East Coasters in Los Angeles, please help! Need to choose neighborhood. (San Diego: apartment, rental)

[bhcompy]

So, basically, you want to bring east coast politics, east coast cities, and east coast homes to the west coast. Good luck with that.

[Jay100]

Stay in New York! You're not going to find NY in LA and vice versa.

[Catherine Sinclair]

Can't Relocating for work. BUT, based on what we're hearing about Silver Lake, it sounds like we'd find at a least a similar-ish crowd enough to be comfortable. We said we'd aim high and bargain! Silver Lake wins. Who knows? Maybe we'll end up loving it.

[Jay100]

Sure you can. Just decline the offer. Baddaboom?

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Catherine Sinclair

having to move to Los Angeles
near future
neighborhood that is as un-"LA" as possible
can afford up to $3.5 mil on our house





need to live in a neighborhood that -- if not diverse in and of itself -- is at least close to black neighborhoods.
where our kids can go to a black church or be immersed in the black community


a neighborhood that has a higher population of, I don't know, professors or more serious-minded types than,


a neighborhood that has a lot of trees and shade, that has homes that could be mistaken for the East Coast, and that doesn't look as shiny and new as so much of LA.

Are you familiar with CA property taxes and what they would be on a home approaching $3.5M? Just want to ensure your estimate of affordability is realistic.

Not sure if your description of geographic separation of classes/demographics is accurate. There aren't many four mile radii in Los Angeles that the poorest don't live with the wealthiest or the Hispanic or the black or the white don't live with each other. There are exceptions (Malibu, Ventura County, Orange County come to mind - but they aren't Los Angeles), but poor neighborhoods are not much farther than four miles from wealthy neighborhoods. Black neighborhoods aren't too far away from white neighborhoods - this is only within the City of Los Angeles. Ventura County and Orange County couldn't be described this way.

Finally, there really aren't too many "shiny and new" neighborhoods in the City of Los Angeles. There are outside the city - but not too many within a commuting distance of motion picture employment or legal community hubs (downtown, Century City, Beverly Hills, etc).


Where are your jobs going to be? That is probably the first thing the forum needs to know.

What does "near term" mean? One month, six months, one year?

Might you consider renting first?

Is it required that both of you find employment prior to moving? Prior to buying a home?

[eastcoastlover]

I lived in silverlake for a while, just above Glendale blvd. Loved it, but didn't think I would at first. Always lived on the westside so the vibe was new to me. We lived in the hills, great workout. I'm sure alot has changed since I lived there.

I agree with the op, perhaps rent in an area and explore the city. With that kind of investment, you don't want to rush.

I personally would live in Venice or Santa Monica if I had that budget. I lived in Venice and rollerblades every day. Nothing like the ease of beach life.

Was also thinking of culver city near Sony studios. Nice homes back in that area.

I would love to be able to move back to ny but hubby is a tv editor so that's what keeps us here. We are thinking about it though.

Good luck.

[dcl256]

Hey Catherine,

I'm from the East Coast as well so I definitely can relate to some of what you're saying and Silver Lake does sound like a good choice. I really like it here for the most part and I seriously could not imagine living in many other parts of the city. It's really diverse, safe, has good food and walkability, and I believe some of the schools are pretty decent. You could probably get a really great house too; the architecture is really cool in a lot of spots. Highly recommended.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Catherine Sinclair

our children will be

Originally Posted by dcl256

I believe some of the schools are pretty decent.

With the exception of Ivanhoe Elementary, most schools in that area are Great Schools 5 or below out of 10. Not good.

http://schoolperformancemaps.com/ca/...3%2C14%2C1%2C2

[Lovetheoutdoors]

Originally Posted by jay100

stay in new york! You're not going to find ny in la and vice versa.

thank you!!!

[uptown_urbanist]

Please, everyone, keep it polite and try to answer the question.

To the OP: your vision of LA is totally the opposite of mine, but then again, I didn't live in Brentwood. It sounds kind of like someone living on the Upper East Side and then expecting that that one neighborhood represented all of NYC.

I love Pasadena, but it's a long trek from the westside. Silverlake is nice, although I prefer Los Feliz, but that's partly because Los Feliz has easier public transportation connections and to me seems more overall walkable in useful ways. SIlverlake sounds like it could be a decent match for you, though, although it does feel like LA. (not the stereotypical myth LA that you were describing in your first post, but not like NYC)