Chances for white working class in LA? Need some honesty here (Riverside: condo, crime)

[415_s2k]

When I first moved to LA, I lived in the Mexican part of Koreatown - you heard that right, an ethnic-enclave-within-an-ethnic-enclave That's LA. It was pretty gritty at the time... still is, but was worse eleven years ago. I was the only white person on the block; my ex was mixed, looked ethnically indeterminate, and spoke fluent Spanish.

Everyone in the neighborhood liked me just fine, because even though I didn't speak Spanish, I was polite and friendly. I helped old ladies with groceries if I saw them. I bought produce out of the produce truck. I ate at the taqueria at the end of the street. Interestingly, my ex spoke Spanish with a Castillian accent, so everyone figured she was either from Spain or Argentina or at least one of the "wealthier" Mexicans, and she backed it up with a hoity-toity attitude that rubbed everyone the wrong way.

At most of my jobs, a large number if not a majority of my coworkers were Hispanic, and I never had a problem with them or was made to feel marginalized because I didn't speak Spanish, especially when I was in a lower-tier job (retail, auto detailing, etc). It was never an issue. Most of them were either born here or had been here for most of their lives and were basically as American as I was. Hell, they might think you're kind of a novelty for being a white "immigrant"

If you're going to be making $12-15 hour, your quality of life will be severely impacted versus what you likely have in Phoenix. You're probably going to be looking at a longer commute, in heavier traffic, which is more physically and emotionally taxing as well as more costly. Gas is more expensive in LA than Phoenix; I just checked, looks like it's about 50c more per gallon on average... a ten dollar tank will cost you five bucks more per fill, and you'll most likely be doing it more often. If your spouse is making equivalent money, then obviously you'll be splitting rent, but unless you have some good equity in your home in AZ that you can use as a fat down payment on a condo in LA, things will still be much tighter than you're used to.

This said, there is plenty of hourly work all around LA if you're willing to put in the effort to look, and work hard and smart once you get it. You may want to think about hospitality, especially with an English accent... people go nuts for it, nicer hotels tend to pay around $13-17/hr for front desk and if you get a job as a waiter, bellman, doorman, etc. you get your wage plus tips. When I was bartending in Beverly Hills, I was taking home about $250 average per night in tips for a six-hour shift, and on longer or busier days, could take home $500.

I'm not trying to discourage you; hell, when I moved to LA, I literally drove across from Boston in a beat-up Saab, with couple grand to my name and didn't know a soul there... and I ended up living in Beverly Hills, working a professional, white collar job with a good income. I never finished college and just used contacts and tact to work my way up; now, I'm back home before I ship off to China - a good job offer from one of those contacts I love LA and will probably be back, someday. There's always something going on there, and you can make a stable living or even thrive if you have the right personality, skillset, and more than a bit of luck.

[disgruntled la native]

Your chances are just as good as the Hispanics and Koreans.

Not so good.

[thait84]

If you are doing fine in Phoenix, I feel like that is a much easier place to thrive than LA. The economy is doing much better, the commute is not nearly as bad, and you can probably have your kids go to a nicer public school for less money (if you compare real estate prices).

[jm1982]

Originally Posted by Chowhound

I'm sure that there are plenty of non-Hispanics in the 14-15 dollar an hour range, I just meant sheer demographics are gonna dictate that a certain percentage will be Hispanic.

I don't want to come off as snobby here, but 14 bucks an hour is chickenfeed... I mean that in the sense that it's so expensive to live here... I mean double that to 28 bucks and hour seems to be getting in the range of decent living... you couple up with a spouse and if they are somewhere in the 20 dollar an hour range and you can do decently... but people making 8 buck an hour working at Starbucks or whatever... the OP said low skilled, warehouse type jobs.. I imagine that they only put you in that range we were talking about 12 to 15 bucks an hour.... I mean rent is high.. we're not even talking about making an attempt to own a home here... just scrape out a basic living....

Tough stuff... that's why when I read about someone coming from a less affluent area like Phoenix to LA and expect to do better with less skills and less money... just seems a little naive... not trying to bust on the OP here.... just sayin...

I don't think it's snobby. I think it's realistic. I think most people at the lower income levels tend to live with several family members or roommates.

Not something I find too desirable especially after a certain age.

Its hard to say for sure for OP since we dont know what his housing expenses will be. If you had like a paid off place in Phoenix and wanted to use the equity to buy something and then just had HOA and taxes,etc on a condo but no mortgage..it would be different.

I'm making considerably more than $15 hour...but it's still a struggle. I imagine things would be a lot more reasonable in Arizona.

[Guitarmaan]

Thanks for all the input. Some very good advice here. I tried to rep everyone. Most of you seem to think I won't have a major problem, though learning Spanish couldn't hurt. That's fair enough.

Money-wise our house is indeed paid off. So if we bought a condo our only outgoings would be utilities, HOA etc. And of course I am curious how much HOA fees vary from condo to condo? I guess if the HOA includes property tax, then the value of the condo can help dictate the HOA amount.

