Why 91406 Is Worth Its Own Post
If you search "91406 real estate" on Google, you get Zillow, Redfin, RE/MAX, and Realtor.com. Every single top-ten result is a portal. None of them are written by an agent who lives in the zip code, transacts in the zip code, and knows which streets are having the most ADU activity this month.
This is that post.
91406 is Lake Balboa with parts of Van Nuys stitched in. It is one of the most underrated single-family zip codes in the San Fernando Valley, with a specific set of characteristics that make it different from every zip code that borders it. If you are buying, selling, or investing here, this guide walks through what 91406 actually looks like in 2026.
91406 at a Glance
The 91406 zip code covers Lake Balboa in full and a meaningful slice of Van Nuys to the east. Rough boundaries: Victory Boulevard to the north, Burbank Boulevard to the south, Balboa Boulevard to the west, Woodley and Hayvenhurst to the east. There are roughly 55,000 to 60,000 residents inside the zip.
The housing stock inside 91406 is predominantly 1950s and 1960s single-family ranch homes on generous lots, with pockets of apartment and condo buildings along the major corridors (Victory, Vanowen, Sherman Way). The mix of single-family density and larger lots is part of what makes this zip different from 91411 (Van Nuys core) or 91316 (Encino south of Ventura), both of which lean toward denser product.
For the full neighborhood lifestyle picture of Lake Balboa inside this zip, the Living in Lake Balboa complete 2026 guide is the companion read. This post is the data layer on top of that.
The Market Data That Matters
Median single-family sale price inside 91406 sits around $885,000 as of spring 2026, up roughly 4 percent year over year. That is modest appreciation, consistent with a stable neighborhood that is not chasing a bubble.
Days on market for well-priced homes are running 18 to 25 days. Overpriced homes sit 45 to 60 days and most end up reducing.
The list-to-sale price ratio inside 91406 for spring 2026 is approximately 98 percent. Buyers are still paying close to ask for the right homes, but the days of 5 percent overbids across the board are over.
Inventory is tight but not desperate. 91406 is running around 1.8 months of supply, which technically favors sellers without creating bidding wars on every listing.
Condos and townhomes inside 91406 trade in the $450,000 to $650,000 range. Small multifamily (2-4 units) is in the $1.2 million to $2 million range depending on unit count and rent roll. For the pocket-by-pocket breakdown of the single-family side, the Lake Balboa Spring 2026 Market Report goes deeper than I can in this zip-code guide.
What 91406 Offers Buyers
Price point. Single-family homes inside 91406 are still accessible at $850,000 to $1.2 million for a three-bedroom on a full-size lot. That is a meaningful discount to comparable homes in 91403 (Sherman Oaks south of the boulevard), 91316 (Encino south of Ventura), or 91423 (Studio City). If you are being priced out of those zips, 91406 is the obvious next look.
Lot sizes. Standard residential lots in 91406 are often 7,000 to 8,500 square feet. Compare that to 5,000 to 6,000 square feet in the denser parts of 91405 or 91401. That size difference is the biggest single driver of ADU and SB-9 potential in the zip.
ADU and SB-9 opportunity. 91406 is the epicenter of ADU construction in the San Fernando Valley. I drive through the neighborhood daily and estimate roughly one in four homes is at some stage of ADU construction or planning. If you want a property that can generate rental income from a detached unit, or you want a lot that qualifies for SB-9 two-to-four-unit conversion, 91406 has more candidates than almost any other zip in the central Valley.
Orange Line and freeway access. The Orange Line bus rapid transit station at Balboa is inside 91406. From that station, you can reach the Metro Red Line at North Hollywood in about 20 minutes. The 405 is three to six minutes away. The 101 is about eight minutes south. For a Valley zip code, the commute optionality is strong.
Park access. The Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area, which includes Lake Balboa itself, the Japanese Garden, cricket fields, golf, and 2,000 acres of open space, is inside 91406. No other Valley zip has this kind of park access on this scale.
What 91406 Offers Sellers
Demand for 91406 single-family homes in 2026 is real but picky. Buyers who land here tend to be educated, patient, and sensitive to price. Many are existing Valley residents moving up from a condo or townhome. A growing share are out-of-state buyers (Arizona, Nevada, Texas) who identify the zip through online research and come in knowing comps better than some agents.
Pricing strategy inside 91406 needs to be block-specific. Comps from three streets over can be misleading. The premium pocket south of Vanowen near the park trades at different numbers than the value pocket between Vanowen and Sherman Way. A one-size-fits-all pricing approach overshoots or undershoots almost every time.
