Emerald Bay, Laguna Beach:
homes, streets and what sells.
Emerald Bay is a gated community of about 538 homes on the coast between Laguna Beach and Crystal Cove State Park. It is unincorporated Orange County, not part of the City of Laguna Beach, though homes carry Laguna Beach 92651 addresses. Ocean-side homes below Coast Highway sell well above the canyon-side homes above it.
Greg reviews every request and replies with a written valuation.
Emerald Bay homes for sale come from a gated community of about 538 houses on the cove just north of Laguna Beach's city limits, where Pacific Coast Highway cuts the neighbourhood in two. The ocean side holds the bluffs, the beach and the homes closest to the water. The canyon side climbs toward Crystal Cove State Park, and a tunnel under the highway joins the two halves. There is one way in, a gate on the inland side of the highway.
Most buyers assume Emerald Bay is part of Laguna Beach. It is not. The community is unincorporated Orange County, the only populated unincorporated place on the county's coastline, and that changes who runs the water, the sewers, the fire station and the patrols. This guide, part of the Laguna Beach guide, covers the homes, the sale figures, the service district and how Greg Toussieng would price and sell an Emerald Bay home.
- Where on the coast between Laguna Beach and Crystal Cove State Park, Laguna Beach 92651 addresses (source)
- Jurisdiction unincorporated Orange County, not the City of Laguna Beach (source)
- Homes approximately 538 (source)
- Gate gated, one entrance on the inland side of Coast Highway (source)
- Layout split by State Route 1, with a tunnel under the highway to the ocean side (source)
- Fire station OCFA Station 11, inside the community (source)
- Water and sewer water through the Laguna Beach County Water District; sewer lines and seven lift stations run by the service district (source)
- Patrols Orange County Sheriff's Department, funded by the service district (source)
- Beach lifeguards funded by the service district from April through October (source)
- Founded 1929, as reported by local agent histories (source)
What do Emerald Bay homes look like?
Emerald Bay homes range from older beach cottages to large modern houses rebuilt on the bluff, with most eras in between. The community has been building out since its early years, so an original cottage can sit beside a house finished in the last few years. On the canyon side, streets wind up the hill, and many houses are set so their living rooms look back over the cove and out to the ocean.
Three things drive price inside the gate. The first is the side of the highway: ocean-side homes, closest to the sand, sit at the top of the range. The second is the view, because a canyon-side house with an open view of the cove can outsell a larger house that faces the hillside. The third is the house itself, its age, condition and how much of the lot it uses. A teardown lot with a strong view can sell for more than a finished house without one.
Why is Emerald Bay not in the City of Laguna Beach?
Emerald Bay was never annexed by Laguna Beach, so it stayed unincorporated county land while the city grew on both sides of it. Laguna Beach borders the community to the northwest and the southeast, and Crystal Cove State Park sits behind it.
That status shows up in everyday services. The Emerald Bay Service District, a local public agency with its own board and office at 600 Emerald Bay, buys water from the Laguna Beach County Water District and passes the rates through without a markup. It maintains the sewer lines and seven lift stations, and the South Orange County Wastewater Authority treats the sewage. The district also pays for Orange County Sheriff's patrols, the summer lifeguards, beach and creek clean-up and the Fourth of July fireworks, which are fired from a barge in the bay.
Fire protection comes from the Orange County Fire Authority. Station 11 sits inside the community, on property the service district leases from the Emerald Bay Community Association and sublets to OCFA. For a buyer, the practical point is that building permits and planning go through the County of Orange, while the association sets its own architectural rules on top.
What do Emerald Bay homes for sale cost?
Emerald Bay homes for sale cost well above the Laguna Beach city median, and the card above shows the latest three-month median, days on market and sale-to-list ratio where Redfin publishes them. Only a few homes close in a typical quarter, so treat the median as a marker of the price level.
Emerald Bay prices split along Coast Highway. Ocean-side homes, nearest the beach and the bluffs, sell at the top of the community's range. Canyon-side homes sell lower as a group, and among them the view does most of the sorting: an open view across the cove is worth more than extra square footage.
