Home Listings:

To search MLS Home Listings for Torrance, Click Here.

Real Estate Market Information:

For the latest Real Estate Market Report for Torrance, Click Here.

City Description:

Torrance is a city that prides itself on offering a balance between residential, commercial, and retail uses. Torrance and the South Bay of Los Angeles have a fascinating history. It is home to some of the largest shopping malls in the region, and Hawthorne Boulevard, that runs north/south through the center of the town. is the retail center of the South Bay of Los Angeles. Pacific Coast Highway, which runs east/west at the southern part of the City is also home to one of the highest concentration of car dealerships in the Los Angeles basin. Torrance is also home to a large regional airport in the southeast part of the city, and has a large concentration of commercial and office uses along 190th Street between Hawthorne Boulevard and Western Avenue, south to Del Amo. Two large regional hospitals are also located in the city (Little Company of Mary Hospital on Torrance Boulevard, west of Hawthorne Boulevard, and Torrance Memorial Hospital on Lomita Boulevard, to the east of Hawthorne Boulevard.

Map of Torrance (with parks identified):

Neighborhoods:

North Torrance (Darker grey area at top of map): This neighborhood is bounded by Redondo Beach Boulevard on the north and 190th Street on the south.

Central and Old Torrance (pink area in map): This area is bounded by Madronna, 190th Street, Western and Sepulveda Boulevard.

Central Business District (Light grey area in center of map): This area is the central business district for Torrance and includes Del Amo Regional Mall, Torrance Promenade (formerly Old Towne Mall), and many office and retail buildings.

West Torrance and Southwood (yellow area in map): West Torrance is the area west of Hawthorne Boulevard between 190th Street and Torrance Boulevard, and Southwood is the area west of Hawthorne Boulevard between Torrance Boulevard and Sepulveda Boulevard.

Hollywood Riviera and South Torrance (green area in map): Hollywood Rivera is at the northern edge of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, south of Pacific Coast Highway, and west of Hawthorne Boulevard. This area is the “gateway” to the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and many homes in this area enjoy spectacular beach and city light views. South Torrance is the area to the west of Hawthorne Boulevard, and between Sepulveda Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway. Many people don’t realize that Torrance has a small area of beach just north of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The area of beach just before where the Peninsula begins is known as RAT beach for “Right After Torrance”.

Torrance Beach

Walteria and South East Torrance (light blue area of map): This neighborhood is the area south of Pacific Coast Highway between Hawthorne Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard.

Culture:

The Torrance Cultural Arts Center, located on Civic Center Drive near the City offices and County Courts Building,  houses a 502 seat theater, meeting and conference rooms, two large outdoor plazas, and an authentic Japanese Garden. The Joslyn Fine Arts Gallery is a 9,200 square foot municipal gallery located at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center. The Gallery offers a variety of exhibitions in its three gallery spaces, as well as educational programs, artist talks, lectures, and symposiums.

Pictures of Torrance Cultural Arts Center and Japanese Gardens

The El Camino College Center for the Arts, located in Torrance,  also provides a varied program of theatrical, ballet, and other artistic performances.

Aerial View of Torrance

Schools:

The Torrance Unified School District consists of 17 elementary schools, 8 intermediate schools, 5 High Schools (Torrance High, West  High, South High , North High and Shery High Continuation School), and 3 Adult schools. Torrance schools are noted for their academic excellence. Elementary, middle school and high school students routinely score significantly above the national median in tests. Standardized State test scores are available for all schools. The Torrance Unified School District has been recognized for its innovative programs and its schools are included on the annual list of California Exemplary Schools. Vocational and technical training for high school students and adults is available at S.C.R.O.C. and the Torrance Adult Education program offers hundreds of classes each year. The El Camino Community College campus houses an art gallery, a planetarium, a theater and the 2,000 seat Marsee Auditorium. Its South Bay Center for the Arts provides much of the Torrance cultural life and its Small Business Development Center offers information, referrals, and one-on-one business counseling to entrepreneurs and small business owners-free of charge.

To determine the school serving your address, go to the following link: .  http://www.tusd.org/ParentsStudents/EnrollmentRegistration/SchoolLocator/tabid/453/Default.aspx

 

Sports, Parks and Recreation:

There are numerous excellent parks throughout the City of Torrance. There are also excellent youth and adult sports programs available.

