Truth be told, puhleeeeze ! (Santa Monica, Hermosa Beach: cheap apartments, rental, car insurance)

[POdNCrazee]

I know LA is a huge, populated place with all kinda different stuff all over the place, but...the 1 bdr apt rents I see quoted for LA on this forum range from $800 - $2000 dollars. After reading many posts hear and some brief looks at rental listings on Craigslist/LA, I'm pretty sure that I can find a liveable 500sq ft rental apt somewhere in the LA area for as low as $900 if I look hard. Is that just a crazy wrong conclusion ??

A little about me: I've been putting up with cramped not-so-nice apts for most of my adult life (I'm about to turn 37). Right now in Boulder I pay $660 (heat, water included) for a 550 sq ft apt on the south side of decent, dig. So $900 for an LA apt sounds cheap and very doable to me. Am I missing something here?

P.S. I don't give a rat's bum about a nice house with yard, dogs, kids, family, cats, fancy stuff and whatnot. I wanna move to LA to be a Rockstar entertainer. I've already put up with skipping car insurance, taxes, restaurant food, dry cleaned laundry (or even regular laundry) and stuff just to survive. That's nothing new to me. Heck, if there's a scuzzy loud drug dealer 3 doors down that's great. When I do smelly bong hits and play my sax til 2am, people will think it's coming from the noisy drug dealer 3 doors down and I'll be off the hook. (Plus a quick go-to for drugs right around the corner).

I think I might even thrive in LA. Heck, I'm already well prepared for these tough cost of living problems. Just to recap, my main question here is at the end of the first paragraph.

Thanks, folks !

[artichoke63]

Koreatown is a nice area. You can find a good single there for $900 or less. Also check in Hollywood. Look on craigslist.

Artie

[fastfilm]

Here's another opinion for you to file. Normally Artie is spot on, but I dispute the contention that Koreatown is "nice." My husband teaches in this area, I'e been all through it many times, and most of it away from the major boulevards' commercial development (Olympic, Western, Wilshire, etc.) is pretty dire. The apartments house really poor people, 70% Latino, 30% Korean who, the first time they climb any rung up the economic ladder, get the heck out as fast as they can. It's too awful even for them. My husband's school there has police lockdowns all the time, and if the teachers' cars weren't locked inside the property, they wouldn't be there when they got off work. Graffiti and gangs everywhere, no English understood, a pretty hard life for the locals.

If you absolutely insist on spending less $ than it really truly takes to live in our expensive city without being endangered personally, I suggest you look for rooms for rent in areas that would tolerate musicians' practicing. On another thread a lot of us here answered your question about where musicians tend to congregate.

[artichoke63]

He said he's up all night playing music, so Koreatown is probably just the ticket. He likes the urban scene.

[Mel2882]

I think you can find it, you just have to look hard. Plus, you don't have to worry about the heat bill here. Most places won't pay it, but...you won't ever need it. I used it maybe 3 or 4 times this year, but that's because I'm a wimp.

[Sorcerer68]

I live in the Hollywood Hills right now and hang out in Hollywood daily. If you like urban vibe, clubs, music and people who stay up late, you may dig Hollywood. There are plenty of cool, cheap apartments. I like the architecture of Koreatown and would stay all the way to the north side of it if I lived there but the vibe just isn't there for me.

[lalagonegaga]

I gotta agree with Sorcerer about Hollywood. I was going to suggest it, just based on the OP's criteria.

I, however, live on the edge of Hancock Park in Mid-Wilshire and it's nice. I pay less than $1000, all the utilities are included and they allow dogs! The building, and all the ones on my street and in my neighborhood are WELL maintained. I walk (and I mean I really get around) all over this part of town and it's culturally diverse, architecturally interesting and safe. So, Mid-Wilshire might be a place to investigate as well.

[Sorcerer68]

Originally Posted by lalagonegaga

I gotta agree with Sorcerer about Hollywood. I was going to suggest it, just based on the OP's criteria.

I, however, live on the edge of Hancock Park in Mid-Wilshire and it's nice. I pay less than $1000, all the utilities are included and they allow dogs! The building, and all the ones on my street and in my neighborhood are WELL maintained. I walk (and I mean I really get around) all over this part of town and it's culturally diverse, architecturally interesting and safe. So, Mid-Wilshire might be a place to investigate as well.

I know exactly where you live, it's very nice there. It gets quiet quickly as you move south...my only concern...but definitely pretty.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

The area around Alvarado Park might be tempting because it is so cheap. Don't be fooled! Three weeks ago, my friend's brother, who lived in a government subsidized apartment in that area, was attacked and cripled by "Hispanic-power." He's moving "home" now and very sick of L.A. My advice to you: Pay a little more and live in a nice area where you won't get jacked!

He was in the airforce and got stationed at the LA base from Virginia.. Let me tell you this.. nothing in by his VA base or even ritzy Boulder, CO compares to the slums of LA.

$600-800 for a one bedroom = slums.

[MySecretSelf]

I was just checking for someone else who needs a two bedroom place, but I'm pretty sure there were some one bedrooms within your price range. A bit far from Hollywood/Santa Monica, but closer to Hermosa Beach.