I get the comments about hustle and bustle in LA. Traffic can be stressful. But having said that the traffic back in London is worse than anything LA has to offer. Seriously. So it might not be pleasant, but to an extent I know what I am getting into.

Phoenix isn't as cheap as you might expect. Taxes are low, but it has been said food can be more expensive than California. I've definitely found it to be expensive here. But the real reason for our move is to live in a more happening area. Phoenix is so sleepy and lacking in culture that we crave some excitement. We also appreciate milder weather and greenery. I don't want to diss Phoenix too much, because I like it. But LA has an instant vibe that you feel straight away. Difficult to explain

While costs may be higher, I'm guessing wages should match that a little. Frankly I'm earning peanuts in Arizona anyway. So almost any move is going to result in making more money. When you're at the bottom, you only have one way to go

Anyway my wife spotted a condo in NoHo for $140K with HOAs at $180 a month. That does seem very low to me. I think the condo may be near Panorama City though, which I've read you guys talking about and I know it's not good

[jm1982]

That's great you have the house paid off.

One good thing about using redfin.com is that it lists the HOA fees for condos. You can actually do a search and filter by HOA fee..for example if you don't want to see results for listings with HOAs over $500.

Regarding the condo for 140k..most likely it is in Panorama City . I don't live too far from Panorama City and some of the houses in that area (near the Kaiser hospital) actually look nicer than my area... but you prob won't have too many people recommending it.

Something like this seems like a pretty decent deal. It's in the NoHo arts area which is much better than Panorama City.

This particular one is a short sale though (those seem kind of tricky/iffy) ..and HOA is $300

11124 BURBANK Blvd #110, North Hollywood, CA 91601 | MLS# SR13234883 | Redfin

I think paying 140k now for a condo might be difficult these days.

There are some 'cheap' places like this . I wouldn't be surprised if the building is pretty bad though. You might also have a lot of renters versus all owners.
8800 CEDROS Ave #207, Panorama City, CA 91402 | MLS# SR13209409 | Redfin

It's amazing though that they bought it for $59k in 2010.

Values have gone up considerably the past few years..probably the same on your Phoenix property as well.
I remember looking at places like this 20954 PARTHENIA St #14, Canoga Park, CA 91304 | MLS# SR13215182 | Redfin .. could of made a lot of money if I had the money to invest. Who knows if they will sell at their asking price but they only paid $75k in 2010!..

Something like this might be good. I dont know if you are looking for a 1bedroom or it needs to be bigger.

It's 185k but a 600sq ft 1bedroom.
22100 BURBANK Blvd Unit 165G, Woodland Hills, CA 91367 | MLS# SR13194767 | Redfin

Also Woodland Hills is much much nicer,safer,cleaner than Panorama or North Hollywood

[JohnSoCal]

Originally Posted by yby1

You'll at finding work in the inland empire IMO. Places like Corona, Moreno Valley have more working class whites.

I wouldn't recommend Moreno Valley.

[Guitarmaan]

Originally Posted by jm1982

That's great you have the house paid off.

One good thing about using redfin.com is that it lists the HOA fees for condos. You can actually do a search and filter by HOA fee..for example if you don't want to see results for listings with HOAs over $500.

Regarding the condo for 140k..most likely it is in Panorama City . I don't live too far from Panorama City and some of the houses in that area (near the Kaiser hospital) actually look nicer than my area... but you prob won't have too many people recommending it.

Something like this seems like a pretty decent deal. It's in the NoHo arts area which is much better than Panorama City.

This particular one is a short sale though (those seem kind of tricky/iffy) ..and HOA is $300

11124 BURBANK Blvd #110, North Hollywood, CA 91601 | MLS# SR13234883 | Redfin

I think paying 140k now for a condo might be difficult these days.

There are some 'cheap' places like this . I wouldn't be surprised if the building is pretty bad though. You might also have a lot of renters versus all owners.
8800 CEDROS Ave #207, Panorama City, CA 91402 | MLS# SR13209409 | Redfin

It's amazing though that they bought it for $59k in 2010.

Values have gone up considerably the past few years..probably the same on your Phoenix property as well.
I remember looking at places like this 20954 PARTHENIA St #14, Canoga Park, CA 91304 | MLS# SR13215182 | Redfin .. could of made a lot of money if I had the money to invest. Who knows if they will sell at their asking price but they only paid $75k in 2010!..

Something like this might be good. I dont know if you are looking for a 1bedroom or it needs to be bigger.

It's 185k but a 600sq ft 1bedroom.
22100 BURBANK Blvd Unit 165G, Woodland Hills, CA 91367 | MLS# SR13194767 | Redfin

Also Woodland Hills is much much nicer,safer,cleaner than Panorama or North Hollywood

Whoah, awesome post. Thank you. I'll look into all of that!

[jm1982]

No problem! Good luck in your research . Feel free to message me if you have any particular questions.

[kttam186290]

Originally Posted by yby1

You'll at finding work in the inland empire IMO. Places like Corona, Moreno Valley have more working class whites.

Corona maybe, but certainly not Moreno Valley!

And both are exurbs to LA, too far out!