Is living in L.A. really that bad? (Los Angeles, San Francisco: foreclosures, for rent)

[LALady]

Originally Posted by txguy2009

As of now I earn around ~$200k in TX. Don't know if the jobs in LA pay as much as Houston, at least in my field. I could certainly make $70k though.

I don't see how money avoids those problems though.

Money doesn't avoid the problems of LA. The rich pull out of their Beverly Hills driveway in their jags and get caught in the same traffic as the rest of us. They breath the same smoggy air.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by BennyPhoenix

My opinion.
After taxes your take home pay is about $62,000.
An average 1bdrm apt can cost $1,500 to $2,000 per month, figure $20,000 for the year. You are down to $42,000. Food, car, insurance, entertainment, a vacation, incidentals can easily take another $25,000.
You now have $17,000. That much should be saved for a future home purchase and retirement.

The man is attorney, they can make that easily here. But making $200k in Texas is nice. If you like it there and you like your job you should consider staying. Attorneys here do make that much too.

Most people in LA live paycheck to paycheck. Eliminate the fancy vacations and savings and you can make it on a smaller paycheck. And folks making a decent salary (let's say 50K and above) with large families take home more than 62% of their pay.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by BennyPhoenix

Most LA cops live outside of LA.
Jose and his brothers live in 10 people in a garage and dont pay for healthcare.
I'm talking about normal people living in normal accomadations.

Most LA cops have a working spouse. Folks with names other than "Jose" live in multi family units.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

That $20k will definitely help. I guess what it all comes down to is what lifestyle you want. Some people are happy renting a room in someone's house, eating mac and cheese every night, and watching their 13" TV with rabbit ears every night. But if you want a place of your own and have a few nice things, it gets expensive. Hobbies and friends are expensive too and can really blow your budget. Someone always wants to go somewhere and do something, its always someone's birthday, baby shower, etc and all that takes money. Even when it feels like I'm not spending anything on myself, it feels like money disappears quicker than it should. I'm not saying $100k isn't a good salary for a single but its not the life of luxury many might think.

Driving in LA is expensive with maintenance, insurance and gas. NOT having a car has a major impact on your quality of life.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by ArthursChoice

I think the post was speaking to the idea if you want to live a DECENT life in LA. Those people that you mentioned aren't living they are just surviving. You can SURVIVE in Los Angeles with much less and live next door to Jose and his twelve brothers and sisters and the the two grandma's, but but if you want a stab at a quality life in Los Angeles...you need some bucks, and that's the truth!

Goodness. Stop picking on poor Jose. If you are using Jose to represent an undocumented immigrant, his life in LA, while not as luxurious as yours, might represent an improvement to him and his family.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by squeezeboxgal

Well, as I mentioned, the link no longer works -- so it's possible that the program has been (at least temporarily) discontinued. Dunno .....

I heard that some of these housing subsidy programs became too popular and are on hiatus.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by LALady

Goodness. Stop picking on poor Jose. If you are using Jose to represent an undocumented immigrant, his life in LA, while not as luxurious as yours, might represent an improvement to him and his family.

And that's the basic problem with LA and the people flooding in and lowering its standard of living. No matter how big of a slum LA turns into, as long as its still just a little better than the life he had south of the border, Jose sees no problem with it. I don't want to live like someone at the bottom of the economic scale in a third world country. Why would I want to surround myself with it here?

[nickdahammer]

Jose the Plumber..??

If we don't want illegals, or those willing to endure no healthcare, pension, benefits, prevailing wage protections, et al then perhaps we should hold their employers accountable. Sadly, I don't see that happening. In fact, I have NEVER heard a single employer bemoaning immigrant labor, much less proposing immigration reform. Why should they? They can pay (or not pay) whatever they want.

These employers are lowering our standard of living by failing to pay a living wage. The bar just gets lower and lower. And it isn't just L.A.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by nickdahammer

Jose the Plumber..??

If we don't want illegals, or those willing to endure no healthcare, pension, benefits, prevailing wage protections, et al then perhaps we should hold their employers accountable. Sadly, I don't see that happening. In fact, I have NEVER heard a single employer bemoaning immigrant labor, much less proposing immigration reform. Why should they? They can pay (or not pay) whatever they want.

These employers are lowering our standard of living by failing to pay a living wage. The bar just gets lower and lower. And it isn't just L.A.

The scumbag employers love illegals because they're cheap. The honest businessmen who try to run a legitimate business, pay their taxes, pay a fair wage, carry insurance, and comply with laws and regulations are in a tough spot because their costs are so much higher than the scumbag who's hiring illegals. I agree that the solution to the problem is with the people employing them. If business owners and managers had to spend 5 years in Federal pound me in the ash prison for every illegal they hired, things would be a lot different.

[EDDIEISTAZ]

when did this become an immigration discussion?
you all sound like new yorkers when all the irish showed up and lowered the wages and working conditions but hey it worked out all by itself