Los Angeles (San Diego, Glendale, Santa Clara: mortgage, real estate, mcmansions)

[veronica#1]

I must say if I had not been to L.A and read this forum trust me I would not even think about visiting the place, I have only visited for a short length of time but why is it that people give it such a hard time. Saying that I do live in London which :
There are loads of illegal immigrants (crippling our NHS - National health Services) where tax paying residents are not given priority to housing and other public services (school places) because you have people who claim to be visiting the UK on holiday who end up taking up permanent residence here blah blah blah.
We have a young culture of lazy yobs who think its ok to rob elderly people and stab school children for their mobile phones. We have a government who probably meant well in the beginning but then end up losing its way.
We have graffiti, people who spit on the streets and youngsters with absolutely no respect for other people or their property.
National newspapers claim that a high percentage of children leave school (in inner city areas - poor) can hardly do basic arithmetic and english. Teachers who are scared of disciplining students for fear of their lives.
In London even though its quite diverse there is a lot of segregation amongst rich, poor, white, blacks, asians and refugees. Then there are other areas where people are all mixed together just like LA. There are definite no go areas so if you are of a certain background you know not to go to Greenwich, Welling, Bexleyheath etc cause you will probably get it...and then there is the infamous Brixton. There is a high population of ethinic minorities in Brixton but saying that the house prices are through the roof. These prices are only affordable to preofessionals and city workers so Brixton is an up coming area which does have parts where you just would not hang around after dark. Shall I mention the growing gun and knife culture?
I am just trying to make a point that apart from all the razzle, dazzle, red carpet & Paris Hilton - LA and London is quite alike. As well as thousands of other places. So now after the defence of L.A on my next visit I bet I get car jacked by an illegal immigrant and shot by a gangbanger and left to die by an A-List celebrity on their way to a Botox centre!!!!!

[fastfilm]

Veronica- I can't think of any reason you'd want to visit L.A. except for specific business appointments, Venice Beach and Santa Monica Beach, Melrose shopping and as a stopping off point between Disneyland in Orange County and Santa Barbara.

I haven't been to London in 28 years, but I also noticed a similarity: its contiguous neighborhoods (invisible divides because all former towns have grown to abut one another) and it's exclusivity: there is an interesting, fun social structure set up for the wealthy but of course completely impenetrable to all others. At least one can still be understood in London when one speaks English, I presume? Here, sadly, no.

[veronica#1]

The previous post even though it has my user tag, is actually of the opinions of my friend who found this website very fun and interesting. She also managed to compare a two week vacation in LA and watching the E! Channel to living in the UK for over 30 yrs. So all sensible people please do not take her comments personally.

Fastfilm - My aunt lived around the Fairfax Avenue/South Stanley Avenue area back in the early '80's. I remember attending Saturn School. My mother did not like LA that much and we returned to London. Has this area changed much? Is it a bad area now?

[fastfilm]

The Fairfax District still retains its strong Jewish community roots, and, as such, has been able to ward off transformation into a gang area. It's also part of the overall West Hollywood area which is quite upscale now as a viable business center with a lot of the non-heterosexual community-infused home decoration business and high end antique stores. It also has quite a few features that would have been recognizable 30 years ago, including Canter's 24-hour Deli and the Farmer's Market. This is such a good thing for here, which normally is Tear-Down Central!

Stanley Ave. still has its smallish apartment buildings. I'm not familiar with the Saturn School. If it was a private school, many of the private schools of 30 years ago are gone or merged into something different. The area's schoolchildren, like most of L.A., are now probably 70% Latino.

[fastfilm]

I wanted to show everyone what $1,000 a month buys you for a one bedroom apartment in L.A or the Valley. This was taken in my own neighborhood of Van Nuys, which began life in 1911 as a nice area around farms in the San Fernando Valley, then as a nice bedroom community after World War 2, then as an alternative to expensive housing over the hill in L.A., then, finally, as the magnet for people who satisfy conditions #2 and #3 on my first post in this thread. My own house on my block looks a little nicer, as does my block since there are no apartment buildings but this is our immediate surroundings and our everyday environment.

Looks like a pretty enticing reason to move to L.A., eh?

[Ms.Phitt]

I notice that FastFilm and Cali2ID forgot to mention another L.A. delight: Helicopter police chases. I forgot these too until the circling helicopter and sirens again this morning.

