Tell me about living in LA :)

[amberlyrose]

DH has a job offer for a consulting job in LA and he is taking it. He will move out there first and I'll follow a month or two after (due to grad school) and we'll basically live 75% there and 25% in CO. With our work travel schedules, we're looking around LAX. He has to work with the company for a year and he can ask to move to the Denver office, so we're keeping our house here and we'll decide after the year is up. 

Anything I need to consider when moving? Suggestions about apartment complexes, property management companies to use/avoid, areas in the LAX area to avoid? 


Also, if we're FB friends, please don't say anything right now  

[Deleted]

I would look into the Playa Vista area. It's right next to LAX and a nice little pocket of nice homes / apartments right next to the beach. 

My only other advice is to drive the area before you rent. There are tons of nice areas that back up to not so nice areas so you need to drive it before you rent it. I bet @kirkette could comment more on property management companies, etc..

[agnes]

Now's your chance to get a house boat in Long Beach!

[amberlyrose]

Mar 6, 2017 14:15:42 GMT -5 tarzanswife said:

I would look into the Playa Vista area. It's right next to LAX and a nice little pocket of nice homes / apartments right next to the beach. 

My only other advice is to drive the area before you rent. There are tons of nice areas that back up to not so nice areas so you need to drive it before you rent it. I bet @kirkette could comment more on property management companies, etc..

This is the area we're looking in, but since H will be there for awhile, he'll probably Airbnb until we find a place, giving us more time to find the right area.

[formerlyak]

I'd look south of the airport - El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach (aka the best beach city), Torrance. It's less congested and less time to get places like a grocery store. I live about 10 miles south of LAX and I can get there in 15-20 minutes depending on how I hit the lights.

Get a subscription to Westside Rentals to look for apartments. That's your best bet for finding a good place. I honestly don't know anyone who has found an apartment any other way. My ex and I even found a great house in the beach cities for a steal through Westside rentals.

I've lived in the LA area on the westside (side of town nearest LAX) for 30+ years of my life, so feel free to PM me if you want details about specific areas, schools (not sure if you have kids), places with nightlife/without, etc with a decent commute to LAX.

[miso]

I'm an Eastsider, so I have little to zero knowledge about living near LAX...except that I can't afford anything nice there. LOL.

But congratulations!

(Honestly, I would consider your daily work commutes more than your airport commute.)

[jezebel]

Congrats to your H!!

[pantsparty]

Mar 6, 2017 18:24:37 GMT -5 miso said:

I'm an Eastsider, so I have little to zero knowledge about living near LAX...except that I can't afford anything nice there. LOL.

But congratulations!

(Honestly, I would consider your daily work commutes more than your airport commute.)

Definitely. The traffic in that area is brutal and the closer you can live to your job, the better your quality of life.

[ksun]

Take me with you (Except leave me in Ventura county)

[winecat]

Yay for you but boo for us! I think K will be quite the swanky LA pup.

[calle28]

Mar 6, 2017 18:24:37 GMT -5 miso said:

I'm an Eastsider, so I have little to zero knowledge about living near LAX...except that I can't afford anything nice there. LOL.

But congratulations!

(Honestly, I would consider your daily work commutes more than your airport commute.)

Totally this.

Where will you guys be working? Commute to work is arguably one of the most important factors in deciding where to live.

[isabel]

No advice, but congrats!

[Doggy Mommy]

Congrats!

Obviously I live in CO, not LA, but we visited some friends who live in Playa Vista in January. It's a really nice, quiet area and everything is easily walkable. When they get home, they park and don't drive again until they have to for work. It is expensive though (went to an open house for fun and the house was 2.2 million). There's a dog park, weekly farmer's market, Whole Foods, restaurants etc.

I loathe LAX. Is it possible to be near a different airport? We like Burbank and I've heard the Burbank airport is very convenient.

[formerlyak]

Since a few posters have said Playa Vista, here's my two cents. Yes it is walkable inside Playa Vista, but it's so expensive for the space you get. And, if you need to get anyplace outside of Playa Vista, which you will, the traffic on Lincoln and Jefferson which border Playa Vista sucks balls. To give you an idea, I have a friend who has no choice but to drive the outskirts of Playa Vista to get to work. We chat during our commutes at least once a week. I know when she hits Playa Vista because she starts cursing the traffic.

