What $5 million buys across LA neighborhoods
From about 2,600 square feet north of Montana to 4,600 in Bel Air: what a $5 million budget covered across LA's top zips in spring 2026, and why price per foot only tells part of it.
At $5 million, Los Angeles opens up. That budget is above the typical house price in most of the city's best-known areas, and it buys real choices: a view or a flat lot, a restored architectural house or new construction, the beach or the canyons. It also stops being enough in a few places, which is useful to know before you start.
As with our look at $2 million, here's a simple yardstick: $5 million divided by the median price per square foot for single-family homes in each zip.
The numbers
All figures are from the Redfin Data Center, zip-level medians, March to May 2026, for single-family homes. Zip codes don't line up with neighborhood borders, and at this price level a handful of sales can move a median a lot, so treat these as a rough picture.
- Bel Air (90077): median house price $3.4 million, about $1,087 per square foot. $5 million covers roughly 4,600 square feet. 32 house sales in the period.
- Bird Streets and the hills above Sunset (90069): median $3.28 million, about $1,221 per square foot. Roughly 4,100 square feet. This zip also includes parts of West Hollywood and many condos. 28 house sales.
- Pacific Palisades (90272): median $3.45 million, about $1,243 per square foot. Roughly 4,020 square feet. 30 house sales. After the January 2025 fire, this market is unusual, and the median is harder to read than most.
- Brentwood (90049): median $3.9 million, about $1,285 per square foot. Roughly 3,890 square feet. 66 house sales, the most of any zip here.
- Malibu (90265): median $5.05 million, about $1,359 per square foot. Roughly 3,680 square feet. Malibu prices swing widely between beachfront, bluff and hillside homes.
- Beverly Hills (90210): median $8.12 million, about $1,448 per square foot. Roughly 3,450 square feet. The zip covers the flats north of Santa Monica Boulevard, the hills, and the area often called Beverly Hills Post Office.
- Beverly Hills south of Santa Monica Boulevard (90212): median $4.44 million, about $1,495 per square foot. Roughly 3,340 square feet. Only 8 house sales, so this one moves a lot.
- Santa Monica north of Montana (90402): median $4.8 million, about $1,947 per square foot. Roughly 2,570 square feet.
Reading between the lines
- Land drives the price. In 90210 or 90402, a modest older house on a good lot can sell for close to what a much larger new house does elsewhere. Price per square foot compares houses; at this level, buyers are often paying for the lot, the street and the view.
- Most of these zips sold below list. In this period, houses in 90049, 90069, 90077, 90210, 90265 and 90272 sold for roughly 94% to 96% of list price at the median. Santa Monica's 90402 and Beverly Hills' 90212 were right around 100%. That gives buyers more room to negotiate in some areas than in the Eastside zips that sold over asking.
- Time on market varies. Median days on market ran from about 37 in 90402 to more than 150 in 90265. Higher-priced homes often take longer, which can work in a buyer's favor.
What $5 million tends to look like
- In Brentwood: a traditional or newer house on a flat street, often with a pool, or a larger home in the hills north of Sunset.
- On the Bird Streets: a hillside home with city views, often modern, with indoor and outdoor space built around the view.
- In Beverly Hills: a house in the flats south of Santa Monica Boulevard, or a smaller home in the hills or the area often called Beverly Hills Post Office, which has Beverly Hills addresses but is in the City of LA.
- In Santa Monica north of Montana: a well-kept older house, or a remodeled one, on a standard lot close to Montana Avenue's shops.
- In Malibu: a hillside or canyon home with ocean views. Beachfront generally starts higher.
- In Pacific Palisades: options include standing homes, rebuilt homes and rebuild opportunities, each with very different due diligence.
Costs beyond the price
At this level, a few costs grow quickly. California property taxes are based mostly on your purchase price, so a $5 million purchase comes with a substantial annual tax bill. Insurance can be harder to find in hillside and coastal fire zones. And sales above certain thresholds in the City of LA carry an additional transfer tax, generally paid by the seller under local custom, which can affect pricing and negotiation. Our guide to buying in LA from out of town covers the basics, and specifics should always be verified with a tax professional.
If you'd like to see what $5 million is buying right now in a particular area, that's a good conversation to have early.
General information, not advice. Price figures are estimates from public data and may be out of date.
