About the Building
701 Ocean has a documented origin even though its design team does not appear in any public record. The California state clearinghouse holds a notice of determination filed by the City of Santa Monica and posted on 2 November 1989 under the project title 701 Ocean Condominiums, describing demolition of the existing building and construction of a thirty-nine unit condominium building on the site. Construction followed in the early 1990s. Two brokerages date completion to 1993 and a third to 1994, a one-year gap of the sort that usually separates final inspection from first occupancy.
The building is four stories over subterranean parking, which places it among the low-rise condominium buildings on Ocean Avenue rather than the towers. Homes are condominiums under a homeowners association. The interesting discrepancy is the unit count: the 1989 environmental filing describes thirty-nine units, while current listing sources consistently describe thirty-one. A reduction between entitlement and construction is common and usually reflects plan consolidation, but no public document explains this one, so a buyer should treat thirty-one as the operating number and check the recorded condominium plan for the rest.
At thirty-one homes over four floors, this is a small building with a large average home. Two brokerages give overlapping but non-identical size ranges, roughly 1,378 to 3,463 square feet in one and 1,451 to 3,408 in the other, with an average around 2,268 square feet. The mix is predominantly two- and three-bedroom plans, with penthouse-level homes lettered rather than numbered. Balconies are described as oversized, which is consistent with a low-rise plan where outdoor space is not constrained by high-rise wind loading.
Amenity provision is unusually complete for a building of this size. The published list includes a rooftop pool and spa with sun decks, a fitness room, an entertainment or banquet room with a full kitchen, a conference room, and concierge and switchboard coverage around the clock. Access is controlled, with closed-circuit cameras and a gated subterranean garage that includes guest spaces; most homes are described as carrying two side-by-side spaces. Landscaping is maintained by the association. That service load spread across thirty-one homes is the trade-off buyers should price.
The constraint on supply is straightforward. Thirty-one homes, on a block of Ocean Avenue north of Wilshire that faces Palisades Park and the bluff, in a city that has approved very little new for-sale housing on this frontage since. Because the building was completed well after 10 April 1979, Santa Monica's rent control ceilings do not reach it, which distinguishes it from the older buildings north and south. Nothing about the design team, developer or original marketing is documented publicly, so the building's history is thinner than its neighbors.
Amenities & Services
The Residences
Current listing sources put the building at thirty-one condominiums across four stories. That is a small association by Ocean Avenue standards, and it concentrates both the cost and the benefit of the amenity program on few owners.
The 1989 state environmental filing describes a thirty-nine unit building. Every current listing source describes thirty-one. No public document explains the reduction, so the recorded condominium plan is the authority.
Brokerage figures average around 2,268 square feet per home, with ranges given as roughly 1,378 to 3,463 or 1,451 to 3,408 square feet depending on source. The two ranges overlap but do not match.
The mix is predominantly two- and three-bedroom plans. Top-floor homes are lettered as penthouses in listings rather than numbered, which usually signals a distinct floor plan set rather than a marketing label alone.
Balconies are described as oversized. A four-story building is not subject to the wind and structural constraints that shrink balconies in towers, which is why usable outdoor space is more generous here per home.
The pool, spa and sun decks sit on the roof rather than at podium level, giving ocean outlook from the amenity floor. Roof-mounted pools also concentrate waterproofing risk directly above occupied space below.
Due Diligence
Parking is subterranean and gated with controlled entry and guest spaces. A brokerage reports most homes carry two side-by-side spaces. Confirm the assignment on the specific unit, since side-by-side allocation is not uniform in buildings of this size.
One aggregator states pets are permitted subject to association rules; the association publishes nothing directly. Treat the aggregator entry as unverified and obtain the CC&Rs and house rules before committing on a pet-dependent purchase.
Minimum lease terms and rental caps are not publicly documented. The building postdates April 1979, so Santa Monica rent ceilings do not apply, though citywide just-cause protections can still reach a tenancy once established.
An aggregator indicates owners pay separately for electricity, cable, water, sewer and internet, which implies dues are weighted toward staffing, insurance and the amenity floor. Confirm against the association's current budget rather than the listing.
Built in the early 1990s under codes preceding the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the building sits outside Santa Monica's retrofit categories, which target older construction. Whether it sustained Northridge damage is not publicly documented; ask for repair history.
At roughly three decades old, the roof deck waterproofing beneath the pool, elevator equipment, garage membrane and common-area finishes are the predictable capital items. With thirty-one homes sharing them, per-owner exposure is proportionally higher.
Concierge and switchboard coverage is described as running around the clock, alongside controlled access and cameras. Continuous desk coverage across only thirty-one homes is a significant payroll line and should be visible in the budget.
No alteration policy is published. In a four-story concrete and steel building, expect association review of plumbing penetrations, floor assemblies and anything affecting balcony waterproofing, plus the usual contractor insurance and working-hour restrictions.
Everything above is drawn from public records, city permit data and published sources. The association’s statutory disclosure package is the only authoritative answer on dues, rules, reserves, insurance and litigation — Ben will request it and read it with you before you remove contingencies.
Common Questions
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Start the ConversationOff Market & Coming Soon
Residences here reach the open market rarely, and some never do. Ask Ben to tell you when one is coming, including quietly.
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