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Palos Verdes Estates, California · Neighborhood guide

Montemalaga

Big midcentury lots 800 to 1,000 feet up the Palos Verdes Estates hillside, with the Queen's Necklace below at night

Narrow path through tall green grass toward windswept pines, with blue Santa Monica Bay and the curving shore far below
Photo: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
Median askingMontemalaga$6M9 for sale
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Montemalaga, in short.

Montemalaga is the hillside neighborhood of Palos Verdes Estates, climbing south from Malaga Cove toward the Rancho Palos Verdes line, where most homes sit 800 to 1,000 feet up and look out over Santa Monica Bay. It's almost all single-family houses, about 73% built between 1950 and 1979, on lots much bigger than the city norm: a median of about 15,400 square feet on the PVE side against about 10,200 citywide, per LA County Assessor records. Montemalaga Elementary is inside the neighborhood on Via Nogales. As of September 2026, nine homes were for sale in our map, most asking about $5.2 million to $9.5 million.

Montemalaga by the numbers.

  • 3,237Population
  • 95%Homeowner-occupiedoccupied homes
  • 73%Bachelor's degree or higherage 25+
  • $250,001Median household income
  • 55.4Median age
  • ~15,400 sq ftMedian lotPVE-side homes; city median ~10,200

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2019–2023; neighborhood facts compiled by The Slava House.

The hillside above Malaga Cove

Most homes sit 800 to 1,000 feet above the ocean, and the view comes with the height.

Montemalaga is the hillside part of Palos Verdes Estates that climbs south from Malaga Cove toward the Rancho Palos Verdes city line, east of Lunada Bay. What sets it apart is height: USGS elevation data puts most homes on the PVE side between about 800 and 1,000 feet above the ocean.

That height buys the view. From these streets Santa Monica Bay opens below, from the South Bay beaches past the airport to the Malibu mountains, with downtown's towers to the east on clear days. After dark the shoreline turns into the curve of lights that Peninsula locals call the Queen's Necklace.

The rules are the same as in the rest of the city: the Palos Verdes Homes Association's deed restrictions, recorded in 1923, an Art Jury that reviews every exterior change, and parkland that covers about 28% of the city. The neighborhood mostly filled in after World War II, though. On the PVE side the median house was built in 1967, and the lots are big: a median of about 15,400 square feet against about 10,200 for the city as a whole, per LA County Assessor records.

One naming trap before you shop. Most of the street called Montemalaga Drive, and the 1960s tract homes around it at the top of the hill, are in Rancho Palos Verdes (ZIP 90275), not Palos Verdes Estates. Those houses have a different city hall, sit outside the homes association, and don't pay the PVE police parcel tax. Our map stops at the city line, but the streets run together, so check the city on any listing.

Mediterranean house with palms and pines on top of a scrub covered ridge at dusk, with the sea and distant mountains on the left
A hilltop house catching the last light, just west of MontemalagaPhoto: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
Live from the MLS

Montemalaga compared with all of Palos Verdes Estates.

Asking price

Montemalaga asks 33% more than Palos Verdes Estates as a whole.

Price per sq ft

A square foot in Montemalaga costs 8% less than across Palos Verdes Estates.

Days on market

Listings in Montemalaga have been on the market 31 days longer than across Palos Verdes Estates.

Home size

Homes for sale in Montemalaga are 63% bigger than across Palos Verdes Estates.

Each card sets the median in Montemalaga against all of Palos Verdes Estates. Asking prices for homes on the market right now inside each mapped area, not sale prices. Updated October 17, 2026, 10:00 AM PT

Homes for sale in Montemalaga

9 active listings in the mapped area

See Montemalaga homes on the live mapAll Palos Verdes Estates homes for sale

All Palos Verdes Estates homes in Explore

Slava Ploshkin, Realtor

Still deciding? Ask me.

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Call (424) 400-9003

Slava Ploshkin · DRE #02323623English and Russian · How I work in Palos Verdes Estates

Where to eat, shop, and explore in Montemalaga

The restaurants, cafes, shops, parks, and landmarks that give Montemalaga its everyday character, most within a short walk.

8 places

Pick one and I’ll show you where it is.

  1. Landmark15 min walk

    Built in 1923 as the Palos Verdes Project's real estate clubhouse, the first building in what became the city, and now a private wedding and event venue on Via Del Monte with the bay below.

  2. Recreation25 min walk

    A private membership club on city parkland beside the golf course, open since July 1963, with 10 lighted tennis courts and 8 lighted pickleball courts.

  3. Coffee15 min walk

    A cafe in Malaga Cove Plaza, the closest coffee stop at the bottom of the hill.

  4. Landmark10 min walk

    The Peninsula's first grammar school, opened in 1926 with 35 students. The building, by Allison & Allison, won an American Institute of Architects honor award, and the school district has had its offices there since 2010.