Where will your offices be?

Also, with regards to Burbank Airport, it depends on where you have to fly and what time of day. It's a convenient and small airport if you are more flexible with your flight times, but there are far fewer options for when to fly where. If your flights are dictated by work, LAX is a better bet hands down.

[amberlyrose]

Mar 6, 2017 18:24:37 GMT -5 miso said:

I'm an Eastsider, so I have little to zero knowledge about living near LAX...except that I can't afford anything nice there. LOL.

But congratulations!

(Honestly, I would consider your daily work commutes more than your airport commute.)

The office is about 10-15 minutes NE of LAX and we'all both WFH unless we're traveling or he's at a client site.

[miso]

Mar 6, 2017 23:35:12 GMT -5 amberlyrose said:

Mar 6, 2017 18:24:37 GMT -5 miso said:

I'm an Eastsider, so I have little to zero knowledge about living near LAX...except that I can't afford anything nice there. LOL.

But congratulations!

(Honestly, I would consider your daily work commutes more than your airport commute.)

The office is about 10-15 minutes NE of LAX and we'all both WFH unless we're traveling or he's at a client site.

My pick for you is Culver City. Should be much more reasonably priced than Playa, is full of young people, and has great restaurants.

But, if you want beach life, it's not for you.

[Deleted]

Yes!! I was gonna ask you since I saw you right after the interview!!

[amberlyrose]

Mar 7, 2017 0:00:06 GMT -5 miso said:

Mar 6, 2017 23:35:12 GMT -5 amberlyrose said:

The office is about 10-15 minutes NE of LAX and we'all both WFH unless we're traveling or he's at a client site.

My pick for you is Culver City. Should be much more reasonably priced than Playa, is full of young people, and has great restaurants.

But, if you want beach life, it's not for you.

Thanks! We'll definitely check into it!!

[amberlyrose]

Mar 7, 2017 0:12:40 GMT -5 @lazerus24 said:

Yes!! I was gonna ask you since I saw you right after the interview!!

Haha, I think you were the only one from the board that knew!

[insominac]

I work in Culver City and live in Santa Monica. I've lived in Rancho Park and Beverly Hills since I moved back to LA (I'm an LA native).

I found my Rancho Park (think 405 and Olympic) apt through Westside Rentals or my mom found it driving through the neighborhood - we were out of state at the time. I found the Beverly Hills place driving down the road and seeing a For Rent sign. We found the Santa Monica place on zillow.

1) Prepare for insanely high prices - renting or buying.
2) Prepare for insanely small living spaces.
3) Prepare for insanely insane traffic.

Playa Vista - expensive, traffic, and you're stuck there. But I guess I could say that for most neighborhoods around here.

Boy, I sound jaded. lol

On the upside, it was a gloriously beautiful and clear day here, and I ate at a restaurant in Culver City that had the most amazing rice porridge. And I'm excited to book my season tickets with the LA Master Chorale and my additional Hamilton tickets - I got the notices in the mail today!  

[calmcosmo]

Mar 6, 2017 19:17:15 GMT -5 ksun said:

Take me with you (Except leave me in Ventura county)

Me too please! I just moved to Colorado Springs from Ventura County and I miss California so much. Enjoy!!

[mdgirl]

I just moved here in September, so I can give you a bit of a fresh transplant perspective. We live in Santa Monica, which is where my husband works and is an easy commute for me. In addition to not having any traffic we really like it here, but we pay an arm and a leg for rent and probably won't be able to buy in the specific area we live in now. I drove my husband to LAX on Saturday early in the morning so with basically no traffic it only took 20 minutes. It's more like 45 during a more normal time.

In general we love living here. There's tons to do and see, great weekend trips and awesome food. The people are friendly, especially compared to Seattle where we came from, although they can be a bit aggro (the road rage is crazy). And even though this winter has apparently been worse than usual the weather is still great.

[jigsy]

I echo insominac w/r/t westsiderentals. You have to pay, but it really does have a lot of great options. I found my most recent apartment through The Rental Girl - it is a small operation, but it was nice to have a middle man.

