Palos Verdes Estates Neighborhoods Guide: All Six Areas in 2026

What Is Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Estates is a city of about 4.78 square miles on the northwest corner of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the west and southwest, Torrance on the north, Rolling Hills Estates on the east and Rancho Palos Verdes on the south. The Census Bureau put its population at 13,347 in the 2020 Census and estimated 12,559 as of July 1, 2025. Palos Verdes Drive West and Palos Verdes Drive North are the two primary access routes, and City Hall sits at 340 Palos Verdes Drive West.

It is also the oldest of the four Peninsula cities, incorporated on December 20, 1939, and it operates its own police department rather than contracting with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. What makes Palos Verdes Estates genuinely different from other South Bay cities is not the coastline. It is that the city was drawn as a single master-planned landscape in the 1920s, and that a private association still reviews what you are allowed to build on your own lot.

Where Are the Neighborhoods of Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Estates does not define neighborhood boundaries in its zoning code or its land-use documents. The city recognizes only two area names in those documents, Malaga Cove and Lunada Bay, which are its two commercial areas. Every other neighborhood name in common use here comes from the original 1920s development plan, or from historic tract names still in everyday local use. That is worth knowing before you rely on a neighborhood label in a listing.

The names do have real origins. The Olmsted Network records that the original Palos Verdes Project laid out four principal planned communities, each intended to have its own schools and commercial and civic center: Valmonte in the northeast, Malaga Cove on the west, Lunada Bay on the south, and Miraleste in the southeast. Miraleste today sits in Rancho Palos Verdes rather than Palos Verdes Estates. The National Register nomination for Malaga Cove Plaza confirms a four-community plan and records that three commercial plazas were planned, at Malaga Cove, Valmonte and Lunada Bay.

Palos Verdes Estates Areas at a Glance

What Is Each Palos Verdes Estates Neighborhood Like?

Malaga Cove is the civic and commercial heart of Palos Verdes Estates and the most walkable part of the city. Malaga Cove Plaza stands in the 200 block of Palos Verdes Drive West in Palos Verdes Estates, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 1, 2021, reference number SG100007016, as a historic district roughly bounded by Palos Verdes Drive West, Via Tejon, Via Corta and Malaga Lane. Its period of significance runs from 1925 to 1964. The Gardner Building of 1925, at 68 Malaga Cove Plaza, was the subdivision's first commercial building, and the National Register nomination records that it housed the Peninsula's first post office, school and library. The plaza itself was formally dedicated on September 13, 1925. Within a short walk sit the Malaga Cove Library at 2400 Via Campesina, Farnham Martin Park, and the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District offices at 375 Via Almar.

Lunada Bay is the city's southern coastal area and its second commercial center. Lunada Bay Plaza stands at Palos Verdes Drive West and Yarmouth Road. The city's own account is that Lunada Bay was planned as the largest business district in Palos Verdes Estates, with a theater, a post office and a yacht harbor, and that those plans were never built. The plaza still hosts summer concerts. Lunada Bay Elementary is nearby at 520 Paseo Lunado, and Beautify Lunada Bay, a restoration of roughly two acres of oceanfront native habitat, is run jointly by the Lunada Bay Homeowners Association, the City and the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy.

Valmonte is the inland northeastern corner of Palos Verdes Estates, closest to Torrance and the flattest part of the city. Valmonte is the one original planned village whose commercial center was never built. The Palos Verdes Library District holds a circa 1925 architect's rendering of the proposed Valmonte Plaza, a two-story U-shaped building with a central clock tower. Because that plaza was never built, Valmonte residents shop outside the neighborhood. The area's landmark is the Mirlo Gate Lodge Tower at 4420 Via Valmonte, designed in 1925 by Clarence E. Howard, built in 1926 of Palos Verdes stone and owned by the City.

Montemalaga is an inland, uphill area in the center of Palos Verdes Estates. Its name is in everyday local use rather than in city documents, and its clearest anchors are Montemalaga Elementary at 1121 Via Nogales and the Via Del Monte street group. La Venta Inn at 796 Via Del Monte, built in 1923 by Walter Davis as the Palos Verdes Project's real estate clubhouse, sits in this part of the city.

