Located halfway between the bustling metropolises of Los Angeles and San Diego on the Southern California coast, Laguna Beach is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California. The city has long been the favorite vacation destination for Los Angeles and Orange County residents alike.  Laguna Beach is home to the second smallest cathedral in the world and plays host to many popular festivals.  

What is the community of Laguna Beach like?  

Part of the picturesque Orange County, Laguna Beach is a year-round retreat for art lovers, outdoor adventurers, beachgoers, families, and romantics. It is a place where nature meets art, and exciting adventures meet luxury and relaxation. The community attracts more than 6 million visitors every year - helping tourism become its foremost industry.  
Thanks to its natural configuration, the city has remained relatively isolated from urban encroachment by its surrounding hills, limited highway access, and a dedicated greenbelt. The 11-kilometer Laguna Beach coastline consists of more than 30 coves and beaches, all part of a California marine reserve that protects this ecosystem. Among its many pristine beaches, the Main Beach is the crown jewel not just for being the city’s largest beach but also for being the place where Broadway Street and Ocean Avenue meet South Coast Highway. People adore the Main Beach for the plethora of exciting beach activities it offers such as swimming, body surfing, and bodyboarding, as well as dedicated basketball and volleyball facilities.  
One of the most coveted attractions of Laguna Beach is the Crystal Cove State Park, which is one of California’s largest remaining open spaces and natural coastlines. Halfway between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach, Crystal Cove features beautiful sandy beaches, sparkling tidal pools, immersive surf, picturesque hills, and densely wooded canyons and ridges, making it a breathtaking natural landscape. 
In addition, Laguna Beach plays host to one of the top 3 festivals in the United States - Pageant of the Masters, which is a ninety-minute stage show of “living pictures” in which real people pose to recreate the characters of original artworks. The festival has been going strong for over 80 years, attracting thousands of visitors every year. 
Another heartwarming attraction in Laguna Beach is the world’s second-smallest cathedral - St. Francis by the Sea, which was built in 1933 with rubble salvaged from the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, has a total of 42 seats and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records. 

What is Real Estate like in Laguna Beach?     

Real estate in Laguna Beach has shown an average growth of 4.52% per year since the year 2000. Since 2000, the prices of homes in Laguna Beach have appreciated by a strong 153.19%. National real estate firm, EXP, categorizes Laguna Beach’s housing market as ‘somewhat competitive’. The sale prices of homes in Laguna Beach have experienced a staggering growth of more than 60% since April 2019.   
The median home price in Laguna Beach is $2,695,000. Currently, there are 260 active homes for sale in Laguna Beach, and normally it takes 77 days for a listed home to get off the market. The average cost to rent a house in Laguna Beach is $3,691 per month. At present, there are 10,235 homes and apartments in the city, 64.1% of which are owned, and the remaining 35.9% are rented.      

How is the economic landscape of Laguna Beach?    

Over the last year, Laguna Beach’s job market has grown by 0.6%, while its unemployment rate stands at a decent 5.1%. The US average is 6%. Also, the city’s job market is expected to grow by 31.2% over the next ten years.  
On average, a Laguna Beach resident earns around $79,300 per annum, substantially higher than the US average of $28500. The city’s median household income of almost $97,800 per resident is also significantly greater than the US average of approximately $53000. Most of the residents of Laguna Beach work in manufacturing, retail, wholesale, real estate, educational services, finance, professional and technical services, and healthcare.    

How are the schools in Laguna Beach?     

Laguna Beach is covered by 2 school districts, with Laguna Beach Unified School District being the city’s major school district encompassing 4 schools and 3,005 enrolled students. Laguna Beach also lies in proximity to many colleges including, among others, Laguna College of Art and Design, Saddleback College, and Coastline Community College. 
When it comes to higher education, Laguna Beach lies just sixteen minutes from one of California's most iconic universities - the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Established in 1965, UCI is regarded as one of the Public Ivies, meaning that it is considered to be one of the few public universities in the U.S. whose quality of education parallels that of the Ivy League. The university offers 87 undergraduate degrees and 129 graduate and professional degrees, and roughly 30,000 undergraduates and 6,000 graduate students were enrolled at UCI as of Fall 2019. To put UCI in true perspective, it is pertinent to mention that the university has produced seven Nobel Prize laureates and seven Pulitzer Prize winners – a staggering feat for any educational institution in the world.        

Laguna Beach in a nutshell        

To sum up, Laguna Beach is an oasis of luxury, comfort, affluence, and excitement. Lying just a few miles from LA, the city offers the most pristine Californian beaches, plays home to a myriad of popular festivals, and attracts millions of visitors each year. If you are mulling over moving to California, Laguna Beach is a dreamy place to call home.