Trousdale Estates is the hillside part of the City of Beverly Hills where every house is held to 14 feet in height and to the footprint of its level pad. Zillow put the neighborhood's typical home value at about $7.9 million in September 2026, but what a buyer is really paying for is the pad and the basin view the City's 2011 view ordinance protects.
You're weighing a Trousdale Estates house and need to know what the City's height, pad and view rules let you do with it before you settle on a price.
At a glance
| City | City of Beverly Hills (zoning: Trousdale Estates, Article 26) |
|---|---|
| Developed | By Paul Trousdale, from 1954 into the 1970s |
| Height limit | 14 feet (BHMC 10-3-2605) |
| Floor area cap | 1,500 sq ft plus 40% of the site area |
| Single-family lots | 599, reported by the Beverly Hills Courier in November 2023 |
| View ordinance | Trousdale View Restoration Ordinance, adopted December 6, 2011 |
Home values by the numbers
Zillow Home Value Index, September 2026: the typical value of homes in the middle third of the market, smoothed and seasonally adjusted. Neighborhoods are Zillow's own boundaries. A typical value is the middle of the market, not its top.
What makes Trousdale Estates different from the rest of Beverly Hills
In Trousdale Estates the lot doesn't decide the house. The City of Beverly Hills caps every structure at 14 feet and keeps it on the level pad, so what you're buying is the pad, the one-story house that fits on it and the view across the Los Angeles basin. Read a Trousdale price against those rules first and the comps second.
Beverly Hills splits its single-family zoning three ways: the Central Area (Article 24), the Hillside Area (Article 25) and Trousdale Estates, which has its own Article 26. No other neighborhood in the city has a code article of its own, and that article is the reason two Trousdale houses on similar lots can sell far apart.
The level pad is the house
The code says no part of a building may extend beyond the level pad, and no lot may be regraded to raise it. A big lot with a small pad buys you slope, not floor area. When you compare listings, compare pad size and the house that sits on it, then the total lot.
Why the view is the asset you're buying
A one-story limit across the whole neighborhood means rooflines stay low, and the City backs that up with a view restoration ordinance aimed at plants that grow into the line of sight. A house that keeps its basin view is worth more than its square footage suggests, and one that has lost it to a neighbor's trees has a fix the code spells out.
How Trousdale Estates was built out of the Greystone land
The land was part of the Doheny family's Greystone estate. After 1955 Lucy Doheny and her second husband sold most of the original Greystone land to the Paul Trousdale Corporation, according to the City's history of Greystone. The City itself bought the mansion and its remaining grounds in 1965 and runs them today as a public park.
Paul Trousdale's development, 1954 into the 1970s
The Los Angeles Conservancy dates the development from 1954 into the 1970s and places it at the highest point of Beverly Hills. The development had its own design review board, headed by Allen Siple.
The architects tied to Trousdale Estates
The Conservancy names Wallace Neff, Paul R. Williams, A. Quincy Jones, Lloyd Wright, Cliff May and Richard Dorman among the architects linked to the neighborhood. When a listing credits one of them, ask for the permit history or original plans that support the claim, because an attribution adds to price only when it can be shown.
Trousdale Estates building rules, in plain terms
These are the rules in Article 26 of the Beverly Hills Municipal Code that most often change a buyer's plans. We've phrased them plainly and cited the section; read the City's current code, or have your architect confirm it, before you rely on any of them.
The 14-foot height limit (BHMC 10-3-2605)
No structure in Trousdale Estates may rise above 14 feet. A building that lawfully stood taller on October 15, 1987 may be rebuilt, but not above its 1987 height or outside its 1987 envelope unless the City grants a Trousdale R-1 permit. The Beverly Hills Courier reported in November 2023 that 14 of the 599 lots have partial or complete second stories, so a two-story Trousdale house is a rare grandfathered asset worth verifying in the permit file.
No building beyond the level pad (BHMC 10-3-2603)
The house, the garage and any other structure stay on the flat part of the lot. Regrading to enlarge or raise the pad isn't allowed, so the pad you see is the pad you'll have.
Floor area: 1,500 square feet plus 40% of the site
Total floor area on a Trousdale site can't exceed 1,500 square feet plus 40% of the site area, and a main house must be at least 1,600 square feet. On a steep lot the pad, not this formula, is usually the tighter limit.
Going higher means a Trousdale R-1 permit and story poles
To ask for more height you first put up story poles that show the height, bulk and location of the project, so neighbors can see what's proposed. Plan for that step and the hearing that follows; it isn't a box an architect can tick quietly.
