT PLAYA VISTA, 12700 W. MILLENNIUM DRIVE
•THE NEIGHBORHOOD: SILICON BEACH (VENICE, PLAYA VISTA, WESTCHESTER)
WHO’S BUYING: TECH, STARTUP AND ENTERTAINMENT EXECUTIVES
THE POWER MOVE: “Silicon Beach was kind of a cringeworthy name when it was first used to describe Venice,” says Robin Walpert of Sotheby’s International Realty Santa Monica-Venice brokerage. But as the recession coincided with a tech and social media boom, an influx of tech-sector buyers led to the area’s growth. Now the neighborhoods that encompass Silicon Beach—Venice, Playa Vista and Westchester—are home to more than 500 startups like the Honest Company, along with tech heavyweights such as Facebook, Google, Yahoo, IMAX, AOL and BuzzFeed, and Snapchat is taking over Abbot Kinney Blvd. “Per-square-foot prices here now rival Pacific Palisades, north of Montana Ave. in Santa Monica and Beverly Hills,” says Walpert.
•THE NEIGHBORHOOD: SILICON BEACH (VENICE, PLAYA VISTA, WESTCHESTER)
WHO’S BUYING: TECH, STARTUP AND ENTERTAINMENT EXECUTIVES
THE POWER MOVE: “Silicon Beach was kind of a cringeworthy name when it was first used to describe Venice,” says Robin Walpert of Sotheby’s International Realty Santa Monica-Venice brokerage. But as the recession coincided with a tech and social media boom, an influx of tech-sector buyers led to the area’s growth. Now the neighborhoods that encompass Silicon Beach—Venice, Playa Vista and Westchester—are home to more than 500 startups like the Honest Company, along with tech heavyweights such as Facebook, Google, Yahoo, IMAX, AOL and BuzzFeed, and Snapchat is taking over Abbot Kinney Blvd. “Per-square-foot prices here now rival Pacific Palisades, north of Montana Ave. in Santa Monica and Beverly Hills,” says Walpert.
The Marlowe, near Facebook’s Playa Vista campus, is a complex of 30 contemporary homes starting in the mid-$2 million range. Amenities include Category 6 data wiring—for high-data internet transmission—and high-speed connections, plentiful USB outlets and environmentally efficient systems. Buying here is also an investment, as more Playa Vista development occurs: A $475 million project called Runway Playa Vista, located on what used to be Howard Hughes’ runway, effectively creates a pedestrian-friendly downtown with plenty of shopping and dining options.
But for the tech crowd, the important perks are about lifestyle—in a city snarled by mind-numbing traffic, being able to leave one’s car on the street and take a skateboard or bike to work is the ultimate luxury.
CONTACT: ROBIN WALPERT, [email protected], 310.480.4980, SOTHEBYSHOMES.COM; SEEMA VISRAM, [email protected], 800.603.1871, BROOKFIELDRP.COM
Photo courtesy of Eric Figge