  5. Shopping · Nearby10 min walk

    The city's 1920s plaza at the bottom of the hill, now a historic district, and Montemalaga's closest errand run: a market, offices, and a few places to eat.

  6. Recreation · Nearby30 min walk

    The private club on city-owned land along Via Campesina, opened November 15, 1924, with a course by William P. Bell and George C. Thomas.

  7. Park · Nearby15 min walk

    The lookout on the Malaga Cove bluff below the hill, with a view down to the 1930 Beach & Athletic Club and the bay.

  8. Recreation · Nearby25 min walk

    The rocky cove straight down the hill to the west, a surf spot reached by a steep trail.

Midcentury houses on big lots

The median lot is about 15,400 square feet, against about 10,200 citywide.

The typical Montemalaga house on the PVE side is a midcentury ranch-style home on a big hillside lot. County records put about 73% of these houses between 1950 and 1979, the median at about 3,400 square feet, and the median lot at about 15,400 square feet; a third of the lots are over 20,000.

Price here follows the view more than the floor plan. Homes on the upper rims that hold the full bay view carry the premium. Mid-slope streets with partial or framed views come next. Homes that face into the hill trade lower, on the same big lots and in the same schools.

Rebuilds run about even with the rest of the city: about 10% of the houses in our map have a build year of 2000 or later, against 9% citywide. Each new house goes through the Art Jury and, for larger projects, a city Neighborhood Compatibility hearing. That keeps the hillside coherent, and it means you need two answers before the offer: what you can build, and what a downhill neighbor could build into your sightline.

Stucco villa with a red tile roof and arches among trees, overlooking blue Santa Monica Bay and the curving South Bay shoreline
A Mediterranean house above the bay in MontemalagaPhoto: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
  • Median lot about 15,400 sq ft, a third over 20,000; median home built 1967
  • Price follows view tier: full bay arc, framed view, then hill-facing
  • About 10% rebuilt since 2000; verify view protection before paying for the view

The night view locals call the Queen's Necklace

What you actually see from the upper slope, and when.

The Queen's Necklace is the local nickname for the night view over Santa Monica Bay: the shoreline lights curve away from the hill, from the South Bay piers toward Malibu, and the arc reads like a necklace laid on dark water. At 800 to 1,000 feet, Montemalaga puts that whole picture in the front window.

By day it changes with the season. Winter brings the clearest air, sometimes with snow on the San Gabriel Mountains behind the city. Late spring and early summer mornings often start under a marine layer that sits on the bay before burning off, and summer sunsets drop toward the Malibu coast.

Not every lot has the postcard. Trees, rooflines and the fold of the hill change the view over short distances, which is why the neighborhood prices by view tier. See a house at night as well as in daylight, and stand in the rooms you'll actually use rather than trusting a drone shot taken 40 feet above the roof.

Silhouette of a spreading pine on a dark hillside against a deep blue sky and an orange band of light over the sea
A lone pine against the afterglow over the ocean, at the edge of MontemalagaPhoto: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
  • At night you see the whole lit curve of Santa Monica Bay
  • Winter air is clearest; late spring mornings often start under marine layer
  • Judge the view from inside the rooms, day and night, not from drone shots

Quiet streets and a drive for everything else

Montemalaga Elementary is inside the neighborhood, and the nearest shops are down the hill.

Montemalaga is all houses. There's no plaza, no shops and no coastline of its own, so the traffic on the curving interior streets is mostly neighbors and school runs.

For many families the school run is short. Montemalaga Elementary is inside the neighborhood at 1121 Via Nogales, part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, and the school lists itself as a California Distinguished School and a National Blue Ribbon School. Which intermediate and high school you get depends on the address, and the district's School Locator has the answer.

Everything else is a short drive. Malaga Cove Plaza at the bottom of the hill has a market and a few places to eat. For real restaurants you keep going to Riviera Village in south Redondo Beach, and the beach cities have the rest. Every trip starts with the hill, but from the north side of the Peninsula the first leg is short.

A sunlit lawn with young trees and a gravel path in front of a long white Spanish-style building with blue awnings and a tile roof
Malaga Cove Plaza, just down the hill from Montemalaga, in early morning lightPhoto: Tracie Hall, CC BY-SA 2.0
  • No commerce inside the neighborhood, and quieter streets because of it
  • Montemalaga Elementary is inside the neighborhood; confirm assignments by address
  • Malaga Cove Plaza and Riviera Village are the everyday runs down the hill

Prices in Montemalaga compared with its neighbors

The lot and the view come first, then whether the house has already been rebuilt.

As of September 2026 the MLS showed nine homes for sale in our Montemalaga map, out of about 790 houses. Most were asking between about $5.2 million and $9.5 million, with two large estates listed well above that. The median asking price was about $6.9 million, against about $4.5 million in Malaga Cove at the same time.

