Housing
UCLA, West LA VA, and Santa Monica Hospitals are located in West Los Angeles and are surrounded by lovely communities—Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Culver City, Brentwood, and Santa Monica.
The majority of fellows live around these neighborhoods and rent is approximately $1500 and above. There is an option of University Housing available for graduate students, residents, and fellows.
BEVERLY HILLS:
Located 2 miles east of UCLA. The neighborhoods are attractive and well kept with a 15-minute commuting time to UCLA. Excellent school systems, sometimes there are guesthouses or rooms for rents, especially south of Wilshire. Most fellows use Beverly Hills for fantastic window-shopping, people watching, and dining.
WEST HOLLYWOOD:
Housing can be found north of Beverly Blvd to Sunset between Doheny and Crescent Heights. North of Sunset between Fairfax and La Brea are also popular. This area is known for its Melrose Ave boutiques and theaters, famous restaurants, and the Pacific Design Center. This is a densely populated city and commuting time to UCLA is approximately 20-25 minutes. If you need to get around LA a lot, this neighborhood is not freeway friendly.
WEST LOS ANGELES:
This is a popular location for fellows because of its proximity to UCLA and easy access to shopping, markets, and restaurants. Apartments are clustered near Santa Monica and Olympic Blvd, west of the 405 freeway. Rents are less expensive than those in Westwood.
BRENTWOOD:
Located 2 miles west of UCLA. Most apartments are in the triangle bordered by Wilshire, San Vicente Blvd, and Bundy. This is another lovely neighborhood for dining and shopping.
CULVER CITY:
Located 7 miles south of UCLA. Rental prices tend to be affordable and the downtown area is flourishing. There are apartments between Venice and Washington Blvd and in the area off Culver Blvd, south of Sony Studios. Further south, toward Jefferson Blvd, luxury apartments and condos are common. Schools are very good. Fox Hills Mall is a nearby shopping place.
SANTA MONICA:
This is a more pricey area to live in because of the beach, shopping, and restaurants. There is also more traffic congestion on Wilshire during rush hour.
SAN FERNANDO VALLEY:
Comprises of a variety of suburban cities that offers a lot of affordable housing. The one drawback is the commute on the 405 freeway during rush hour; it can take up to an hour. Sherman Oaks and Van Nuys are the closest valley communities to UCLA, located 8 miles away, a 20-minute drive without traffic. Rents are more reasonable the farther out you go. Warning, summer temperatures hover in the low 100s!
SOUTH BAY AREA
Includes Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, and Redondo Beach. This is a little far from UCLA and commuting can take 45 minutes or more.
UCLA UNIVERSITY APARTMENTS—SOUTH
Housing for married students, single parents, and graduate students. These are off campus apartments located in the Palms-Mar Vista area, about 5 miles south of UCLA, approximately 15 minutes driving time to UCLA. There are five unique complexes ranging from 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment, 2-bedroom, 2- bathroom apartment and junior 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment. The monthly rates range from $1200-$1700 per month depending on the location and type of unit.
University Village: 3200 Sawtelle Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90066
Rose Avenue: 11130 and 11140 Rose Avenue
Keystone/Mentone: 3770-3780 Keystone Avenue and 3767-3777 Mentone Avenue Venice/Barry Apartments: 11811 Venice Blvd.|
Clarington Apartments: 3742 Clarington Avenue
UCLA UNIVERSITY APARTMENTS—NORTH
This is for single graduate students only. There are 2 complex, Weyburn Terrace and Hilgard. It is a Mediterranean-style apartment complex consisting of studios, 2- bedroom/2-bath townhouses. Each unit is fully furnished with a bed, sofa, desk, refrigerator, and microwave. In addition, each apartment comes with paid utilities, basic cable, and internet. Rents range from $1300-1500 per month.
Weyburn Terrace: comprised of nine buildings: approximately 1400 apartments. It is located southwest of the hospital at Weyburn and Veteran Avenue in Westwood Village.
The Hilgard Apartments: comprised of two buildings. All units within the Hilgard Apartments are studio apartments. Hilgard is much smaller than Weyburn, approximately 80 apartments. It is located on the east edge of campus.
If you want university housing, I would suggest applying right after you match at www.housing.ucla.edu. There is also parking available at all units for an additional fee.
