Any decent NW Pasadena area northwest of 210? (Glendale, Vista: to rent, house)

[SoCalGuyHere]

haha so how do you guys go to old town for like dinner or drinks if you do so? Where are the cheaper lots or some free spots where you can walk? Or is that Fair Oaks/Orange Grove the only one? lol.

Oh btw how much is the train to DTLA? I know I have to take the gold to Union and hop on the red, are they the same pass? Is there a monthly pass, if so how much? i went on the metro site but it didn't really say how much it will cost.

[True Freedom]

Originally Posted by SoCalGuyHere

haha so how do you guys go to old town for like dinner or drinks if you do so? Where are the cheaper lots or some free spots where you can walk? Or is that Fair Oaks/Orange Grove the only one? lol.

Oh btw how much is the train to DTLA? I know I have to take the gold to Union and hop on the red, are they the same pass? Is there a monthly pass, if so how much? i went on the metro site but it didn't really say how much it will cost.

each train switch will cost you a $1.50. You can get a day pass for $5... and monthly's are available, though not sure their price.

[HyperionGap]

Originally Posted by SoCalGuyHere

haha so how do you guys go to old town for like dinner or drinks if you do so? Where are the cheaper lots or some free spots where you can walk? Or is that Fair Oaks/Orange Grove the only one? lol.

Old Pasadena : Maps and Parking

http://www.oldpasadena.org/docs/2009...gValet_Map.pdf

Btw, the areas I was talking about that have free parking are beyond the boundaries of that map.


So here's an interesting map that shows poverty rates (for the whole country) by census tract. What is strange to me is that the census tracts directly south of the 210 have poverty rates of 25% which is higher even than areas west of Fair Oaks/ N of 210.


Mapping Poverty in America - The New York Times

[munchitup]

Originally Posted by SoCalGuyHere

Thanks again, I am learning much more about Pasadena from reading all the posts. I guess i should say my budget would be under $1400 so a studio is almost out of the question huh? I am sure there will be studio for much less than that but probably in the sketchy areas or ugly looking apt. Don't get me wrong, i don't need it to be all prestigious but I don't want to walk inside a piece of crap building where the walls look like its yellow with stain carpets. Then again it could be a brand new state of the art looking place but if it is in the ghetto such as NW Pasadena then I might pass base on what I am learning on this thread. It sounds like most of NW Pasadena should be avoided and I don't mean the Linda Vista area where multimillion dollar homes are located. Maybe i should look on craigslist for a room to rent? Since I'm single, i'm just looking to rent somewhere with a decent place to stay in a decent area.

For a reference, I pay 1500 for a 2BR in an apartment south of Del Mar and west of Lake - in an undoubtedly desirable part of Pasadena. You should have no problem finding a nice studio or one bedroom just about anywhere in Pasadena with that budget.

[SoCalGuyHere]

ok thanks again guys, BTW HyperionGAP, i just notice you are now in WI? So you use to live in Pasadena? When did you move back east and how is that as compare to when you were in So cal? Sorry if you have already addressed this.

[HyperionGap]

I moved to St. Louis for undergrad in 2004, came back for a bit and then moved to WI for grad school in 2010.

When I lived in LA, I lived in a small (40,000 people) unincorporated area directly north of Pasadena called Altadena that is essentially a bedroom community to Pasadena.

The main difference I noticed between the midwest and SoCal was how much more segregated things are and how white it is (if you're in nice areas) compared to how not white it is in the hood. Cost of living is lower, people are friendlier, football & hunting/fishing are main topics of conversation, and there is better comfort food/ less tofu, egg whites, kale & horrible rabbit food in all the restaurants (unfortunately this has a direct effect on people's average weight).

[mrsltd]

Well, the more hilly area northwest of the Rose Bowl and adjacent to LCF is VERY nice....think Linda Vista Avenue as the "main drag" in this area. It is also quite exclusive unless you are related to someone in the area, work for them or rent a room/backhouse from them.

[SoCalGuyHere]

Mrsltd, what's LCF and what do you mean by Main Drag of this area?

Hyperion, how did you like Altadena? How do you know so much about Pasadena? did you hangout there a lot? How was Altadena? I hear its good and bad depending on the area, like i was tempted to go workout at the Altadena 24 hr fitness once but people told me that surrounding area is pretty hood. I am still curious to workout there one day since people say that gym is nice, not so much interested in the hood though lol. They say if you go north of 24 it gets nice again after about 10-15 minutes the closer you get towards the mountains but there are some bad areas such as that one HS (forgot the name).

[HyperionGap]

Originally Posted by SoCalGuyHere

Mrsltd, what's LCF and what do you mean by Main Drag of this area?

LCF is La Canada Flintridge. By Main Drag he means it is the main residential street going through the area and it is also synonymous with that area of Pasadena.

Originally Posted by SoCalGuyHere

Hyperion, how did you like Altadena? How do you know so much about Pasadena? did you hangout there a lot? How was Altadena? I hear its good and bad depending on the area, like i was tempted to go workout at the Altadena 24 hr fitness once but people told me that surrounding area is pretty hood. I am still curious to workout there one day since people say that gym is nice, not so much interested in the hood though lol. They say if you go north of 24 it gets nice again after about 10-15 minutes the closer you get towards the mountains but there are some bad areas such as that one HS (forgot the name).

I know so much about Pasadena because anybody from Altadena knows about Pasadena. That is where the restaurants, movie theaters, convention center, rose bowl, aquatic center, high schools, soccer fields, etc. are. Think of Altadena as Pasadena's backyard.


As for how I liked it? Yes I do like it and had a great time growing up there. However, at this time in my life, if I were to move back to LA, no I would not live there because I am not in the market of settling down in a SFR and it's not that convenient for most jobs. That being said, it depends on what you are looking for. For some things Altadena is superior to Pasadena. It is cheaper than Pasadena (cost of real estate is less, less taxes, less for electric, gas, water), fantastic access to probably a dozen trailheads going into the mountains, less regulation (parking, land use etc), VERY diverse, and a very nice cozy secluded community with a strong history. Due to it's proximity to JPL and the mountains there is a huge amount of scientists, artists, and urban farmers that live in the community which makes it very interesting. It's downside is that it is 15 minutes further from DTLA, night life consists of a couple of local dive bars, and public transportation is severely limited.

With regards to that 24 hr fitness. Yes it is in the hood. Yes Muir HS is in that bad area that I wouldn't recommend living in. However, I wouldn't actually let that deter you from the 24 hr fitness. That area is heavily patrolled by sheriffs and CHP and part of a recent development built to offer more services to people in La Vina (a gated community where every home is > $1 M). I would have no problem parking in the structure and going to work out (even at night).

If you want to be living walking distance from bars, restaurants, metro, theaters, etc. don't live in Altadena. If you want to rent (or even buy) a smallish single family home in a nice quiet area it is a great place to live (similarly I would also recommend you look at La Crescenta).

This is the weird type stuff you will see in Altadena









Flickr Search: altadena

[dvduval]

I recently moved to Pasadena, and the helpful tip I would like to give is the importance of coming here and looking around, even in the desirable areas. There are many, many small apartment buildings with signs out front advertising vacancies. You won't find them on sites like Craigslist or apartments.com. They don't have to advertise, and they are small. They are able to rent vacancies just by people like us driving by and seeing the sign. I think you can find some of the best value this way, and $1400 for a 1 bedroom in a good area is most certainly a possibility.