Margate is a historic tract name for the bluff-side area between Malaga Cove and Lunada Bay. It is documented rather than invented: the Palos Verdes Library District's Local History Center catalogues a March 24, 1926 Palos Verdes Homes Association photograph of the Anna W. Simonson residence at 732 Cloyden Road under a subject heading for houses in Palos Verdes Estates, Margate. Cloyden Road is the coastal street where Palos Verdes High School sits at 600 Cloyden Road, and Paseo del Mar runs along the bluff below it.

Palos Verdes Drive North is the northern corridor rather than a village, and it matters right now for a specific reason covered below: it holds the largest of the three sites the city rezoned for housing.

Who Approves What You Build in Palos Verdes Estates?

In Palos Verdes Estates two separate bodies review a remodel, and most buyers only learn about the second one after they are in escrow. The Palos Verdes Homes Association and its Art Jury are a California non-profit corporation established in 1923, and the City states plainly that the Association operates separately from city government. The Art Jury is made up of local architects and engineers, and its review is separate from any city approval a project needs.

Art Jury approval is required for any change to a building's exterior, which the Homes Association lists as adding square footage, changing windows or doors, replacing roof material, or changing paint color, and for any change to landscaping. The Association's office is on the east side of City Hall at 320 Palos Verdes Drive West, and it closes to the public on Tuesdays for plan reviews and site inspections.

The city side runs in parallel. Palos Verdes Estates reviews new single-family homes, additions and remodels for neighborhood compatibility, with staff review and neighbor notice leading to a Planning Commission public hearing, and appeals to the City Council filed within fifteen days. The City's own neighborhood compatibility page states that the Palos Verdes Homes Association gives preliminary approval, which is required for most projects through a separate process. That sentence is the practical answer to who holds the power here.

One more thing follows from the 1923 deed restrictions, which were imposed when Bank of America, as trustee for the Palos Verdes Project, drafted a trust indenture setting out development provisions. According to the city's adopted Housing Element, setbacks in Palos Verdes Estates follow recorded covenants, generally five to ten feet at the side and twelve to twenty feet at the rear, rather than being set by the zoning code. The same document gives the R-1 standards: a minimum ground floor area of 1,200 square feet, maximum lot coverage of 30 percent, and floor area capped at the lesser of 30 percent of lot area plus 1,750 square feet, or 50 percent of lot area.

What Schools Serve Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Estates is served by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, which also serves Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes rather than Palos Verdes Estates alone. Five district campuses sit inside the city.

Palos Verdes Intermediate serves grades 6 to 8 at 2161 Via Olivera in Palos Verdes Estates, and the Valmonte Early Learning Academy runs the district's preschool program at 3801 Via La Selva in Palos Verdes Estates. How the district assigns those campuses is the part worth reading twice, because it is not what buyers assume. Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District assigns elementary and intermediate students by attendance area based on the home address, and publishes a School Locator tool for looking up a specific address. The district also states that an elementary student's school is determined only after enrollment is complete, and that if the residence school is full at that point the student may be placed at the closest school with available space. Buying into an attendance area is therefore not the same as securing a seat.

High school in this district is a choice rather than an attendance area. Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District states that students living within district boundaries may choose between Palos Verdes High School, at 600 Cloyden Road in Palos Verdes Estates, and Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, at 27118 Silver Spur Road in Rolling Hills Estates. Palos Verdes High School was completed in 1961 as the Peninsula's first public high school, designed by Richard Neutra, Robert Alexander and Carrington Lewis.

What Is Measure PVE and Why Does It Matter to Buyers?

Palos Verdes Estates voters decided Measure PVE at the General Municipal Election on November 3, 2026, and the outcome sets a line item on every parcel's tax bill in the city. As of November 5, 2026 the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder had posted countywide totals from its first bulletin but had not yet posted vote totals for Measure PVE.

The measure, officially the Palos Verdes Estates Law Enforcement Services and Pension Liability Payment Measure, asks voters to extend the city's special parcel tax for six years at a rate of $1,025 per taxable parcel plus 20 cents per square foot of taxable building improvements, with a 2 percent annual adjustment, generating approximately $8.7 million annually to maintain Palos Verdes Estates Police Department services and pay down the city's unfunded pension liability. It requires a two-thirds majority.