Numerous sports activities are available at Wilson Park on Crenshaw Boulevard between Carson and Sepulveda Boulevard (Park #40 in first map above).  Men’s, Women’s and Co-ed softball leagues, and Men’s basketball leagues are available, and youth roller hockey.The park includes a tennis and paddle tennis facility, horseshoe courts, four softball diamonds, and a state-of-the-art roller hockey rink. There is also a skateboard park and batting cages.

Picture of Wilson Park                                        

The city also has a public plunge on Torrance Boulevard (Park #37 in first map above) with a summer swimming program.

One of the largest regional park facilities is located in the City at Columbia Park on 190th Street, just east of Hawthorne Boulevard (Park #5 in first map above). This park plays host to many soccer tournaments.

Picture of Columbia Park

The City operates a small 9 hole pitch and putt golf course designed for the young junior golfer just starting out at it’s Sea-Aire Park (Park #33 in first map above) at very reasonable fees ($2.50-$4.00). The park is located in a “hidden” area of a residential neighborhood in South Torrance at the end of Lupine Drive (turn east on Linda Drive, off of Palos Verdes Drive (just south of Sepulveda Boulevard), and then turn right on Lupine)

In addition to the 28 regional and neighborhood parks in the City, the Madrona Marsh (sometimes misspelled Madronna Marsh) Nature Center and Preserve is located just east of the Del Amo Fashion Center, at the corner of Madrona and Sepulveda Boulevard ( Park #23 in first map above). Madrona Marsh is one of last remaining vernal marshes remaining in Southern California.

  

       

Pictures of Madrona Marsh and Nature Preserve Building

The City also has Senior Centers at several of the parks and operates a very activeSenior Activities Program, with planned tours, dances and other functions.

 

Taxes:

Property Taxes: The property tax rate for the fiscal year 2019-2020 is 1.120691% (computed by the standard 1.0% of the property’s assessed valuation (in accordance with Proposition 13, a property’s assessed valuation is the original purchase price, plus the cost of improvements, based on the value of permits pulled, plus an increase in valuation of 2% per year) plus additional tax rates for voted bonded indebtedness) plus direct assessments of approx. $300-$400 per parcel for such items as school parcel taxes, etc..

Taxes are assessed for the fiscal year running from July 1st through June 30th, with property tax bills payable in two installments on December 10th and April 10th. If a property changes ownership during the year, a supplemental tax bill will be prepared prorating the tax increase due to a change in valuation over the remainder of the fiscal year. If a change in ownership occurs between January 1 and May 31 this will result  in two supplemental assessments and two supplemental tax bills. The first supplemental bill is for the remainder of the fiscal year in which the event occurred. The second supplemental bill is for the subsequent fiscal year.

Property Transfer Tax: The County of Los Angeles levies a transfer tax upon the sale of a property of $1.10 per thousand dollars of the sale price.

Police and Fire Protection:

The City of Torrance operates its own police and fire departments

Demographics:

Population in July 2007: 141,420. Population change since 2000: +2.6%

Males: 68,776 (48.6%), Females: 72,644 (51.4%)

Elevation: 84 feet

County: Los Angeles

Land area: 20.5 square miles

Zip codes: 90501, 90502, 90503, 90504, 90505

Median resident age: 38.7 years

Median household income: $70,834  (year 2007)

 

For population 25 years and over in Torrance

  • High school or higher: 90.6%
  • Bachelor’s degree or higher: 36.4%
  • Graduate or professional degree: 11.7%
  • Unemployed: 3.9%
  • Mean travel time to work: 25.1 minutes

Crime in Torrance (2008):

  • 2 murders (1.5 per 100,000)
  • 21 rapes (15.2 per 100,000)
  • 173 robberies (125.4 per 100,000)
  • 109 assaults (78.0 per 100,000)
  • 497 burglaries (360.3 per 100,000)  
  • 450 auto thefts (314.8 per 100,000)
  • City-data.com crime index (2007)= 186.3 (higher means more crime, US average = 320.9)

For the Official Home Page of the City of Torrance, Click Here.

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