The ADU factor adds a layer. A home with a permitted, tenanted ADU justifies a premium, but the premium needs to be backed by the actual rent roll, not by what you wish the ADU was generating. Sellers who try to add $150,000 to their asking price for an ADU that is actually adding $90,000 to $120,000 in market value sit on the MLS longer than they need to.
A note on Zestimates in 91406: they are unreliable here. The mix of older homes, renovated homes, ADU-equipped homes, and homes on mixed street types gives Zillow's algorithm more noise than signal. If you are using a Zestimate as your starting point for pricing, you are working from bad data. The numbers inside this zip require human underwriting.
91406 for Investors
Three angles matter inside 91406 for investors right now.
First, ADU economics. The math on a new-build detached ADU in 91406 is roughly $180,000 to $320,000 all-in for 600 to 1,200 square feet, renting for $2,400 to $3,200 per month. Gross yield is in the 10 to 12 percent range, which is solid but not extraordinary once you factor in property tax reassessment on the improvement, vacancy, and maintenance reserves.
Second, SB-9 plays. On lots that qualify, SB-9 allows splitting a single-family parcel into two, each of which can support up to two units. That gets you to four units on what was originally one lot. Not every 91406 lot qualifies and the execution is not trivial, but the zip has more eligible lots than almost any other in the Valley.
Third, small multifamily. 91406 has a meaningful stock of 2-4 unit buildings along the Sherman Way and Vanowen corridors that trade at cap rates of roughly 4.5 to 5.5 percent. That is not a screaming bargain by national standards, but it is defensible in a stable Valley zip with upside from rent normalization as rent control lease resets play out.
If you are running the numbers on any of these angles, the LA County Assessor parcel data (assessor.lacounty.gov) combined with MLS comps will get you most of what you need. For the specific building-permit history on any given parcel, the LADBS online records system is the source of truth, and I have a process for pulling that for clients considering a purchase here.
Honest Downsides of 91406
Not every block inside 91406 is Lake Balboa character. The zip extends east into parts of Van Nuys that are denser, more commercial, and have different quality-of-life characteristics. When you search "91406 homes for sale" on a portal, you get everything inside the zip, which can include listings that do not match the Lake Balboa experience buyers are actually shopping for. The fix is working with someone who knows the street-by-street differences.
Traffic on the north-south corridors (Balboa, Woodley, Sepulveda) is heavy during commute hours. Homes on those streets face real noise exposure.
School assignments vary within the zip. Lake Balboa's residential interior feeds into stronger LAUSD schools than some pockets of Van Nuys on the east side of the zip code. Verify the exact feeder pattern for any specific address before you make assumptions about the zip code's schools as a whole.
If you are expecting walkable retail, 91406 does not have it. The zip is built for driving.
Who Should Focus on 91406
Buy inside 91406 if you want a Valley single-family home with real lot size, real park access, and real ADU potential at a price point that is still accessible in 2026. Buy here if you are a move-up buyer from a condo or townhome in another Valley zip. Buy here if you are relocating to Los Angeles and want substance over prestige. Buy here as an investor if the ADU or SB-9 math fits your strategy.
Look elsewhere if walkable retail is non-negotiable, if you need Ventura Boulevard prestige, or if you want hillside elevation. 91403, 91316, or 91423 all deliver what 91406 cannot on those fronts. They also cost more.
The Bottom Line
91406 is one of the most data-favorable zip codes in the San Fernando Valley right now. Steady appreciation, real lot sizes, genuine ADU upside, Orange Line access, and a meaningful price discount to neighboring prestige zips. The downside is that the zip includes pockets that do not share Lake Balboa's character, so the buying decision needs to be block-specific, not zip-specific.
For the full neighborhood experience, read the Living in Lake Balboa complete 2026 guide. For the pocket-by-pocket market breakdown, the Lake Balboa Spring 2026 Market Report. For ADU-specific economics, the Lake Balboa ADU Guide 2026. This zip-code guide is the data layer on top of those.
Working With Justin
I live inside 91406. I walk the Lake Balboa path most mornings. I have served on the Lake Balboa Neighborhood Council as Communications Chair and Planning and Land Use Co-Chair, which means I actually know which blocks have zoning constraints that matter for ADU and SB-9 plays. I have transacted inside 91406 specifically, not just "somewhere in the Valley."
If you are buying, selling, or investing inside 91406, I am the agent who knows this zip code block by block.
Call or text (818) 697-4884 or email [email protected].
Justin Bonney is a California real estate agent (DRE #01338897) and the owner of Clear Way Real Estate in Sherman Oaks. He lives in Lake Balboa and specializes in Lake Balboa, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, and the surrounding San Fernando Valley.