It would replace Measure E, which Palos Verdes Estates voters approved in April 2018 at $342 per parcel plus 20 cents per square foot of building improvements. Measure E generates about $5.1 million a year, which the City says funds nearly 60 percent of the Police Department's roughly $8.7 million budget for fiscal year 2026 to 2027. Measure E expires on June 30, 2027 regardless of how this vote went.

For a specific home the difference is easy to state. The city's own analysis uses a median home of 2,745 square feet, which pays about $891 a year under Measure E and would pay about $1,574 a year under Measure PVE, an increase of about $683 a year. A new rate would take effect July 1, 2027, the 2 percent annual adjustment would begin in fiscal year 2028 to 2029, a $1 million annual pension pay-down would begin in fiscal year 2027 to 2028, and the tax would sunset on June 30, 2033. If the measure failed, the city says it loses about $5.1 million a year starting in fiscal year 2027 to 2028 and the City Council would have to consider service reductions or further use of reserves.

This was also the second attempt in 2026. The City confirms that Measure PF, a citizen-sponsored initiative on the June 2, 2026 ballot, did not pass.

What Is Being Built in Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Estates has rezoned three sites for housing, and the largest sits on Palos Verdes Drive North. The City Council adopted Resolution No. R25-11 on June 10, 2025 and Ordinance No. 766 on June 24, 2025. Under the state environmental record for the project, the rezoning covers 304 and 316 Tejon Place in Malaga Cove for up to 20 units, 2325 Palos Verdes Drive West in Lunada Bay for up to 20 units, and the First Church of Christ, Scientist site at 4010 Palos Verdes Drive North for up to 116 units, a maximum of 156 units in total. Both overlays allow residential development by right subject to objective design standards.

The context is the state housing cycle. Palos Verdes Estates was assigned 199 units for the 2021 to 2029 cycle, and the California Department of Housing and Community Development has preliminarily certified the city's housing element as in substantial compliance pending the necessary rezoning. One local wrinkle is worth noting: the city's adopted Housing Element states that Palos Verdes Homes Association approval is required before additional land can be rezoned for multifamily use, so the 1923 deed restrictions bind the city's housing capacity.

Frequently Asked Questions About Palos Verdes Estates

What are the neighborhoods in Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Estates is commonly divided into Malaga Cove, Lunada Bay, Valmonte, Montemalaga, Margate and the Palos Verdes Drive North corridor. Only Malaga Cove and Lunada Bay appear as area names in the city's own land-use documents, where they are its two commercial areas. The others come from the original 1920s plan or from historic tract names still in everyday local use.

Is Palos Verdes Estates walkable?

Yes. Palos Verdes Estates is walkable in and around Malaga Cove and much less so elsewhere, because the city has only two commercial areas totaling about 8.5 acres. Malaga Cove Plaza sits within a short walk of the Malaga Cove Library, Farnham Martin Park and the school district offices. Valmonte and Montemalaga have no commercial plaza at all, and the Valmonte plaza in the original plan was never built.

What school district serves Palos Verdes Estates?

Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District serves Palos Verdes Estates, along with Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes. Five of its campuses sit inside Palos Verdes Estates: Lunada Bay Elementary, Montemalaga Elementary, Palos Verdes Intermediate, Palos Verdes High School and the Valmonte Early Learning Academy. Elementary and intermediate assignment is by attendance area based on the home address.

Can you choose your high school in Palos Verdes Estates?

Yes. Students living within Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District boundaries may choose between Palos Verdes High School and Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, so high school is a choice rather than an attendance area assignment. Palos Verdes High School is at 600 Cloyden Road in Palos Verdes Estates and Palos Verdes Peninsula High School is at 27118 Silver Spur Road in Rolling Hills Estates.

Do you need approval to remodel a house in Palos Verdes Estates?

