The "South Bay" is an area in the southwestern area of Los Angeles County that includes the cities of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach as well as El Segundo and Los Angeles International Airport, Torrance, Lomita and the four cities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. San Pedro and Harbor City are within the Greater South Bay.
The San Pedro waterfront is a busy area with docking for cruise ships, a small boat marina, and restaurants as well as a marina for small craft. The Port of Los Angeles is a major commerce center, moving vast quantities of goods to and from all areas of the nation.
Redondo Beach has a active waterfront with beautiful beaches, a pier, King Harbor Marina with boat slips and sport fishing, marine repair businesses, boat rentals, diving, snorkeling and bicycle and roller skate rentals.
Yacht clubs, hotels and fine restaurants are also found along the waterfront. During the season, the city operates Seaside Lagoon, a heated salt-water swimming pool with children's playground, volleyball courts and snack bar in a beach environment.
Redondo Beach has a charming neighborhood shopping center near the beach known as Riviera Village. There you will find a variety of restaurants, coffee houses, clothing stores, markets and other shops.
Available Housing
All cities of the South Bay offer a choice of single-family houses, condominiums, townhomes and apartment buildings for sale. There is a wide range of prices in each of these categories and within each city.
First-time buyers may actually find purchase of a duplex, triplex, or 4-unit building to be a good choice due to the benefit of the tenants' contribution toward their equity buildup and to the possible effect of the income stream on their qualifying ratios.
Local School Information
To view a comparison of the schools of the SouthBay, click here. Most of the school districts provide on-line information to determine attendance boundaries.
Please note that attendance boundaries in Palos Verdes and other districts are less exact than in previous years due to the limits on class size. To obtain extra funds from the State, schools have limited their classrooms to 20 students in many grade levels. As a consequence, overflow students and new students must at times be sent to nearby schools until class attrition allows them to return to the home school campus. Consequently, it is recommended that the individual campus office be contacted to verify the information given on-line.
Not all school districts provide transportation for students. Public buses and community van services are available to serve the needs in most areas. Verify with appropriate cities for specifics.
Available Public Transportation
Transportation is provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) between outlying areas and Downtown Los Angeles. For information on MTA, click here. A train system (Metrolink) is also available (click here).
An Express bus is available for commuters to Downtown in the early morning hours and for return. Schedules can be obtained by clicking here. In the Downtown region, good and inexpensive transportation is available in the DASH system. For specifics, click here.
Local bus and van systems are provided by the city of Torrance, the beach cities, Palos Verdes Peninsula cities.
Palos Verdes Van System
Local van services are available on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The shuttles run on a schedule; others offer door-to-door service for the elderly and infirm by special arrangement.
Palos Verdes students have buses available for commuting to schools with schedules that coincide with attendance time. For more information, schedules and applications, click here.
Beach Cities Transit and WAVE System
The beach Cities Transit system operates a fixed route between major shopping and employment centers, the green line terminal and the Redondo pier. Schedules are available here or at (310) 937-6660.
Seniors and disabled residents of Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach may use the Dial-a-Ride service where the vans have wheel-chair lifts. Registration information is available here or at (310) 376-3990 or (310) 937-6660.
Hermosa Beach
Hermosa Beach participates with Redondo Beach in the Wave Program for seniors and disabled people. See Beach Cities Transit above.
Additionally, seniors of at least 62 years of age and disabled persons may apply for a program operated by MTA with drastically reduced fares. Information is provided here.
The "South Bay" is an area of homes in the southwestern area of Los Angeles County. Most of the cities in the South Bay are near the ocean or, at least, benefit from its cooling afternoon breezes. All cities have a choice of single-family homes of varying price ranges as well as condominiums and townhouses. Apartment buildings in the area have been very good investments through the years. In fact, 2-, 3-, and 4-unit apartment buildings can be good choices for first-time buyers who will enjoy the benefits from the tenant-contribution toward their equity buildup. Local School Information
To view a comparison of the schools of the SouthBay, click here. Most of the school districts provide on-line information to determine attendance boundaries.
Please note that attendance boundaries in Palos Verdes and other districts are less exact than in previous years due to the limits on class size. To obtain extra funds from the State, schools have limited their classrooms to 20 students in many grade levels. As a consequence, overflow students and new students must at times be sent to nearby schools until class attrition allows them to return to the home school campus. Consequently, it is recommended that the individual campus office be contacted to verify the information given on-line.
Not all school districts provide transportation for students. Public buses and community van services are available to serve the needs in most areas. Verify with appropriate cities for specifics.
Available Public Transportation
Transportation is provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) between outlying areas and Downtown Los Angeles. For information on MTA, click here. A train system (Metrolink) is also available (click here). Local bus systems serving the area are provided by the cities of Torrance and Culver City to the north. Local van services are available in some of the cities, including those on the Palos Verdes Peninsula which benefit from the shuttles that run on a schedule and those that offer door-to-door service for the elderly and infirm by special arrangement.
By special arrangement with MTA, Palos Verdes students have buses available for commuting to schools on a schedule that coincides with attendance times. For more information, schedules and applications, click here.
An Express bus is available for commuters to Downtown in the early morning hours and for return. Schedules can be obtained by clicking here. In the Downtown region, good and inexpensive transportation is available in the DASH system. For specifics, click here.
South Bay residents enjoy ocean breezes that maintain good air quality and have many superior school districts.
Among the highest achievements scholastically are those found in the PalosVerdesPeninsulaSchool District and those in the Manhattan Beach. For exact scores and comparisons of the schools, please click the button "Local Schools" on the main page of this website.