Moving to LA/OC...Looking for advice (Long Beach, Huntington Beach: apartments, rentals)

[Imperial2030]

Hello all,

I am 25 moving from downtown Chicago to the LA/OC area in the next couple of months. I have taken a job that allows me to afford a decent place, which for me is a 2 bed 2 bath place with full amenities such as granite, washer/dryer, central A/C, etc...

I am planning on working in Cerritos but wanted to hear opinions about living closer to LA versus OC. I primarily have been looking at Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Long Beach, Huntington Beach, and by LA...Hancock Park, Beverly Hills, Marina Del Rey. What are everyone's thoughts on these areas/affordabilty?

I typically am looking for areas with nice nightlife for my age group, nice restaurants and things to do. I am single so looking to meet others. I do somewhat like suburbia and that atmosphere but am coming from downtown Chicago so could deal with an urban enviroment as well.

How is living Beverly Hills? Is it even worth attempting to live in this area if you don't bank? I am taking a position with a significant step up in salary and want to see what I realistiically can afford. I know some people that live southeast of Hancock Park and seem to like it but I know little about this area.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[bhcompy]

I would not look at LA(anywhere) as the commute would be terrible. I would focus my search on Long Beach and possibly Fullerton. Huntington Beach is a decent option as well, but no further south. If you like Huntington Beach, you could add Sunset Beach, Surfside, and Seal Beach to your list because they offer a lot of the same options.

Sunset and Surfside are expensive and have upscale residents while still being an interesting surftown type of atmosphere and being right next door to nightlife in Huntington and 20min from Long Beach. Seal is next door and more laid back, but there are some nice apartments, a nice downtown, and a more laid back nightlife that revolves around the irish pubs, main street, the pier, and the beach itself.

Long Beach will get you both urban(downtown), semi-urban(belmont shore, east arts district, bluff park, etc), and suburban(bixby knolls, east long beach/el dorado/etc) areas. There is nightlife in Long Beach, nice restaurants in the area, and you have access to LA over freeway or rail and access to Orange county.

I don't know too much about Fullerton other than what's discussed in the forums, but it is affordable and seems to be a happening place for people your age.

As far as housing, keep in mind that most of the apartment stock in the area is old and not going to have the amenities you're looking for, like central A/C, washer hookups, and granite countertops. You'd be better off looking for a newer condo to rent instead, since condos went up fairly regularly in the housing boom. Downtown Long Beach probably has a nice selection available as they converted a lot of old buildings into lofts and condos and such. Now that I've said that, you can probably find some very nice apartments around CSULB that meet what you're looking for to some extent because I'm sure out of the 50k students they have some of them have the money and desire for that type of apt.

Pricewise, I couldn't tell you for highend stuff, but a decent 2bed apt without all the frills will run you 1200-1600 in a decent to great area.

For a condo, you'll probably want to check Westside Rentals or the Pennysaver or something

[Arkadin]

Originally Posted by Imperial2030

Hello all,

I am 25 moving from downtown Chicago to the LA/OC area in the next couple of months. I have taken a job that allows me to afford a decent place, which for me is a 2 bed 2 bath place with full amenities such as granite, washer/dryer, central A/C, etc...

I am planning on working in Cerritos but wanted to hear opinions about living closer to LA versus OC. I primarily have been looking at Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Long Beach, Huntington Beach, and by LA...Hancock Park, Beverly Hills, Marina Del Rey. What are everyone's thoughts on these areas/affordabilty?

I typically am looking for areas with nice nightlife for my age group, nice restaurants and things to do. I am single so looking to meet others. I do somewhat like suburbia and that atmosphere but am coming from downtown Chicago so could deal with an urban enviroment as well.

How is living Beverly Hills? Is it even worth attempting to live in this area if you don't bank? I am taking a position with a significant step up in salary and want to see what I realistiically can afford. I know some people that live southeast of Hancock Park and seem to like it but I know little about this area.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

What kind of job, what's your profession?

[NaplesRes]

Belmont Shore

[cabolissa]

How do you know what you can afford (granite countertops) if you don't know where you'll live? Just curious! Rent varies highly among the areas you mentioned.

I'd stick to OC myself, because otherwise you'll be spending 2-4 hours a day in your car (1-2 hrs each way from LA...Hancock Park, Beverly Hills, Marina Del Rey)

[Imperial2030]

I plan on renting and I already know what I can afford. The additional amenities are essentially a must for any place I want to rent so I wanted to get as many estimates on cost based upon location that I could. LA is sounding like too much of a hassle leading me to look more in the OC.

[bhcompy]

i would just contact a realtor in the area you're looking for that specializes in condo and townhouse rentals

[cabolissa]

Originally Posted by bhcompy

i would just contact a realtor in the area you're looking for that specializes in condo and townhouse rentals

I agree. We can't really help you much if you don't give a price range.

Also try craigslist...

[Imperial2030]

I have been all over craiglist for a couple of weeks now and have found that to be the best source for rentals thus far. As for my price range I'm looking anywhere from 2000-2500 a month in rent.