Moving to LA..

[Whistleway]

Hey guys,

I am moving to LA next month as I am graduating from university of georgia. I will be working in Century city (westside) for a market research firm. I am not that familiar with the place.

Would anyone from there help me out? What are some good places to live closeby. How much do they cost? What areas to avoid? Any tips on moving from south?

Thanks much.

 

[leekohler]

LA isn't a place I would ever choose to live, but I LOVE to visit. West Hollywood is awesome and so are some of the surrounding areas. Do yourself a favor and avoid the Valley- it's nice, but dull.

I hope you're also a very outgoing person. Meeting people in LA is easy, but maintaining friendships can be difficult. When you're out socializing and you meet some cool people, get their numbers so you can contact them later. Chances are you won't run into them randomly again. LA is very spread out, so that's an important tip.

Also, get a sports car of some sort if you can afford one. People in LA drive like maniacs (this coming from a Chicagoan), you'll want the extra performance, trust me.

 

[Macky-Mac]

can you give us a hint as to your priorities? is it more important to be near the beach or closer to work? or near a area with lot of students and just-out-of-school types? or the cheapest possible? or do you want to be in the mountains? quick access to nightlife? what?

 

[gauchogolfer]

Echoing the above comments about needing a little more detail before giving suggestions, but also I'd like to say 'welcome to SoCal'.

 

[Whistleway]

can you give us a hint as to your priorities? is it more important to be near the beach or closer to work? or near a area with lot of students and just-out-of-school types? or the cheapest possible? or do you want to be in the mountains? quick access to nightlife? what?

I would rather live close to work. It is on Avenue of stars. And I would prefer to live with out-of-school types. Are there any neighborhoods that kind of fit that?

Thanks much.

 

[Andrew D.]

Just like what they said above.. driving there is a nightmare. I just recently moved to Chicago and their pretty crazy here but when I drove in LA.. it was way different.

 

[TheAnswer]

I would rather live close to work...And I would prefer to live with out-of-school types. Are there any neighborhoods that kind of fit that?

First off, welcome to the area
...now the questions:

1) What's you budget gonna be for rent? (estimated)
2) How long would you like your commute to be? (desired scenario - one way)
3) What's the max. amount of time you are willing to spend commuting per day? (worse case scenario - both ways)
4) How open-minded are you in terms of social issues?
5) Spending your free time: Outdoors? Beach? Mountains? Shopping? Etc?

 

[Macky-Mac]

I would rather live close to work. It is on Avenue of stars. And I would prefer to live with out-of-school types. Are there any neighborhoods that kind of fit that?

Thanks much.

look to the west of Century City. The first mile or so is mostly single family homes but there are plenty of apartments, especially west of the 405 freeway. Just saw in the paper today that the average rent in Los Angeles county is $1642/month (who knows how big an "average" apartment is? more than 1? they never say). You might get lucky and find a 1 bedroom for $1400 but most likely you'll pay more. You might also consider the "flats" of Brentwood (general vacinity of the intersection of barrington and san vicente which is north of wilshire). The cheaper alternative (not a lot cheaper and a bit more down market) would be the "Palms" neighborhood to the southwest of century city)

 

[janey]

look to the west of Century City....

Are you seriously kidding? $1642/mo sounds like an average 2bd apartment. In west LA you'll be lucky if you find a 1bd for under $1k/mo though. West of the 405 is santa monica-ish, not much cheaper...palms is sorta ****** and generally not worth it (I know someone who's a manager in one of the apartment buildings in palms, next to the new fire station being built there..you have no idea how much she LOVES to go on about how she hates the location of the fire station-to-be )...

I happen to live right underneath Century City but I guess I can't really give any good advice until I know more about the financial situation and what you're interested in The commute to century city sucks no matter where you are (unless you live, literally a mile away or something).

Ooooh check out pinkberry though (sorry, I'm still addicted to that ****...) The closest one to century city is on s. santa monica blvd where it meets rodeo drive, sorta, I'm off by a couple blocks but I don't remember the street name.

 

[Macky-Mac]

Are you seriously kidding? $1642/mo sounds like an average 2bd apartment. In west LA you'll be lucky if you find a 1bd for under $1k/mo though. West of the 405 is santa monica-ish, not much cheaper...palms is sorta ****** and generally not worth it ....

yep, serious, $1642/mo is what the LA Times said this week in an article about how much rents in So Cal have gone up in the last year. And that was for the whole county!!! I really doubt you can find a 1br in WLA for under $1K/mo, even in Palms.

There's a good chunk of WLA west of the 405 before you get to Santa Monica (which doesn't start until centinela).....that's the area I live in. I know that my apartment complex starts their 1br at $1525/mo and when I've looked around, that's a pretty competitive rate for the area.

 

[janey]

yep, serious, $1642/mo is what the LA Times said this week in an article about how much rents in So Cal have gone up in the last year. And that was for the whole county!!! I really doubt you can find a 1br in WLA for under $1K/mo, even in Palms.

man LA is pricey
I know some that are paying $8-900/mo for 1bd apartments in palms though..although on second thought that may be because they've been tenants for ages.

 

[Stampyhead]

Wow, rents are getting expensive in LA. I'm moving to suburban Kansas City next month and getting 1 bedroom apartment for like $400/month. Not that I'm comparing Kansas to Los Angeles, there really is not comparison, but it's amazing the difference in prices. Right now I'm renting a 3 bedroom house in suburban Phoenix for just over $1100/month and I thought that was expensive!