What Does It Actually Cost to Live in Sherman Oaks in 2026?

What does it actually cost to live in Sherman Oaks in 2026? The median home sale price across the neighborhood was $1.3 million last month, down about 3.7 percent from a year earlier, according to Redfin. That single figure covers two very different markets on the same street grid: a flatland corridor of mid-century ranch homes and condos mostly priced under $1.5 million, and a hillside pocket near Mulholland Drive where Longridge Estates and the streets folded into the Santa Monica Mountains push well past $3 million.

Sherman Oaks sits in the San Fernando Valley, bordered by Studio City to the east, Van Nuys to the north, Encino to the west, and Bel Air and the Beverly Hills Post Office area to the south, with a slice of the Santa Monica Mountains along its southern edge, according to Wikipedia. The neighborhood dates to 1927, when the Los Angeles Suburban Homes Company, backed by Gen. Moses Hazeltine Sherman, subdivided roughly 1,000 acres and sold it off at $780 an acre. Sherman also built the old Los Angeles Pacific Railroad, which is where the name comes from, not any family that lived there.

Price bands by zip code

Sherman Oaks isn't one price tier, it's several, and the clearest way to see the split is by zip code rather than by street name alone. In the 91401 zip code, which covers the flatter grid toward the Van Nuys border and includes Chandler Estates, the median sale price runs close to $1.23 million, according to Redfin. In 91403, which reaches south toward Mulholland Drive and includes Longridge Estates, the median climbs to somewhere between $1.5 million and $1.86 million depending on the reporting window, per Redfin and RealtyTrac. At the top of that zip code, individual hillside estates in Longridge Estates and along the canyon streets climbing toward Mulholland routinely clear $4 million to $10 million, though that submarket doesn't get broken out separately in the zip-level data above.

If you're comparing a specific flats address against a hillside listing in the same zip code, schedule a private consultation to walk through the actual comps rather than the averages.

Streets, architecture, and Ventura Boulevard

The housing stock leans mid-century. Ranch homes and traditional builds from the 1940s through the 1960s dominate the flats, especially in Chandler Estates, a six-block enclave centered on Chandler Boulevard whose homeowners petitioned the city in 1991 to redraw Sherman Oaks' western boundary from Coldwater Canyon to Van Nuys Boulevard, and in Royal Woods, a mid-century modern pocket near the 405 freeway in the neighborhood's southern reach.

Ventura Boulevard is the commercial spine that ties both halves of the neighborhood together. Sherman Oaks overall carries a Walk Score of 62, "somewhat walkable," but the corridor around the Sherman Oaks Galleria and Ventura Boulevard itself scores 82 to 84, "very walkable," according to Walk Score. The boulevard is also in the middle of a development cycle: a six-story, 33-unit mixed-use project was approved along Ventura Boulevard as part of a broader pipeline expected to add more than 200 housing units over the next two years, according to Urbanize LA.

Fire zone status and the Measure ULA renovation trend

Hillside portions of Sherman Oaks, including the streets rising toward Mulholland Drive, sit within a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, the classification covering most of the hilly terrain across the City of Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Anyone buying or selling in that hillside sub-area should confirm parcel-level status before listing, since it drives Natural Hazard Disclosure and AB 38 defensible-space requirements.

Measure ULA touches fewer Sherman Oaks transactions than it does in Bel Air or Beverly Hills, since most of the neighborhood's inventory sits well under the tax threshold. For transactions closing after June 30, 2026, the City of Los Angeles Office of Finance sets that threshold at $5.4 million, with a 4 percent tax up to $10.9 million and 5.5 percent above it. But the tax is still shaping behavior at the top of the Sherman Oaks and Studio City market. According to The Real Deal, citywide remodel permits for high-priced single-family homes rose 46 percent in the two years after Measure ULA took effect compared to the two years before it, as owners chose to renovate rather than sell and trigger the tax. Emil Hartoonian, an agent who focuses on Sherman Oaks and Studio City, told the outlet the tax has become part of nearly every conversation his clients have about timing, pricing, renovation, and whether a sale still makes financial sense. Within multifamily and mixed-use transactions alone, Sherman Oaks generated $13.4 million in ULA revenue, a sign of how much activity the tax now touches even on the Valley side of the mountains.

