Moving to LA (Westside) - Westchester/LAX/Century City Commute (Inglewood: apartment, to rent)

[chpg]

In early August, I'll be moving with my husband (both early 30s) to LA from Houston. We're both originally from SoCal but haven't lived in LA as adults, so I'm hoping to get neighborhood advice. I'll be working in Westchester with a somewhat flexible schedule, and my husband's office will be based in Century City, although he will likely be traveling a lot, so staying close to LAX would be convenient for both of us. (It's not clear yet how much he'll likely be at that office--initially, perhaps most days, but after a while, he'll likely only be in there once per week.)

We don't have kids or pets and are looking to rent for a year before buying. Since it's temporary and our focus is saving more to buy a house, our priorities are a shorter commute and cheaper rent (by Westside LA standards--we're looking at $1700-2000 for a one bedroom). We could afford more but would prefer not to. We'd love a walkable/bikeable neighborhood with restaurants, coffee shops, bars, etc. but aren't looking for crazy nightlife (if you know Houston neighborhoods, think Montrose/Upper Kirby/Heights more than Midtown). My husband would really like in-unit laundry but that might be out of our budget in our preferred neighborhoods.

So, what neighborhoods should we be looking at? I'm curious to hear get other opinions. We'll be coming out in early July for very quick trip and plan to drive around LA then and look at neighborhoods, but it would be helpful to have narrowed it down to a few by then. We've been considering Westchester, Playa Del Rey, Marina Del Rey, Del Rey, and Inglewood for convenience, but I don't know how many of our other boxes they check. Playa Vista seems nice but more money than we want to spend. Culver City is further away from Westchester/LAX but in between those and Century City, and it seems like it would be walkable with other young professionals and would be central. Finally, what do people think about Mar Vista and Palms? Any feedback on these neighborhoods (or suggestions for others) would be very helpful.

One last question: the best option for finding an apartment in person, given our schedules, is looking about 4 weeks in advance, but I'll only have Sunday-Tuesday then to look before I leave for an out-of-the-country work trip. Would that timing be about right to find something?

[Dunbar42]

Culver City or Mar Vista would be the budget options. Maybe south Santa Monica or Venice at the top of your budget if you aren’t very picky. Marina Del Rey supposedly gets you more for your money than Santa Monica. Culver City wouldn’t be a terrible commute to Westchester. I’m not sure your husband will want to commute from Westchester or Playa Del Rey to Century City in rush hour traffic. From north Santa Monica it can take me 35-40 minutes to get to Playa Del Rey in traffic (on my way to LAX.)

[ima30something]

Originally Posted by Dunbar42

Maybe south Santa Monica or Venice at the top of your budget if you aren’t very picky.

Good luck fighting for one of these 1 bed dumps anywhere in Santa Monica for $1700 - $2000.
https://www.zillow.com/homes/Santa-Monica,-CA_rb/

OP: Mar Vista, Culver City, Palms, Ladera Heights

[Dunbar42]

Originally Posted by ima30something

Good luck fighting for one of these 1 bed dumps anywhere in Santa Monica for $1700 - $2000.

$2k is possible, you just can’t be too picky. Especially if you don’t mind street parking. OP said they only plan to rent for a year so I’m guessing they don’t need an amazing place.