Moving from KC (Pasadena, West Hollywood: for rent, lofts, houses)

[freighthouse]

I am seriously thinking about moving to L.A. in the spring. I have been talking about it for years, and I am tired of getting pulled back to the east coast (I think that I’ve moved back and forth from KC to NY like 3 times in the past several years). I have a dog and a grand piano and a car and am wondering what neighborhood (municipality) I should choose that would be comfortable, yet comfortably affordable at the same time. I don’t know how realistic this is, but I would really like to keep my rent at or about 1K a month. Can you tell me if that is feasible?

I am used to living downtown, although I know that might not be the best idea in LA. I work from home as a web designer, so I’m not necessarily looking for any type of employment with any other company (unless I found a really exceptional opportunity) I’m not really the type that lasts working for anyone else – call it A.D.D., I don’t know, but I really enjoy working for myself.

Mostly, I need a work space; as I mentioned before I have a grand piano, several keyboards, computers, etc, so I would like a very open space with few walls. (A loft would be ideal). I also want the place to be pet friendly as the love of my life is a K9. Is it hard to find secure covered parking? If so, does it usually cost extra or is it generally included in rent? I would like to get something like my loft in Brooklyn which was 1000 square feet of raw loft space – one room (square) with windows on one end and a kitchen on the other.

I am not scared of bad neighborhoods but obviously I would like to find a nice place and would prefer a positive environment to ensure my productivity and happiness. My question is: how nice could I really get around 1000 a month? Should I plan to spend more? Is that realistic? Also, I moonlight as a bartender when financially needed, so that is a factor as far as living around a decent nightlife. I do have a car, but I’m not a great driver so I try to limit my mileage. I like for things to be within walking distance. How helpful is the subway there really?

So what do you think?

[sll3454]

Something that costs $1000/month will not have enough space for both you and a grand piano. You might also have to pay extra rent for your dog.

There are websites you can search to get an idea of rents. I'll send you a dm.

[UB50]

1000 square feet is huge around here. We lived in a two bedroom house that had less than 1000 feet. In fact, I've seen houses with less than 700 sq. ft.

They have loft spaces like you are talking about in downtown LA. I'm not sure what the prices are.

What kind of dog do you have?

[uptown_urbanist]

Downtown sounds ideal, IF you can bump up your budget. Koreatown and parts of Hollywood could work, but I don't know how many non-trendy (and therefore extremely expensive) lofts are to be found.

Public transportation works pretty well depending on where you live and where you're spending most of your time. If you end up wanting to spend much time in West Hollywood or west it will be a bigger hassle because there's no rail transit, and the buses sit in traffic along with everyone else. I spent most of my time in Hollywood, downtown, Pasadena, and points in-between (along the Red and Gold Lines and some of the Rapid buses) so it wasn't a big deal. I did briefly commute to West LA from Hollywood, though, and it was a real hassle. Then again, driving that route would have been a pain, too.

I think downtown is going to be your best option for what you're looking for, but I think your budget is unrealistically low for that much space.

It will probably vary by building, but I think the odds are that you'll have to pay for a parking spot, although there will probably be one available for rent through the building.

Downtown used to (still has?) have some dog cocktail parties for downtown pet owners.

Maybe do some initial searching on Craiglist to get a general sense of rents. There are some downtown-specific papers and websites, too, and some places might get advertised there.

Maybe do some research into San Pedro. It's fairly affordable over there, and it might have loft spaces. It's a working class port town with an interesting downtown. From my limited time spent there it seems pretty walkable. It reminded me a bit of parts of Brooklyn. I don't think it's been overly-gentrified or hipster-fied yet.