Sylmar Real Estate: Horse Property, Foothill Homes and Valley Flats

About Sylmar

Sylmar is a neighborhood of the City of Los Angeles at the top of the San Fernando Valley, which is why it's sometimes called "the Top of Los Angeles." The Sylmar Neighborhood Council area covers roughly 12 square miles. It touches the Tujunga canyons to the north, the Kagel and Lopez canyon areas to the east, the separate City of San Fernando to the southeast, Mission Hills to the south, and Granada Hills to the southwest and west. The ground climbs steadily, from a little over 1,100 feet near San Fernando Road to about 1,700 feet at the top of Hubbard Street, and steepens into hillside streets on the north side.

From olive groves to suburb

The settlement was first called Morningside. It was renamed Sylmar in 1893, from Latin words for "forest" and "sea," a nod to the olive trees that covered the area. By 1906 the Los Angeles Olive Growers Association's grove here was described as the largest olive grove in the world. Sylmar stayed rural longer than most of the Valley; its big growth came after the I-5/I-405 interchange opened in 1963 and the 210 and 118 freeways were completed in 1981. The 1971 San Fernando earthquake hit Sylmar especially hard, and the 2008 Sayre Fire destroyed 489 residences in and near Sylmar, the worst loss of homes to fire in the city's history at the time.

Landmarks

The Cascades, where the Los Angeles Aqueduct spills down into the Valley, is Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 742 and California Historical Landmark No. 653. The Nethercutt Collection is known for its classic cars and mechanical musical instruments. Olive View–UCLA Medical Center, which began as a sanatorium, and Los Angeles Mission College (13356 Eldridge Ave.) are both in Sylmar.

Sylmar Homes and Lots

The City's 2015 Sylmar Community Plan describes most single-family neighborhoods as single-story postwar ranch homes, with newer two-story homes mixed in, and notes that the oldest neighborhoods in central Sylmar keep a semi-rural feel with large lots, stables and trails leading into the national forest. Residential uses take up about 64% of Sylmar's land, and 57% is designated single-family. Assessor records for about 10,970 single-family parcels back that up:

That spread is the story of Sylmar: standard postwar tracts in the flats, larger ranch-style lots in the horse areas, and newer subdivisions and townhome communities from the 1970s on. The Assessor also shows about 3,650 condominium parcels and about 2,740 units in buildings of five or more units, so Sylmar has real options for first-time buyers, too.

Sylmar Zoning, Horse Property and ADUs

About 44% of single-family parcels are zoned R1 and about 34% RS (7,500 sq ft minimum for new lots). The larger-lot zones come next: RA (Suburban, 17,500 sq ft, about 10%) and RE11 (about 6%). A few rules matter more here than almost anywhere else in the city:

• Sylmar "K" Equinekeeping District. Re-adopted with the 2015 community plan, it protects horsekeeping on residential lots in north and central Sylmar. New lots created in the district must meet minimum sizes (40,000 or 17,500 sq ft depending on the plan designation) and reserve a level 2,000 sq ft equine area with room for a stable. My analysis puts about 1,390 single-family parcels in a "K" district.
• Hillside and fire rules. Foothill lots can fall under the City's hillside regulations, and parts of Sylmar are mapped as very high fire hazard areas. Both can affect grading, building size, insurance and required disclosures.
• ADUs. State law requires LA to approve qualifying ADUs on single-family lots, including a detached ADU of up to 800 sq ft (HCD's ADU Handbook). On bigger Sylmar lots that can be a real value driver, but on a "K" lot you'll want to keep the equine area and access path workable.

Look up any parcel on ZIMAS before you plan an addition, a rebuild or an ADU. It shows the base zone, the "K" designation and hillside and fire layers.