How Sherman Oaks compares to Studio City

Sherman Oaks and Studio City sit next to each other but trade at different price points. Redfin puts Studio City's median sale price at $2.07 million over the past month, well above Sherman Oaks' $1.3 million, with Studio City running about $788 per square foot against Sherman Oaks' $678, according to Redfin data for Studio City and Sherman Oaks. A single month's figure in a lower-volume luxury-adjacent market can swing sharply on a handful of sales, so treat that gap as directional rather than exact. The broader pattern holds regardless: Studio City's inventory leans more toward hillside and view lots near its commercial core, the same submarket covered in Grey Square's recent Studio City spotlight, while Sherman Oaks offers more flatland square footage and lot size per dollar, along with the Chandler Estates and Royal Woods stock that doesn't have a direct Studio City equivalent.

Who this market suits

Buyers who gravitate to Sherman Oaks tend to want more house and lot for the money than Studio City or the hillside neighborhoods on the other side of the pass offer, without giving up freeway access to the Westside and the studio corridor around Burbank and Hollywood. It also draws move-up buyers trading a Valley starter home for a larger single-family lot, and hillside buyers priced out of Beverly Hills, Bel Air, or the Hollywood Hills who still want a Mulholland-adjacent view without that address premium.

Thinking about what a Sherman Oaks property, flats or hillside, is worth in the current market? Request a confidential valuation specific to your zip code and sub-area.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the median home price in Sherman Oaks in 2026?

The median sale price across the neighborhood was $1.3 million last month, down about 3.7 percent year over year, according to Redfin. That figure varies by zip code, from roughly $1.23 million in the flatter 91401 area to $1.5 million or more in 91403, where the hillside streets near Longridge Estates push well past $3 million.

Is Sherman Oaks in a fire hazard zone?

The hillside portions of the neighborhood, including the streets climbing toward Mulholland Drive, sit within a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone under current Los Angeles Fire Department mapping. Confirm parcel-level status before listing or buying in that sub-area, since it affects Natural Hazard Disclosure requirements and defensible-space obligations under AB 38.

Does Measure ULA apply to Sherman Oaks home sales?

Rarely, at the neighborhood's typical price point. The city's transfer tax thresholds sit at $5.4 million and $10.9 million for transactions closing after June 30, 2026, well above most Sherman Oaks sales. It becomes directly relevant for hillside estates in Longridge Estates and along the upper canyon streets, and the tax has already pushed a documented rise in high-end remodel permits as owners choose renovation over a taxable sale.

How does Sherman Oaks compare to Studio City for home buyers?

Studio City runs meaningfully higher on both median price and price per square foot, roughly $2.07 million versus $1.3 million, and about $788 versus $678 per square foot. The gap reflects Studio City's concentration of hillside and view lots near its commercial core, against Sherman Oaks' broader stock of flatland ranch homes and larger lots per dollar.

Should I use a local agent to sell my home in Sherman Oaks?

What actually matters is direct transaction experience across both sides of this neighborhood, the flats and the hillside, since pricing a Longridge Estates property against Measure ULA thresholds is a different exercise than pricing a Chandler Estates ranch home against flatland comps. An agent working from citywide averages alone will miss that split. I cover the Hollywood Hills and Westside corridors as part of my regular Los Angeles work, with the Valley-side hillside neighborhoods like Sherman Oaks and Studio City sitting directly across the pass from that coverage area. If you're weighing a sale or purchase here, start a conversation about your specific zip code and price band.

Sherman Oaks sits just across Coldwater Canyon from the Hollywood Hills listings I track most closely, and the flats-versus-hillside split here runs the same way it does on the Sunset Strip side of the mountains, just at a different price point. I watch this stretch of the Valley as part of that same coverage, not only when a client calls about it directly.

Paul Blair is the founder and broker of Grey Square, a virtual real estate brokerage representing buyers and sellers across Dallas and Los Angeles. With 22 years in the business and more than $200 million in closed transactions, Paul works the full range of the market, from luxury homes in the Park Cities and Preston Hollow to estates in the Hollywood Hills and across the Westside. Connect with Paul and the Grey Square team at greysq.com. TX TREC #9011505 · CA DRE #01792671.

Looking at other parts of the city? See the Studio City spotlight, the Hollywood Hills guide, or browse current Los Angeles listings.