Santa Clarita Real Estate

Santa Clarita has a wide variety of housing options available. Generally speaking, more expensive and densely oriented (suburban style) homes cluster along the 5. Santa Clarita is a commuter-based bedroom community, so many families who settle here drive in to greater Los Angeles for jobs and so prioritize freeway access. This often means homes are more expensive along the 5 and the south end of the valley. If you're willing to drive a little farther you can sometimes get more for your money, but housing is complex and many other factors will come in to play.

Please contact a realtor for advice and more information. This page is meant as a general orientation to real estate in the area, not as comprehensive or expert advice.

Two common issues to be aware of in SCV are HOA fees and Mello-Roos. HOA fees can vary dramatically, from as low as $25 a month to more than $300. Amenities are sometimes compensatory (pools and gyms), but be aware and make your decisions accordingly. Mello-Roos is an additional California tax assessment to ostensibly pay for infrastructure which is often placed on newer homes. It was created to circumvent legislation that put restrictions on increasing property taxes. Be sure to ask if a home you're interested in purchasing has this Mello-Roos tax.

Another interesting fact to be aware of is whether your home is within Incorporated Santa Clarita or in Unincorporated Los Angeles County (adjacent to Santa Clarita). In 1987 Santa Clarita, Saugus, Newhall and Canyon Country voted to merge and create Santa Clarita City. Other areas remain unincorporated.

This has some minor tax and convenience factors. Most of the land west of the 5 is unincorporated, like Stevenson Ranch. The Stevenson Ranch Library is an LA County Library. Richard Rioux park is funded and supported by LA County. Whereas west of the 5 is Santa Clarita City. The Newhall Library on Lyons is a Santa Clarita City Library and the two libraries required DIFFERENT library cards. Likewise, parks on the east side of the 5 are Santa Clarita City parks. This also affects voting districts.

New Homes

California regulations make building a new, custom home an onerous task, especially for an individual builder. Most families who build do so within an already planned community. Below are listed a few of the planned communities that are currently building. Again, this is not a comprehensive list, but hopefully it can give you an idea of ranges and what is available.

FivePoint Valencia is a massive new development of new homes going in near Magic Mountain. No one is willing to predict what the full impact of this community will have on Santa Clarita at large, partly because it has taken 30 years to break ground. Currently, 21,500 units are planned to be built over roughly a 20-year period. Builders include KB Home, Toll Brothers, Tri Pointe Homes, and Richmond American Homes.

Williams Ranch in Castaic is designed for almost 500 homes

Further east in Canyon Country:

Skyline Community in Canyon Country, priced from the low $700s to low $1 million

Skylar by Toll Brothers starting at $1.4 million

Established Neighborhoods

There are many wonderful established neighborhoods in Santa Clarita City and you'll find that wards in these areas have multigenerational church families. Many families even have members in multiple wards across the stake. You'll find these kinds of wards especially in the Valencia and Newhall areas (neighborhoods including Old Orchard I and II, Valencia Hills, Vista Ridge, the Summit and neighborhoods around Meadows park). Generally, from Valencia Blvd south through Lyons Ave (bordered by the 5 on the west and Orchard Village Rd on the east) has a lot of members who have been in the valley for a long time. 

The trade-off is that the homes are generally older and often smaller in size. Elementary schools are not always ranked as well and school facilities are older, but many families find the schools more than adequate.

West of the freeway in Stevenson Ranch you'll find established neighborhoods with a much newer stock of housing that is more likely to be move-in ready. The schools are excellent (Stevenson Ranch Elementary, Pico Canyon, and Oak Hills are all top notch elementary schools and West Ranch is ranked #1 in Hart School District, #113 in California, and #840 nationally). This area is more expensive and there are not as many young families.

North and west in the Copper Hill ward you may find a middle ground: the housing is newer and the schools are very good, but because it is slightly farther away from LA and the 5, you can find housing that is a little less expensive. There is a similar trade-off in Castaic, although Castaic also provides some more rural housing options.

Again, this is a generally informed opinion but there are many points of view on housing and neighborhoods! Please leave a comment if you have more to say :)

Rural Property 

If you're looking for a more rural atmosphere, you'll be able to find space in Hasley Canyon, Sand Canyon, San Francisquito Canyon, Agua Dulce and Acton. Many of these homes are also horse properties and there are even some larger ranches in Agua Dulce for grape growing. Gated properties with more land can be found closer to the center of Santa Clarita in the Wildwood Canyons and Placerita area of Newhall.

Executive Homes

South Stevenson Ranch, Valencia Westridge, Valencia Summit and Valencia Bridgeport can deliver bigger homes that are still close to the heart of Santa Clarita and chapels in town (the McBean building). In Saugus you can find these kinds of homes in Hidden Valley and Pacific Crest, and Stetson Ranch and Fair Oaks in Canyon Country.

Apartments for Rent

Below is a list of apartments for rent: again not necessarily a comprehensive list. Check SCV website SCREM for listings: you can often find them there first.

Canyon Country Villas Apartments

The Colony Town Homes
Diamond Park Apartments
Park Sierra Apartments
River Ranch Town Homes
River Park Apartments
Sand Canyon Ranch
Sand Canyon Villas
The Terrace Apartments
The Village Apartments
The Townhomes at Lost Canyon – Fair Oaks Ranch