Los Alamitos

Los Alamitos is a small city with about 4 square miles of land in northwest Orange County, bordered by Cypress, Garden Grove and Seal Beach and, across the county line, Long Beach. Its townsite took shape around a sugar refinery built in the late 1890s, a Navy air station opened in 1942, and the city incorporated on March 1, 1960.

The Joint Forces Training Base takes up roughly half the land inside city limits, so homes are concentrated in a compact area of mid-century single-family streets, apartment and townhome blocks, and a small downtown along Katella Avenue and Los Alamitos Boulevard. It suits buyers who want a small city with I-605, I-405 and SR-22 close by and who will check aircraft noise maps for a specific address. Comparing nearby options? See our Cypress guide.

Neighborhoods and housing in Los Alamitos

The 2035 General Plan, adopted in 2015, groups the city's homes into 16 neighborhoods: Carrier Row, Country Square, College Park North, El Dorado Park Estates East, Greenbrook, Highlands, New Dutch Haven, Old Dutch Haven, Suburbia, Woodcrest, Old Town East, Parkewood, Apartment Row, Bungalows, Old Town West and Royal Oak Park. Housing Element data show most occupied homes were built between 1950 and 1979, with detached houses and multifamily units close to evenly split. Zoning runs from R-1 single-family lots through R-2, R-3 and R-4 multifamily zones to an M-H mobile home park zone.

Old Town West and Apartment Row

The Housing Element singles out these two neighborhoods near downtown for strong redevelopment interest. Old Town West, between Sausalito Avenue, Oak Street, Katella Avenue and Los Alamitos Boulevard, mixes single-family homes mostly from the 1950s or earlier with condos and apartments built since the 1970s. Apartment Row, between Katella Avenue, Los Alamitos Boulevard, Lexington Drive and Farquhar Avenue at the base boundary, holds mostly small apartment buildings and duplexes. Both are zoned R-3, and older houses there continue to give way to condos and apartments; our condo buying guide lists the association documents to review.

Highlands and New Dutch Haven

The General Plan counts about 50 homes in the Highlands and New Dutch Haven neighborhoods exposed to more than 65 dB CNEL of aircraft noise, and says they have been or should be sound attenuated to a 45 dB interior level. Ask sellers here for any insulation records.

Downtown and the medical center

The Town Center Mixed-Use zone along Katella Avenue, Los Alamitos Boulevard and Pine Street allows homes as part of mixed-use projects, and the Housing Element counts on it for part of the city's future housing. Los Alamitos Medical Center, founded in 1968, has its campus on the north side of Katella Avenue.

Rossmoor and other boundaries

Rossmoor, built as a master-planned community in the 1950s, is unincorporated land governed by the County of Orange, not part of the city. The Local Agency Formation Commission placed it in Los Alamitos' sphere of influence in 2009, and the Shops at Rossmoor shopping center was annexed to Seal Beach in the 1960s. Mailing addresses do not settle boundaries either: Los Alamitos Race Course uses a Los Alamitos address but sits in Cypress.

Getting around

• The General Plan places the city at the junction of I-605, I-405 and SR-22. In June 2025 OCTA began modifying the I-605/Katella Avenue ramps and adding bike lanes on Katella.
• OCTA's 405 Express Lanes, which require FasTrak, run from I-605 to SR-73, with access from I-605 and SR-22.
• Katella Avenue, a major east-west street, continues into Long Beach as Willow Street, and OCTA Route 50 runs along it between Long Beach and Orange.
• The base's Los Alamitos Army Airfield is a military airfield, not a commercial airport; Long Beach Airport is nearby for airline service.

Schools

Los Alamitos Unified School District serves the city, along with Rossmoor, Seal Beach, Surfside and small parts of Cypress and Long Beach. Its attendance boundaries page explains how to find the assigned elementary, middle and high schools for an address. For test results and other data, use the California School Dashboard.

Parks, beaches and things to do

• Laurel Park on Bloomfield Street fronts Katella Avenue and hosts softball league games; Little Cottonwood Park is on Farquhar Avenue.
• Orville R. Lewis Jr. Park sits at the city's southwest edge near the Highlands, and Coyote Creek Park is on Oak Street.
• Stansbury, Labourdette, Sterns, Soroptomist and Roberts are smaller neighborhood parks.
• The city's Aquatic Center has an Olympic-size pool under a long-term use agreement with the base, and the Community Center and Youth Center offer activity rooms.
• There are no beaches in the city; the coast at Seal Beach is a short drive south.