Yes. Remodeling in Palos Verdes Estates requires approval from the Palos Verdes Homes Association Art Jury in addition to any city approval. The Association requires Art Jury review for any exterior change, including added square footage, new windows or doors, new roof material or a change of paint color, and for any landscaping change. The City states that Homes Association preliminary approval is required for most projects.

What is Measure PVE in Palos Verdes Estates?

Measure PVE is the Palos Verdes Estates Law Enforcement Services and Pension Liability Payment Measure, decided by city voters on November 3, 2026. It would extend the city's special parcel tax for six years at $1,025 per parcel plus 20 cents per square foot of building improvements, raising about $8.7 million a year for police services and pension costs. It requires two-thirds approval and would replace Measure E.

Does Palos Verdes Estates have its own police department?

Yes. Palos Verdes Estates operates its own police department rather than contracting with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and the station is at 340 Palos Verdes Drive West. The city's police history records William Woosley as its first police chief in 1929, and construction of the current station began on September 5, 1957. Fire protection is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

How much open space is there in Palos Verdes Estates?

About 28 percent of the land area of Palos Verdes Estates was dedicated as permanent open space according to the City's own history, amounting to roughly 849 acres in the city's adopted Housing Element. That total includes a 130-acre shoreline preserve, park sites, greenbelt pathways, a golf course and play areas, and all of it is deed restricted. The Homes Association deeded the parklands to the City in 1940.

How Do I Find Out Which Palos Verdes Estates Area a Specific Address Is In?

Because Palos Verdes Estates does not define neighborhood boundaries in its zoning code or its land-use documents, this is a parcel-level question, and the answers that matter are practical ones. Send me a street or an address and I will tell you which area it is commonly placed in, which school attendance area it falls in and what that does and does not guarantee, what the Art Jury will require if you plan to change anything outside the walls, and what Measure PVE does to the parcel tax on that specific square footage. Call or text Michael Majid at 310-592-1243, or start with the South Bay property search.

The Palos Verdes Estates neighborhood page has more local detail, and buyers shopping here usually also look at Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates in the same search.

Before you Buy or Sell, Get the Intel.

Sources: City of Palos Verdes Estates, City History, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Palos Verdes Homes Association, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Neighborhood Compatibility, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Future Funding and the Expiration of Measure E, accessed November 4, 2026. Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, Measures Appearing on the Ballot, November 3, 2026, revised August 14, 2026, accessed November 4, 2026. Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, Election Results, accessed November 5, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, 6th Cycle Housing Element Update, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates adopted Housing Element, adopted February 11, 2022, via California Department of Housing and Community Development, accessed November 4, 2026. California State Clearinghouse, Palos Verdes Estates Program 13 Rezoning, SCH 2025030159, accessed November 4, 2026. United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts, Palos Verdes Estates city, California, accessed November 4, 2026. California Department of Education, School Directory, Lunada Bay Elementary, accessed November 4, 2026. California Department of Education, School Directory, Montemalaga Elementary, accessed November 4, 2026. California Department of Education, School Directory, Palos Verdes Intermediate, accessed November 4, 2026. California Department of Education, School Directory, Palos Verdes High, accessed November 4, 2026. Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, School Locator, accessed November 4, 2026. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places Weekly List, Malaga Cove Plaza, reference SG100007016, listed October 1, 2021, accessed November 4, 2026. California Office of Historic Preservation, Malaga Cove Plaza National Register nomination, accessed November 4, 2026. Palos Verdes Library District Local History Center, Anna W. Simonson residence, 732 Cloyden Road, photograph dated March 24, 1926, accessed November 4, 2026. Palos Verdes Library District Local History Center, proposed Valmonte Plaza rendering, accessed November 4, 2026. Olmsted Network, Palos Verdes Estates, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Business, Library and Schools, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Doors Open Peninsula, accessed November 4, 2026. City of Palos Verdes Estates, Police History, accessed November 4, 2026. No MLS listing data is reproduced in this post.

Related Reading

Keep reading on Palos Verdes Estates and the Peninsula:

• Malaga Cove vs. Lunada Bay
• What an ocean view is worth in Palos Verdes Estates
• Rolling Hills vs. Rolling Hills Estates
• The Hollywood Riviera guide
• The Point Fermin guide