40-45k for single, renter, frugal millennial in OC, LA or SD? (Long Beach: apartment, condos)

[lshore7]

Hi all, I'd like to move to SoCal but I keep hearing the horror stories about COL, and flocks of millions leaving CA because everything is too expensive. (Why I don't hear as much complaints about a few major East Coast cities that are also very expensive, I don't know why...)

I believe that to some extent COL depends on lifestyle choices. (The crowd who have 2-3 kids and have to own a home and have 2 new cars will of course say there's no way I could make it with CA COL.) I'd like to lay out some assumptions about my lifestyle and was wondering if you could tell me how doable SoCal areas are on my budget.


Background and lifestyle assumptions:
- 26 yr old East Asian male
- Have lived in DC, Seattle and many years in the Chicago suburbs
- Income: $40k now (but with side work could go up to 45-50k)
- 20k+ in savings, no college debt
- Have a 2 year old car, $250/month car payment, mostly paid off
- Would NOT be looking to buy a house ever, possibly a condo someday
- I'm open to renting for many, many years, and having housemates at least until I'm in a serious dating relationship or marriage (I like to have mobility in case of job change)
- I do NOT want to have any children (people say that changes when you meet someone, but I will be looking for a like-minded gf/wife who also does not want children)
- I'm a stereotypical millennial I guess. Although I had a great upbringing, I'm not interested in the unrealistic and for the most part unobtainable lifestyle of my baby boomer parents. I want to live a simple life within my means, but in an area of the country I want to live
- I'm quite frugal, buy clothes at Target etc, take care of things so they last
- Not materialistic, not looking to "keep up with the Joneses" (You won't see me buying an entry-level Mercedes C Class trying to show people that "I made it")
- I'm open to OC, LA, and SD areas (I have visited all three areas, have probably spent the most time in SD though)
- Would like a good dating scene (typically date within my race) but seems like all of SoCal would be good for that
- Most of my activities don't cost anything/much -- I like hiking and biking, nature/outdoor activities


Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[Count David]

Sounds doable, as long as your expectations stay low. Will be easiest in SD, hardest in OC.

Hope you find a mate that shares your ideology. Hard to stick to it when you have another person influencing it all the time (speaking from experience here).

Pay off the car though.

[recycled]

I have been a renter in OC for almost 15 years. For a single person living in CA, with an income of 40K to 50K, you will not be in a high state tax bracket. I earn over twice your income, and I paid 6.5 percent in CA state income taxes last year. You will be in a much lower bracket. If you earn 40K to 50K, I think that is enough to live here, but you won't have much leftover after paying for rent and all the other typical expenses.

If you lived in Wash DC, you will find COL in southern California is comparable with some things less, some more. Wash DC has a much better transit system, so that is a plus for that area. I lived in NYC metro area (Jersey suburbs of NYC) and COL for me as a single renter of a modest 1 BR apartment in OC is overall less than in Jersey burbs of NYC.

If you find a place to live that is no more than 10 or 15 miles from the coast, you will find the climate is very mild. It means you won't need to use heat or air conditioning very much, and that means low utility bills. I pay on average $10 per month for natural gas and $20 for electric power. Some months are higher and some are lower than average. This covers my utilities for a 1 BR apartment.

If you are able to prepare your meals at home most of the time, so you don't have to eat out all the time, that will also save you a lot. You will find better selection of fresh fruits and veggies in California than almost anywhere else, and food here does not cost more than most other places. Many fresh foods are less than other places, depending on where you shop. I don't go to Whole Foods, I shop at a local Persian market that has great food and great prices.

[ysr_racer]

Don't be a renter at 50, or you're a renter for life.

[lshore7]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

Sounds doable, as long as your expectations stay low. Will be easiest in SD, hardest in OC.

Hope you find a mate that shares your ideology. Hard to stick to it when you have another person influencing it all the time (speaking from experience here).

Pay off the car though.

If SD would be easiest, and OC the hardest, which areas around LA would you recommend? It seems like LB/Belmont Shores area is reasonable rent/condos and I've heard some good things (bike friendly, plenty of younger crowd). Or any other reasonably priced cities you guys would recommend that are sort of between LA and OC? I guess commute time will be a factor but I'm just trying to get an idea of areas that might fit what I'm looking for.

[Protege]

The cost of living in Long Beach should be much lower than where you previously lived.

The hottest women in SoCal are in OC beach cities and there's no close second. It's not necessary to live there though since Long Beach has plenty of attractive girls and I think you'd like it there. It's often said that people in LB and LA are more social, while those in OC tend to be more insular - the kinds of people you can easily group into cliques (surfer, MMA guy, country guy with a truck, etc.), who never leave their cities, and have the same friends at 30 that they had at 15. Surprisingly boring considering how much money they have. Having a social circle seems to be more important in OC (there also isn't much to do besides the beach and house parties), whereas LB and SD might be better for making friends and dating. I haven't been to SD for a long time now but it's a great city and everyone seems to like it there.

[DinsdalePirahna]

Long Beach or Hubntington BEach may work for you. Get a roommate and you will do just fine...

[k374]

Originally Posted by lshore7

(Why I don't hear as much complaints about a few major East Coast cities that are also very expensive, I don't know why...)

because in other east coast cities usually the downtown and close to downtown areas are expensive, generally due to the compact nature of these cities places there are reasonably affordable are usually available within 40mins to an hour of commuting time.

LA is very different in that every single area within an hour of any job center is astronomically expensive (which in my view is 7 to 10 times the median household income - around $75k/yr or so). Given LA and Orange county's legendary traffic an hour really doesn't get you very far. In LA/OC there are only two price levels - "very high" and "astronomically high"

However, LA and OC also have a large number of very affluent people (old money and those who bought multi million dollar homes in the 70s when it was worth 2 nickels) but then you also have a large majority of posers who don't make the kind of money needed to afford this lifestyle but they do it anyway - they don't really care about living on the very financial edge to have what they want - whether it be homes, cars, vacations etc. it's all about the image.

[nightlysparrow]

You didn't say anything about your career or where you would be working.

[LuvSouthOC]

OP sounds like a very level headed person. I love his discipline and his way of thinking. He belongs in OC, and not in SD. I have a strong suspicious he will stay here, and make it here. Maybe OP will enjoy going to LA on occasion for fun or he may even seek career opportunities there using OC as a springboard. In either case, he should stay here.