Local rules and costs to know

Base noise and disclosure

The Orange County Airport Land Use Commission's plan for JFTB Los Alamitos, amended August 17, 2017, uses 60 and 65 dB CNEL noise contours. It treats new homes inside the 65 CNEL contour as inconsistent unless they are sound attenuated to 45 dB indoors and an avigation easement is dedicated, and its runway clear zones lie entirely within the base. California law requires a Notice of Airport in Vicinity when a home in an airport influence area is sold. The city has no land use authority over the base itself.

Short-term rentals

The zoning code classifies a home rented for 30 consecutive days or less as hotel and motel lodging, which is not a listed use in any residential zone, and the city has said short-term rentals are not permitted in residential zones. An ADU that is rented must be leased for more than 30 days.

ADUs

ADUs are permitted in every residential zone. The code caps a detached ADU at 850 square feet for a studio or one bedroom and 1,000 square feet for two or more bedrooms. Owner occupancy is not required for an ADU, but it is for a junior ADU, which also needs a recorded deed restriction. The city lists two pre-approved plans by Long Beach Designers, a 563-square-foot one-bedroom and an 876-square-foot two-bedroom, which you obtain from the architect. See our ADU guide and our guide to pre-approved ADU plans.

Utilities and taxes

Southern California Edison supplies electricity, Golden State Water supplies water and SoCalGas supplies gas, and the Rossmoor/Los Alamitos Area Sewer District maintains main sewer lines. The city charges a utility user tax of 6 percent on electricity, gas and water and 5 percent on telecommunications. For property taxes, see our Orange County property tax guide and property tax calculator.

Flood and fire

The General Plan says only the drainage channels are in the 100-year flood zone, with the rest of the city and Rossmoor in shaded Zone X; check FEMA's current map for any parcel. CAL FIRE's March 24, 2025 set of local fire hazard maps for Orange County includes no map for Los Alamitos.

Buying in Los Alamitos

1. Map the noise. Check the address against the base's noise contours, and in the Highlands or New Dutch Haven ask for sound insulation records.
2. Read the airport disclosure in the seller's packet before removing contingencies.
3. Confirm the jurisdiction. City, unincorporated Rossmoor and Cypress addresses follow different permit and zoning rules.
4. On PCS orders? Our PCS guide compares buying and renting in Southern California.
5. Skip nightly rental plans. Neither the house nor an ADU can be rented for 30 days or less.

Selling in Los Alamitos

1. Provide the Notice of Airport in Vicinity and any noise attenuation records; our seller disclosure guide covers California's rules.
2. Pull permits for additions, garage conversions and ADUs, and note any recorded junior ADU deed restriction.
3. In Old Town West and Apartment Row, have zoning and lot size ready, since R-3 zoning allows multifamily redevelopment.
4. For condos and townhomes, order association documents early.

How Remark Homes can help

We are a veteran-owned brokerage in Tustin with agents in nearby Huntington Beach and Huntington Harbour, and we help Los Alamitos buyers check noise contours, Rossmoor boundaries and ADU rules, and help sellers prepare disclosures. Reach us on our contact page, or see how we work with buyers and sellers.

Frequently asked questions

Is Los Alamitos in Orange County?

Yes. Los Alamitos is a northwest Orange County city that borders Long Beach in Los Angeles County. It incorporated in 1960.

Is Rossmoor part of Los Alamitos?

No. Rossmoor is unincorporated land governed by the County of Orange, though it is in the city's sphere of influence and shares its school district.

What school district is Los Alamitos in?

Los Alamitos Unified School District, which also serves Rossmoor and Seal Beach. Confirm the assigned schools for any address.

Are short-term rentals allowed in Los Alamitos?

No. The zoning code treats stays of 30 days or less as hotel and motel lodging, which is not a listed use in residential zones.

Sources

• City of Los Alamitos: General Plan
• City of Los Alamitos: 2021-2029 Housing Element (HCD copy)
• Los Alamitos Municipal Code: Accessory Dwelling Units
• Orange County Airport Land Use Commission
• Los Alamitos Unified School District: District Attendance Boundaries
• City of Los Alamitos: Utilities
• City of Los Alamitos: Parks
• OCTA: I-605/Katella Avenue Interchange Project
• City of Los Alamitos: Pre-Approved Accessory Dwelling Unit Plans