I agree about the not-quite-right, old, haunted feeling of MDR. That’s because many of the buildings have that 1970s feel to them. But I see that it’s changing.
If I relocate to LA, I’ll try my best to stay on the Westside. I need to go up there more frequently and look around. My preference would be for a SFR. For some reason, I’d much rather live in a concrete high-rise than in a low-rise condo complex built out of wood. I’ve been to some wood condo complexes near the ocean and there’s a musty, damp, termite infested smell to them (in San Diego and in LA).