I'm surprised I forgot to mention that; it's one of my main reasons for planning to move. But leave it to Los Angeles to remind you of its neverending joys. Gangs shot a neighbor's car window out a couple of weeks ago, and they've thrown stuff and broken one of the other tenant's apartment windows here. One of the reasons I was so relieved to quit my last job was that I was driving a long commute on the 110 freeway every day, which at the time was being plagued by the latest rash of road-rage freeway shootings. There was literally at least one shooting along the 110 every day, and sometimes 2 or 3. When your spouse starts thanking God each time you made it home safe, it's time to question whether any job is worth that.

Maybe when I'm sure the helicopter chase is over I will take a couple of pictures of my own, just so those of you who feel the need to attack FastFilm for her supposed negative attitude, can get another good look at what she and Cali2ID and the others are talking about.

Originally Posted by fastfilm

People who've lived here and elsewhere claim the farther away you get from Los Angeles, the nicer people seem to be.

I can confirm this. I've traveled all over central, southern, and eastern California for a job; I've lived 6-month stints in central CA, GA, and Canada; I've traveled across the U.S. and back across Canada. With the glaring exception of Chicago, that was exactly right... the further away from L.A., the nicer people were.

[WANDERLUST]

I have lived in California and Texas my entire life. Both have gone from being great states to violent, poverty infested slums because of the huge wave of illegal immigrants from Mexico. No one speaks english and they would just as soon spit on you as shake your hand. Many are people who absolutely hate us, but they don't mind living here to sponge off our welfare system and take jobs while they have 10 kids each. I am not a racist, and I know some people are going to call me one for saying this, probably people up north who have never even lived near these people. But Texas and Cali are the most Mexican populated states in the nation and from spending three decades in them both, I know what I am talking about.

[ITChick]

Originally Posted by fastfilm

I wanted to show everyone what $1,000 a month buys you for a one bedroom apartment in L.A or the Valley. This was taken in my own neighborhood of Van Nuys,

I've been following your posts Fast Film, and although I've been somewhat interested in moving to the L.A. area (friends were telling me it's great to live there!), I now understand exactly what you've been complaining about. My aunt and uncle live in Van Nuys and when I visited them back in the '80's they were complaining even then that the "illegals" were ruining the area. I guess now the problem has worsened, so I understand your situation.

I think at this point after reading yours and Ms. Phitt's posts I have to ask, where do you both plan on moving to (and would that area have as nice weather as L.A. has)?

And Ms. Phitt, you're right, people in Chicago are not nice.

-itchick

[fastfilm]

Ah, the accordion razor wire and graffiti finally got everyone's attention. This is considered "normal" here by people who've really not travelled outside Los Angeles except back and forth to their foreign home countries. It is very sad that they like the concept of turning L.A. into a replica of whatever third world country they left. I'm not just speaking of the obvious tarnishments and lack of English spoken ever, but something subtler and socio-economic: that this is now a city with a tiny percentage of the very rich who think everything is peachy from their cosseted ivory towers, and everyone else who is poor and struggling. Just like most third world capitals. No middle class, since my photos above show what middle class incomes get you now. Ptooie! The people who are actually poor live in these apartments by piling 12 people in them: if that includes 3 working adults, they can all afford same.

There are trade-offs for everything, and we're trading the enormous amount of frustrating badness for another locale that won't have the nice winters L.A. is known for. Since husband and I have very different tastes, the only locale that seems to be on both of our lists is western NC. People like us who've spent half a century in temperate weather probably wouldn't adjust well to extremes.

The other day I was talking to a nurse, who loves it here. She makes a lot of money, and lives in Marina Del Rey, a very nice and of course expensive area right next to the beach. She said, don't you like the blue skies? I answered, not when I'm ducking gangs, plus it's not blue away from the beach, it's beige (smog) where I live.

You have to remember that most people who consult these forums are not mega-rich because the mega-rich don't need "comparison-shopping" wherever they choose to move. They can afford whatever is the best and safest areas. Those of us who are not are more interested in the overall reality of all economic strata of an area.

[Ms.Phitt]

Ok as promised - here's our neighborhood, for your viewing enjoyment.



Wrought-iron fencing, garbage and debris on the sidewalk and in the gutters, walls completely covered with graffiti.


The gang-infested alley we have to drive through to get home, because the only entrance street is so jam-packed with traffic and most people are too rude to let you in to make the turn onto our street. Further down this alley, not pictured here, is a favorite area of several homeless who make their cardboard shelters and leave their garbage here.


Dried-up unkempt lawns with garbage strewn everywhere.



Too many cars and no place to park. Hard to see here but many streets are hard to navigate, because due to the parking crunch, parking is often allowed even where it shouldn't be and cars are jammed into any available space... frequently making already narrow streets into unnerving tight squeezes when you're driving up the street and another car comes from the opposite direction.


Still think FastFilm and Cali2ID are lying to you?