Everyone has heard of the Silicon Valley in San Francisco’s Bay area, popularized for its mega incubator of tech startups and companies. But Los Angeles decided it can also play in this game. Or perhaps it was that tech companies wanted some more fun in the sun for their work/play environment, so a handful of tech companies moved down to Los Angeles.
More specifically, tech companies set up shop in the beach cities of Venice, Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, and Playa Vista. Tech giants who established offices in the region are Google, Facebook, Snapchat, Hulu, Youtube, Entertainment Arts (EA), Dollar Shave Club, and others. Thus, this region of coastal cities is known as LA’s tech hub. Culver City, although landlocked just on the other side of the Mar Vista neighborhood, can also be included in the Silicon Beach cities.
Similar to the boom in real estate that occurred in Silicon Valley, the same phenomenon is happening in each of these cities, most notably is Venice as the largest concentration of tech is centered there. In the past, Venice was more or less a coastal ghetto, known for its roaming beach gangs. Now, gated two- or three-story newly built homes in the walk streets and along the canals are going up in record time and for $3 million plus. Playa Vista is a little more affordable especially for young professionals, as well as Culver City. But these areas, as well as real estate in predominantly residential areas of Mar Vista and Palms, will continue to go up in value as overflow from Venice and Santa Monica look for more economic housing, relatively speaking.