Insights

SB 684 on the Westside: Mar Vista, Palms, Del Rey, West LA and Westchester

Oliver Thornton · October 24, 2026

General information only. This article is educational and is not legal, tax, financial, lending or investment advice. Do your own due diligence and confirm everything with your own qualified professionals before relying on it. Read the full disclaimer.

The Westside is where SB 684 fits best in Los Angeles: flat land, blocks zoned for more than one home, older houses on generous lots, and buyers who want a new house close to the beach and the job centers of Culver City, Playa Vista and Santa Monica. This guide looks at the City of Los Angeles neighborhoods where we see the most potential.

Mar Vista

Mar Vista mixes single-family streets with multifamily-zoned blocks, many still holding mid-century homes on lots of 5,000 to 7,000 square feet. Strong schools and a loyal owner-occupant base make it a natural market for new fee-simple homes. The best sites are on multifamily-zoned blocks near Venice Boulevard and the neighborhood’s commercial corridors.

Palms

Palms is one of the denser parts of the Westside, with many multifamily-zoned lots and quick access to the Expo Line and Culver City. Tenant history is the main hurdle: much of Palms is rental housing, so owner-occupied or long-vacant homes are the sites that qualify.

Del Rey

Del Rey sits between Mar Vista, Culver City and Playa Vista, with flat land and a mix of zoning. Its location near Silicon Beach employers supports demand for new two- and three-bedroom homes.

West Los Angeles

West LA, around Sawtelle and the 405, has many multifamily-zoned lots and some of the strongest demand on the Westside. Lot sizes vary widely, so site shape and access often decide whether six homes fit.

Westchester

Westchester offers larger lots and flat terrain near LAX-area and Playa Vista employment. It is mostly single-family zoning, so the strongest SB 684 candidates are its multifamily-zoned pockets, or vacant single-family lots under SB 1123.

What Applies Across All Five

These are City of Los Angeles neighborhoods, so check zoning and hazards in ZIMAS; see how to spot an SB 684 lot.
Tenant history and the city’s rent rules are the most common disqualifiers.
Most of the Westside flats sit outside fire hazard severity zones, which is part of why the area works.
Entry-level fee-simple homes sell well below the Measure ULA threshold.

Next door, Culver City and Santa Monica have their own rules and their own early SB 684 approvals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Mar Vista, Palms and Del Rey in the City of Los Angeles?
Yes. They are neighborhoods within the City of Los Angeles, so City of Los Angeles zoning, ZIMAS and Measure ULA apply. Culver City and Santa Monica are separate cities.

Why are Westside neighborhoods good for SB 684?
They combine flat land, multifamily-zoned blocks with older homes, strong owner-occupant demand, and job centers nearby, which supports new fee-simple starter homes.

Does Measure ULA affect SB 684 homes on the Westside?
Rarely. Entry-level fee-simple homes generally sell well below the Measure ULA threshold, so the tax is usually not a factor for individual small-lot home sales.

Do you buy outside these neighborhoods?
Selectively. We also consider Culver City, Santa Monica, Venice, Brentwood and select coastal markets where new homes have strong per-square-foot resale.

Important Disclaimer

This article is published by Assemble Capital for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not legal, tax, accounting, lending, appraisal, real estate brokerage or investment advice, and it is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security. Laws, regulations, government programs, lending practices, market conditions and local procedures change often and vary by jurisdiction and by property. The information here may be incomplete, out of date or not applicable to your situation, and we have no obligation to update it.

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