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ANOTHER QUESTION FOR LOS ANGELINOS

Phill_MostPhill_Most 4,594 Posts
edited August 2005 in Off Topic (NRR)
What's the cost of living / housing / real estate situation like out there? Is it ridiculously high like New York (or even higher)? Just curious, 'cuz at my day gig here in Philly I got a memo on my desk about a job opportunity in my field (which I'd rather not mention publicly) and the pay scale is like WAAAAY higher than what they pay us nimrods over here on the easside. I'm guessing that the cost of living must be insanely higher in LA, but if it's even close to what it is here in Philly I might have to pack up la familia, throw up the W and U-haul our asses out to Cali to get that yaper. Any info on the cost of living and hopefully not dying in LA is appreciated. "Hi, we just wanted to welcome you and your family to the neighborhood..."
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  Comments

  • street_muzikstreet_muzik 3,919 Posts
    I pay a thousand a month for a one bedroom in West Hollywood. It is not the hood. It is a slum building. Other places like this cost 1200+

    In the hood it's not much cheaper and you got to deal with the polotics. You could find a dive single for 600-900 in Korea town.
  • gloomgloom 2,765 Posts
    off topic: that pinstripe compton hat is bonkers.
  • spaceghostspaceghost 605 Posts
    lower than nyc. 2 bedroom apartments probably run you 1200-1800 depending on where you are looking.
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    im no expert, but i think its safe to say that the cost of living is much higher in nyc. housing is prolly lower too but its steadily creeping up there.
  • mandrewmandrew 2,720 Posts
    you can find affordable housing for the whole family in nice areas like los feliz, pasadena, echo park, and such. plus you don't have to deal with paying for heat or a/c - it's nice all year long.
    public school system kind of blows though. how old are the kiddies?
  • davesrecordsdavesrecords 1,802 Posts
    i had a one bedroom in beverly hills (but it was pretty big) and was paying 750 a month. that was over 2 years ago. then the landlord raised it to a 1000 and i then i moved out. i think it's over 1200 now in that same place.

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
    The city is expensive. The suburbs are slightly cheaper, depending on how much you like/ hate driving I'd recommend checking into spots like Pasadena, Altadena, San Gabriel, and Alhambra.

    Like damn near everywhere else the housing bubble got everything skyhigh right now. I heard a report that said the median price for a house in Compton was over $300,000
  • Phill_MostPhill_Most 4,594 Posts
    you can find affordable housing for the whole family in nice areas like los feliz, pasadena, echo park, and such. plus you don't have to deal with paying for heat or a/c - it's nice all year long.
    public school system kind of blows though. how old are the kiddies?

    The kiddies are 6 and 3. Public school is out... that's the whole thing, if I'm making that cross country trek it's because I will be caked to the point that I can easily afford private schooling and all the other luxuries that are reserved for the caked segment of society. But if the cost of living out there is through the roof then it will negate the extra cake I'd be getting from this particular career opportunity I may have.
    I can't f**k with public schools for my kids here in Philly, either... they gots to get that good edumacation, just like they daddy got.
  • spaceghostspaceghost 605 Posts
    there are lots of options for schools though. one of my homies has a kid going to a dope charter school where in first grade they are learing, english, spanish, chinese, and their own native mexican (sorry i forgot which one) language. the school has a zero tolerance policy towards violence as conflict resolution. they have a dope art and music program too. they needed to apply to the school and the parents are required to attend many functions (failure to attend is terms for dismissal from the school) but the school is free and i imagine if i were a parent i would want to be heavily involved in my kids education anyways.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    I'm guessing Phill is looking for a 4 bedroom house, not a one bedroom apt.

    What is your commute like now?

    You need to talk one on one with Asprin. He and his other were just talking to me about the comparable costs and advantages of Philly and LA.

    Dan
  • Phill_MostPhill_Most 4,594 Posts
    Like damn near everywhere else the housing bubble got everything skyhigh right now. I heard a report that said the median price for a house in Compton was over $300,000



    Prices are kinda crazy out here now for houses, too. But damn, Compton??? I'm assuming that Compton is actually like what has been presented to the world by NWA, etc...
  • street_muzikstreet_muzik 3,919 Posts
    You could get a one bedroom piece of crap fixer upper on my street for 1.2 mil. It's rediculous. I think the Compton estimate is spot on. That is inexpensive.
  • phono13phono13 842 Posts
    Soulman...