Parks and Getting Around Sylmar

• Freeways: The I-5, I-210 and I-405 all serve Sylmar, and the 118 is just south. Santa Clarita is one freeway ride north.
• Rail: The Sylmar/San Fernando Metrolink station (12219 Frank Modugno Dr.) is on the Antelope Valley Line to downtown. Metro is also studying a northern extension of the East San Fernando Valley light rail line to that station.
• Parks and trails: Stetson Ranch Park is one of the City's two equestrian parks. The Sylmar Recreation Center, LA County's 79-acre El Cariso Community Regional Park (with a pool) and the neighboring Veterans Memorial Park round it out, and the Sylmar Flight Park on Gridley Street draws hang gliders.

Schools in Sylmar

Sylmar is in the Los Angeles Unified School District. LAUSD's school-location data shows these campuses inside the Sylmar Neighborhood Council area:

• High: Sylmar Charter High School and the Sylmar Biotech Health/Engineering Magnet (both at 13050 Borden Ave.), plus the independent charters PUC Lakeview Charter High and Discovery Charter Preparatory 2.
• Middle: Olive Vista Middle School (14600 Tyler St.), PUC Triumph Charter Academy, and the Sylmar Leadership Academy span school.
• Elementary: Dyer Street, El Dorado Avenue, Harding Street, Herrick Avenue, Hubbard Street, Osceola Street and Sylmar Elementary, Vista del Valle Dual Language Academy, and PUC Community Charter Elementary.

Charter and magnet schools have their own admission processes, and neighborhood assignments follow LAUSD attendance boundaries. Confirm any address with LAUSD's Resident School Identifier.

Sylmar Housing Market: What Drives Value

ZIP 91342 covers nearly all of Sylmar, so a single "Sylmar median price" mixes condos, 1,200 sq ft tract homes and half-acre horse properties. When I price a Sylmar home, these are the things I look at first:

• Horse rights and usable land. A "K" lot with a level pad, a stable area and trail access attracts a different buyer than a standard lot of the same size. Usable, flat land often matters more than total square footage.
• Flats vs. foothills. Views and privacy up the hill have to be weighed against slope, hillside rules, fire-zone insurance costs and brush clearance.
• Era and condition. In a stock built mostly from the 1950s through the '70s, updated electrical, plumbing, roof and windows, and documented permits, carry real weight.
• Room to grow. Larger lots with alley or side-yard access tend to draw buyers who want an ADU, a workshop or space for RVs and trailers.

I can send you a free report of recent closed sales that match your home, including sold prices, lot sizes and days on market.

Tips for Selling or Buying in Sylmar

If you're selling

1. Document the lot. Pull the ZIMAS report, permits for stables, pools and additions, and any trail easements up front, so buyers' questions already have answers.
2. Show the land. On larger and horse properties, aerial photos and a simple site sketch help buyers see the pad, the access and the room for an ADU.
3. Get ahead of fire and insurance questions. Brush clearance records and roof age help in the foothills, where buyers are pricing insurance before they write an offer.
4. Price against the right comps. I compare horse property with horse property and tract homes with tract homes, then negotiate terms, repairs and credits through closing.

If you're buying

• If horses are the goal, confirm the "K" designation and setbacks on ZIMAS. A big lot without "K" status may not work.
• Get an insurance quote early on any foothill home, and ask for the natural hazard disclosure.
• Check the commute both ways: Sylmar sits right at the I-5/I-210/I-405 junction, which helps a lot if you work north or south along those freeways.

Related: How to Handle Multiple Offers · Should You Renovate Before Selling?

Meet David Petikyan

I'm David Petikyan, and from my office in Mission Hills, just south of Sylmar, I help sellers and buyers across the North San Fernando Valley.

David Petikyan · DRE #02089725 · eXp Realty of Greater Los Angeles, Inc. #02188471

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Explore Nearby Communities

• Granada Hills real estate: directly west and southwest, with its own "K" horse-zoned areas in the foothills.
• Mission Hills real estate: directly south, around the historic Mission.
• Porter Ranch real estate: farther west along the 118, with newer hillside neighborhoods.
• Northridge real estate: southwest, home to CSUN.
• Arleta real estate: southeast, a compact neighborhood of 1950s homes.
• Santa Clarita real estate: directly north over the Newhall Pass, with Valencia, Saugus, Newhall and Canyon Country.