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WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE STYLE OF HOME HERE IN LOS ANGELES?

A Brief History

Los Angeles and the state of California were purchased by the United States after
the Mexican-American War and became official in 1850. At that time, Los Angeles
was mostly a pioneer society, with encampments along the Los Angeles River.
By the late 1800s, it had become an important trading hub on the West Coast,
plus oil had been discovered here. Bankers and industrialists built Victorian
homes in downtown LA and Angelino Heights, our first true suburb.

At the turn of the century, Hollywood was mostly farmland, but that started to
change in 1908, with the first movie that was shot entirely in LA. In the next ten
years, the film industry moved from New York to LA, starting a home building
boom. The predominant style of homes that were built in this time period were
mostly

Spanish

Mediterranean

Italianate

Tudor

Craftsmen bungalows

Planned suburbs were also starting, but all this growth ground to a halt with the
Stock Market crash of 1929.

During WW II, defense contractors based in LA brought 1000s here to work, and
this helped create another housing boom that lasted until the 1973 recession.
Mid-Century Modern and Ranch-style homes became very popular, as they were
inexpensive to build and suited the middle-class family very well.

The 1980s brought modern and contemporary/modern home styles into the
landscape of Los Angeles, often perched dramatically on a hilltop, affording a
spectacular view of the entire Los Angeles basin.

These are, by no means, the only home styles you will find here. For example,
cozy cottage homes can often be found nestled into a hillside, and whimsical,
fairytale styles are abundant. One of the truly lovely aspects of LA-proper
neighborhoods is that they are not cookie-cutter, but rather embrace an eclectic
and individual personality that help make LA such an interesting place!