    I guess it depends if you want to buy or rent. The rental prices given here are all pretty accurate. The depressing part of the housing aspect (like NYC or SF) is if you want to buy something. I was talking to a guy today that was considering buying a house in Watts (3-4 bdrm) for $370,000. Watts is not the nicest area as you may have guessed, and I'm not just saying that because I've heard it... I work there. My wife and I have lived here for almost 5 years, and make good $$$, but want more than a shitty condo for $400,000. Property/Equity is a great investment if you have the capital to get into it, but coming here straight outta school (not owning a house previously) make it hard to throw $50,000 for a 10% down payment on a 2 br/ 1 bath house. We're most likely moving out of this state to purchase a home. That's my 2 cents.

    Also...I think L.A. is just as safe as Philly.
  • djdazedjdaze 3,099 Posts
    what part of LA is the job in? If you don't mind a commute you can live in a large array of neighborhoods for not too much at all. Areas from Covina to Riverside and places out in that direction are way more affordable...especially when it comes to renting an actual HOUSE. Or even buying for that matter. But the commute to downtown LA is about 1-2 hours depending on how far out you go. 30-45 min with no traffic. Riverside has a really good school district too...my girl is in the process of buying a house out there and her son is in private (montesori) school now and she's moving him to the public school there, happily.


    I live in Glendale (about 15-20 min from downtown) and we have a BIG 3 bedroom place and we pay $1545 a month. cheap. So deals CAN be had.
  • spaceghostspaceghost 605 Posts
    i have sort of come to an acceptance that if i want to live in los angeles i am not going to be owning. i also don't have a family. housing prices are insane here. don't look for anything reasonable in los angeles unless reasonable means 1.2m. i don't think all of compton is crazy, but i don't know about bringing kids up there either. i live in a neighborhood where if you go one direction on the street there are lexus parked on the street and no bars on the windows. other directions every car is beat up and there are huge gates around each property. really gotta be here to understand each city. definitely don't rely on movies, tv, sterotypes and other people's representation of the city.
  • Phill_MostPhill_Most 4,594 Posts
    I'm guessing Phill is looking for a 4 bedroom house, not a one bedroom apt.

    What is your commute like now?

    You need to talk one on one with Asprin. He and his other were just talking to me about the comparable costs and advantages of Philly and LA.

    Dan

    Yep, very true, Dan... we would need a house at this point, and definitely we'd be looking for at least 4 nice sized bedrooms and 2 baths (can't go backwards, mayne!). From the info I'm getting I'd guess that LA is somewhat higher than Philly but not at the NYC level. I gotta speak to my man T***a and see what light he can shine on it.

    My commute? No commute for work... it's like 10 minutes away (as is my son's preschool and wife's workplace). Bigger commute getting my daughter to school, like 30-45 minutes, depending on traffic. But starting in September she'll be bussing it, so that's taken care of.
  • funksnotdeadfunksnotdead 364 Posts
    ya, what the ghost with the most said. la unified has been notoriously bad for so long that there are an almost endless list of private school options in all ends of the education and cost spectrum. there are lots of small unincorporated cities that have great public schools, too. like the south bay and lots of other small wealthy communities or newer suburbs. rich ass parents + small school district = pretty good public schools.

    the real cost of living in la is not so much about the traditional shit (although housing market is bonkers now and that is reverberating into rental prices as well) but about how your time gets sucked up. if you can hook up a job, a school, and housing all within painless commuting distance from each other, you've got it made. lots of people here commute 4 hours a day for an 8 hour a day job. if you value your time, that basically cuts your hourly wage by a third. thats the true cost of la. food and material things can be had as cheap or cheaper than most other cities i've been too. our large immigrant/migrant population also makes lots of services cheaper than they should otherwise be. entertainment is a bit more expensive than most cities, but on the flip, you got a zillion options for entertainment.

    i love la.

