Cost of Living in Los Angeles (apartment, renting, insurance)

[drunk on kool aid]

Bear in mind that in the U.S., most services require a tip/gratuity. Standard rate is/was 15% but it has trended closer to 20% and although meant to be a reflection of your satisfaction with the service, it's pretty much a fixed cost. Practically non-existent service still warrants 15%. So, add in the cost of tipping to all restaurant (except fast food), bar (a dollar/drink minimum) and service bills. The tip is only supposed to cover the pre-sales tax subtotal but many people calculate the tip from the total on the receipt which includes sales tax, and consequently, overtipping.

I believe that in the dusty past, haircuts and a few other services didn't require tipping but that is no longer the case.

Regarding haircuts, there are chains such as Supercuts and Fantastic Sams which offer cuts alone for roughly $12-20.

We also have a state sales tax on non-food items which varies a bit depending on the city(?) but is generally 9.75% so add 10% to your budget for goods.

Personally, I wish all taxes and tips were included in the advertised price but I seem to be in the minority on this.

[MissThreadBare]

Sorry, I forgot to mention the Tuesday thing. In Oz, on what is affectionately nicknamed "tight @rse Tuesdays", all movie tickets are discounted and a lot of restaurants do cheaper meals/meal deals. The video stores also signicantly discount their rental prices for the day.

[user_id]

Most theaters charge a few dollars less if you go before 4~5.

[MissThreadBare]

In regards to public tranport, I will be commuting between Santa Monica and UCLA. Are weekly passes availble or would I have to buy a ticket each day? Either way, what cost would I be looking at?

I'd also like to know what people put aside as fun money each week. Right now I use up about $AUS100 (approx $US85) per week for spending on such things as going to the movies, getting takeaway a couple of nights a week, maybe some DVD hires, a couple of food court meals, magazines and incidentals during the week. Would this be a reasonable amount of fun money to put aside in the States? Keeping in mind that I live pretty frivolously at the moment, though I am not a big drinker or party animal.

[KnoxTown]

Originally Posted by MissThreadBare

Yup. And Marlboros are one of the more expensive brands. Is that cheap or expensive compared to US prices?

I pay a little under 6 a pack for Marlboros. If you want to save a little money, you can get them at places like Costco(not much cheaper however).

[sepid]

hell all

actually i am moving to LA with my spouse and have no imagination for cost of living there .can you let meknow what should be the medium income for affording renting 1bedroom appartment and other necessary living needs like food per month?

[TurcoLoco]

MissThreadBare, looking at your initial thread and your list, regardless of the cost, it can't be much of a living if you are actually consuming all that crap!

[paladinking]

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[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

Originally Posted by sepid

hell all

actually i am moving to LA with my spouse and have no imagination for cost of living there .can you let meknow what should be the medium income for affording renting 1bedroom appartment and other necessary living needs like food per month?

Generally speaking many building owners want you to have a gross income or pretax income of 3X the monthly rent. Currently you can find places that rent for $1,200 a month although I am not too sure on the quality of the place. You would need to make before taxes $3,600 a month between you and your spouse. Let it be noted that many places may ask for 3X the rent from people that are renting together that may not be married, meaning that each renter in a room mate situation would have to make 3X the rent. Don't know how much or what you eat. You can live quite cheaply on beans, rice, and ramen though. LOL

[Ceece]

Moving to CA would be the perfect time to quit smoking if you were of the mind to do so. Not just to save $ but to be healthier too.

I really don't think the overall costs of day to day things are that much different in CA than most other places in the US or the equivalent in other countries. Certain SPECIFIC things, of course, are what's going to get you no matter which way you are moving. In CA it's usually state taxes, housing costs (rent, energy, etc) and vehicle related expenses.