Glendale is a mid-size city in Los Angeles County, set between the Verdugo Mountains and the Los Angeles River just north of Downtown LA. It runs from a busy commercial downtown up into quiet foothill streets, so the type of home you want changes a lot depending on where you land.
If you are moving to Glendale, the best neighborhoods in Glendale include City Center for downtown living, Crescenta Highlands for foothill houses, and Tropico for older, lower-key streets near the train. This guide breaks down five Glendale neighborhoods by type of housing, commute, price, and tradeoffs. The choice here usually comes down to one thing: an apartment close to the action, or a house with a yard up in the hills.
Quick Guide: Best neighborhoods in Glendale for…
- City Center: Best for high-rise apartments, dining, and walking to shops.
- Tropico: Best for older apartments, rail access, and converted studios.
- Verdugo Viejo: Best for condos, older houses, and tree-lined streets.
- Crescenta Highlands: Best for single-family houses, larger lots, and foothill views.
- Citrus Grove: Best for compact apartments, a central location, and lower rents.
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At a Glance: Choosing Where to Live in Glendale
- Flatland or foothills. South and central Glendale is mostly apartments and condos on a flat street grid, while the north and the Crescenta side climb into the Verdugo and San Gabriel foothills, where single-family houses on larger lots take over.
- Rent or buy. The central neighborhoods are mostly places to rent, with apartment buildings far outnumbering houses for sale, while the foothill neighborhoods are mostly houses to buy.
- Getting around. Most of Glendale needs a car. Downtown is the one truly walkable stretch, and the Glendale Transportation Center at the south end has Metrolink commuter rail, but everywhere else you will drive for daily errands.
- What you will pay. Prices climb as you head north into the hills. As of July 2026, the average two-bedroom apartment rents for about $2,950 across Glendale and a three-bedroom house lists for around $1,375,000, based on Trulia data, with foothill houses well above that.
Glendale neighborhood deep-dives
City Center: Downtown high-rises and easy walking
City Center is the busiest part of Glendale, built around Brand Boulevard and its rows of shops and restaurants. The Americana at Brand is an open-air shopping plaza with fountains and a central lawn, and the older Glendale Galleria stands right across the street. On the same stretch of Brand, the Alex Theatre, a restored 1925 movie palace, still hosts concerts and film nights. You can walk to groceries, a gym, dinner, and a movie here without getting in the car.
This is the one part of Glendale where you do not need a car for daily errands. Parking is mostly in garages, and the mall structures give you a free hour or two, though street parking downtown is metered and tight by midday. Downtown Los Angeles is about 20 minutes away by car when traffic cooperates and closer to 40 in the evening rush.
Apartments and condos fill City Center, mostly in mid- and high-rise buildings a few blocks off Brand. Newer towers have gyms and rooftop decks. Older buildings are lower and plainer. This neighborhood has the most apartments for rent of any Glendale neighborhood, roughly 296 rental units as of August 2026, so listings turn over quickly. For buyers, the market is mostly condos, and a two-bedroom unit on the market is about 1,130 square feet, per Trulia data (as of July 2026).
The Tradeoff: You give up square footage and a private yard, but you can walk out your door to dinner, shopping, and a show.
If Not Here, Then… Try Tropico, just south, where older buildings and a rail connection trade downtown polish for lower-key streets.
As of July 2026, based on Trulia data:
- Average rent (1BR Apartment): $2,917.
- Average rent (2BR Apartment): $3,904.
- Average list price (2BR Apartment): $705,000.
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Tropico: Historic south end near the train
Tropico is the historic south end of Glendale, running along San Fernando Road. It was once its own town and an early hub for film and light manufacturing, and that past still shows in the low brick buildings and warehouses, some now converted into studios and workshops. The streets are flatter and grittier than downtown, close to the Los Angeles River and the edge of Atwater Village. Coffee shops and taco counters dot San Fernando Road.
The Glendale Transportation Center stands at the south end, where Metrolink commuter rail runs to Downtown LA in about 15 minutes and out toward Ventura County. On-site parking is harder to find in Tropico rentals than in much of Glendale, about 15% list it versus roughly 41% citywide, per Trulia data (as of August 2026), so street parking is the norm on many blocks.