Why basements didn't replace second stories in 2023
The Courier reported that the Planning Commission voted unanimously in November 2023 to reject a zone text amendment that would have allowed daylighting basements in place of second stories. The 14-foot limit dates from 1985 and was revised in 1987, and that vote left it where it stands.
| Rule | Trousdale Estates (Art. 26) | Hillside Area (Art. 25) | Central Area, north of Santa Monica (Art. 24) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 14 ft | 26 ft, up to 30 ft within an envelope | 28 ft, up to 34 ft with 10-ft side yards |
| Floor area | 1,500 sq ft + 40% of site, on the level pad only | 40% of pad + 10% of slope (sites up to 15,000 sq ft); 15,000 sq ft cap with basements without a Hillside R-1 permit | 1,500 sq ft + 40% of site |
| View rules | View restoration ordinance (2011) | 14-ft trigger near basin views | None of these |
The Trousdale Estates view ordinance and what it protects
The City adopted the Trousdale View Restoration Ordinance on December 6, 2011 (BHMC 10-8-101 and following). It's the rule that turns a view from a hope into something an owner can press for, and it's narrower than most buyers assume.
What the view ordinance protects
The ordinance covers views of the Los Angeles basin: the city lights and the line toward the ocean. Views of ridges and canyons aren't protected. If the best thing about a house is the canyon, the code won't defend it.
How a view restoration claim works
The City's guidelines set three steps: outreach to the neighbor, then mediation, then a Planning Commission hearing. Ask the seller whether any claim is open on either side, because you inherit a pending dispute along with the deed.
Hedges on the slopes between lots
Hedges on slopes between Trousdale properties have their own height standards under BHMC 10-3-2616. These ordinances stop at the city line, so a neighbor whose lot lies outside Beverly Hills isn't bound by them.
Trousdale Estates home prices: reading the Zillow figure
Zillow tracks Trousdale Estates as its own neighborhood, and the figures above come from that series. Its typical value of about $7.9 million in September 2026 sits below the $10.3 million Zillow gives the Beverly Hills Flats, and over five years Trousdale's figure is down 3.9% while the Flats rose 16.1%.
Why the Flats now prices above Trousdale on Zillow
Both areas use the same formula, 1,500 square feet plus 40% of the site. A Flats house north of Santa Monica Boulevard can spread that over two stories under a 28- to 34-foot height limit, while a Trousdale house has to fit it on one story on the pad. That's our reading of the gap, not a measured cause, but it's the first thing to weigh when a Flats lot and a Trousdale lot cost the same. Our guide to the Flats grid south of Sunset covers its formula.
What reported Trousdale sales show
Zillow's typical value covers the middle third of the market, and the top sells far above it. Redfin reported in July 2026 that June's ten most expensive U.S. sales included a $47 million sale in Trousdale Estates. Outlook Luxe reported in July 2026 that James Jannard sold his Trousdale house for $46.95 million after first asking $68 million in June 2024, a gap of about 31% between the first ask and the close.
Work out what a Trousdale lot allows
Take the lot size from the assessor's record, multiply by 40% and add 1,500 square feet. A 20,000-square-foot site comes to 9,500 square feet of floor area at most. Then measure the pad: if the pad can't hold 9,500 square feet on one floor, the pad is your real limit. For the bigger picture across the city, see our Beverly Hills housing market data.
Buying in Trousdale Estates: what the Beverly Hills city line changes
Trousdale sits inside the City of Beverly Hills, and that matters as much as the height rule. Several costs and services change at the city line.
No Measure ULA on a Trousdale sale
The City of Los Angeles adds Measure ULA to sales over $5.4 million closing after June 30, 2026: 4% up to $10.9 million and 5.5% from there. It applies only inside the City of Los Angeles. A $20 million Trousdale sale owes none of it, while the same price in a City of Los Angeles enclave carries $1.1 million in ULA alone. Run both cases in the transfer tax calculator on our mansion tax page.
Police, fire and schools
Beverly Hills runs its own police and fire departments; the fire department operates three stations. For schools, enter the address in Beverly Hills Unified's School Finder and read our notes on Beverly Hills schools. Don't rely on a listing's school claim.
Property tax and insurance
Your tax bill starts from the purchase price, so estimate it with the Beverly Hills property tax estimator before you bid. Price the insurance early too. The City says the area north of Sunset Boulevard, plus a few blocks south, is a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and the fire department inspects every property in it for brush clearance each year from April 1. Our guide to insuring a hillside home covers the FAIR Plan and its $3 million residential limit.
A Trousdale Estates buyer's checklist
Most surprises in Trousdale come from the rules, not the house. Work through these before you remove contingencies.
- Get a survey that shows the level pad, and check the house sits within it.
- If the house is taller than 14 feet, find the permit trail back to October 15, 1987.
