Malibu Colony

The Malibu Colony is a gated beach community along Malibu Colony Road in central Malibu, on the west side of Malibu Lagoon. It sits south of Pacific Coast Highway and the Civic Center, next to Malibu Lagoon State Beach and Surfrider Beach, with the Malibu Pier just beyond. The county parcel map shows about 125 lots on the road, roughly 80 of them on the sand.

Because it began in 1926 as the Malibu Beach Motion Picture Colony. May Rindge, who owned the Malibu ranch, leased narrow beach lots to people in the film business, 30 feet of frontage at $30 a month on 10-year leases. About ten years later the lots were offered for sale, and most of the occupants bought them.

Yes. The City of Malibu describes the Colony as a gated community with 24-hour security guards. There's one private road, Malibu Colony Road, and no public path through the gate. The Colony has a homeowners association, and buyers should get its documents, including gate, guest, construction, and rental rules, in writing before making an offer.

Not below the mean high tide line. Under California law the public can use the beach seaward of that line, and that applies in front of the Colony as it does everywhere on the coast. The houses and the sand above the tide line are private, subject to any easements recorded on a specific lot. There's no public access through the gate, so people reach the wet sand along the shore.

Septic, for now. The Colony is inside the Civic Center area where the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board banned septic discharges in 2009, and the city's plan put it in Phase 2 of the connection to the Civic Center treatment plant. That deadline has moved several times. The latest draft agreement, posted in September 2026, would move Phase 2 to August 2031, and the water board plans to vote on it on November 19, 2026. The phase boundaries were redrawn after 2022, so confirm with the city which phase covers a specific lot.

Zone VE for the beachfront lots and zone X for the inland row. VE is FEMA's coastal high-hazard zone, with a base flood elevation of 18 feet at the points we sampled. The federal flood program covers a building only up to $250,000, so beachfront owners usually need private flood insurance. Confirm the zone for any specific lot with an elevation certificate.

No. No Colony losses were reported in the 2018 Woolsey Fire, the December 2024 Franklin Fire, or the January 2025 Palisades Fire. The Franklin Fire came closest: it burned 4,086 acres through Serra Retreat, Malibu Knolls, and the Pepperdine area, and crossed PCH to Malibu Road near Webb Way, a few hundred yards from the Colony gate. Insurance is still priced for fire risk across the whole coast.

About $8 million to $22 million, going by the eight Colony houses for sale on September 25, 2026. Six on the inland row were asking from about $8 million to $13 million, and two on the sand were both asking more than $20 million. For a specific house, comparable sales on the same row matter more than any average.

Yes, with a City of Malibu short-term rental permit, as long as the HOA's rules allow it. The city has required the permit since January 2021, and since January 2023 permit holders also need a septic operating permit. The Colony's homeowners association may have its own rules on renting, so read its documents before counting on rental income.

Yes, which is unusual for Malibu beachfront. Malibu Colony Plaza, with a Ralphs supermarket and a few restaurants, is just outside the gate, and the Cross Creek side of the Civic Center, with the Malibu Country Mart, the Lumber Yard, Whole Foods, and Legacy Park, is a short walk across Pacific Coast Highway. Surfrider Beach and the pier are a walk along the lagoon. For anything beyond the Civic Center you'll drive, and PCH is the only real route.

The Malibu Colony is in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Webster Elementary on Winter Canyon Road is under a mile away, and Malibu Middle and Malibu High share a campus on Morning View Drive. Malibu is pursuing its own district, and separation agreements were approved in December 2025, but as of September 2026 it still needs state approval and isn't expected before the 2028-29 school year. Confirm the assignment for an exact address with the district.

The Colony is a guarded private road west of the lagoon, and Carbon Beach is an open row of houses on PCH east of the pier. The Colony is inside the Civic Center septic ban with a sewer planned, while Carbon Beach houses run their own septic systems outside that area and have public accessways between them. From the Colony you can walk to the Cross Creek shops. On Carbon Beach most errands start with pulling onto the highway.

Read the Carbon Beach guide

Yes. The HOA documents are where I'd start with you in Russian, including the guest, construction and rental rules and any special assessments. I'd also check where the Phase 2 sewer deadline stands that week, because a sewer assessment may come with the house before the end of the decade.