Older apartment buildings and converted units are the main type of housing here, with a few small houses on the side streets. For-sale inventory is very limited, so this is mostly a place to rent: as of August 2026, no homes were listed for sale versus about 84 rental units, per Trulia data. A two-bedroom rental on the market is roomy for the area at about 1,162 square feet, per Trulia data (as of July 2026).
The Tradeoff: You get lower-key streets and a real rail link, but far fewer homes to buy and less polish than downtown.
If Not Here, Then… Try City Center, a few blocks north, where you trade the quiet for walkable shops and a livelier downtown.
As of July 2026, based on Trulia data:
- Average rent (1BR Apartment): $2,850.
- Average rent (2BR Apartment): $3,837.
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Verdugo Viejo: Older homes north of downtown
Verdugo Viejo, whose name means “old Verdugo,” is one of Glendale’s older neighborhoods, about two miles north of downtown at the upper end of Brand Boulevard. Tree-lined residential streets branch off Brand, and the Verdugo Mountains rise right behind the neighborhood to the west. It is quieter than downtown but still close to it, a short drive from the shops and restaurants on Brand.
Parking is easier here than downtown, with driveways and garages on the house-lined streets and open curb space on many blocks. Downtown Glendale is about five minutes south by car, and Downtown LA is 20 to 30 minutes depending on the hour.
Verdugo Viejo has apartment buildings, condos, and older single-family houses, with the larger buildings closer to Brand and the houses on the side streets. More than half of the two-bedroom homes listed for sale have a fireplace, about 62%, per Trulia data (as of August 2026), a nod to the neighborhood’s older construction. The listings for sale are mostly two-bedroom condos, priced below the big foothill houses.
The Tradeoff: You get older character and a quick hop to downtown, but the apartment blocks near Brand can be noisier than the streets higher up the hill.
If Not Here, Then… Try Rossmoyne, a historic district a bit east, where larger period houses replace the apartment blocks at a higher price.
As of July 2026, based on Trulia data:
- Average rent (1BR Apartment): $2,200.
- Average rent (2BR Apartment): $2,972.
- Average list price (2BR Apartment): $712,500.
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Crescenta Highlands: Foothill houses with room to spread out
Up in the northwest corner of Glendale, Crescenta Highlands climbs into the foothills below the San Gabriel Mountains. It is a residential neighborhood of single-family houses on winding hillside streets, with the historic Montrose Shopping Park on Honolulu Avenue a short drive away for shops, cafes, and a weekly farmers market. The open foothills and nearby Deukmejian Wilderness Park put hiking trails close at hand.
A car is essential up here, since the hillside streets are far from any rail line and errands mean a drive down to Foothill Boulevard or Montrose. Parking is easy, with driveways and garages standard on the single-family lots. The trip down to downtown Glendale takes about 15 minutes, longer when the morning rush builds.
Single-family houses on larger lots are the rule in Crescenta Highlands, a clear change from the apartment blocks in central Glendale. The typical three-bedroom house on the market has a lot of about 7,656 square feet, per Trulia data (as of July 2026), leaving room for yards, gardens, and driveways. This neighborhood has the most houses for sale of any Glendale neighborhood, about 17 for-sale listings as of August 2026, and very few rentals, roughly six units, so it is mostly a place to buy.
The Tradeoff: You get space, a yard, and the foothills at your back, but you will drive for nearly everything and pay hillside prices.
If Not Here, Then… Try Verdugo Woodlands, another foothill neighborhood on the east side of the Verdugos with a similar house-and-yard feel.
As of July 2026, based on Trulia data:
- Average list price (3BR House): $1,199,000.
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Citrus Grove: Compact apartments close to downtown
Citrus Grove is a dense, central neighborhood just southeast of downtown, laid out on a flat grid between Glendale Avenue and the eastern edge of the city. Apartment buildings line most blocks, and Pacific Community Center and Park on South Pacific Avenue gives the area a green break with a pool and open lawn. Downtown’s shops and restaurants are a short drive or a long walk away.
Parking splits between small building lots and street spaces, and curb parking gets competitive in the evenings on the tighter blocks. A car helps for most errands, though downtown Glendale is only about five to ten minutes away.