- Ask the seller for any view restoration or hedge correspondence, open or settled.
- Run the floor-area formula on the lot and compare it with the house you'd build.
- Confirm the address with the school district's lookup and the insurer.
Comparing Trousdale with Beverly Park and BHPO
If you're also looking further up the hills, the city line changes the math. Beverly Park, behind its gates on Mulholland, has a Beverly Hills address but sits in the City of Los Angeles, as do Beverly Hills Post Office homes in the canyons on the Los Angeles side of the line. Those sales pay Measure ULA and follow Los Angeles hillside rules instead of Article 26.
If you'd rather hear of houses before they're listed, our private search for off-market homes explains how those sales work, and our pick of a Beverly Hills agent covers who we'd call for a Trousdale purchase. For the rest of the city, start with our overview of Beverly Hills homes.
Trousdale Estates FAQs
Is Trousdale Estates in Beverly Hills?
Yes. Trousdale Estates is inside the City of Beverly Hills, which zones it under its own code article, Article 26. That means Beverly Hills police and fire services, no City of Los Angeles Measure ULA on a sale, and the City's 14-foot height limit and view restoration ordinance. Check any address for schools with the Beverly Hills Unified School Finder.
Can you build a two-story house in Trousdale Estates?
Generally no. The Beverly Hills code caps every structure at 14 feet. A building that lawfully exceeded 14 feet on October 15, 1987 can be rebuilt within its 1987 height and envelope, and going higher needs a Trousdale R-1 permit, with story poles first. The Beverly Hills Courier reported 14 lots with partial or complete second stories in 2023.
How much is a home in Trousdale Estates?
Zillow put the typical home value in its Trousdale Estates neighborhood at about $7.9 million in September 2026. That figure tracks the middle third of homes, so top sales run much higher: Redfin reported in July 2026 a $47 million Trousdale sale among June's top ten U.S. sales. Price a specific house on its pad, view and the floor area its lot allows.
Who developed Trousdale Estates?
Paul Trousdale developed it from 1954 into the 1970s, according to the Los Angeles Conservancy. The City of Beverly Hills says the Paul Trousdale Corporation bought most of the original Greystone land from Lucy Doheny and her second husband after 1955. Architects linked to the area include Wallace Neff, Paul R. Williams, A. Quincy Jones and Cliff May.
What does the Trousdale view ordinance protect?
The Trousdale View Restoration Ordinance, adopted December 6, 2011, protects views of the Los Angeles basin, meaning city lights and the view toward the ocean. It doesn't protect views of ridges or canyons. A claim runs through neighbor outreach, then mediation, then a Planning Commission hearing, and it doesn't reach lots outside the Beverly Hills city limits.
How big a house can I build on a Trousdale Estates lot?
Floor area can't exceed 1,500 square feet plus 40% of the site area, and the house must stay on the level pad at no more than 14 feet. A 20,000-square-foot lot allows up to 9,500 square feet, but only if the pad can hold it on one floor. Have an architect confirm against the City's current code.
Does Measure ULA apply in Trousdale Estates?
No. Measure ULA is a City of Los Angeles tax, and Trousdale Estates is in the City of Beverly Hills. A comparable sale in a City of Los Angeles area such as Beverly Park or Bel Air would pay 4% or 5.5% on top of the City's base transfer tax for closings after June 30, 2026, depending on the price.
Sources
- City of Beverly Hills: Single-Family Regulations
- City of Beverly Hills: History of Greystone
- Los Angeles Conservancy: Trousdale Estates
- Beverly Hills Municipal Code Title 10, Article 26 (Trousdale Estates development standards), text via GoCodebook
- Beverly Hills Municipal Code Title 10, Article 25 (Hillside Area), text via GoCodebook
- Beverly Hills Municipal Code Title 10, Article 24 (Central Area), text via GoCodebook
- Beverly Hills Courier: Commission Rejects Zone Text Amendment Proposal (November 16, 2023)
- City of Beverly Hills: Trousdale Estates View Restoration Guidelines (PDF)
- City of Beverly Hills: Trousdale Estates View Restoration
- City of Los Angeles Office of Finance: Measure ULA FAQ
- City of Beverly Hills: Fire Department
- City of Beverly Hills FAQ: What and where is the VHFHSZ?
- City of Beverly Hills: Brush Clearance Program
- California Department of Insurance: California FAIR Plan
- City of Beverly Hills: About Beverly Hills
- Beverly Hills Unified School District: School Finder
- Redfin: Most expensive home sales of June 2026 (July 17, 2026)
- Outlook Luxe: Oakley founder James Jannard sells Beverly Hills mansion (July 6, 2026)
- Zillow Research: Zillow Home Value Index, neighborhoods (September 2026)