Because so few homes trade, a three-month median moves with the mix of what sold. One ocean-side closing can lift it sharply, and a quarter of canyon-side sales can pull it down, without any change in what an individual house would fetch.
The fair benchmark for an owner is the handful of recent Emerald Bay sales most like the home in question, matched by side of the highway, view and lot. Greg puts those comparables in a written analysis and adjusts each one for condition and size, so the price can be checked line by line.
Watch the gap between asking and sold prices. When the sale-to-list figure in the card sits under 100 percent, buyers have been negotiating down, usually on homes that came to market priced ahead of the community's own sales.
Which Emerald Bay homes are for sale now?
The Emerald Bay homes listed for sale right now appear below, from the MLS, with each listing brokerage credited.
What is it like to live in Emerald Bay?
Life in Emerald Bay centres on the cove, the beach and the canyon behind it. The association keeps the beach and the common areas, the service district pays for lifeguards from April to October, and the paths down to the sand run from inside the gate.
Crystal Cove State Park's trails and beaches start just up the coast, and the park's backcountry rises behind the community. Laguna Beach's village, with its galleries, restaurants and Main Beach, is a short drive south on Coast Highway. Newport Beach and Corona del Mar are a short drive north.
One gate, two sides of the highway
Emerald Bay's canyon homes and ocean-side homes are joined by a tunnel under Coast Highway. Laguna Beach homes guide
Fire is part of the history here. The 1993 Laguna Beach fire storm reached Emerald Bay, and in February 2022 the Emerald Fire burned brush on the slope above the community. The service district now has a Community Wildfire Protection Plan, and buyers should ask about vegetation clearance, roofing and insurance early.
How would Greg sell an Emerald Bay home?
Greg would sell an Emerald Bay home by pricing it from the community's own sales and marketing the two things buyers here pay for: the view and the beach behind the gate. For an ocean-side home, the photography leads with the water and the walk to the sand. For a canyon-side home, it leads with the view back over the cove at the hour the light is best, and the listing explains the tunnel and the beach access plainly, because buyers from outside the area often do not know the layout.
Pricing comes from a written analysis of the closest Emerald Bay sales, adjusted for side of the highway, view, lot and condition. Greg also gathers the papers serious buyers ask for early: association documents and rules, any county permits for past work, the insurance history and the flood zone. Having them ready shortens escrow and protects the price.
Greg Toussieng is a California real estate broker, DRE #01495415, first licensed in California in 2005, and he handles each listing himself from preparation to closing.
Greg prepares a written valuation from recent sales near you. Start with the address.
What should a buyer check before an offer in Emerald Bay?
A buyer in Emerald Bay should check the association documents, the county permit history, fire insurance and the flood zone. The association's documents set dues, rules, guest procedures and any planned assessments, and its architectural rules apply to every remodel on top of the county's.
Because the community is unincorporated, past permits and any future rebuild run through the County of Orange, and most work near the water also needs a coastal development permit. Get a fire insurance quote in the first days of escrow, since availability on wildland edges can change the deal. Look up the address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center, and confirm the school district assignment for the address with Laguna Beach Unified.
Which communities near Emerald Bay should you compare?
Buyers who look at Emerald Bay usually compare it with Three Arch Bay at the south end of Laguna Beach and with Crystal Cove in the Newport Coast hills.
Three Arch Bay is a smaller gated community inside the City of Laguna Beach, with its own beach below the bluffs. Crystal Cove is a guard-gated community above Crystal Cove State Park, with newer homes on larger hillside lots. See the Laguna Beach homes guide for the city around Emerald Bay, and the luxury homes guide for the gated and coastal tier across the county.
Own a home in Emerald Bay?
Find out what it would sell for from Emerald Bay's own sales, ocean side and canyon side. Get a written home value
Selling in Emerald Bay? Ask Greg for the community's recent sales.