Small and mid-size apartment buildings are the main type of housing in Citrus Grove, many of them mid-century, with a scattering of older houses on the quieter streets. Rents are lower here than downtown or the north end. A two-bedroom rental on the market is about 956 square feet, per Trulia data (as of July 2026), a bit smaller than the units in Tropico or City Center. For buyers, the handful of listings are mostly two-bedroom condos.
The Tradeoff: You get a central location and some of Glendale’s lower apartment rents, but smaller units and busier streets than the foothill neighborhoods.
If Not Here, Then… Try Grandview, just west, another central grid of apartments with comparable rents.
As of July 2026, based on Trulia data:
- Average rent (1BR Apartment): $1,998.
- Average rent (2BR Apartment): $2,650.
- Average list price (2BR Apartment): $614,000.
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The Comparison Index
| Neighborhood | Avg Rent (2BR Apartment) | Avg Home Price | Type of Housing | Vibe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Center | $3,904 | $705,000 (2BR apartment) | Mid- and high-rise apartments and condos | Walkable downtown |
| Tropico | $3,837 | – | Older apartments and converted units | Historic and industrial |
| Verdugo Viejo | $2,972 | $712,500 (2BR apartment) | Apartments, condos, and older houses | Older and residential |
| Crescenta Highlands | – | $1,199,000 (3BR house) | Single-family houses | Foothill and quiet |
| Citrus Grove | $2,650 | $614,000 (2BR apartment) | Small apartment buildings | Dense and central |
How to Pick a Glendale Neighborhood
Start with the type of home you want, because among the best neighborhoods in Glendale that choice matters more than anything else. If you want to rent an apartment and walk to shops and dinner, the central neighborhoods like City Center, Tropico, and Citrus Grove are built for that. If you want a single-family house with a yard, you are looking at the foothills, where Crescenta Highlands and the other hillside neighborhoods take over.
Then weigh price against commute. The central apartments put you closest to work and nightlife but cost the most to rent, with City Center two-bedrooms averaging $3,904 as of July 2026. Move south to Citrus Grove and rents drop while you stay central. The foothill houses cost the most to buy and add a real drive to everything, but they trade that for space and quiet.
There is no single winner among Glendale neighborhoods, only the tradeoff that fits you. Walk a couple of blocks in the late afternoon before you decide, check the parking, and picture the errand you run most often.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average home price in Glendale, California?
As of July 2026, the average list price for a three-bedroom house in Glendale is about $1,375,000, based on Trulia data. Prices vary widely by neighborhood, from two-bedroom condos listed around $614,000 in Citrus Grove to three-bedroom foothill houses near $1,199,000 in Crescenta Highlands.
What is the average rent in Glendale, California?
As of July 2026, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Glendale is about $2,295 and a two-bedroom apartment is about $2,950, based on Trulia data. You can check current numbers on the average rent in Glendale page.
What are the most expensive neighborhoods in Glendale, California?
City Center and Tropico are the priciest places to rent. As of July 2026, a two-bedroom apartment averages $3,904 in City Center and $3,837 in Tropico, based on Trulia data, and City Center condos list around $705,000. For houses, the foothill neighborhoods cost the most to buy, with three-bedroom houses in Crescenta Highlands listed near $1,199,000.
What are the most affordable neighborhoods in Glendale, California?
Citrus Grove is one of the more affordable central neighborhoods. As of July 2026, a two-bedroom apartment there averages $2,650 and a two-bedroom condo lists around $614,000, based on Trulia data, both below the citywide averages. Grandview, just west, has similar rents.
Is Glendale, California walkable?
Parts of it are. Downtown Glendale, around Brand Boulevard and City Center, is genuinely walkable, with shops, restaurants, and groceries close together. Most of the rest of the city, especially the foothill neighborhoods like Crescenta Highlands, is spread out and built around driving.
What is commuting like in Glendale, California?
Most trips in Glendale happen by car. Downtown Los Angeles is about 20 minutes away when traffic is light and closer to 40 in the evening rush. For a car-free option, Metrolink commuter rail runs from the Glendale Transportation Center at the south end of the city toward Downtown LA and Ventura County.
