Where Santa Monica meets the sea, Ocean Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway parallel the shore.

North of I-10, Ocean Avenue sits atop a bluff and is lined with high end condos. Between Colorado Avenue and Wilshire Blvd, commercial and residential developments vie for real estate with ocean views. Hotels and restaurants cater to a large tourist population and contribute to the dynamic downtown core. It is here that Santa Monica's only highrise residential buildings afford residents sweeping views of Santa Monica Bay and the Malibu coastline. Palisades Park provides recreation and ensures that these views will remain unobstructed, running the full length of the bluff along the west side of Ocean Avenue. Nearly all construction along the bluff top took place in the second half of the twentieth century.

South of I-10, residential options are more limited. Two new luxury projects on the east side of Ocean - The Seychelle and The Waverly - represent the first new condo construction near the water in over twenty years. On the west side of the street, a few single family homes are tucked between luxury hotels on a gentle slope toward the beach, and generally sell for $3,000,000 to $5,000,000.  

Residents along Pacific Coast Highway enjoy the privilige of being only steps from the sand. PCH offers a mix of both single family beachfront homes and condominiums. The bulk of single family homes are priced in the $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 range, with double and triple-wide lots commanding the highest prices. Although lots up to 12,000 s.f. exist, most are small, rectangular, and 2,500 s.f. to 5,000 s.f.. While some original bungalows from the 1920s remain, the majority are more modern.

Portions of Ocean Ave / PCH fall within the Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition and the Pico Neighborhood Association - two organizations that work to preserve interests in the surrounding community. For maps denoting the boundary lines of these associations please refer to the city of Santa Monica's website.