The scarce combination is a big lot with an unbroken bay view. Homes that pair both with a finished, view-oriented rebuild set the high marks. Original midcentury homes with strong views sell for the lot and the view, to buyers planning their own project. Framed or partial views trade at a real discount for similar floor plans. Hill-facing homes are the value play.

With so few homes for sale at once, a handful of listings can swing any median. I'd price a house against sales on its own view tier, not against the neighborhood headline.

Panorama of a green hillside with a palm on the left, red-tile houses on the ridge at right, and blue bay water curving to a far shore
Santa Monica Bay from the Montemalaga hillside, with tile-roofed homes on the ridgePhoto: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
  • Nine listings as of September 2026, most asking about $5.2M to $9.5M
  • Original homes with views sell for the lot and the view
  • Comp within the view tier, not against the headline median

What to check before you buy in Montemalaga

Four things to settle, starting with how much of the view is really protected.

Start with the view. The city's Neighborhood Compatibility review looks at whether new homes and additions block neighbors' light and views, with a public hearing and notice to neighbors, and its Tree Management Policy lets residents ask for public trees to be trimmed or removed, mainly for views. None of that is a guarantee: private trees grow and downhill lots get rebuilt. Look at what's been approved on comparable streets before you pay for the view.

On CAL FIRE's March 2025 map, about 20% of the homes in our map fall in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, most of them on Via del Monte, Via Mirabel, Via Visalia and Via Lopez, and roughly 30% more in High or Moderate. In a High or Very High zone the seller has to give you defensible-space documentation, and insurance quotes vary by address, so get one early. Have your inspector walk the slope, retaining walls and drainage, not just the house.

The Art Jury reviews every exterior change, and state law now makes the city approve a qualifying ADU within about 60 days, though the Art Jury still reviews how it looks. The homes association says unapproved work often surfaces at resale, when buyers are usually required to fix it, so ask for the approval history.

There's also the parcel tax. The city funds its own police department partly through Measure E, $342 per parcel plus 20 cents per square foot of building, which expires June 30, 2027. On November 3, 2026, voters decide Measure PVE, which would raise the base to $1,025 a year through 2033 and needs a two-thirds vote; a citizen version failed in June 2026.

A cream garden wall with agave and shrubs in front of a view over red-tile roofs to blue Santa Monica Bay and the distant shore
The bay view over a garden wall on Via del Monte, where Montemalaga meets Malaga CovePhoto: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0
  • Understand what protects the sightline before paying the view premium
  • Check the fire zone and insurance quote; have the slope inspected
  • Start Art Jury approvals early, and budget for the police parcel tax

More Montemalaga facts

  • 800-1,000 ftElevationWhere most PVE-side homes sit (USGS)
  • 1967Median year builtPVE-side homes, LA County Assessor
  • 1Own schoolMontemalaga Elementary, on Via Nogales
  • 28%City parklandOf Palos Verdes Estates kept as open space
  • 1923Restrictions recordedThe homes association's deed restrictions

Rentals in Montemalaga

1 active rental in the mapped area

See Montemalaga rentals on the live map

Compare Montemalaga

Compare Montemalaga with another neighborhood
Montemalaga vs Malaga CoveSee the comparison ›Montemalaga vs Lunada BaySee the comparison ›Montemalaga vs Hollywood RivieraSee the comparison ›Montemalaga vs WalteriaSee the comparison ›

Questions & answers

Yes, if you'd give up walking to shops for a big lot and a view over Santa Monica Bay. Montemalaga is the hillside part of Palos Verdes Estates, with curving streets, lots that are about half again the city median, its own elementary school, and the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District behind it. The catch is that every errand starts with a drive down the hill.

Explore near Montemalaga

0.6 mi awayMalaga CoveThe first streets the Olmsteds drew, still centered on a 1920s arcaded plazaRead the guide ›1.7 mi awayLunada BayMidcentury view streets on 150-foot bluffs above the Peninsula's best-known winter waveRead the guide ›1.9 mi away · TorranceHollywood RivieraTorrance's beach hill, Clifford Reid's 1928 tract that mostly got built in the 1950s, with Riviera Village a walk away in Redondo BeachRead the guide ›2.8 mi away · TorranceWalteriaSouthwest Torrance's 1950s and 1970s streets under the Palos Verdes hills, with an 1880s name and the airport across the highwayRead the guide ›3.0 mi away · Rancho Palos VerdesPoint VicenteThe lighthouse corner of the Peninsula, with whales off the bluff and Trader Joe's up the roadRead the guide ›3.7 mi away · Rancho Palos VerdesPortuguese BendRancho Palos Verdes' wild south coast, on land that won't hold stillRead the guide ›

Written by Slava Ploshkin, Realtor ·

Where we check the facts

The facts in this guide (districts, zones, rules) come from the official records below. We re-check them before property tours.

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Photo credits (7)