  • spaceghostspaceghost 605 Posts

    [musical interlude]


    i love la.



    daaa nuuuh nuuuun nuuuuunt nuuuh nuuuuh nuuuh nuuuuh

    i love it!!!

    [/musical interlude]

    plaese to continue
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    i too think that LAUSD is not as bad as folks and the media make it out to be. in fact, for a big city, i think the public schools out here are very progressive and offer a variety of services that other small towns and even other big cities do not.

    as far as the more affluent neighborhoods to live in, might i suggest baldwin hills [aka the black beverly hills], blinglewood [aka ladera heights a somewhat protected community within inglewood] or that stretch of south central los angeles with those great historic homes [sorry i cant remember the name of the neighborhood but its the neighborhood that ray charles moved to in that movie ray] as these neighborhoods are rich in historic african ameican culture. cosign on pasadena too. silverlake/los feliz is mostly white hipsters, echo park is predominantly latino, alhambra and san gabriel are chinese & chicano. it sucks to have to even make a suggestion like this, but that seems to be par for the course in los angeles. i mean, LA did have 2 of the most horrific race riots in history and they still havent learned shit from it. folks just dont really mix that well out here.
  • GrafwritahGrafwritah 4,184 Posts
    Your Results

    If you make: $100,000

    Living in: Philadelphia, PA

    Then

    You would

    need to make: $137,414

    Living in: Los Angeles, CA



    The Salary Calculator ???

    ?? Homefair.com 1994 - 2001



    http://www.homefair.com/homefair/calc/salcalc.html



    37%... that's a big diff.







    Of course, I'd need $176,000...
  • 33thirdcom33thirdcom 2,049 Posts
    the housing market is insane right now out here if you are buying. However keep in mind that it is california real estate. Unless something drastic happens its not going to come down at all. It amy slow dow its price growth rate a bit though...
  • DelayDelay 4,530 Posts
    Unless something drastic happens its not going to come down at all
    you mean, like and earthquake?

    fuck that shit, phill! how can you leave the city of brotherly love for the city of fake titty?
  • Mike_BellMike_Bell 5,736 Posts
    the city of fake titty
  • prof_rockwellprof_rockwell 2,867 Posts

    the real cost of living in la is not so much about the traditional shit (although housing market is bonkers now and that is reverberating into rental prices as well) but about how your time gets sucked up.
    i love la.


    real speak.

    and I like fake titties
  • Mike_BellMike_Bell 5,736 Posts

    the real cost of living in la is not so much about the traditional shit (although housing market is bonkers now and that is reverberating into rental prices as well) but about how your time gets sucked up.
    i love la.


    real speak.

    and I like fake titties
    Lazy eye effect
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    show's how much you guys know. it's all about brazillian butt implants and vaginal rejuvenation now. fake titties are soooo 1990s.
  • Mike_BellMike_Bell 5,736 Posts
    it's all about brazillian butt implants and vaginal rejuvenation now.

    vaginal rejuvenation
    Plaese to explain.

    NOTE TO SELF: I must visit LA immediately.
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    it's all about brazillian butt implants and vaginal rejuvenation now.

    vaginal rejuvenation
    Plaese to explain.

    NOTE TO SELF: I must visit LA immediately.

    ha ha! yeah, i had to ask my homegirl about that one too. i dont think she knew but she claims its to give it that 20 year old elasticity.
  • Mike_BellMike_Bell 5,736 Posts
    it's all about brazillian butt implants and vaginal rejuvenation now.

    vaginal rejuvenation
    Plaese to explain.

    NOTE TO SELF: I must visit LA immediately.

    ha ha! yeah, i had to ask my homegirl about that one too. i dont think she knew but she claims its to give it that 20 year old elasticity.
    THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE!!!
  • leprechaunleprechaun 16 Posts
    sm,

    my man lives in la and he is renting a 2 bedroom apartment for like 1200. he makes low six figures and cant afford to buy in the 'nice' 'good' neighborhoods. he says housing is off the hook..for comparison....my 3 bedroom 2 bath here in md would cost 1 mil in la according to my man. his pops is a doctor and has a two bedroom condo which cost 800,000
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