Who can finance a home in Emerald Bay?
Esther Buede at Choice Home Mortgage can arrange the loan, timed to Greg's work on the purchase.
Financing a home in Emerald Bay? Esther Buede at Choice Home Mortgage
Esther works with Greg on the loan side of a purchase, from conforming loans to jumbo loans on the coast. Choice Home Mortgage, NMLS #2629064, has a page on buying and financing in Orange County.
Orange County home loans with Esther Buede
Gregory James Group and Choice Home Mortgage are trade names of the same California company, Montana Real Estate Inc (CA DRE #01822046, NMLS #2629064), which Greg Toussieng owns. If we represent you in a purchase or sale and you also arrange your loan through Choice Home Mortgage, the company is paid for both services. You are not required to use Choice Home Mortgage to work with Gregory James Group, and you are free to compare loans from any other lender. When we refer you, we give you a written disclosure of this relationship and the estimated charges, and when we act as both your agent and your loan broker we confirm both roles in writing within 24 hours.
Common questions
Is Emerald Bay part of the City of Laguna Beach?
Emerald Bay is not part of the City of Laguna Beach. The community is unincorporated Orange County land, the only populated unincorporated stretch of the county's coastline, even though its homes use Laguna Beach 92651 mailing addresses. Local services come through the Emerald Bay Service District and county agencies rather than city hall.
Is Emerald Bay a gated community?
Emerald Bay is gated, with a single entrance on the inland side of Pacific Coast Highway. The highway runs through the middle of the community, and homes on the ocean side are reached through a tunnel under it. Gate rules and guest procedures are set by the Emerald Bay Community Association, so a buyer should read them before closing.
Can the public use the beach at Emerald Bay?
Emerald Bay's beach is reached only through the gated community, and the association treats it as a residents' beach. California's constitution protects public access to navigable waters, and land below the mean high tide line is generally public trust land, so the private part is the shore above that line and the paths and amenities behind the gate.
How many homes are in Emerald Bay?
Emerald Bay has approximately 538 homes, the figure most public references use. They split between the ocean side of Coast Highway, with the bluffs and the beach, and the larger canyon side behind the gate, where many homes look back over the cove. Only a handful of those homes come up for sale in any given quarter.
Who provides fire and police service in Emerald Bay?
Emerald Bay's fire protection comes from the Orange County Fire Authority, which runs Station 11 inside the community on property the Emerald Bay Service District leases from the association. The service district also funds Orange County Sheriff's Department patrols, so policing is county, not Laguna Beach city.
How much is an Emerald Bay home worth?
An Emerald Bay home's value depends mostly on which side of Coast Highway it sits, its ocean or cove view, the lot, and the age and condition of the house. Greg Toussieng, a California real estate broker, prepares a written comparative market analysis from Emerald Bay's own recent sales, with every adjustment explained.
- Emerald Bay, Orange County: unincorporated, about 538 homes, gated, bisected by State Route 1, tunnel, borders Laguna Beach and Crystal Cove State Park · checked 2026-10-28
- Emerald Bay Service District: water via Laguna Beach County Water District, sewer and seven lift stations, OCFA Station 11, Sheriff patrols, lifeguards, fireworks · checked 2026-10-28
- Laguna Beach County Water District: the 1993 fire storm reached Emerald Bay · checked 2026-10-28
- CAL FIRE: Emerald Fire, February 2022 · checked 2026-10-28
- As reported by an agent guide (Newport Beach Real Estate Cafe): Emerald Bay dated to 1929, guard gate on Coast Highway · checked 2026-10-28
- California Constitution, Article X, Section 4: access to navigable waters · checked 2026-10-28
- California State Parks: Crystal Cove State Park · checked 2026-10-28
- Laguna Beach Unified School District · checked 2026-10-28
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center · checked 2026-10-28
- California DRE licence lookup · checked 2026-10-28
Start with the address. Greg does the rest.
A written valuation from recent sales near you, prepared by a licensed broker. Or call (949) 868-8820.