Personally, I would not go to the Playa Vista - it is pretty expensive and a bitch to get out of...a lot of the people who live there now are new money tech people as the area is "Silicon Beach". If that is your scene, than maybe you will enjoy it. One thing you will find in LA is you kind of stay in your little neighborhood for the most part, so you want to find one that speaks to your lifestyle.

I lived in Culver City, and I really did like it - but rent just got out of hand in just one year because CC is not subject to the rent control regs - my rent increased nearly 10% in one year. I experienced the same in my first apartment in Burbank, which was also not rent controlled because it was a newer building.

My Culver City property Management company was Alcole Properties - they were a good, hands off management company. Responsive and helpful, but not intrusive at all. Very fair when it came to my security deposit. They don't have a ton of properties, but a few in CC.

In Burbank, I lived at a Avalon Communities Apartment. I really liked the amenities and the management. Also very responsive. Since it was a large property, they had maintanence staff that lived on site, so I never waited more that 24 hours for assistance (I never had an emergency, but I imagine response would have been immediate). 

I move around like every year - partly because of the rent increases, partly because I am still trying to find my groove. My current place is rent control, but I am still considering moving because even though I love the neighborhood, none of my friends live around me and getting them to visit me is like pulling teeth (miso is the exception because she realizes how awesome the food is around me!). I love LA...even though nearly 50% of my income pays for my living expenses, and that makes me sad sometimes, I have a hard time considering leaving because it is a great city.

If you have more specific questions about neighborhoods and whatnot, I am happy to answer from the perspective of a single, childless 30-something. 

[amberlyrose]

jigsy- Thank you for all that info! We're both early 30s, childless, and down to earth type people who occasionally like the fancy side of things. We like diverse neighborhoods, good food in walking distance, and places nearby to take the dogs.

[jigsy]

I feel like Culver City is really going to be a good place for you since your commute will be pretty decent. Your pups are a little bigger, which, just a warning, will make finding a place harder (dogs period makes it tough, larger even moreso) but not impossible...just don't get discouraged! I lived right by Sony Studios/Downtown - I was able to walk to some great restaurants and bars, and there is also a vet that is close that I highly recommend - I chose them in particular because one of the vets is very familiar with flat faced dogs, but I have been pleased with them overall.

There is a decent off leash dog park - my only complaint is that it is all dirt.

I am sure your budget is bigger than mine, which will make things easier, but if you need to look outside of Culver City, you could also look at Palms, which is right next door. It is a little less "prestigious" - mostly because Culver City is it's own city, while Palms is part of LA, but you may be able to get more bang for your buck. You might also look at Mar Vista - you may be able to find something with a yard there. Another good point towards the area is that is is only a few miles from Venice Beach. I never really went to the beach, but when people visited from out of town, they always wanted to go, so I would take them there since you get the full LA Beach experience, lol.

Craigslist is also a reasonable source, but there are a lot of fake posts...if it looks too good to be true, it is. I think it is pretty easy to parse out the scams.

[miso]

Mar 7, 2017 11:07:53 GMT -5 jigsy said:

My current place is rent control, but I am still considering moving because even though I love the neighborhood, none of my friends live around me and getting them to visit me is like pulling teeth (miso is the exception because she realizes how awesome the food is around me!).

Your 'hood is so fantastic! I would totally live there, Downtown, the Arts District, or Little Tokyo if I were single.

I wish I could have lunch with you every week!

amberlyrose, if children are a remote possibility in the future, Culver City also has good public schools.

[berbles]

As long as you don't become a Galaxy fan... GL!!

[amberlyrose]

Mar 7, 2017 15:46:55 GMT -5 berbles said:

As long as you don't become a Galaxy fan... GL!!

NEVER!
Telling our soccer friends this weekend was tough, though.

[ksun]

Mar 7, 2017 8:09:05 GMT -5 calmcosmo said:

Mar 6, 2017 19:17:15 GMT -5 ksun said:

Take me with you (Except leave me in Ventura county)

Me too please! I just moved to Colorado Springs from Ventura County and I miss California so much. Enjoy!!

I'm from the Bay Area, but my cousin lives in Camarillo and I go there 2-3 times a year and I love it so much. It's still only a 5 hour drive (more or less) from the Bay Area, but the perfect climate.